Venezuela opposition: Maduro's government staged a coup

President Nicolas Maduro's government committed a coup d'etat by blocking a referendum on removing him from power, Venezuela's opposition-majority parliament accused. Furious over the electoral authorities' decision to suspend the process of organising a recall vote, opposition MPs on Sunday passed a resolution declaring "the breakdown of constitutional order" and "a coup d'etat committed by the Nicolas Maduro regime". In an emergency session on the economic and political crisis gripping the South American oil giant, MPs called on Venezuelans to "actively defend" the constitution by protesting. They also promised to request the international community to "activate mechanisms" to restore democracy. More…