Amnesty International Condemns Abuse of Force by Chavez

Amnesty International is decrying the Chavez regime's attacks on Venezuelan protesters.

"Amnesty International urges the security forces to act with scrupulous attention to the standards that regulate the use of force when dealing with present and planned demonstrations and mobilizations," the organization said in a statement.

"Since the tragic events of April 2002, Amnesty International has on many occasions denounced the excessive use of force by the police and the National Guard, that has resulted in death and injury. Any action ignoring these standards should be rigorously investigated and punished. ...

"By exercising their legitimate right to the freedom of assembly, association and expression, opposition sectors should take responsibility for choosing protest methods and tactics that do not undermine constitutional guarantees. ...

"Both sides should commit themselves to the search for negotiated and peaceful solutions, through a dialogue focused on the need to strengthen the rule of law and full observance of human rights. The fundamental objectives of this process should be to end impunity, depoliticize the armed and security forces, and recover the credibility of the administration of justice.

"At the same time, the international community and especially the regional and international human rights organizations, must redouble their efforts to facilitate a peaceful resolution of the crisis, and to provide adequate mechanisms and resources to monitor the human rights situation in the country and stop the situation from deteriorating.

"To this end, we support the request made by the International Human Rights Commission for permission to make a monitoring visit to the country and we urge the government to extend an invitation to other inter-governmental human rights monitoring mechanisms," said Amnesty International.