Human Rights Watch calls on Chavez to eliminate office to control public debate

Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:30 UTC

Full article 4 comments

Venezuela should close a recently created office that grants President Hugo Chávez administration broad powers to limit public debate, Human Rights Watch said Wednesday in a release. The government should also stop seeking to discredit human rights defenders and prosecuting critics. Read full article

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Forgetit87
Vivanco was a lackey of Pinochet's gov. Does a “human rights” NGO deserve credibility when its director has a history of support to a right-wing dictatorship? I'm not well informed on Venezuelan domestic affairs. As such, I won't comment on Chávez's relationship with Globovisión. But one thing I know, as a citizen of a South American country, is that media outlets in here are not impartial - perhaps they're less impartial than anywhere in the world. They have an agenda, and agenda with a clear conservative streak that includes the denigration of democratically elected left-leaning leaders in the region. Chávez's a clear autocratic streak, that is quite obvious. But one shouldn't take his dispute with the Ven. media as something that it isn't. And it isn't the struggle of an autocrat against means of communication that fight for freedom of expression or democracy. If Ven. media were in favour of democracy, they wouldn't have given positive coverage to the 2002 Ven. coup against the Chávez adm - a coup that was also openly fêted by media outlets continent-wide. On the one hand, a leftist politican who wants to impose his distorted worldview on Venezuelans; on the other hand, right-leaning media conglomerates that want to impose their distorted worldview on Venezuelans - that is all what the this struggle amounts to. That Chávez has authoritarians instincts, is merely a fact that the Venezuelan media exploit to portray themselves as pro-democracy.
Jul 22nd, 2010 - 06:20 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
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harrier61
Does anybody expect Chavez to pay any attention? He's only in power because he denies democratic and human rights.

Bit like asking a coyote to stop stealing animals killed by other predators.
Jul 22nd, 2010 - 06:22 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
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Forgetit87
“He's only in power because he denies democratic and human rights.”

He's in power because he was elected by his people - and elected twice, no less.
Jul 22nd, 2010 - 06:58 pm - Link - Report abuse 0
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harrier61
I quote:

“On 15 February 2009, Chávez won a referendum to eliminate term limits, allowing him to govern indefinitely. Polls show most Venezuelans do not want him to continue indefinitely; increasing concern over crime, the economy, and infrastructure; and increasing consolidation of power. A staunch former ally who was instrumental in returning Chávez to power in 2002, Raúl Baduel, broke with Chávez and accused him of being a tyrant.”

Says it all.
Jul 23rd, 2010 - 09:23 am - Link - Report abuse 0
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