Chávez Advances His War Against Independent Media Giant Globovisión

In its most recent offensive against the free media, the Venezuelan government imposed a harsh sanction on Globovisión for its coverage of last summer’s prison riots. National Telecommunications Commission President Pedro Maldonado announced Tuesday that Globovisión must pay an “immediate” fine of up to 7.5% of its gross earnings for 2010, which can amount to $2.1 million.

Reacting to the government’s announcement, Globovisión Vice President Maria Fernanda Flores said the network has “no way of paying the fortune imposed by this sanction.” Flores added that the measure is yet another government ploy to silence the station.

The Venezuelan government’s move coincides with the meeting of the Inter-American Press Association (IAPA) in Lima, Peru. A member of that body’s freedom of expression committee validated the notion that President Chávez’s sanction on Globovisión is a roundabout way to silence the independent station. “The political objective is to shut down all the voices who are critical or independent,” said Claudio Paolillo.

In a speech that reflected a sense of crisis, IAPA President Gonzalo Marroquín said: “We are in a war between authoritarianism and democracy.” The free press is under increasing attacks in countries like Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Nicaragua, and Argentina, where governments resort to political prosecutions and economic pressure to censor independent media outlets.