The arrests of an opposition politician and the owner of a television network for statements critical of the government of President Hugo Chavez have rekindled debate over freedom of speech and democracy in Venezuela.
Chavez supporters deny that the president’s critics are being persecuted, but others see the latest developments as a concerted attempt to silence opposition voices.
“Having an opinion in Venezuela is a crime punished with the loss of freedom. We reject everything that restricts freedom of expression in the country, and the witch hunts against those who assume dissident positions,” said Juan Jose Molina, an opposition member of the National Assembly.
On Monday, authorities arrested Oswaldo Alvarez Paz, a former opposition governor and presidential candidate who claimed on television that Venezuela has become a center of operations facilitating drug trafficking.
On Thursday, the president of Globovision, Guillermo Zuloaga, was arrested for statements he made in the Dutch island of Aruba. He was charged with the crime of spreading false information.
“These are not isolated events. It’s all intended to foster self-censorship, intimidation and the fear to freely express oneself,” several former governors said in a statement published in the press.
In both arrests, the request for investigations emanated from the National Assembly, which is dominated by pro-Chavez parties and faces September elections.
“The freedom of the legislative branch is non-existent and the National Assembly is being used by the executive to legitimize anti-democratic actions,” said Molina.
“It is the arm for carrying out the persecution of citizens. We are dismayed because the democratic rationale has been lost,” he added.
Nevertheless, the head of the assembly’s science, technology and communications committee, Manuel Villalba, said the owner of a media outlet does not have carte blanche to say anything he wants.
“This is a government that fully guarantees freedom of expression,” he said. “You can express your opinion but you also have to be aware that these opinions carry responsibilities.”
Defending herself against accusations of political persecution, Attorney General Luisa Ortega said that in Venezuela people are tried “for the crimes they allegedly committed without any distinction being made for political militancy.”
Various Venezuelan opposition leaders believe that the arrests are a reflection of the government’s weakness as it approaches legislative elections on Sept. 26.
According to reliable polls, Chavez’ popularity has fallen several points since January.
The government “knows that the citizens hold the president responsible for power outages, insecurity, cuts in water, and that’s why they think that with these acts of intimidation they will succeed in silencing the democratic leadership,” opposition Copei party leader Luis Ignacio Planas said.
“What these actions ... show is that they know they are in the minority and they attack democrats to generate a climate of hopelessness so that citizens won’t turn out to vote,” the opposition party Un Nuevo Tiempo said in a statement.
Outside Venezuela, the arrests were greeted with unease.
In a statement, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights expressed concern over “the lack of independence of the judicial branch” in Venezuela and “the use of the criminal justice system to punish critical expressions.”
The US State Department on Wednesday said it was “seriously concerned” about Alvarez Paz’s arrest, calling it “the latest example of [the Chavez administration’s] continuing assault on freedom of expression.”
The Venezuelan government responded Thursday night with a diplomatic note protesting US “interference.” Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro on Friday also rejected the criticism of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
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