Interference by U.S. ambassador condemned
CARACAS (PL). — Venezuelan Foreign Minister Roy Chaderton condemned the meddlesome declarations of Charles Shapiro, the U.S. ambassador to Venezuela this Wednesday, and stated that it is dangerous to talk benevolently about persons who violate fundamental human rights.
Currently on his way to Moscow, Chaderton’s statement was made public by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs as a response to Shapiro who, in a highly publicized meeting in his residence, criticized alleged limitations regarding freedom of expression in Venezuela.
"I hope that the (ambassador’s) statement refers to the media dictatorship that exists in Venezuela, where last year the private media channels took part in the overthrow of a legitimate government. They kept information concealed from the public and have spent years manipulating information," said the minister.
Chaderton added that it is very difficult to be benevolent to those who, in the private sector, are violating fundamental rights such as the freedom of expression, the right to free movement and a good reputation.
"The proven and self-confessed enemies of democracy, institutions and freedom of expression, they are entrenched within the private sector and conspiring to launch a new assault against the Republic’s legitimate powers, in the hope of international support," Chaderton emphasized.
During the reception at his residence, Shapiro made a clear threat to the Venezuelan government by warning that the United States is taking the alleged official aggression to the freedom of the press very seriously and expressed its support for the owners of the private media channels, those who are involved in a ferocious campaign against President Hugo Chávez.
At the same event, he even allowed Daniel Natera, newspaper boss and Press Bloc president to call for the press to continue "the fight against Chávez and his dictatorship," and a comedian, carrying an effigy of the head of state, to make jokes at the government’s expense.