Venezuela’s president promises to revamp country’s police force
Venezuela’s president promises to revamp country’s police force
Nicolás Maduro announces measure after two police were incriminated in murder of pro-government politician
Virginia López in Caracas
The Guardian, Tuesday 28 October 2014 15.19 EDT
Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro has promised to launch a thorough purge of the country’s police force after two of its members were incriminated in the gruesome murder of a pro-government politician earlier this month.
The announcement was made during the swearing-in of the new minister of justice, Carmen Melendez, whom President Maduro entrusted with the task of “revolutionising the police”.
“Let’s go deep in our construction of a police system worthy of our fatherland. We need a revolution of the police force here in Venezuela, and I will carry it out without delay, without excuses”, said president Maduro during the televised event on Monday night.
Maduro said that police officers had taken part in the murder of Robert Serra, a rising star in the country’s ruling United Socialist party (PSUV). Serra and his assistant, Maria Herrera, were stabbed to death in the deputy’s home on 1 October. To date, nine people have been detained in a case which has awakened fears of an escalation in political violence in the deeply divided nation.
According to Maduro, two attempts against the president of the national assembly, Diosdado Cabello, and the minister of education, Hector Navarro, were prevented in the days following Serra’s assassination.
During the ceremony, Maduro said that the group of municipal policemen detained had “betrayed their oath” and conspired with Colombian paramilitaries to assassinate Serra. The investigation of the murder had revealed evidence that “small groups of police officers” were in the pay of criminal groups, he said.
More:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/28/venezuela-president-to-revamp-police-force
