14-year-old is shot dead in Venezuelan protest

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Another tragic death has resulted from Venezuela’s anti-government protests on Tuesday: a 14-year-old boy who was shot and killed in the midst of violence between pro and anti-government protest in the State of Tachira

In San Cristobal a policeman shot 14-year old Kluiver Roa in the head, according to Reuters. The policeman was arrested for shooting Roa, and President Nicolas Maduro has already condemned the murder, yet local residents are outraged and distraught over the young student’s death.

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This is just the latest tragedy to emerge from the discord in Venezuela. Over the past year, over 40 deaths associated with the anti-government protests have occurred, with violence from both the protesters’ side and the law enforcement’s side.

Many of the protests of the past year have been fueled by students like Roa, who had joined a group of hooded protesters on Tuesday. Officials said that the protestors were throwing stones and clashing with the police, leading to confusion and ultimately, to the death of a 14-year-old — who some say was actually an innocent bystander, but reports are conflicting.

“These hooded protestors intercepted four police officers, snatched their motorbikes and to get rid of the protesters, one of the officials shot at the ground,” said Colonel Ramon Cabezas.

 “When the protesters scattered… we saw the students lifting the body of this youngster from beneath a car, we don’t know for now how he got there.”

San Cristobal has been a hot spot for protests in recent weeks, although nothing has yet compared to the city’s fiery protests last year. In this Venezuelan city, students have protested against the government because of corruption, violence, and lack of basic goods like toilet paper and medicine.

Venezuelan citizens are also outraged over the authorities’ responses to the protests.

“How are you going to shoot point-blank at a student who’s just leaving school to go home?” Local resident Glenda Luco demanded, according to The Guardian. “We’re tired of this injustice.”

Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado mirrored this sentiment. “There are no words to transmit my pain and indignation,” she said. “They’ve killed a 14-year-ld child. A kid protesting with his classmates.”

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While Maduro’s party has condemned the murder of Roa and offered condolences to his family, the government’s policies are largely to blame for this violence.

Last month, Maduro’s government officially issued a policy that allows law enforcement officials to use deadly force and violence to control protests if necessary. Human rights groups have expressed concern that the policy is dangerously vague and could lead to deaths of innocent people.