Many Venezuelan streets were empty after barricades were set up on Thursday for a general strike called for by opponents of President Nicolas Maduro as they demand a new presidential election and that he not move forward with his plans to alter the constitution, according to Reuters.
Many businesses shut down for the day as the majority-backed opposition staged their "Zero Hour" attempt including a 24-hour civil disobedience campaign of a shutdown of life in Venezuela.
“We are seeing empty streets and most shops closed,” said opposition leader Henrique Capriles while touring the city of Caracas on foot.
Many private transportation groups listened to the strike call while neighborhoods set up their own homemade barriers for the streets made of found rubbish and furniture.
There were some scattered fights early in the morning as security forces fired tear gas at protesters that were manning barricades.
Some of the poorer neighborhoods of Caracas were also operating as usual, with many shops and people on the street.
But after four months of unrest that has led to almost 100 people killed in protests, thousands injured, and hundreds more jailed, many say that they are willing to continue the fight.
“There is a grave danger of violence on a scale so far unseen,” the International Crisis Group warned in a report about the Venezuelan protest violence from the National Guard and paramilitary militias that are supported by Maduro.
Clashes have been almost daily since the opposition Democratic Unity coalition and the youth-led "Resistance" movements took to the streets in April after a continually declining economy made life unbearably difficult for those unable to afford basic necessities like food and medicine.
The latest death was earlier this week in the coastal town of Lecheria, who was burnt to death according to media and authorities.
The 2.8 million public employees and state business and ministries remained open on Thursday, though one 51-year old engineer at a state steel plant in Sidor said, "I'm on strike 'in my heart' because if we don't turn up, they will fire us."
"The Constituent Assembly is going ahead!" PDVSA president Eulogio Del Pino said on state TV, surrounded by red-shirted oil workers in Monagas state chanting "they will not return" in reference to opposition aspirations to take power.
Some people were unhappy with the idea of a general strike, saying it would cost them money and prevent them from seeking food during a severe economic crisis.
"How can I eat if I don't work?" said Jose Ramon, 50, chopping bananas and watermelon at his fruit stall in a market in the Catia district.
While many Venezuelan stores were shut down due to the four-year recession, this year's attempt at a general strike seemed to be successful by mid-Thursday, especially compared to attempts last year that were dismantled by the government threatening to seize any closed businesses.
There has also been an increase in foreign pressure on Maduro against his Constitutional Assembly plan to rewrite the constitution and possibly impede democratic processes in other institutions.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. was threatening U.S. sanctions if the July 30 vote went ahead for the assembly, as the opposition is boycotting the vote whose rules seem to favor the government majority even with the minority having more popular support.
Colombia, France, Spain, and the EU have also urged the Venezuelan government to cancel the election.
Former Mexican President Vicente Fox attended the referendum held last Sunday and spoke out against Maduro, who later declared him a "persona non grata" and banned him from ever re-entering Venezuela.
Maduro claims that those trying to unseat him are foreign agents that are bent on bringing down the Socialist government built by his popular predecessor Hugo Chavez.
