<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Tuesday, June 03, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

Venezuelan human rights group (PROVEA) general coordinator, Carlos Correa has once again criticized the media content law (officially called the Social Responsibility on TV and Radio Law) because he says it promises disproportionate penalties and regulates the greater part of print & broadcast media. 

Correa says PROVEA has been doing its homework and has not discovered any other country in the world where TV and radio concessions have been revoked on the grounds typified in the draft law. 

Referring to the so-called Public Demonstration Law, Correa says that although PROVEA has not studied the draft proposed by Venezuelan Procurator General, Marisol Plaza, PROVEA maintains that  demonstrations and protests are "an inalienable right and must be guaranteed by the Venezuelan State."  

On the thorny issue of reinstatement of Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) workers dismissed for their participation in the national stoppage, PROVEA has lodged a complaint at the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) about what it considers a highly discriminatory measure against former PDVSA employees. PROVEA leader, Marino Alvarado says it's the biggest dismissal in Venezuela's history and a grave concern for PROVEA. 

"We hold President Chavez Frias responsible for the way workers have been discriminated against ... we are aware and know of circulars sent to PDVSA subsidiaries and contractors banning them from hiring dismissed workers." Alvarado reveals that the measure has been extended to include dismissed workers' families. 

• PROVEA wants the government to drop a petition to eliminate Hydrocarbons Law Article 32 concerning labor stability introduced by PDVSA president, Ali Rodriguez Araque.

Movimiento Quinta Republica (MVR) is said to be investigating claims that PDVSA-East directors have re-employed former PDVSA staff that joined the stoppage and thrown out workers, who were part of anti-stoppage contingency plans.

Oil Workers Federation (Fedepetrol) and the Venezuelan Confederation of Trade Unions (CTV) have rushed to the Supreme Tribunal of Justice asking it to throw out the government's petition to declare Article 32 null and void ... Article 32 states that State sector oil workers (except members of boards)  enjoy stability at work and can only be fired for causes highlighted in the Labor Law.

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Sunday, June 01, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue.

According to local human rights group, a  second police murder squad is operating in Portuguesa State, which has seen a startling 146 homicides this year so far. In January, the State Attorney General's Office reported 21 summary executions, 31 in February, and 33 in March ... homicides dropped in April to 28 only to rise in May to 33. 

• The Attorney General's Office reports that the squad calling itself, "Exterminio II" has been sending out flyers and graffiti about its activities. 

Last year,  the first murder squad was discovered meriting a raid and investigation in Portuguesa State police barracks ... the surprising thing is that Portuguesa State has 800,000 inhabitants. In that investigation, 17 police officers were arrested and dismissed but what state prosecutors didn't know was that another murder squad was operating. 

Investigators say they believe the second squad has contacts with criminal elements and some suggest that both squads are basically one and the same group with many members working on different levels. The second murder squad has been more discreet than the first ... executions take place at night using shotguns to murder the victims in solitary places and in the absence of witnesses. 

Human rights groups suggest that the squads have been enjoying impunity, partly because the Attorney General's Office cannot protect witnesses ... 15 witnesses have been eliminated ... and partly, because judges have been threatened.

<a href=www.voanews.com>VOANews Marissa Melton Washington 28 May 2003, 23:44 UTC

In its annual report on human rights, Amnesty International says the war on terrorism in the Western Hemisphere has undermined civil liberites and human rights across the region. Tightening security has led to hundreds of unlawful detentions in Colombia and torture of prisoners in a dozen other countries.

In its report on Colombia, Amnesty says security measures under the current president exacerbated the already appalling political violence. By Amnesty's count, more than 4,000 civilians were killed for political reasons in 2002, while more than 2,700 were kidnapped by guerrilla groups or paramilitary forces.

Amnesty says, torture and ill-treatment of prisoners and unlawful killings by security forces have been recorded in a score of countries, from Mexico to Patagonia. It accuses police in Jamaica of killing at least 133 people, and security forces in Argentina and Venezuela of shooting political demonstrators.

Peru, according to the report, continues to hold a number of political dissenters in jail, while Cuba has recently imprisoned dozens more. Prison conditions in those countries, and a dozen others, the report says, are very poor.

On the plus side, Amnesty said some countries, including Chile, Argentina and Uruguay, have made progress in investigating past human rights abuses and punishing violators.

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Monday, May 26, 2003 By: Kay Onefeather

Date: Mon, 26 May 2003 13:14:11 EDT From: Kaonefeather@aol.com To: Editor@VHeadline.com Subject: Re: In My Country

Dear Editor: In my country American indians are the ONLY race of people forced to prove they are indeed Indian! Moreover, there is a division within some indian communities, between full bloods and mixed bloods ... some full bloods accept mixed bloods ... and, some mixed bloods accept other mixed bloods. However, there are exceptions.

Should you venture into some private "internet indian territories," be prepared to prove any claim of indian blood, with tribal affiliation and family connections, including blood Quantum. Otherwise, you face the probability of being "labeled." Wannabe is the favorite label, followed by troublemaker, and even spy. And, more often than not, it's mixed bloods who are most adamant about proof to indian claim. (Another division)

Caution within American indian communities is understandable. No other race has been victimized and exploited, as much, or as long. Sad to say, this continues even today, effecting all aspects of their lives ... land, home, family and spirituality. (More division)

Blood Quantum is, no doubt, yet another ploy of "divide and conquer" ... a way to end indians. With each generation, the percentage of indian blood is thinned, and the number of mixed bloods increase. Today, countless numbers of mixed bloods are unable to prove affiliation. Because of separation from one cause or another, or because connection to family has been lost or buried, many mixed bloods are left in "limbo." (Another form of division)

Furthermore, offspring fathered by "roaming" Red men in this country (USA) ... leaving little or no trace to family ties ... is yet another problem facing mixed bloods. (If nothing else is proven, the prolificacy of American indian men is beyond question!)

Why am I writing this to Venezuela?

Venezuela is rich in native indian history ... history, that traces where you've been and where you're going ... history, that belongs to ALL peoples, full bloods, mixed bloods, and just 'bloods.'

History, to learn from, in order to assure a better future for all.

My sincere hope is that Blood Quantum ... or any other form of division ... will never be used in Venezuela, to separate and segregate a major portion of its humanity.

Division of any kind, weakens ALL peoples, and the whole of humankind suffers.

Kay Onefeather kaonefeather@aol.com

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electonic News Posted: Sunday, May 25, 2003 By: David Cabrera

Date: Sat, 24 May 2003 23:09:51 -0700 (PDT) From: David Cabrera davidckr@yahoo.com To: Editor@vheadline.com Subject: open letter to HRW

Dear Editor: An open letter to Human Rights Watch

I feel I ought to contribute a little to the Human Rights Watch reports on threats to freedom of speech in Venezuela ... which of course have been a routine in our country, not as a consequence of a totalitarian government, but by an opposition that has had the broadest freedoms to criticize and even direct obscenities through any available medium that one can think of in any country in the world.

It is interesting to closely analyze the last paragraph of HRW's last report, where you quote the Executive Director for the Americas Division of HRW, Jose Miguel Vivanco: "it is crucial that his government take steps to end impunity for crimes against journalists and cease its efforts to muzzle private television stations,” referring to Chavez's professed willingness to conciliate with his political adversaries.

However, despite Mr. Vivanco remarks about the constant private media abuse ... such as non-stop months-long anti-government publicity ... he stopped short of denouncing these acts and regarding them as a threat to the freedom of  expression, and often limited himself to cite examples that are condemnatory only of the government. By this, I am not suggesting that HRW should not highlight government's interference with the right to inform but, instead, my expectations are that Mr. Vivanco ... as well as any other assigned correspondent of the HRW organization ... takes matter seriously when the violations come from the wealthy owners of the private media themselves.

For instance, there have been some cases where the El Nacional fired journalists because they failed to follow a preferred editorial line imposed by the bosses. Two of them are Vanessa Davies and Reynaldo Bolivar ... the former now works for the State-owned TV (VTV) and the other does it independently.

With regard to editorial lines, an important fact that has been omitted in your reports was the decision of the former manager of news-daily broadcasts at RCTV station, Andres Izarra, to quit the station on the grounds that information about the days during and after last year's coup was deliberately being censored by the station's top managers.

In my opinion, these abuses should have provoked a condemnatory response from the Human Rights Watch organization, however, they were not mentioned in any of the HRW reports.

Additionally, I believe that your personnel stationed in Venezuela should go deeply into investigating many other violations that have been committed, not solely by Chavez, but by the opposition as well.

One of them would be a case dealing with jailed journalists. Chavez, as the organization has admitted before, has not jailed any journalist or revoked any license so far from any radio or TV station ... in spite of the latter's almost unimaginable virulence against the government. However, a community journalist was harshly beaten and jailed on orders from Carmona's associates following last year's coup. Nicolas Rivera, a staff member at Radio Perola ... an alternative radio station in Caricuao, western-Caracas ... was held in prison with two other individuals without formal charges for almost a year.

Nicolas Rivera's was the only such case regarding jailed journalists during the last four years that I am aware of, yet, it failed to make it into the organization's report highlighting abuses of journalists.

With reference to harassment of journalists, HRW's last report cites an extract from a 26-pages documentary named "Caught in the Crossfire," pointing out that "Freedom of Expression in Venezuela, describes how journalists face physical violence and threats, often by fervent civilian supporters of President Hugo Chavez."

But what about journalists and other pro-government individuals facing "physical violence and threats" by "fervent civilians" who support the opposition?

There are certainly substantial witnessed and documented accounts to corroborate the latter claim. Take for instance the savage beating that a freelance cameraman received from "fervent civilians" of the opposition during an anti-Castro rally close to the Cuban embassy last month ... the attack was totally unprovoked, as was seen on Globovision coverage, and even the supposedly pro-Chavez National Guard at the scene did not do much to stop the "pacific demonstrators" (as the corporate media likes to call anti-chavistas) from continuing beating a lone man with a camera.

And what about the reported sporadic shootings toward the state-owned TV station in Los Ruices? Why hasn't HRW investigated this?

Is anybody in the organization aware that one or more persons could have been injured, and even killed by this form of harassment?

It seems to me that the only cases involving violence that are worth reporting about are the ones when pro-government demonstrators throw stones at the headquarters of an opposition newspaper, whereas the ones regarding "fervent civilians" throwing glass bottles at VTV personnel from outside the station do not awaken concern at all from Jose Vivanco or any HRW representative.

I still believe that the HRW organization has the potential required to present a balanced account of events for the public, especially the international one.

I would also like to make it clear that it is not my intent to oppose any attempt by the organization to expose any governmental action that may threaten the freedom of speech, but instead to motivate an awareness with regard to continuous abuses by the private press, television and radio disguised as "freedom of expression."

I am also familiar with HRW reports on other countries, acknowledging that even its correspondents often take on dangerous tasks in order to reveal torture incidents in Uzbekistan or selective assassinations in Colombia.

I am hopeful that HRW eventually will pursue violations on both conflicting sides ... in this case the Venezuelan government and opposition ... and I am confident that, after you have properly reviewed the records, you will conclude that it is not Chavez who is the sole threat to freedom of expression in my country ... but you will easily realize that it would instead be the opposition that best fitted the protagonist role for your next "Caught in the Crossfire" documentary.

David Cabrera davidckr@yahoo.com Caracas, Venezuela