Venezuelan Supreme Court tears up opposition appeals to int'l organizations

Venezuela's Supreme Court (TSJ) ruled Wednesday to suspend two sessions of the National Assembly from May, during which opposition lawmakers had called for international organisations to intervene in the country.

On May 10, the opposition Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) approved a document, blaming the president, the TSJ and the National Electoral Council for "violating the Constitution...and not preserving democracy in Venezuela."

In this document, the MUD asked the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Organization of American States (OAS) to pressure the government of Venezuela to "adopt measures...to guarantee rights" to the Venezuelan people.

The opposition also highlighted that the country is living "its worst republican crisis, due to the severe lack of food."

The justices of the TSJ decided to cancel the session and invalidate its decisions since "the AN (National Assembly) took actions directed at international organizations...that are not proper given the constitutional order."

The court also suspended the session of May 31, when the MUD passed an "agreement to back the interests of the international community" and asked the Group of Seven, the OAS, the Union of South American Nations, the Common Market of the South and the Vatican to take steps to address the economic crisis in Venezuela.

The TSJ wrote that National Assembly Speaker Henry Ramos Allup "should stop pretending to lead the country's foreign relations." Enditem