Christmas is coming early to Venezuela this year – in just a few weeks, announces the country's president Nicolás Maduro.
As a tribute to you and to show you my gratitude, I will move Christmas to October 1, said Maduro in a TV broadcast on Monday.
It's not the first time he has chosen to move the Christmas celebrations since he took power after his mentor and predecessor in the post – Hugo Chávez – passed away from cancer in 2013.
The move takes place in the turmoil that has followed the election in July, in which both Maduro and the opposition declared themselves winners. The unrest has so far claimed 27 lives, while nearly 200 people have been injured and around 2,400 have been arrested.
Maduro's claim to victory has been questioned by several Latin American countries, the USA, and the EU.
