Famed Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel slammed President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday for using repression to quell protests after an 18-year-old musician and member of the country's youth orchestra program was killed at an anti-government rally.
At least 36 people have been killed in the unrest that began in late March, driven by accusations that Maduro is consolidating a dictatorship and anger over chronic product shortages that have left many struggling to eat.
"I urgently call on the President of the Republic and the national government to rectify and listen to the voice of the Venezuelan people," wrote Dudamel, 36, on his Facebook page.
"Times cannot be defined by the blood of our people. We owe our youth a hopeful world, a country where we can walk freely in dissent." .... http://www.reuters.com
