Six weeks on, it's now the 'March of the Grandparents' against Venezuela President Maduro

Venezuela's nearly six-week long protest against the embattled government under President Nicolas Maduro and his efforts to rewrite the constitution saw increased support from unexpected corners, as elderly citizens frustrated with medical shortages and the prevailing economic crisis in the country took to the streets on Friday demanding elections.

Venezuela's nearly six-week long protest against the embattled government under President Nicolas Maduro and his efforts to rewrite the constitution saw increased support from unexpected corners, as elderly citizens frustrated with medical shortages and the prevailing economic crisis in the country took to the streets on Friday demanding elections. (Photo | AP) 

The protest, marked as the 'March of the Grandparents', comes on the heels of six weeks of political unrest that have already claimed the lives of around 40 people. (Photo | AP)

The elderly protesters tried to make their way to the office of the national ombudsman in the national capital, that is associated with standing up for citizens' rights, but were blocked by lines of police officers. A woman holds a handwritten message that reads in Spanish: 'Maduro Murderer' during the protest. (Photo | AP)

The protesters have tried to reach the office on several previous marches, but have been consistently pushed back with tear gas and rubber bullets. (Photo | AP)

An elderly man affected by tear gas during the protest. (Photo | AP)

A woman holds a sullied Venezuelan flag during the protest.(Photo | AP)

Many of the elderly protesters said it made them angry to see a once prosperous nation devolve into a country with triple-digit inflation, shortages of basic necessities like food and medicine and one of the world's highest homicide rates. (Photo | AP)

Some elderly Venezuelans, however, dressed in red to support the government tried marching to the presidential palace. A man derides police blocking a march of aged protesters.(Photo | AP)

A man charges at a cordon of police blocking older Venezuelans from marching to the Ombudsman's Office in protest of President Maduro in Caracas. (Photo | AP)

President Maduro's vow to resolve the country's crisis by convoking a special assembly to rewrite the nation's constitution has further infuriated the opposition. Protesters' handprints and a message that reads in Spanish: 'Long live the grandparents, no more repression' canvas iron barriers set up along a highway. (Photo | AP)