Online and Off, Protesters Are Bombarding Venezuela's Government

Protests in Venezuela grew Thursday as opposition leaders seek a more stable economy and an end to violent retaliations against the protestors. In addition to marches across the country, hackers associated with Anonymous have apparently taken down several government websites and photos of the violence have begun to circulate widely on social media.

This is how we protest in 2014: It appears to be an all-out assault that's happening in local media, on the streets, on social media, and online.

@RebeldiaCivil estudiantes en Altamira pic.twitter.com/ZWivkquvdJ

— LulzSec_Vzla (@Lulzsec_vzla) February 13, 2014

Nicolas Maduro’s presidency has been rocky ever since he was elected in a special election last year after Hugo Chavez’s death. The country is facing extreme economic uncertainty as its currency becomes hyper-inflated. Maduro has said that foreign governments such as the United States have plans to overthrow him, but recent protests in Caracas and Lara seem to have come from within in the country.

Amnesty International has asked for an “urgent” investigation of the events surrounding the deaths of three protesters in Caracas during what started as a peaceful student protest in the capital.

“The Venezuelan authorities have to show us that they are truly dedicated to the freedom of expression, assembly, and protest,” Guadalupe Marengo, co-director of Amnesty International’s Americas department told El Impulso, the oldest newspaper in the country. “They need to guarantee people can participate in protests without being mistreated, detained, or killed.”

10h44 RT @El_incorrecto_: En estos momentos se están llevando detenidos a los estudiantes en Alta vista Puerto Ordaz pic.twitter.com/SHeRdRowym

— LulzSec_Vzla (@Lulzsec_vzla) February 13, 2014

In addition to those deaths, 19 protesters have been arrested in recent days and Maduro just ordered the arrest of Lepoldo Lopez, founder of the political party that is opposes Maduro.

Maduro said that the actions of Lopez’s Voluntad Popular political party have amounted to an “attempted coup.”

El Impulso has also gotten in on the protest: Inflation and currency controls in the country have forced the newspaper to cut the number of sections it prints from four to one due to a lack of paper in the country. An ad on the paper’s website said “we continue to wait” and “without paper, there’s no newspaper.”

Thursday’s attacks on Venezuelan government websites were apparently done by TeamHackArgentino, a group of five activists affiliated with Anonymous. In the early goings, government websites were changed to show pictures of dead protesters on the streets and said things like “get out Maduro” and “fuck the government.” Right now, it appears as though several, but not all, government websites have come back online. TeamHackArgentino claims that the government is trying to block Internet connections from protesters in the country and sent out a guide to avoiding those blocks. Photos that are allegedly from the protests are beginning to circulate on social media, which show bloodied students and more violent clashes with police.

It's unclear whether the protests will be short-lived or an ongoing thing that could potentially end Maduro's presidency. Venezuelans have come to the brink of overthrowing the government before, but came away with the same leader in place. In 2002, coup leaders detained Hugo Chavez for 36-hours before military forces returned him to power.