Thousands of Venezuelans have protested in the oil city of Maracaibo against an attempt to arrest an opposition politician on corruption charges.Activists from different opposition political parties who took part in the march on Friday spoke out against the attempt to detain Manuel Rosales. They said it was a case of political persecution by Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president.
A former presidential candidate, Rosales is the mayor of Maracaibo, the country's second largest city and the capital of Zulia state.
Addressing Friday's rally, he said: "There is no justice in Venezuela. But we will continue fighting."
Antonio Ledezma, the mayor of Venezuela's capital Caracas, said: "What they want to do to Manuel Rosales is not a trial, it's a political lynching."
Oscar Perez, an opposition politician, said: "The persecution of the opposition is beginning. And I'm sure that Rosales won't be the last to go to jail."