More civil unrest in Venezuela as president seeks new constitution

CARACAS, Venezuela — People blocked streets in Caracas with broken concrete, twisted metal and flaming piles of trash Tuesday to protest the socialist president’s bid to rewrite the constitution amid a rapidly escalating political crisis.

President Nicolas Maduro signed a decree Monday to begin the process of rewriting the charter. Opposition leaders called the planned constitutional assembly a ploy to put off regional elections scheduled for this year and a presidential election that was to be held in 2018.

Polling suggests the socialists would lose both those elections badly at a time of widespread anger over triple-digit inflation and shortages of food and other goods.

On Tuesday, the opposition-majority congress officially rejected Maduro’s move to call a constitutional congress, saying the idea should first be put to a vote of Venezuelans. It was a symbolic gesture because the legislative body has no power to block a constitutional assembly.

The president was vague about how members of the assembly would be chosen. He hinted some would be selected by voters, but many observers expect the selection process to favor the socialists.

Speaking hours after yet another big anti-government march ended in rock throwing and tear gas Monday, Maduro said a new constitution is needed to restore peace.

“This will be a citizens’ assembly made up of workers,” he said. “The day has come brothers. Don’t fail me now.”

“I am no Mussolini,” he added.

If the constitutional process goes forward, opposition leaders will need to focus on getting at least some sympathetic figures included in the assembly. That could distract them from organizing the near-daily street protests that have kept up for four weeks, political analyst Luis Vicente Leon said.

“It’s a way of calling elections that uses up energy but does not carry risk, because it’s not a universal, direct and secret vote,” Leon said. “And it has the effect of pushing out the possibility of elections this year and probably next year, as well.”