Venezuela bans protests ahead of Constituent Assembly vote

(Vatican Radio)  Venezuelan Authorities have banned all protests against Sunday's election for the Constituent Assembly, threatening jail terms for those who dare to disobey.

Listen to James Blears' report:

The protest ban extends from Friday until Tuesday.  The election for the 545 seats Constituent Assembly is scheduled for Sunday. 

Venezuelan Minister of the Interior, Nestor Reverol, is warning that those who defy the ban could be jailed for between five and ten years.

However, the opposition plans to do just that. They've already announced there will be a mass protest on Friday.

President Nicolas Maduro is calling for dialogue with the opposition, urging it to: "Abandon the road to insurrection." 

Yet he's stressing the election will indeed go ahead. The opposition has countered, declaring they'll boycott it and demonstrate against it.

US President Donald Trump is promising what he says will be more strong and swift economic actions if the vote for the Venezuelan Constituent Assembly goes ahead.