In a letter to Venezuelan foreign minister, Nicolas Maduro, the Inter-American Human Rights Commission’s commissioner for Venezuelan matters, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, and the body’s Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Catalina Botero Marino, expressed their “deep concern over the deterioration of the situation of the right to freedom of expression” Monday. The IACHR’s worries come after a series of events from the last week. First, journalist Francisco Perez was convicted of “defaming” public officials in a column exposing alleged corruption in the Carabodo mayor’s office. He was sentenced to over three years in prison, fined, and banned from practicing journalism last week.
Second, the IACHR cites a new arrest warrant issued against two outspoken Chávez critics: Globovisión owner, Guillermo Zuloaga, and his son of the same name. As reported previously, the warrant cites the illegal storage of 24 sport utility vehicles as the alleged crime. The possibility of declining judicial independence seems to be the inter-American body’s biggest concern. Pinheiro and Botero Marino write that, “the arrest warrant was issued [against the Zuloaga’s] on June 11, eight days after the President of Venezuela criticized the judicial branch because Zuloaga was still free.” [Update: on Zuloaga case this morning, the AP reports that the media mogul has fled Venezuela to an undisclosed country.]
And thirdly, the OAS’s human rights body says a June 7 incident in which demonstrators launched Molotov cocktails at the offices of Cadena Capriles is also troubling. The IACHR is particularly worried that the event may have been triggered by the statements of public officials against various media outlets and journalists. Again, the IACHR, in its own words: “The absence of model investigations and punishments in the serious and constant attacks suffered by media outlets and journalists in
Meanwhile, in what various reports have dubbed a “rare interview with a foreign journalist,” Hugo Chávez recently sat down the BBC’s Stephen Sackur, host of HARDtalk. The interview aired yesterday with a write-up and short clip here. The interview coincides with the upcoming release of Oliver Stone’s new documentary about the Latin American Left, South of the Border.
And, finally, while the IACHR had tough words for Venezuela in the area of media expression, the UN’s Refugee Agency representative, Mohammed Alwash, was also in the country Tuesday. According to EFE, Alwash had nothing but words of praise for the government’s “generosity” toward some 200,000 Colombians who have been displaced to Venezuela by on-going conflict in their own country. “I don’t feel that Colombians or other refugees face any problems of persecution in Venezuela – to the contrary,” said Alwash.
Beyond the headline:
· News on Mexico continues to fill morning papers today. Reuters reports that at least 15 suspected cartel members, likely linked to US-born drug lord Edgar Valdez Villarreal (aka “La Barbie”) were killed in a shootout with Mexican soldiers Tuesday near the city of Taxco. The Washington Post says “hundreds” have been killed over the last week and highlights the tough words President Felipe Calderón had for the United States in the 5,000 word statement he released Monday. The Post quotes Calderón:
“The origin of our violence problem begins with the fact that Mexico is located next to the country that has the highest levels of drug consumption in the world," Calderón wrote. "It is as if our neighbor were the biggest drug addict in the world.”
On Tuesday, that tough line continued when the president interrupted primetime television coverage to speak to his nation directly. His words suggest the Mexican government is in full-on war mode. “This is a battle that is worth fighting because our future is at stake,” Calderon said during the address which lasted 10 minutes “It's a battle that, with all Mexicans united, we will win.”
· Meanwhile, the AP adds to its reporting on Mexico with a separate piece on the country’s new restrictions on dollar cash transactions – what the news service calls “some of the toughest [banking] restrictions in its history.” “Tourists and Mexicans without bank accounts will be limited to exchanging a maximum of $1,500 per month,” says the AP. The measure is an attempt to fight money laundering as between $10 and 29 billion in “suspicious cash flows” enter the country each year. Much of that money is suspected of entering cartel coffers. The Wall Street Journal has more on the new banking rules, which some say may be very difficult to enforce. According to the paper, the government will limit “the payment of loans and services as well as well as foreign-exchange transactions in cash to between $1,500 and $7,000 a month.” The WSJ:
“Under the new rules, individuals can make deposits or payments for up to $4,000 a month through their bank, while those same transactions are limited to $1,500 in the case of foreigners and Mexicans who don't have bank accounts. Cash dollar deposits and payments by businesses will be restricted to those operating in tourist and northern border areas, and limited to $7,000 a month.”
· Also a correction to something published here yesterday. For those interested in getting on Molly Molloy’s Mexico email list, her correct email is mollymolloy@gmail.com.
· Moving on, Just the Facts gathers some interesting new numbers on security and narcotrafficking. The numbers include stats on Bolivia’s struggle against drug traffickers (also discussed by the BBC this morning); murder rate figures from Central America; and the aforementioned Mexico drug war death tolls.
· One of those countries highlighted in the Central America numbers is Honduras (58 murders/100,000 inhabitants). And one of the most worrying trends there over the last year has been a spike in attacks on journalists. As the AP reports today, the 9th journalist this year was killed this week. Radio host Luis Arturo Mondragon was murdered by two gunmen Wednesday night, near Tegucigalpa. Colleagues says Mondragon backed the 2009 ouster of Manuel Zelaya but the police have no motive nor suspects in the case as of yet. The murder follows news that Karol Cabrera, another journalist who’s been the target of recent attacks, was granted asylum in Canada.
· In Guatemala, outgoing CICIG head Carlos Castresana made public Monday some of the corruption evidence his commission has against the now ex-attorney general Conrado Reyes. An AFP report here has a few of the details.
· Meanwhile, in Argentina, 1980 Nobel Peace Prize winner Adolfo Perez Esquivel testified for the first time in court against those who tortured him some three decades ago. While able to recount the violence committed against him, Perez Esquivel said too much time has passed for him to actually identifier his torturers. Perez Esquivel is one of various witnesses in the trial of 14 former prison officials charged with crimes against humanity at the Unit 9 torture center.
· An official from the Vatican arrived in Cuba yesterday and is expected to meet with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, “as well as take part in a church conference where Cuban intellectuals, including several exiles from the United States, will discuss key issues on the island.” This according to Reuters. Meanwhile, DC-based groups working to end the Cuba travel ban and trade restrictions have put together a terrific new set of resources, including talking points and public statements. See WOLA or the Center for Democracy in the Americas for all the information.
· Canada’s House of Commons passed a new free trade agreement with Colombia Monday. The Senate will now offer its final stamp of approval. The Globe and Mail writes that “A contentious aspect of the agreement will see the Colombian and Canadian governments each assess the impact of the deal on human rights in each other's country – a clause rights groups (including Amnesty International) say lacks independent scrutiny and fails to spell out consequences should abuses occur.” Eric Farnsworth has the case in favor of the agreement at AQ while, at NACLA, the case against the accord is up. Also, meeting with Colombian officials last week, US Sec. of State Hillary Clinton suggested she’d be working for a similar US-Colombia trade deal in Washington.
· In Brazil, news from Bloomberg that the government has approved “higher-than-expected” increases in pension payments.
· An finally, after recent reports that Uruguay’s José Mujica personal savings consist of a1987 VW Beetle – estimated value $1,960 – news today that the Uruguayan president has decided to sell the presidential vacation residence in the posh balneario of Punta del Este. The government will be putting the extra funds to good use, says Mujica – setting them aside for a new housing plan for low-income families, recently unveiled by the government.
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