Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday postponed the adoption of a landmark amnesty bill designed to end the use of courts to crack down on dissent after failing to reach an agreement on how to apply it.
Thousands of opposition supporters poured into the streets of Caracas to demand the release of all remaining political prisoners before debate on the bill began.
The amnesty is expected to cover all charges brought against dissidents who opposed the rule of ousted leader Nicolas Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chavez over the past 27 years.
Members of the National Assembly backed the bill on a first reading last week and had been expected to adopt it on Thursday after a second reading.
But it hit a snag, with pro-government and opposition lawmakers clashing over an article requiring would-be beneficiaries to appear in court to request the amnesty.
Opposition member Nora Bracho said that the requirement was "completely unnecessary" and said the amnesty should apply automatically to all the crimes covered by the law.
Pro-government lawmaker Iris Varela, however, argued it was important for beneficiaries to "acknowledge crimes they have committed" before having the cases against them closed.
Lawmakers agreed to continue the debate on February 19.
- 'Free and fair' -
The bill is the centerpiece of the reforms undertaken by acting President Delcy Rodriguez since Maduro's capture by US special forces in a deadly January 3 raid on Caracas.
It aims to turn the page on nearly three decades of state repression.
In an NBC News interview aired Thursday she went further, saying she was "absolutely" committed to holding free and fair elections.
"We will have elections in this country fair and free of course," she said, adding that the time frame would be decided as part of a future "political dialogue."
- 'We are not afraid' -
Rodriguez took Maduro's place with the consent of US President Donald Trump, on condition she toe his line.
The United States has taken over control of Venezuela's oil sales, with Trump vowing a share for Washington in the profits.
On Thursday, Rodriguez toured oil facilities with visiting US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who has pushed for a "dramatic" increase in Venezuela's oil output.
The Trump administration has also pressured Rodriguez to release political prisoners.
The amnesty under debate would potentially see hundreds of activists still behind bars walk free.
More than 400 political prisoners have been released since December but over 600 remain in detention, according to rights group Foro Penal.
The relatives of some inmates chained themselves to the Zona 7 detention center in Caracas on Thursday to demand their freedom.
As the post-Maduro transition takes hold, the fear instilled by the state is beginning to dissipate.
Thousands of opposition demonstrators reclaimed the streets of Caracas on Thursday.
"We are not afraid," they chanted, in their biggest show of force in years.
"We spend a lot of time underground, silent in the face of all the repression Venezuela experienced... but today we are rising up and uniting to put forward demands for the country," Dannalice Anza, a 26-year-old geography student, told AFP.
The ruling socialist party organized a counter-demonstration that attracted thousands of pro-Maduro youths.
- Treason and terrorism -
The amnesty bill covers charges of "treason," "terrorism" and spreading "hate" that were used to lock up dissidents.
Venezuela's attorney general Tarek William Saab told AFP that it should apply to opposition members and "chavistas," as supporters of Chavez and Maduro are known, alike.
That included Maduro himself, he said.
The amnesty also lifts bans on several opposition members, including Nobel Peace laureate Maria Corina Machado, on running for office.
Machado, a figure of hate for Chavistas, who is living in exile in the United States, has said she wants to return home soon.
Asked by NBC about Machado's eventual return, Rodriguez said ensuring her safety was "not something that is up to me."
She added that Machado would "have to answer to Venezuela" about her support for US sanctions and military action in the country.
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