US Senate panel approves Venezuela sanctions
http://www.ticotimes.net/2014/05/20/us-senate-panel-approves-venezuela-sanctions
WASHINGTON, D.C. A U.S. Senate committee on Tuesday greenlighted new sanctions on Venezuelan officials responsible for violent crackdowns against anti-government student protesters that have left 42 people dead.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 13-2 in favor of the sanctions draft, which now goes to the Senate floor and is on track for possible passage by Congress.
The bill would allow President Barack Obama to freeze assets and ban U.S. visits by any current or former Venezuelan government official responsible for directing significant acts of violence or serious human rights abuses against persons associated with the anti-government protests in Venezuela.
It also allows the White House to crack down on those who ordered the arrest or prosecution of demonstrators, or who are deemed as having provided assistance including financial support for such acts.