CARACAS: Venezuela's high court Monday struck down an amnesty passed by opposition lawmakers to free those they describe as political prisoners at the urging of President Nicolas Maduro who is fighting a bid to force him from power.
The Supreme Court declared the measure -- which President Nicolas Maduro had challenged -- as unconstitutional in a ruling published on its website.
Explaining its lengthy decision, the court said the law includes "infractions that are acts of organized crime, which are not related to crimes of a political nature."
Maduro had accused the opposition of trying to sow divisions by passing the bill on March 29.
He had the choice of signing it, sending it back to the legislature for changes or challenging it before the Supreme Court.
One of the touchiest issues is some 75 opposition figures the amnesty measure describes as political prisoners, including protest leader Leopoldo Lopez.
Lopez was sentenced to 14 years in September on charges of inciting violence at anti-government protests that shook the country in 2014 and left 43 people dead.
His jailing has drawn international condemnation.
But Maduro, who accuses his opponents of seeking to oust him in a coup, said the bill aimed to free criminals.
On Thursday, Maduro told a crowd of thousands of supporters in front of the presidential palace that he had decided to ask the top court to invalidate the "criminal" amnesty bill.
"If this law is approved, Venezuela will enter into a cycle of civil war. We cannot allow it. Division and hatred will not reign in Venezuela. For there to be peace, there must be justice," Maduro said.
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