Jeremy Corbyn has been accused of not fully understanding the crisis gripping Venezuela by a senior member of the country's opposition as Labour MPs criticised their leader's failure to directly condemn President Nicolas Maduro.
Mr Corbyn has denounced the violence inflicted by "all sides" despite pressure to personally criticise Mr Maduro, who has been accused of behaving like the "dictator of an evil regime" by Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.
Juan Andres Mejia, founding member and national director of one of the Venezuelan opposition parties, Popular Will, suggested Mr Corbyn does not fully know what is happening as the country slides further into turmoil.
Mr Corbyn, who has previously supported the country's left-wing governments, remained silent in recent weeks as Mr Maduro cracked down on his enemies following a widely disputed vote which gave his ruling socialist party near unlimited powers.
The president called the vote for a constitutional assembly to overhaul Venezuela's political system in May after a month of protests against his government, which has overseen the country's descent into a devastating crisis during its four years in power.
Plunging oil prices and widespread corruption have left the formerly prosperous nation struggling with widespread shortages of food and medicine.
Mr Mejia told BBC Newsnight: "What I would say to Jeremy Corbyn is that he really has to know what's going on in our country to be able to make a statement.
"Violence has not been done by both sides. Violence has been promoted by the government.
"They have armed paramilitary groups that have taken the lives of hundreds of people in Venezuela. And maybe the mothers and fathers of those that have been killed would be willing to speak to Jeremy Corbyn to explain and to tell him what the real situation has been."
Labour MP Graham Jones, who chairs a new all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on Venezuela, said the United Socialist Party of Venezuela of Mr Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chavez "have destroyed an economy despite being oil rich, abused human rights and replaced democracy with authoritarianism backed by military might".
He went on: "That's why we should be standing against the regime and for the values we hold."
Veteran Labour MP Frank Field told the Press Association: "Voters in this country expect future prime ministers to be robust in defending the independence of the judiciary, respect for human rights and a parliamentary process."
Fellow Labour MP and former minister John Spellar, who is also a member of the Venezuela APPG, said Mr Corbyn should "come down clearly, recognise the failure of the regime, the political crisis that that has created and to stand firmly with the people of Venezuela and the proper constitutional bodies", adding that the leader's statement "doesn't do that".
Labour MP Angela Smith, another member of the APPG, said: "The vitally important question is whether or not democracy can survive in Venezuela, given the recent actions of Maduro's government, and Corbyn needs to make it clear that he is on the side of democracy."
Responding for the Tories, International Development Secretary Priti Patel said: "Incredibly, Jeremy Corbyn has flat out refused to condemn the brutal regime championed by his socialist ally and friend President Maduro.
"What will it take for Corbyn to finally urge Maduro to stop the violence, the human rights abuses, the poverty and the killings?"
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable said: "The leadership of the Labour Party must make it abundantly clear that they have ended their infatuation with the Venezuelan regime."
On Monday, Mr Corbyn said he was "very sad" about the lives lost in Venezuela and called for "a dialogue and a process that respects the independence of the judiciary and respects the human rights of all".
Asked whether he condemned Mr Maduro's actions, Mr Corbyn said: "What I condemn is the violence that's been done by any side, by all sides, in all this. Violence is not going to solve the issue."
As a backbencher, Mr Corbyn hailed Mr Chavez as an "inspiration to all of us fighting back against austerity and neo-liberal economics in Europe".
He supported parliamentary motions linked to the country, including one which congratulated Mr Maduro on his election as president, and called for closer ties with Caracas.