Curious recriminations after a power outage in Venezuela

power failures in Venezuela more often, but this time, it hit the whole country. The Maduro government has instructed the people to stay at home. She accuses a U.S. Senator of a cyber attack. The responded with sarcasm.

to stay Because of the massive power failure, students and workers in Venezuela are to home. The lessons from the case today, public and private Employees would not have to appear at their work places, said Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez. So the repair should be simplified to work.

Yesterday afternoon (local time) in the crisis country of a major power outage that almost all the Federal States were affected. Also in the capital, Caracas, there was no electricity. There, the lights came on only eight hours later - at least in part, how a Reporter reports.

Many of the shops, like this closed restaurant in a shopping center in Caracas, remained.

No trade, no traffic lights, no U-Bahn

The Blackout put the - the crisis is already limited - public life in the country virtually to a complete standstill. Trade and money transactions were no longer possible in many cases because most of the transactions are done electronically with credit card payment. Hyperinflation has devalued the national currency, the Bolivar, the practical and the cash transaction succumb.

In Caracas, there was a traffic chaos, because the U-Bahn and traffic lights were also out. In a clinic In the East of the capital, the emergency generators failed. Residents of the city because of the widespread crime, as one of the most dangerous in the world, tried to come before dark to go home.

Because the U-drove rail, many other people crowded in front of the buses, which were still on the road.

Maduro: "the current war against our people"

The left-nationalist government of President Nicolás Maduro and the state energy company Corpoelec spoke of a "Sabotage"act against the largest hydroelectric power plant in the country, the Guri. The plant is one of the largest in Latin America. "This is part of the current war against the state," wrote the group in the short message service Twitter. Details on the alleged Sabotage-action, the company mentioned.

Maduro made the USA for the loss of power responsible. On Twitter, the left-nationalist language of a "by the American imperialism announced and led current war against our people".

Minister: "the commands of the US Senator Rubio"

communications Minister Jorge Rodríguez said that it was a cyber attack. Right-wing extremists, the assigning of commands to the Republican US Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, were behind the attack and wanted to nullify the whole System.

The government has done their opponents in the past for current failures. Of this time, as the mastermind, which has been pilloried Rubio took refuge in sarcasm. "I must have pressed on the App 'Electronic attack', which I downloaded from Apple, is the wrong thing. - My mistake," he tweeted.

US: "Maduro's policy is nothing but darkness"

The self-transition President Juan Guaidó called, however, Maduro's government made for the loss of power responsible. "The people know that the light comes on, if the unlawful end takeover," he wrote on Twitter. Guaidó head of state, Maduro's legitimacy, and wants to take over the business of the government.

Also, US Secretary of state Mike Pompeo criticized Maduro, who is not recognized by Washington any longer as the legitimate President. "Maduro's policy brings nothing but darkness," he wrote on Twitter. "No food, no medicine, now no power. Soon: not a Maduro."

power outage in Venezuela
tagesschau 14:00, 08.03.2019, Thomas, Aders, SWR

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