Freedom of the Press

all the facts and news in Venezuela on Freedom of the Press and how it influences all decisions made by Hugo Chavez as president implications for Freedom of the Press of the Venezuelan people

Apr
7
2011
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In Case You Missed It… Venezuela’s militia: A Caribbean Tripoli?

Hugo Chávez grooms a militia
The Economist
April 7, 2011

IT IS a long way from Tripoli to Caracas. But although Hugo Chávez, unlike his friend and close ally Muammar Qaddafi, is an elected president, there are some striking similarities between the Libyan and Venezuelan regimes. Mr Chávez’s grassroots “communes” resemble Colonel Qaddafi’s “people’s committees”, for example. And a new decree, published last month, speeds up the creation of a sectarian militia like that which opened fire against unarmed protesters in Libya.

A year ago Mr Chávez assembled more than 30,000 uniformed, gun-toting militiamen and women for a parade in the centre of Caracas. Unsheathing a sword that belonged to Simón Bolívar, Venezuela’s independence hero, he led them in an oath to work tirelessly to “consolidate…the socialist revolution”. Officials claim that the militias total 125,000, and that the goal is to reach 2m. Sceptics put the number trained so far at under 25,000.

Under the new law, the Bolivarian militia will now have its own officers and will be commanded directly by the president. That is something the army previously resisted. But General Carlos Mata Figueroa, the defence minister, insists that the militia is a “complementary”, not parallel, force. According to Carlos Escarrá, a chavista legislator, it is “disingenuous” of opponents to suggest that the militia “will be a sort of praetorian guard for the president”.

Mr Chávez’s own statements suggest otherwise. The president has always said that his leftist “revolution” is “peaceful, but armed”, and that violence would ensue if it were to be thwarted. In December 2012 he faces a presidential election which opinion polls suggest he might lose. But both he and his top general, Henry Rangel Silva, have said that the armed forces would resist the orders of a post-Chávez government. According to General Rangel, the high command is “wedded to the political project” of Mr Chávez.

The officer corps may not be. A recently retired military dissident says only 10% are unconditional chavistas, with 20% constitutionalists and the rest pragmatic. If so, Mr Chávez’s decision to strengthen his paramilitary force may make sense to him. But it bodes ill for peace in Venezuela.

Like Colonel Qaddafi, Mr Chávez also has foreign fighters he may be able to count on in a fix. Venezuela has an unknown number of Cuban military advisers. Some sources say the Cubans give orders and (with Russians) run the intelligence service. But tens of thousands of Cubans, all with military training, have been deployed across the country as medical staff, sports instructors and the like. Many have defected and fled abroad. But some might defend the revolution, guns in hand.

Such a scenario is an explicit part of the government’s planning. Mr Chávez claims, and may even believe, that “the empire” (ie, the United States) is seeking an excuse to topple him by force. Colonel Qaddafi, he declared, “is doing what he has to do, resisting imperialist aggression”. The doctrine of Venezuela’s armed forces now includes a version of what Cuba calls “the war of all the people”. In theory, all Venezuelans must train to resist an occupier.

Many Venezuelans fear that the militia is really aimed at Mr Chávez’s domestic opponents. The president accuses the opposition leadership, almost daily, of being a fifth column for foreign capitalists desperate to grab the country’s oil. From there, it is a short step to imagining the chavista militia, armed with Russian Dragunov sniper-rifles, taking aim at counter-revolutionaries. “It is not possible to stage an unarmed revolution against this bourgeoisie,” Mr Chávez told his militia rally last year. Mere bravado, perhaps, but many Venezuelans fear he may be serious.

 
Apr
1
2011
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In Case You Missed It… Weekly Roundup: 4/1/2011

In this week’s roundup…from a controversial accolade to serious allegations of involvement in drug trafficking and his friendship with the embattled Iranian leader, President Chávez always makes for some interesting headlines.  To check out more on our musings find us on Twitter @whatsnextvz or via StumbleUpon.

U.S. Losing Big Drug Catch The Wall Street Journal
At the height of his power, Makled, a Venezuelan citizen of Syrian descent, smuggled 10 tons of cocaine a month into the US from Venezuela, according to officials. He controlled Venezuela’s most important port and allegedly added to his transport empire by, in effect, stealing an entire airline, according to a lawsuit in Venezuela filed by the airline’s former owner.

Debating the merits of a press prize for Venezuela’s Chávez Christian Science Monitor
Prompting an international debate on journalism philosophy appeared exactly what an Argentine university wanted when it awarded a prestigious press prize this week to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez.

Venezuela Aims To Pay Less Than $2.5B In Exxon, Conoco Case – PDVSA, The Wall Street Journal
CARACAS (Dow Jones)– Venezuela aims to pay less than $2.5 billion to Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) and ConocoPhillips (COP) for assets that the government expropriated nearly four years ago, a spokesman at the country’s state oil company confirmed Thursday.

Williams Files Arbitration Claim After Venezuelan Seizures, Bloomberg
Williams Companies Inc. filed for international arbitration against Venezuela, seeking compensation for two natural-gas compression facilities taken by President Hugo Chavez in 2009. Williams filed for arbitration with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes on March 25, said Jeff Pounds, a spokesman for the Tulsa, Oklahoma-based pipeline operator. He declined to comment on how much the company is seeking in compensation.

Chavez and Gaddafi — best friends forever?, The Washington Post
I recently wrote an article on the likely exile destinations Col. Moammar Gaddafi would have to choose from if he decides to flee Libya. Venezuela made the list, if for no other reason than President Hugo Chavez has been so outspoken in his support for the Libyan dictator. Even as Gaddafi revealed himself as a murderous tyrant willing to mow down his own citizens in order to cling to power, Chavez continue to voice his support for his “friend.”

Obama freezes out Chavez, while Iran comes courting, The Washington Times
During his five-day tour of Latin America, President Obama covered just about every hot-button topic – Libya, drug violence, immigration, trade – but not once did he publicly mention Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The omission stands in stark contrast to the danger that analysts say Mr. Chavez poses to U.S. foreign policy with his ever-deepening ties to Iran and continued support for guerrilla groups across Latin America.

 
Mar
25
2011
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In Case You Missed It…Articles Roundup Week of 3/25/11

In this week’s roundup…a new round of paranoid and delusional assertions from Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez coincide with proof of his dwindling popularity and a new scandal regarding state-owned PDVSA.

Venezuela’s Chavez Claims US Plans To Thwart His Reelection, The Wall Street Journal

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Sunday that the U.S. and its allies have plans to sabotage his bid for re-election in 2012 as part of an “imperial” doctrine to control the world’s oil supply. “I know of the plans that they have for Venezuela, infiltrate the country, create [unstable] conditions for 2012,” Chavez said. “They should not even think about it!” Speaking during his weekly program, “Hello! President,” Chavez also denounced the “indiscriminate bombing” of the UN-sanctioned military intervention in Libya as motivated by the oil-rich country’s resources.

Poll suggests Venezuelans split between pro- and anti-Chavez camps; one-third undecided, The Canadian Press

A poll suggests Venezuelans with a preference are split between President Hugo Chavez and the opposition, although a sizable one-third are undecided about whom they would vote for if elections were held soon. Leon said the opposition politicians with the most support in the latest poll were Henrique Capriles, governor of Miranda state, 17 percent; former presidential candidate Manuel Rosales, 9 percent; Pablo Perez, governor of Zulia state, 7 percent; and Leopoldo Lopez, a former Caracas District mayor, 7 percent.

Venezuela Opposition Blocked From Discussing PDVSA Pension, The Wall Street Journal

Opposition legislators in Venezuela have been blocked in the national parliament from discussing the apparent use of the state oil company’s pension fund in a Ponzi scheme run by a former financial adviser to Petroleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA. A proposal to bring the matter before the National Assembly was rejected last week by the ruling-party majority.

Chavez enacts decree allowing pro-government militias to receive weapons from military, The Washington Post

New rules authorizing Venezuela’s military to distribute weapons to pro-government militias took effect Tuesday, raising concern among critics who say the armed groups could be used by President Hugo Chavez to cement his hold on power.

Hugo Chavez Decries Capitalism….On Mars, The Wall Street Journal

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who routinely blames Capitalism for many of the world’s troubles, pointed elsewhere in the galaxy for his latest critique, saying Tuesday that the economic system may have destroyed life on Mars. “I have always said, have heard, that it would not be strange that there had been civilization on Mars,” the firebrand socialist said on Venezuela’s state television.