14 arrested for looting, disturbing peace in SE Venezuela

Some 14 people have been arrested on charges of looting and disturbing peace in southeast Venezuela, amid a bumpy countrywide rollout of new banknotes, a minister said on Saturday.

Minister of the Interior, Justice and Peace Nestor Reverol said the arrests were made in recent days in the state of Bolivar, with half of the suspects identified as members of a criminal ring called "Los Cultios."

Over the weekend of Dec. 16-18, some 450 shops were vandalized, the Federation of Chambers of Commerce reported.

The looting and other crimes have purportedly been sparked by a cash crunch caused by a rocky banknote switch. According to the government, the foreign printer of new bills failed to deliver cash on time, delaying the process and leading to a cash shortage.

The rollout, extended until Jan. 2, will see the current 100-bolivar bills of the highest denomination, today worth just a fraction of a U.S. dollar, be taken out of circulation and replaced by bills of 500, 1,000, 2,000, 5,000, 10,000 and 20,000 bolivars.

With a runaway inflation and high prices, consumers have to lug bagfuls of the 100-bolivar notes to buy even basic items.

Venezuela's economy, which depends on oil exports, has been devastated by low oil prices. The socialist government says the right-wing opposition is also waging an economic war that has exacerbated the situation.

On Saturday, the right-wing coalition, known as the Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD), threatened to pull out of a national dialogue with the government brokered by the Vatican.

The two sides are to meet again on Jan. 13, but the MUD is accusing the government of failing to meet the conditions for continued talks.

Among the MUD demands are the release of opposition leaders convicted of crimes by the government, but considered "political prisoners" by the MUD; and an "electoral timetable" to move up elections with an eye to voting out the socialist government. Endi