Nicolás Maduro orders 3,000 troops to patrol Caracas in an effort to lower violent crime rate
The Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, has sent 3,000 troops on to the streets of the capital, Caracas, to crack down on rampant crime which has made the country one of the most dangerous in the world.
The "secure fatherland" plan is a new effort to lower violent crime following close to 20 similar attempts during the 14-year rule of the late socialist leader Hugo Chávez.
"Our armed forces are taking the streets to protect the people," Maduro said in a speech to military police and troops that was broadcast live on state television.
"I call on you to serve your country," he said.
"It must be more than just patrolling. It must a commitment of conscience, passion and love."
The plan will create around 500 checkpoints in the coming months around the city – 9,000 new police officers are currently in training and 1,600 National Guard officers will later join the programme.
The opposition has called it yet another half-baked attempt to crack down on crime, which has become the top concern for Venezuelans.
Official figures show that more than 16,000 people were killed in Venezuela in 2012, an increase of 14% from the year before and a murder rate of 55.2 per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the highest in the world.
Close to 3,400 have been killed this year alone. Non-governmental organisations that track violence report that the 2012 figure was above 21,000. The government accuses the media and the opposition of magnifying the problem and creating a "sensation of insecurity" for political gain.
One prominent human rights group criticised the new plan on the grounds that the military is trained to fight wars and to control public order, not to prevent crime. Chávez himself was highly critical of previous governments that used the military to break up demonstrations or protests.
Hundreds and possibly thousands of people were killed when the military suppressed riots sparked by a fuel price rise in 1989. "The armed forces are different now," said Maduro on Friday when asked about potential human rights abuses in an interview with the regional television station Telesur.
Maduro faces a delicate situation after winning a narrow victory in last month's election, which was triggered by Chávez's death. He fell considerably short of his former leader's resounding election victories, beating his rival by only 1.5 percentage points, and the opposition has refused to recognise the results.
Crime was considered one of the biggest shortcomings of the Chávez government, which was widely admired for expanding access to healthcare, investing in education and providing subsidised groceries for the poor.
The interior ministry recognises that many of the robberies, murders and kidnappings are carried out by "mafia" within the police forces themselves. Experts say the problem is rooted in a dysfunctional justice system, poor working conditions for police officers, and chaotic and gang-controlled prisons. Maduro, a 50-year-old former bus driver, said he would also seek limits on television programming that promotes violence and a "cult of weapons".