DORAL, FLA. (WSVN) - A group of supporters for a jailed opposition leader in Venezuela gathered at Governor Rick Scott’s rally to demand his release.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott held a rally in Doral Monday afternoon to talk about the crisis happening in Venezuela and to demand opposition leader Leopoldo López’s freedom.
“The situation in Venezuela is terrible. Think about the babies born without the right medicine, not having the right food, the families struggling to put food on the table,” Scott said, “people dying because they can’t get the right medicine or getting food, the protesters that are being arrested.”
Demonstrators have been voicing their opinions in Caracas and in cities across the country on nearly a daily basis since March because of the deteriorating situation in their country.
The economy is tanking and people don’t have food or medicine. Those who have been demonstrating are blaming the socialist president, Nicolás Maduro.
Protester Karym Salcedo in Doral explained why she’s fed up with the situation. “Can you believe a mother that is fighting because her baby is born premature, 7 and a half months in any country of the world, my nephew baby will survive,” she said, “but in my country, Venezuela, that is a shame. Maduro, this is shame.”
Salcedo also blames Maduro’s administration for the death of her niece who was born prematurely in 2016 and could not get an incubator.
Protests and clashes with police in Venezuela have become violent and at least 37 people have been killed. They have been asking about López’s welfare and whereabouts after reports went out last week that he was taken to a military hospital.
Protesters hope that they can alter Maduro’s efforts to change the constitution.
Reportedly, López spoke with his wife Sunday for the first time after he was detained for more than a month. His family and his attorneys claimed that they haven’t heard from him and don’t know where he was located.
Scott was able to put López’s wife on speaker at the rally to tell her about the crowd in South Florida who are hopeful for his eventual freedom and a change for Venezuela.
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