Canada concerned over free speech rights in Venezuela

[steven johnson]

Source: AFP

Canada concerned over free speech rights in Venezuela
(AFP) – 7 hours ago

OTTAWA — Canada decried Thursday Venezuela's decision over the weekend to yank six cable TV stations off the air, saying the move was "evidence of a shrinking democratic space" in the South American country.

"Canada is concerned over the Venezuelan government's recent suspension of broadcasting of six television stations and the death of two students in protests related to this action," Kent said in a statement.

"These events are further evidence of a shrinking democratic space in Venezuela."

Kent urged Caracas, which allowed three of the stations to go back on the air Wednesday, to reverse the closures. Those outlets were TV Chile, American Network and Ritmo Son.

Venezuela closed the six cable television stations -- including one which had been highly critical of the government -- on Sunday, citing a new law requiring all "national media outlets" to broadcast speeches made by government officials.



Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gObgbBmeBplvQQ4H0eNt4f47tkow

---

So, Hugo Chavez continues to cloak himself in populism while trampeling on human rights.

Chávez es un payaso, pero es un payaso peligroso

[marmar]

1. Stephen "Prorouge Parliament" Harper's government is concerned about freedom and democracy?

:rofl:

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[polly7]

29. Exactly!

Too chicken to deal with the Afghanistan abuse issue, too hypocritical to acknowledge his own attempts at shutting down speech on any issue that scares the poor boy here, and here he is harping on someone else? Does the man have no shame? Forget that ........ obviously, NOPE. And he's darn proud of it.

Blech on Harper.

[fascisthunter]

32. too funny, isn't it... I love when Right Wingers Talk about Freedom

ironic

[Wilms]

2. Trampling human rights? Got a link for that?

I'm not aware that speech has been curtailed. And that's not at issue with the cable companies refusing to carry those stations.

Spin.

[steven johnson]

4. Nice to see the Venezuelan Propaganda Machine is alive and well -- here is the link

http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/01/26/venezuela-stop-abusing-broadcast-powers

[Wilms]

5. You call that a link about the trampling of human rights?

I call that rude.

If you have a link proving human rights trampling, share it. Otherwise. please don't waste the time of the forum members. These distractions disrupt our ability to study the issue fairly.

Thanks in advance.

[EFerrari]

15. Except Pinochet apologist Vivanco is "mistaken"

and I say mistaken as an act of generosity. He doesn't make the law in Venezuela. And he's also "mistaken" about due process. These stations were warned and now they are suspended. Whether they go back on the air or not is probably up to them.

In fact, his charges all reek and he doesn't support them.

What a waste of space he is.

[Prometheus Bound]

6. He went to Venezuela without even visiting Chavez? What's that about?

He met with "representatives of civil society, members of Parliament and business leaders" and visited a synagogue.
http://www.shalomlife.com/eng/4039/Peter_Kent_Visits_Synagogues_in_Venezuela_and_Bolivia/
http://www.peterkent.ca/EN/8128/104458

[Elmore Furth]

7. Yes -- meeting the devil won't elicit the truth

[daleo]

8. Harper wants a piece of Venezuela's tar sands

He just can't get enough of that sweet sticky stuff.

[amandabeech]

21. Actually, the tar sands are in Canada and are producing,

and that is in addition to various grades of regular oil.

There is no reason for Canada to covet Venezuela's heavy oil deposits.

[boppers]

9. Canada? CANADA?

Wow.

[WriteDown]

10. Stupid Canadians!

How dare they denigrate St. Hugo.

[steven johnson]

12. And these stupid Venezuelan students who just live in the country -- what do they know?

Christian Science Monitor
Arthur Bright Correspondent / January 26, 2010

"Venezuelan students took to the streets Monday to protest the government's decision to ban six TV stations, including the frequent voice of criticism Radio Caracas Television (RCTV), from broadcasting. The ban has provoked international concern, as some see it as an effort by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, who faces parliamentary elections this year, to silence political opponents."


"The Los Angeles Times reports that the protests began after cable companies dropped the stations from their transmissions in compliance with government orders. The Venezuelan government declared that the stations had violated Venezuelan telecommunications laws by failing to broadcast Mr. Chávez's speeches."


http://www.csmonitor.com/World/terrorism-security/2010/0126/Venezuelan-students-protest-Chavez-s-TV-censorship

[steven johnson]

13. Police break up Venezuela student march with tear gas -- 1/28/10

So Chavez is in danger of being over thrown by students? Sounds like he's pretty weak to me.

CARACAS, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Venezuelan police used tear gas to disperse students protesting chronic electricity shortages as leftist President Hugo Chavez faced growing complaints over deteriorating public services.

A group of several thousand opposition student demonstrators were marching toward the headquarters of the state electricity agency when police dispersed them. Local media reported two students and one police officer were injured.

Authorities are preparing to renew a power-rationing plan for the capital, Caracas, after Chavez scrapped an earlier effort that left the city in chaos and angered his supporters who were already struggling with restricted water supplies.

The students want university experts to help develop the rationing plans and the government, which controls the electricity, to increase investments in the sector.

Police break up Venezuela student march with tear gas

[Lydia Leftcoast]

20. And that NEVER happens in the U.S., no...

:sarcasm:

For your information, I was about 20 feet behind some people who got tear-gassed in Portland, Oregon in 2003 protesting a visit by Cheney. I saw people running into a convenience store to buy water to rinse out their friends' eyes with. And the Darth Vader cops were out in full force.

[Regret My New Name]

37. Did you support that move by the police then?

[EFerrari]

39. These "student" organizations in Venezuela -- or some of them, to be fair,

are funded by the IRI and they become quite violent. They set fire to property and in the run up to the omnibus referendum, attacked a college and proceeded to assault the students they found there. They're not all your average protesters. (I've been to countless protests and have never seen anything like it myself.)

So, it's a hard call. Chavez took a lot of heat for letting these people run riot in the past. This looks like a correction. Obviously, it's not desirable for the police to gas anyone.

What you're not hearing is that the first fatality in these demonstration was a supporter of the Administration. Our news is skewed.

[ChangoLoa]

43. The violent acts you're mentioning were committed by Chavez supporters

in the university of Mérida (ULA). Whenever there's a demonstration of protest against the government, a counter demonstration in support is organized. This time, they set fire to Omar Lares' house (opp) and 2 or 3 buildings in the ULA. As usual, the police didn't intervene against the red shirted militias. The violent opp demonstrators were breaking stuff, making barricades in the streets and throwing stones at the police. But those were very well circumscribed by the police.

After 2002, Chavez has never let opp people run riot, they have always been repressed with teargas, rubber bullets and pro-govt civil militias. ALWAYS.

[EFerrari]

16. What do you have against free speech?

Why shouldn't these students protest?

And where is this international concern? I'd like to see it. Usually these concern trolls appear just before elections. :)

[provis99]

11. And this from Harper, who shat all over the Canadian Constitution by proroguing Parliament.

Get serious dude. If Harper criticizes Venezuela, its a sign that Venezuela is doing something right, especially the way that Harper has been trying to wipe out the CBC, the only non-right wing news media left in Canada. If you want to side with right-wing goons like Stephen Harper rather than defend under siege leftists like Chavez, perhaps the Cato Institute or freeperville will be more to your liking.

[EFerrari]

14. This is the same Canada that refused Amy Goodman entry to give a lecture.

LOL

And nothing was "yanked", thanks AFP. Six stations were suspended because they were in violation of Venezuelan law. Some of them are already in discussions about what is need to go back onto cable.

[steven johnson]

17. "Venezuela's drift to authoritarianism" -- It's not just Canada

I thought you marxists from Venezuela understood that history was going to eat you ***holes alive with the arising of the working class.

Wolf sheds fleece
Hugo Chávez worries ever less about maintaining a semblance of democracy
Jan 28th 2010

AFP
Make sure you film me on my good sideOPPONENTS of Hugo Chávez have often bewailed his knack of cloaking authoritarianism in outwardly democratic forms. So perhaps they should be grateful that the Venezuelan president is increasingly abandoning the pretence. On January 23rd—a date on which the country commemorates the 1958 uprising that ousted its last military dictator—cable-television operators were told to stop carrying RCTV, a pro-opposition channel. It was the latest in a series of recent moves that have placed Mr Chávez’s elected regime within a hair’s breadth of dictatorship.

Three years ago RCTV’s broadcasting licence was not renewed, confining it to cable. Now the government has ruled that, despite being a cable channel, it (and many other channels) must obey a broadcasting law that requires it, among other things, to transmit the president’s lengthy speeches live, whenever he feels like it. The urge came over him almost immediately, at a political rally. When RCTV declined to oblige him, its fate was sealed.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (part of the Organisation of American States) complained that RCTV and the other channels had been punished without due process, and called for their rights to be restored. The response of the regime, which has repeatedly snubbed the regional body, was to blow a raspberry.

Venezuelans are due to vote for a new parliament in September. Last year Mr Chávez won a referendum he had called to abolish term limits for presidents and other senior elected officials. Now, opinion polls are showing unprecedented levels of discontent over crime, inflation, and power and water shortages. There were big anti-government protests in Caracas, the capital, after RCTV was shut off, which were countered by the government’s more modest rally.


Venezuela's drift to authoritarianism

[EFerrari]

23. You're quoting a right wing rag and calling me a Marxist?

Senator McCarthy, welcome to DU!

:rofl:

[boppers]

38. refused Amy Goodman entry? I think you might be confused, or I might have missed something....

Amy Goodman has been questioned at the border, but refused entry? That would be new... Link?

[doc03]

18. Well thanks to the SCOTUS Hugo has all the freedom

of speech money can buy in the USA through Citgo Corp.

[gula]

19. Talk about muzzling free speech

How does this, the most secretive government ever, dare to condemn another country. Harper and his cronies should all be shipped off to a place of no return.

For those of you who understand French, there was an interesting bit on Enquiry tonight re the shut-down of opposing views and the consequences to those who dare to state them.

http://www.radio-canada.ca/emissions/enquete/2009-2010/#

[amandabeech]

22. Perhaps this is a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

It is possible that neither government is particularly interested in preserving what we here would call free speech or traditional democracy.

I don't like Harper's actions toward the Canadian Parliament, and, to me, some of Chavez's actions recently haven't looked too good either.

Don't worry, I thought Bush II was a threat to the Bill of Rights here, too. I'm greatly relieved to have Obama in charge despite my near outrage at his economics team.

Nothing in my book short of real war, and I'm talking something like the U.S. Civil War or WWII, excuses abridgement of free speech and other rights guaranteed by our Constitution and Bill of Rights. Nothing in my book excuses any interference with legislative bodies, period. And yes, I know Canada has the parliamentary system.

[EFerrari]

24. There's nothing wrong with free speech or democracy in Venezuela.

The media is actually less consolidated than when Chavez took office and their elections are more transparent than ours.

There are, however, weekly or biweekly hit pieces attacking both in the corporate media.

[Spazito]

25. Ahhh, Harper, our (Canada's) own bush wanna-be...

we are SO proud :sarcasm:

The bastard is the last person to talk about human rights, he and his cabal are up to their necks in a scandal conserning Afghanistan detainees so they SHUT DOWN Parliament to try and cover it up.


He is being laughed at by the delegates at Davos and no one could be more deserving of it, imo.

[Quasimodem]

26. Peter Kent?

You mean Peter Kent, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the Americas for the prorogued Harper-led Conservative government in Canadian, which is currently not in session to avoid answering questions about charges that they knowing allowed prisoners to be turned over to Afghanistan torturers? That Peter Kent is now making noises about the decline in democracy in Venezuela?

What gall!

[Ter]

27. Pot calling the kettle black

Canada itself does not have free speech.

[iverglas]

42. post 44

That's for you too, bubba.


(typo fixed)

[dipsydoodle]

28. Yawn

.

[Billy Burnett]

30. This comment coming from a nation under dictatorship, where the Queen's rep. shuts down parliament.

The Queen of England, I might add, had her representative shut down the Canadian parliament last year and stopped a coalition government from taking form.

Canada should clean it's own democratic back yard before commenting on other nation's back yards.

[iverglas]

41. are you this stupid, or just this incivil?

Forgive the resurrecting of a dormant thread. I don't look at this place at all these days, and just stopped in for a peek.

It just goes downhill, doesn't it?

Pig-ignorant, ethnocentric, nay, bigoted, noise like this, on a democratic/Democratic/progressive/liberal/blahblah/yadayada discussion forum. Being this ignorant of another culture and denigrating that culture based on nothing but one's own ignorance -- yup, bigotry.

... Of course, if the ignorance isn't genuine, but merely feigned, well, that qualifies directly.

I shouldn't be surprised, I know, and yet somehow I still manage to be.

[Name removed]

31. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Socal31]

33. Of course some here will continue to turn a blind eye to what is happening in Venezuela.

[EFerrari]

34. LOL. Of course, there are "some here" that swallow any swill the MSM feeds them.

[Socal31]

35. Automatically dismissing everything you read, because it doesnt fit your view of the world...

Is just as bad as automatically swallowing what does fit your view.

[EFerrari]

36. Yes, it is, precisely. Or would be were it the case. n/t

[MellowDem]

40. "Canada is gathering forces on the island of Barbados...

for a probable invasion against the Venezuelan people! Why, just yesterday, I saw five Candian fighter jets buzz my presidential house, and the Canadian pilots gave me the finger!"

- El Presidente Chavez