As the world cries foul over the military coup that deposed Manuel Zelaya, the president of Honduras, members of Venezuela’s opposition are taking desperate measures to highlight moves by president Hugo Chávez that they say are equally undemocratic.

Antonio Ledezma, the Caracas mayor who has been stripped of most of his power by Mr Chávez since his election last November, has embarked on a hunger strike. Since 11am on Friday, he has camped out on a mattress in the Caracas offices of the Organisation of American States, consuming only liquids. Mr Ledezma, 54, hopes his hunger strike will convince the OAS to denounce what he calls a “constitutional” coup against himself, along with the broader threat to democracy in Venezuela, just as it condemned the overthrow of Mr Zelaya in Honduras.