Venezuela’s new Constitution establishes a number of mechanisms for citizen participation in the political process. This includes anything from input on new bills, planning and decision as well as the possibility of calling refrenda on issues or to revoke anyone elected within the terms of the Constitution. Some of these rights are, in my mind, too cumbersome for a working democracy, but they are there. Now the Chavez administration and his party Movimiento Quinta Republica (MVR) are getting ready to propose to the National Assembly (which they control) a bill that will regulate these mechanisms of participation.
If anyone still believes that Hugo Chavez and his MVR have any concern for democracy, free speech or civil rights. I quote directly from the proposed bill, written, proposed and supported only by Chavez’s Deputies in teh National Assembly (Translated by me as acurately as possible);
“Article 6. paragraph 2. Participation requires of a State policy in all its instances and levels, to guarantee true and plural information to all citizens and to facilitate access to the same media for the free exercise of freedom speech”
Imagine this, the State is the guarantor of truth and plural information. Sounds like censorship to me, but read on.
“Article 52 Paragraph 3. Any call for a referendum…..Equally, the next day following publication, it will be broadcast for free through the communications media, both private and public, if it is a natioanl refrendum and by those of teh areas affected by it in the other cases. This publication will bee done for free up to three times during teh campaign”
Paragraph 4. All communicatiosn media, both private and public, will have to disseminate for free an isntitutional campaign to promote citizen participation, without the possibility of giving an opinion as to the content of the vote.
Again I ask why? If private media have to do this for free, why should the state have radio or TV stations or even newspapers. I thought that these were in charge of doing this. Once again this is like a new tax.
Now it gets even better
“Article 59, pargraph 4. The National Electoral Council will have to watch so that all communications media, both public and private, provide an equilibrated treatment in news broadcasts, opinion programs and debates of the positions for or against the question taht is the object of a referendum. Not fullfilling this by any media will be sanctioned according to this law and others that regulate the matter”
Read: CENSORSHIP. This is simply outright censorship. As an example, imagine a referendum to impeach President Chavez, the media will have to provide balanced views of for and against, even in the case that 90% of tehe popalation is in favor of impeaching him. Moreover, if you don’t do so, your concession may be closed. Hello!! Freedom of Speech???. Imagine the minimun group of people possible get together to ask for a referendum and they have to have 50% propaganda. Sounds like limiting freedom of speech to me.
So, no matter what teh topic, how many people, or anything the media will have to provide free services. Why? Is this a new tax, only on the media?
“Article 131: For the control of the fullfillemnt of the acces to all media, truth and impartiality by all citizens……the National Council of Supervision of the media is created”
The actual word in Spanish for supervision used in the bill is “vigilancia”. I guess the name of the Council says it all. Censorship, censorship, censorship.
There are many others articles such as one with penalties for devoting unequal time or presence of one group over the other. The absence of groups. The absence of contrasting opinions. Need I say more? This is the Government that some international Human Right and Freedom of Speech organizations want to support. Wake up HRW, OAS, Carter Center at al., this miltaristic, repressive and dictatorial Government may charm you into beliveing in them, but we see it everyday and can’t be fooled!!
The Devil's Excrement 
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