With guns prevalent, drugs rife and local militias often stronger than the police, the public security situation has reached alarming levels.

Venezuela has become one of the most dangerous countries in the world after a nearly fourfold rise in murders since 1998. In 2011, this country of 30 million people suffered almost as many killings as the US and the EU combined. Polls suggest this is now the major concern of voters.

The prison system has become a training ground for criminals. Mobsters run jails and administer lethal justice to inmates who refuse their orders. Attempts by the security forces to restore order and confiscate guns and drugs from cells have resulted in prolonged and deadly standoffs.

There have also been sporadic incidents of political violence. Earlier this week, a group of several dozen students was assaulted as they protested outside the supreme court and demanded more information about the health of Hugo Chávez. The attackers, some of whom were armed with pistols, scattered the students' encampment and set fire to their tents. A Colombian journalist was also attacked by an angry mob while trying to report at the military hospital where Chávez had been receiving treatment.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/06/hugo-chavez-four-challenges-venezuela