Venezuelans have taken to the streets in recent days , leading to gruesome clashes between protesters and police . Their demands are varied , from economic to social . Here 's a Q and A to bring you up to speed with what 's going on . When did the protests in Venezuela begin ? Nationwide student protests started this month . On February 12 , the demonstrations attracted global attention when three people were killed . Demonstrators are demanding better security , an end to goods shortages and protected freedom of speech . Major social and economic problems have fueled the protests . But as the demonstrations gained steam , officials have pointed fingers at other factors and accused the United States of plotting to destabilize the government . Some blame Venezuela 's government , led by President Nicolas Maduro , for those problems . Maduro and other officials blame the opposition for the security and economic problems . The protests are the largest Maduro has faced in his 11 months in power . He has called opposition members fascists and compared them to an infection that needs to be cured . Who 's protesting ? Many demonstrators across the country are students , but prominent opposition politicians have also joined marches . Since February 13 , more than 2,000 stories from Venezuela have been uploaded to iReport , CNN 's user-generated platform . Many of the videos and photos are gruesome , and depict violent scenes between demonstrators and police . Who are some of the opposition figures involved ? You 'll be hearing a lot about opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez in the coming days . He 's become the opposition 's face of demonstrations against the government . Lopez was detained this week on terrorism and murder charges , but prosecutors dropped those charges , replacing them with arson and conspiracy counts , his lawyer said Thursday . What did Lopez do ? Lopez was arrested in connection with the deaths of four anti-government protesters and a government supporter in clashes nationwide . He was targeted because he organized protests . He has denied the charges , which the human rights group Amnesty International said `` smack of a politically motivated attempt to silence dissent in the country . '' Human Rights Watch weighed in , too , warning that Venezuela must avoid `` scapegoating '' political opponents . You mentioned something about a U.S. plot to destabilize Venezuela ... Yes . Top Venezuelan officials have accused the United States of trying to destabilize the government . This week , Venezuela gave three U.S. diplomats 48 hours to leave the country , accusing them of conspiring to bring down the government . At a rally Tuesday , Maduro shouted , `` Yankee , go home '' from the stage , drawing cheers from the crowd . U.S. President Barack Obama was not amused . `` Venezuela , rather than trying to distract from its own failings by making up false accusations against diplomats from the United States , the government ought to focus on addressing the legitimate grievances of the Venezuelan people , '' Obama said . Is this the first time Venezuela has had protests ? No . Bitter protests and counterprotests by supporters and opponents of the government have threatened political stability in Venezuela over the past decade . Many of Maduro 's claims -- of U.S. intervention , of assassination plots -- were also lobbed by the late President Hugo Chavez . Chavez was briefly ousted in a coup in 2002 , but otherwise outlasted the protests and repeatedly won re-election . What happened to Hugo Chavez ? He ruled for 14 years until his death last year after a long battle with cancer . Maduro , who was then his vice president , won the presidential election and is now running the country . What 's the latest ? Lopez remained in a military prison Thursday . His wife , Lilian Tintori de Lopez , called on supporters to keep the pressure on the government . `` Do n't give up , '' she said . `` I wo n't . '' Tell me more about Venezuela . Venezuela is on the northern coast of South America and shares a border with Colombia , Brazil and Guyana . Its formal name is the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela . The oil-rich nation -- one of the world 's top 10 oil exporting countries worldwide -- has a population of about 30 million .
Murder , terror charges against opposition leader Lopez dropped ; new charges brought . Score: 6 They attracted global attention when three people were killed . Protesters want better security , an end to goods shortages , protected freedom of speech .