Venezuelan students from 17 universities on Tuesday called for a nationwide strike to protest the government's closure of a leading TV station on Sunday.

On the second consecutive day of demonstrations, the student protesters also showed up outside the Organization of American States's office in Caracas.

In a statement delivered to the OAS, they asked President Hugo Chavez's administration to respect the right to protest and criticized Interior Minister Pedro Carreno for ordering the use of force against demonstrators.

The rally outside the OAS building was observed by 600 policemen, part of the 3000-strong Metropolitan Police contingent deployed in the capital amid the large protests.

In a separate statement, the students condemned the suppression of Monday's demonstrations, during which many students were wounded.

They also rebutted accusations made by the state channel Venezuelan Television (VTV) that the students were criminals, coup plotters and destabilizing factors, and maintained they were only asserting their right to free expression.

Tuesday also saw a rival demonstration by pro-government students who marched from the Bolivarian University of Venezuela to Morelos Square, where government supporters had rallied since Monday to celebrate the termination of broadcasts by the RCTV channel.

RCTV, which started broadcasting in 1953, ended operations Sunday night when its license expired and which the government of President Chavez refused to renew on the grounds that the broadcaster backed a 2002 coup against Chavez, which kept him out of power for 48 hours.

Source: Xinhua