Partisan use of State TV signal (Venezuela Alert #22)

VENEZUELA
ALERTwww.alertavenezuela.net
For free, fair,
and competitive
elections
The Electoral Register (RE) contains the list of all Venezuelan voters, as well as
the polling places to which they are assigned to exercise their right to vote. The
register is closed on a certain date prior to each election, according to the sche-
dule established by the National Electoral Council (CNE), so that only those who
have registered prior to the date in question will be able to vote. They must do
so at the site they selected upon registering to vote, according to their place of
residence.
The National Electoral Council
at the service of the PSUV
EDITORIAL
photo: acn.com.ve

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For free, fair, and competitive elections
www.alertavenezuela.net
This is done so that the register cannot be alte-
red whatsoever once it has been closed on the
scheduled date.
However, the CNE has amended the register,
changing the polling places at which at least
five mayoral candidates representing the party
of the government must cast their ballots:
This happened in the case of Miguel Pérez Pi-
rela (mayoral candidate in the municipality of
Maracaibo, in the State of Zulia); Antonio “El
Potro” Álvarez (mayoral candidate in the mu-
nicipality of Sucre, in the State of Miranda);
Francisco Garcés (candidate for mayor of the
municipality of Guaicaipuro, in the State of
Miranda), Carlos Alcalá Cordones (mayoral
candidate in the municipality of Vargas), and
Luis Bohorquez Soto (candidate for mayor of
Irribaren, in the State of Lara).
• At the closure of the Preliminary Electoral Register
(August 21) and during the audit of the electoral roll (July
12), Miguel Pérez Pirela was assigned to vote at the San
Ignacio de Loyola Secondary School, Chacao (Caracas); as
of August 25, he was assigned to the Fe y Alegría National
School, La Chinita (Maracaibo).
•
•
•
•
•
•
• “El Potro” Alvarez went from voting at the Santo Tomás
de Villanueva Secondary School in Baruta to the Luis
Beltrán Prieto Figueroa National Experimental School in
Sucre.
•
•
•
• Francisco Garcés stopped voting in Catia in order to do
so at the Julio Rosales School in Los Teques.
•
•
•
•
•
• Carlos Alcalá Cordones stopped voting in 23 de Enero in
order to do so in La Guaria, at the Los Azulejos Nursery
School, while Luis Bohorquez Soto changed polling places
in the municipality of Irribaren (Lara).
This is not the first time the CNE has made
changes to polling places after the deadline. A
similar action was taken prior to the regional
elections of 2012 when the CNE directors made
an executive decision to change the polling
places of seven PSUV gubernatorial candida-
tes. This action not only violated the Electoral
Processes Act but also facilitated the campaign
strategy of associating the pro-government
candidates with the communities they aspire
to govern. Although the action was challenged
before the Venezuelan Supreme Court, the jus-
tices have declined to render a decision on the
issue
Liderazgo y Visión
pho to: elnacional.com
photo: noticiaaldia.com
photo: www.periodico24.com
photo: www.aporrea.org
photo: globovisión.com

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Control Ciudadano // http://www.controlciudadano.org/ @rociosanmiguel
Silence. That is the response thus far from the Venezuelan Supreme Court
(TSJ) to the lawsuit filed last November by Mesa de la Unidad Democrática.
The suit challenged the decision made weeks earlier by the National Electoral
Council (CNE) to move 108 voters who voted in the December 16 regional
elections from their original polling places to others in other states of the country,
outside the legal time frame.
TSJ remains silent on
electoral migrations
photo: eluniversal.com
NEWS

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photo: www.reporteconfidencial
Julio Borges, Luis Aquiles Moreno, and Omar Barboza, re-
presentatives of the parties Primero Justicia, Acción De-
mocrática, and Un Nuevo Tiempo, filed a complaint before
the Electoral Chamber alleging that the changes to the
Electoral Register violated the Electoral Processes Act and
the General Regulations thereto,which prohibit any chan-
ges to the electoral roll once it has been closed.
Nevertheless,more than nine months later, the high court
has not responded to the complaint.This past Sunday, the
CNE was thus once again able to conduct so-called migra-
tions, by transferring pro-government representatives Mi-
guel Pérez Pirela, Antonio“El Potro”Álvarez, Francisco Gar-
cés, and Carlos Alcalá Cordones to the mayoral districts of
Maracaibo, Petare, Los Teques, and Vargas, respectively—
to the districts they aim to govern.
In spite of the fact that the last mention of anything re-
lated to the opposition’s complaint was in the Electoral
Chamber’s report of November 21, TSJ sources have main-
tained that the Court had a decision ready at the end of
last year.
“A draft judgment that circulated in the Chamber ruled
that the CNE’s changes in polling places for the regional
elections were unlawful, and accepted the opposition’s
arguments that those changes violated the law,” stated
an informant, who added: “The draft was supported by a
majority of the Justices, but it was not published because
the former Chief Justice of theTSJ,Justice Luisa Estella Mo-
rales, asked that it be postponed.”
This same source asserted that the draft reprimanded the
CNE directors for the migrations, finding that they “provi-
ded arguments to those who accused them of being parti-
san,” although it was also made clear that the migrations
did not cast doubt on the election results, given that they
were relatively minor in the grand scheme of things.
The deputy secretary of Mesa de la Unidad, Ramón José
Medina, decried that “the TSJ’s omission has caused the
CNE to feel authorized to continue committing the offen-
se of irregular migrations, performed extemporaneously
and presented opaquely by certain candidates, whereas
the general public was not informed of the possibility of
requesting changes to the Electoral Register by updating
residence, requesting a transfer of polling place, etc.”
Taken from the newspaper El Universal

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Transparencia Venezuela // http://www.transparencia.org.ve / @nomasguiso
Fighting corruption or attacking the political enemy
photo: www.arayeros.com
The arrest of nine public servants accused of corruption
was made public in May and June of 2013, and received
significant attention in the media (annex 1). At the end of
July, the administration announced the fight against co-
rruption with forceful speeches and extensive media cove-
rage.Within days, President Nicolás Maduro informed the
public that he was declaring a state of emergency against
corruption, and that he would request special powers
from the National Assembly. Nevertheless, the Office of
the Vice President and several ministries have yet to turn
in their 2012 report and accounts, procurements continue
to be awarded to parties who are hand-picked, and the
president is conducting an election campaign with his
mayoral candidates on nationally-broadcast mandatory
government programming.
The government’s call to fight corruption has come at a
time when Venezuela is experiencing an acute economic
crisis evidenced by the months-long shortages of essential
goods.The Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) acknowledges
a 76.3% shortage of powdered milk, and similarly high
figures for cooking oil, toilet paper, margarine, cornmeal,
sugar, etc. Inflation for 2013 is estimated to exceed 45%.
The BCV reported that the cumulative inflation rate for
dairy products and eggs over seven months is 43.1%.It also
reported a marked shortage of foreign exchange, which
depends solely on petroleum sales (96.1% of total exports
in 2012).
The managers of public resources are responsible
for their stewardship
The President’s call for action seems to forget that he is
the one responsible for the management, allocation, and
disposal of nearly all of the state’s resources, directly or
through his team of ministers, by means of the following
mechanisms:
1. He directly oversees the execution of 75% of the annual
budget (see chart No. 1).
2. He is responsible for all of the state-run enterprises—

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PDVSA, SIDOR, Ferrominera; ALCASA; CANTV, CORPOELEC,
Aceites Diana, Fama de América, Iranauto, and hundreds
of other companies—whose capital,dividends,assets,and
losses are not included in the national budget.3.
3. All para-fiscal funds, which include (among other sour-
ces) the difference between the $55 per barrel calculated
price of petroleum this year and the real average price of
$103. According to official information, FONDEN alone has
received $106 billion from 2006 to the present.
4.Twenty-one of 24 states are headed by governors repre-
senting the party in power, the PSUV.
Who besides someone close to them, who has the power
to dispose of them, can abuse public resources for priva-
te purposes? The degree to which the immense sums of
money that has flowed into the country in recent years is
handled at the discretion of the Executive Branch opens
the door to extremely high risks of corruption never befo-
re seen in Venezuela.
Nevertheless, President Maduro, together with the Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court and the Attorney General,
and with the support of the Comptroller General and the
president of the National Assembly, has sworn in public
and on repeated government radio and television broad-
casts that he will not rest until he puts an end to corrup-
tion. They accuse “the corrupt right” of being responsible
for the terrible corruption in Venezuela. They have also
directly accused members of the opposition or infiltrators,
since “corruption is an evil of capitalism” and “socialists
cannot be corrupt on principle.”
In recent weeks, the government and members of the
PSUV have made many accusations of corruption against
various representatives of the opposition. The two most
talked-about cases have been those of Congressman Ri-
chard Mardo of the Primero Justicia (PJ) party, whose par-
liamentary immunity was stripped by the National As-
sembly by a simple majority of votes; and the corruption
accusations alleging that high-ranking leaders of the PJ
were part of a network of prostitution and homosexua-
lity—accusations that the country will recall with shame,
given how grotesque, absurd, and homophobic they were.
There are open investigations against all of the current
opposition governors (3 of 24 states) as well as those who
left office in December, and against just two of the 21
PSUV governors.
The political and media use of the fight against corrup-
tion—manipulating and even changing the information,
waging political propaganda in the state-run media and
in government ceremonies, and presenting data as if it
were accurate information—is trivializing and distorting
a task that is urgent in Venezuela:protecting public resou-
rces for the benefit of all,and ensuring their sustainability.
An excuse for the increased concentration of power
The declaration of a state of emergency against corrup-
tion energized several organizations, until the President
announced that he would request an enabling act
that would grant him special powers to legislate. And
although Venezuela has significant legislative obliga-
tions, the effectiveness of pending laws requires certain
conditions: (1) analysis and debate in the national parlia-
ment and in the country, complying with the steps and
time periods for public consultation on each draft bill; (2)
a training period for the public actors involved; and (3) a
plan for the implementation of the laws that keeps them
from being dead letter laws like so many other provisions
that have been enacted.
Above all, the fight against corruption requires strengthe-
ned government agencies that are independent of other
branches and financially autonomous, with sufficient
resources to safely and successfully handle investigations
and prosecutions against such powerful and dangerous
groups as the corruption networks, and to break the
vicious circle of corruption and impunity.
Transparencia Venezuela and other organizations oppose
a new enabling act for the Presidency of the Republic,
whereby the Legislative Branch would cede power to
the Executive. This concentration of power is inconsis-
tent with the fight against corruption, which requires
that citizens be given more power, and that other public
agencies be given greater independence. Only then can
they be true supervisors of the great responsibility of
managing public resources, and demand observance of
the laws that already exist.
Coherence President
The Executive Branch must start by tackling the long list
of pending tasks for the implementation of rules and
good practices of transparency and anti-corruption, befo-
re it receives more power than it already has. Below we
underscore seven of the most clear and urgent tasks:

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1. Publish all information in the possession of the gover-
nment, including: the revenues of state-owned compa-
nies and the funds in which they are held; the projects on
which funds are spent; contracts with national and inter-
national companies, and affidavits disclosing the assets
held by employees of the Executive Branch.
2. Have open procurement and hiring processes for all pu-
blic works.
3.Strengthen the independence of,and provide greater re-
sources to,the Office of the Attorney General,the Office of
the Comptroller General, and the courts. There can be no
great fight against impunity if the supervisory bodies and
justice administration agencies lack the minimum tools to
make that possible.
4. Suspend the use of public funds for electoral purposes.
It is impossible to speak of a fight against corruption whi-
le putting out daily mandatory government broadcasts
that promote political aims.
5. Open up the media and combat communications hege-
mony, in order to make way for criticism and freedom of
expression.
6. Publish quality reports and accounts that reflect the
meeting of goals, investments, and verifiable, objective
outcomes.
7. Hire government employees through a competitive pro-
cess, rewarding training and experience.
The fight against corruption cannot be used as a political
cause by the government or by the opposition. The coun-
try has seen vague, emotional statements and high-soun-
ding cries that are not accompanied by public polices and
decisive action on the work to be done.
Proposals made
Transparencia Venezuela sent communications to the
highest-ranking representatives of all of the branches of
government offering support and the proposed Anti-co-
rruption Plan for Venezuela, which was presented to the
public in September of last year, and which contains 99
public policies to combat corruption in different sectors of
the country. The only response we received was from the
Office of the Comptroller General, telling us to contact the
Customer Service Office.
A new appeal to the public
Given that the fight against corruption is currently in vo-
gue, it seems timely to once again appeal to the public
to play an active role and make a small contribution. The
people are responsible for building their institutions, and
as citizens we have the duty to report criminal behavior.
Transparencia Venezuela offers confidential services, free
of charge, for whistleblowers and victims of corruption
through Twitter @NoMasGuiso and emailTransparencia
Venezuela denuncia@transparencia.org.ve
Transparencia Venezuela
www.transparencia.org.ve
August 26, 2013
Annex 1
The following are the cases of alleged acts of corruption
that have come to light thus far:
1.The Military Counter-intelligence Service (DCIM) of
the Ministry of Defense arrested two SENIAT employees
assigned to the Guarenas Guatire sector of the Capital
Region Internal Revenue Administration for the
alleged offenses of extortion and criminal conspiracy.
(06/13/2013, El Mundo).
2.The following week, the Public Ministry was able
to arrest Carlos Ricardo Sánchez Atencio, the general
manager of the National Integrated Customs and
Tax Administration Service (SENIAT) in the State of
Vargas, as well as three of his bodyguards, for their
alleged involvement in money laundering and criminal
conspiracy (El Mundo 06/21/2013).
3.The arrest of former Ferrominera President Radwan
Sabbagh, after the trade union reported his involvement
in irregularities pertaining to the nighttime shipment
of iron without compliance with the proper protocols,
and of the alleged involvement of managers in metal-
trafficking (El Nacional 06/13/2013).

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Espacio Público / http://www.Espaciopublico.org / @espaciopublico
Shortage of newsprint
jeopardizes circulation
of regional newspapers
Various media outlets have complained of the shortage of newsprint re-
sulting from the two-month processing delay before the Ministry of Light
Industry and Commerce, which issues the certificates of non-national
production needed to go before the CADIVI to request dollars for imports.
The newspapers Caribe and La Hora, of the State of Nueva Esparta, and
Versión Final, of the State of Zulia, temporarily stopped circulating due
to the newsprint shortage. El Carabobeño confirmed this information
through Rogelio Díaz, spokesman of the regional newspapers and one
foto: www.noticiasvenezolanas.com
photo: www.gentedehoy.com
photo: aporrea.com
photo: www.difundelaverdad.org.ve
4.The arrest of Trino Martínez, the National Director of
Inspection and Oversight at INDEPABIS, for allegedly
being a member of a criminal gang that was extorting
merchants in Caracas. His case resulted in the removal
from office of Superintendent Consuelo Cerrada, who was
replaced by Eduardo Samán (Tal Cual 06/12/2013).
5.The arrest of Luis García, Coordinator of the Institute for
the Protection of Goods and Services (INDEPABIS) in the
State of Sucre, for allegedly reselling merchandise seized
by the agency at a premium. He was released the day
after his arrest, an act that was disavowed by President
Nicolás Maduro (Diario Vea 06/15/2013).

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Foto: Kevin García Mannillo/Noticias24 Carabobo
Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights
establishes that “The right of expression may not be res-
tricted by indirect methods or means, such as the abuse
of government or private controls over newsprint, radio
broadcasting frequencies, or equipment used in the disse-
mination of information.”
This restrictive mechanism reflects a state policy that
additionally includes prior censorship of El Nacional and
the newspaper Tal Cual, which were barred from publis-
hing violent images and subjected to a fine on August 8.
The newspaper Correo de Caroní was also prohibited from
publishing information about the acts of corruption attri-
buted to Yamal Mustafá. In addition, the freezing of bank
accounts held by media directors (Leocenis García and Mi-
guel Enrique Otero) resulted in the closure of six media
outlets on July 24.
of the advocates of the reactivation of the Regional Press
Bloc, who confirmed that five Venezuelan newspapers are
out of circulation for lack of paper.
Dagoberto Romer, president of the Dipalca Paper Distri-
buter, explains the reasons as follows: “Before, we were
importing ten thousand tons, and for August of this year
it’s just two thousand. Our certificate of non-national pro-
duction expired in March.We filed the request in February,
and then it was denied.”Dipalca supplies provincial news-
papers in Guayana, Zulia, Guárico, Falcón, and Caracas.
“There is no paper, and the newspapers must drastically
reduce their print runs and number of pages.”
Additionally, El Carabobeño published that “some media
fear that the delay of the certificates is the result of a de-
liberate policy of the national government to prevent the
circulation of regional newspapers,” since the approval of
the request for foreign exchange depends on state insti-
tutions.

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Espacio Público / http://www.Espaciopublico.org / @espaciopublico
NGO Reports:
Ombudsman of the People is not independent
Five non-governmental organizations (CDH-Ucab, Provea,
Acsol, Espacio Público, and Civilis), issued a report asses-
sing the performance of the Ombudsman of the People
for the 2007–2012 period, based on their experiences in
dealing with the institution.Their assessment was guided
by the United Nations Paris Principles relating to the sta-
tus and performance of national institutions for the pro-
motion and protection of human rights.
The study’s findings include the lack of independence of
the institution’s highest-ranking officials; the failure to
encourage compliance with international human rights
standards and the questioning of human rights protec-
tion bodies; the use of the Report of the Ombudsman’s
Office “as a mechanism of government propaganda,” and
the existence of biased and exclusive human rights trai-
ning courses.
Emblematic cases like that of Judge Afiuni are not men-
tioned at all in the reports of the Ombudsman’s Office.
The silence also extends to compliance with international
agreements, since, according to the study,“rather than ur-
ging compliance with decisions, the Ombudsman’s Offi-
ce has become another mouthpiece for questioning and
defying regional and international judgments and resolu-
tions. Moreover, it failed to criticize—and in fact suppor-
ted—the denunciation of the American Convention on
Human Rights.”
Most significantly, the report reveals that the Ombuds-
man of the People completely fails to act on behalf of vic-
tims of human rights violations, its efforts being directed
mainly toward matters relating to public services where
the liability falls to private citizens, or the regulatory role
of the state with regard thereto.
The report indicates that “in spite of the fact that com-
plaints about public services amount to just 7% of the to-
tal number of complaints received by the institution, its
quasi-judicial powers have only been used with respect to
human rights in one case from 1966—in other words,with
regard to acts that predate the very existence of the Om-
budsman of the People.” Furthermore, the Office openly
refused to make use of its authority in a case involving the
violation of the right to life of a minor child in El Nula, in
the State of Apure, that remains unpunished to this day.
The organizations that authored the report call upon the
Ombudsman of the People to bring its actions into line
with the international standards of the United Nations
with regard to National Human Rights Institutions, which
include ombudsmen of the people and similar institu-
tions.
The report was drafted with contributions from Acción
Solidaria, the Center for Human Rights at the Andrés Be-
llo Catholic University [Centro de Derechos Humanos de
la Universidad Católica Andrés Bello], Civilis Derechos
Humanos, Espacio Público, and the Venezuelan Human
Rights Education – Action Program [Programa Venezolano
de Educación – Acción en Derechos Humanos]. Available
for download at: http://bit.ly/170n0kv
photo: foroporlavida.blogspot.com

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Monitoreo Ciudadano // www.monitoreociudadano.org // @yomonitoreo
Partisan use of the state TV signal
President Nicolás Maduro abused the signal of the state-
owned television channel for a broadcast by the Carabobo
Command in support of the election campaign of the pro-
government United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV).In
evidence of this abuse of power through the state-owned
media,Maduro began his speech by explaining that,“I am
going to take part in the activity of the Victorious Cam-
paign Command, the Triple Victorious, Carabobo Cam-
paign Command.”Maduro used the state television signal
to “celebrate” the victories of Hugo Chávez and his politi-
cal party, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela.
In violation of the Constitution and the Anti-Corruption
Act,Maduro accused the opposition of using“the crooked
right, the corrupt right-wing that we have, lamentably
fascist and corrupt and very crooked in all of its conduct.”
Watch the video analyzing the partisan use of state TV:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-dexERbimU
ANALYSIS

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Un Estado de Derecho
State vs. Civil Society
On January 16, 2013, Abelardo Izaguirre Infante, President
of the Accessible Civil Justice Association [Asociación Ci-
vil Justicia Accesible], complained to the Public Ministry
of the irregularities that took place from the time former
President Chávez took leave of his office for health rea-
sons: the delegation of duties to Nicolás Maduro, the Ve-
nezuelan Supreme Court’s (TSJ) ruling that“a new inaugu-
ration” was not necessary for the reelected president, and
the statements of the President of the National Assembly
to this same effect.
The Attorney General of Venezuela asked the TSJ to dis-
miss the complaint, and in a judgment handed down on
June 12, 2013 (and curiously published 64 days later, on
August 14, 2013), the Plenary Chamber of the Venezue-
lan Supreme Court not only ruled the request admissible
but also ordered that the file be forwarded to the Public
Ministry to open “the appropriate criminal investigation
against the complainant” and to give notice to President
Nicolás Maduro, National Assembly President Diosdado
Cabello, and TSJ Chief Justice Luisa Estella Morales, in or-
der for them to take“the appropriate legal actions.”
The decision of the TSJ and any measures taken by the Pu-
blic Ministry or by the President of Venezuela, the Presi-
dent of the National Assembly, or the Chief Justice of the
TSJ, are and will be the direct consequences of a policy or-
chestrated to weaken Venezuelan civil society. It is not the
first time that non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
and their members have been subjected to unfair and dis-
photo: eluniversal.com

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proportionate measures for legitimately calling the Vene-
zuelan State into question.
Civil society, regardless of the way in which it chooses to
organize itself, is without doubt an inexhaustible source
of pressure: it monitors abuses committed by the state,
subjects it to public scrutiny, and exposes its ineptitude.
Civil society opines, questions, and mobilizes. Those who
exercise power fear a hyperactive, confrontational, and
implacable civil society. For this reason, the Venezuelan
State—like other repressive regimes such as those in Chi-
na, Vietnam, Russia, Belarus, Egypt, Uzbekistan, Burma,
and others—make use of government authority to mo-
nitor, control, silence, and reduce civil society. Such states
promote restrictions to freedom of association,hinder the
legal recognition of NGOs, and subject their activities to
periodic reviews in order to determine whether they“can”
continue operating; they criminalize the receipt of funds
from international cooperation organizations (and accuse
those who receive them of committing crimes “against
the independence and security of the Nation”); they arbi-
trarily interfere in the internal affairs of NGOs, establish
parallel, government-sponsored organizations in order to
monitor independent NGOs, and threaten and criminally
prosecute their members.
But civil society is unlikely to retract and withdraw. The
spontaneity, commitment, principles, and values that pre-
cede and accompany their organization and development
make them stronger and more cohesive. Although the
government insists on controlling and restricting their ac-
tivities, and in spite of its propagandistic efforts to broad-
cast an image of “democratic normalcy,” Venezuelan civil
society will continue its tireless struggle to reestablish de-
mocracy. It will analyze, debate, and challenge everything
that contradicts its principles and violates the democratic
values that motivate it.
The Accessible Civil Justice Association and the other Ve-
nezuelan civil society organizations have the support of
other organizations whose objectives transcend national
borders. They are true support networks that come to-
gether around common ideals supported and promoted
by legitimately democratic governments, non-govern-
mental organizations, and international organizations
(many of the latter governed by resolutions, conventions,
and treaties that,incidentally,have been signed by the Ve-
nezuelan government).
Denunciation of sabotage and the threat to strip
Maria Corina Machado of parliamentary immunity
August 25 marked the one year anniversary of the explo-
sion at the Amuay Refinery (Paraguaná Refinery Complex,
CRP), owned by the state-run enterprise Petróleos de Ve-
nezuela, S.A. The Minister of Mining and Petroleum and
President of the PDVSA initially stated that the refinery
explosion was caused by a gas leak. It killed 41 people and
injured dozens, destroying hundreds of adjacent homes
and businesses, and causing nearly US$ 1 billion in dama-
ges.
(https://www.ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/actualidad/economia/
explosion-de-amuay-genero-danos-por-mil-millones-d.aspx).
One year later, most of the victims have not received pro-
per compensation according to international standards.
Furthermore, the refinery has not been repaired and is not
producing even at its prior capacity. Another fire was re-
ported on July 13 of this year; it was smaller, but still killed
two workers.
photo: ocpipr.blogspot.com
photo: porlaconciencia.com

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Nevertheless,thenationalgovernment isdoingeverything
it can to take political advantage of this tragedy—a tra-
gedy that, without a doubt, was due to the lack of main-
tenance, improvisation, and failure to comply with basic
safety rules, in short, the government’s own ineptitude
and irresponsibility.
On August 24, 2013, from the Office of the President of
the Republic, and without providing any evidence, Nico-
lás Maduro announced to the country that the explosion
of the refinery complex was caused by “right-wing sabo-
tage.” He blamed the Venezuelan opposition for causing
the explosion of the refinery in order to demonstrate that
the government is incompetent and corrupt. (http://www.
ultimasnoticias.com.ve/noticias/actualidad/politica/maduro-explosion-
de-amuay-fue-un-sabotaje.aspx)
The following day, on the anniversary, the Governor of the
State of Falcón,Stella Lugo,announced that she would ask
the National Assembly to strip the parliamentary immuni-
ty of opposition Congresswoman María Corina Machado,
on the grounds that she was involved in the sabotage one
year earlier, and that she had recently visited the affected
area to distribute pamphlets alerting the victims of the
state-run petroleum company’s systematic disregard for
safety rules and the imminent danger of new tragedies.
“What does Representative Machado mean by saying‘The
worst is yet to come’? Might they be planning a new act of
sabotage?”said Lugo. (http://www.vtv.gob.ve/articulos/2013/08/25/
lugo-solicita-a-la-an-allanar-impunidad-parlamentaria-a-diputada-maria-
machado-1839.html)
Nicolás Maduro’s cheerful accusation of sabotage against
the opposition is meant only to take attention away from
the country’s real problems,to insist on the message of ha-
tred and division among Venezuelans, and—especially—
to hide the government’s glaring inability to effectively
manage public services and the thousands of companies
it possesses (many taken by force, unconstitutionally). But
the accusation against María Corina Machado, which is
clearly absurd, pursues a political aim of great importan-
ce to the government. By stripping her of her immunity
as a member of congress and criminally prosecuting her,
the objective is clearly to expel her from the National As-
sembly so she can be replaced by her substitute, Ricardo
Sánchez, who switched over to the pro-government party
several years ago. Without Maria Corina and with Ricardo
Sánchez in the National Assembly, the party of the gover-
nment would have the qualified majority of 99 represen-
tatives, which would allow it, among other things, to en-
act an Enabling Statute for Nicolás Maduro and appoint
high-ranking officials to government agencies.
In sum, on the anniversary of the Amuay explosion, the
Venezuelan government has neither determined what
caused the tragedy,nor properly compensated the victims,
but it is trying to take maximum political advantage with
accusations that—although laughable in their absurdity
and baselessness—significantly jeopardize democracy.
Un Estado de Derecho
photo: runrun.es

Partisan use of State TV signal (Venezuela Alert #22)

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Partisan use of State TV signal (Venezuela Alert #22)