The huge protests rocking Venezuela, which began in early April, were triggered by a decision of its Supreme Court to assume the powers of Venezuela’s National Assembly in violation of the country’s Constitution. In response, President Nicolás Maduro has responded with an iron fist. More than 50 people have been killed, 1,000 injured, and 2,700 arrested, and that last figure doesn’t include the country’s more than 180 long-term political prisoners. The Organization of American States is considering action against Venezuela under its Democratic Charter for Mr. Maduro’s brazen transition to authoritarian rule.

But the international community also has a responsibility to protect the people of Venezuela and to respond urgently to its economic and humanitarian crisis.

It is hard to overstate the severity of the suffering of the 31 million people of this once-rich country. Today Venezuela faces acute hyperinflation, which has led to widespread shortages of basic supplies, including food. A recent national study showed that an astonishing 75 percent of Venezuelans have lost 19 pounds in weight from food shortages and one-third of Venezuela’s people, some 10 million, are eating no more than two meals a day.

Image President Nicolás Maduro clenching his fist after the official announcement of the decree calling for rewriting the Constitution in Caracas this month. Credit... Federico Parra/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

The Venezuela Medical Federation estimates that hospitals lack 98 percent of needed medical supplies and 85 of 100 drugs are totally unavailable. As a result, in the last year, some 11,500 infants died before their first birthday and maternal mortality rose 65 percent. Cases of malaria are up 76 percent and diphtheria, which had been eradicated 20 years ago, has returned to Venezuela. Mr. Maduro fired his health minister after she recently made these statistics public.