The repressive, dictatorship consecrating, enabling law is out

Original

So, after much, much hot air the regime had to show the enabling law it wants for Maduro to become a full time dictator. It does not matter whether the unconstitutional project is to silence the opposition or to purge the ranks of chavismo of its undesirable elements (they are all undesirable but apparently there are gradations within chavismo). The fact of the matter is that chavismo does not want its bankrupt regime to be discussed either on the air waves, or the newspapers and even less at the Nazional Assembly (yes, I am retaking the "Nazional Assembly" moniker because after this re-edition of Ermächtigungsgesetz the next step is our own version of Nuremberg Laws which the projected enabling law contemplates as an extension of our very own Tascon list).


The excuse the government offered is that there is a need to fight corruption and to face down a severe economic crisis. But the solution offered by this enabling law is to silence the opposition, find corruption there and among some token chavistas for good measure, more to make room for other corrupt chavista officials rather than any good intention.  The economic measures are fake ones as a regime whose currency went from 500 to a dollar to 50,000 to a dollar in 14 years has no credibility anymore on this respect. Amen of an inflation currently at 50% annual. As long as the perpetrators of this economic disaster remain in office no enabling law of any type will solve the problems. This is not a matter of laws, it is a matter of personnel.

80 years later copy

To illustrate the above, I will let you know what each item of the law truly means. The law is rather short, and curiously the Hitler one was very short too, and also 4 articles both. Some coincidences are too amazing to pass over.

Article 1, part 1, is supposedly to fight corruption.

Item 1-A states that the law wants to rebuild the morality of public administration and orient it to socialist values.  We are not far from official segregation, Nuremberg style.

Items 1-B and 1-C give the executive power of the country right to create mew types of crimes and fix the sanctions. See above.

Item 1-D, just as Hitler's article 4 was, allows the regime to take the international measures it sees fit, which basically means expropriate whatever foreign companies own here.

1-E is to make sure opposition parties cannot find electoral financing.

Items 1-F through 1-H are to give the government sole control on any foreign currency in the country.

Part 2 leads to the economic items.

Item 2-A basically gives the regime leeway to get rid of trade unions and contracting. That is, the trade unions of state companies that protest because the regime does not fulfill its obligations will be shut down.

Items 1-B through 1-E give the regime the power to intervene at will any aspect of economic activity, deciding what is done and by whom.  Item 1-F, the last one, is in fact a veiled disguise that expropriations will now proceed without compensations since it will be "to guarantee the right of the people to have goods and services, safe, of quality and just price".  This is impossible to achieve unless you force producers to sell at a loss if necessary, or expropriate them without the burden of owing the value of the property.

Article 2 is the nail in the coffin of private enterprise and freedom because Maduro will in fact have the right to qualify a law "organica", which in Venezuelan law means it can only be changed with a 2/3 majority in the parliament. The absurdity and unconstitutional nature of this provision is obvious since the parliament will not have a 2/3 vote for approving this law and yet Maduro will enact laws as if they got the 2/3 vote.

Now, does anyone still think we are not in a dictatorship?

You are of course all welcome to find the adequate parallels to any enabling law or repressive totalitarian regime of your preference.

Fascist "journalists" inside the Nazional Assembly of Venezuela

Sometimes there are little items that truly freeze you blood. A certain Dayra Manuela Rivas is a "journalist" at the National Assembly and its TV network, ANTV which is supposed to be our local version of C-span but that is nothing less than a propaganda outlet where opposition representatives not only cannot participate but are now excoriated. You just need to look at the front page to see that ANTV is nothing else but crap, and at tax payer expense.

Just to make sure that you can
see by yourselves that it comes
from the web page of the
Nazional Assembly of VNZL

Today La Patilla revealed an OpEd (yeah, right...) dedicated to trash in the vilest terms Maria Corina Machado. Of course, MCM has been trashed for years along anyone that criticizes the regime. What is novel here is that she is blasted, without evidence, without proof, already sentenced in the web site of the Nazional Assembly of Venezuela by that little shit of Dayra Rivas. The article is not even original, it has all the cliches in use by the regime, all the "reminders" of past crimes that are STILL without trial, without evidence, charges repeated endlessly in the hope that it will make them true.

All inspired in the techniques for character assassination in use in Cuba and in any totalitarian regime. This is not journalism, this is not an OpEd, this is beyond character assassination.

You can read the complete article at La Patilla if you have the stomach for it. There is really no point in translating much of it, the second paragraph will do.

¡Los mismos rostros! ¡La misma serpiente! Un solo objetivo: ¡Arrodillar, doblegar a Venezuela ante los pies del imperio norteamericano! Dicen en algún lugar de la mancha [sic] que recordar es vivir, pero en Venezuela, recordar las acciones fascistas de aquellos de quienes pretenden apoderarse de las riquezas del país, y despojar al pueblo de sus derechos –tal y como lo hicieron los gobiernos de la cuarta república durante más de 40 años-, significa defender el legado del Comandante Supremo, Hugo Chávez, la Revolución Bolivariana y el Socialismo, así esto implique ¡levantar verdades o fusiles!
The same faces! The same snake! a single objective: To kneel down, to bend over Venezuela at the feet of the North American Empire! They say that in a place of La Mancha [The poor thing has no idea on the literary reference she uses! she confuses them, misspells them, proves that she is an ignorant] that remembering is to live, but in Venezuela, to remember the fascist actions of those who pretend to grab the riches of the country, and remove the rights of el pueblo- just as the governments of the IVth Republic did for more than 40 years-, means to defend the legacy of the Supreme Commander, Hugo Chavez, the Bolivarian Revolution and Socialism [capital letters intended by her here, even is she forgot the others], and thus this shall imply raise truths of riffles!

As usual, not only cultural references are wrong, but the text is ill written in Spanish, confusing, the mishmash of an angry bitch trying to pass as a journalists, and forgive my French please!

But that is where fascism thrives, on such feeble minds.

Globovision-less evenings, information-less TV

I am back in San Felipe after a few days in Caracas, when we learned the end of Globovision. And thus I had to face my first evening without Leopoldo Castillo, a.k.a. El Ciudadano. It is not that I was a slave of that show, never watching it when I am away from home, but in San Felipe it was part of my routine, the essential routine considering that I got ideas for many a post by listening to the discussions of the talk show.

No, I was not sitting in front of the set for 3 hours, I had it like one has the radio on while doing something else, only actually watching when something really interesting happened. Also, with DirectTV recording box, I often started watching after 6 the show starting at 5, zapping though all that had little or not interest for me.

But in the past decade, and the more so once Cesar Miguel Rondon was booted out of Televen, El Ciudadano was the only talk show worth watching in Venezuelan TV. Never condescending, strongly opinionated but with proof in hand, it was the crude exposition of all of the regime's miserableness. You loved it or hated it, but El Ciudadano was the star of political TV.

Now Globovision is in its agony throes. After the departure of Castillo, the truly serious journalists left have decided to go also. They did not leave at first last May, trusting that they would still be able to do some significant work under the new ownership of Globovision. The ones that left at first were the entertainers (Buenas Noches, Yo Prometo....). But the near simultaneous departure of Chuo Torrelaba and Leopoldo Castillo last week have opened the flood gates. The journalists left are the ones covering the beat, the ones too afraid of going jobless, etc... The editorialists, the ones that were able to put the news in context, the only way you can understand certain type of news in this most secretive and falsely open country, will be all gone soon because in Globovision they will not be allowed to put context.

I think that the sudden and precipitous demise of Globovision comes paradoxically from the return of chavista voices to its sets. Until the change of owners Globovision talk show anchors were tired of showing the invitations sent to ministers and directors of the regime that were declined or simply ignored.  Once Globovision changed hands some started to come back to a network that was not a complacent one like the state propaganda vehicle, VTV, is. There you had the feel that the journalists cleared up all questions before asking them, assuming you could call those "questions" as they were mere excuses for starting long diatribes by the public "servant" on the set.

After a decade of boycotting free and open media the few chavista that started showing up on Globovision demonstrated that they had lost any skill at replying to questions, at accounting for their actions or their ideas.  This was seen best in Grado 33, the 8PM half hour in depth research show which started to have for the first time a few chavista voices. The format was to postulate a given item and have 2 to 5 people answer a series of questions on that theme. When Grado 33 managed to have its first chavistas in the group it became dramatically clear that these people had long ago given up on thought processes, on questioning ideas, on being coherent. It was clear that after working all these years for the regime, they had become used to follow meekly directives, regardless on how nonsensical those may have been.

I suppose that it did not take long for the new owners, really figureheads for the true political operators behind the purchase, to realize that a more neutral Globovision was actually WORSE than a partial one. The order to kill came earlier than expected.

Tonight, I have decided to erase #110 on my "favorites" Direct TV box. There is nothing to watch anymore there. It does not matter what Vladimir Villegas tries to convince us with, and he does have a valid point with the double speech that many have used against Globovision troubles, the problem is that the way Globovision new owners have proceeded has killed the credibility of that network. When the best TV journalists prefer to go jobless than hold their job, you know they do that to preserve their personal credibility.  Venezuelan TV? Move along! Nothing to watch there!

Ironically the main victim of Globovion neutering is going to be the chavista lumpen who is denied access to any state network. Only Globovision would show their complaint, that insecurity was killing them, that promises were unfulfilled, that they had no jobs, no lights, no  water. And yet, pledging to vote for Chavez. Now they can start working on their inner contradiction and turn protest violent if they want anyone to pay attention. Paradoxically the venting off at Globovision waves may have helped chavismo more than what it thinks. But this one has been rendered too idiotic to notice. Now we'll see.

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PS: as for the future of Globovision. When a highly specific audience channel is dismissed the audience is lost. The ones that were watching state TV will remain doing so, not seeing why they should switch, just like a previous regime attempt though Canal-i failed dismally. And the ones who were devoted can only but be disappointed in the new format, and angry.  Globovision was also advertising for the upper social  strata which are going to be the ones deserting the fastest and the most. Advertisers are going to go elsewhere. In other words, Globovision is going to go into irrelevance and a money losing scheme for the new owners. Then again income was not the reason for the purchase.

There have been sustained rumors that Globovision was bought by a chavista faction (Diosdado?) to prepare itself for future battles when it breaks with Maduro who as president gets to keep the state media.  Whatever was true in this urban legend, the panicky way the new owners chose to sped up the demise as the national situation worsens for chavismo, excludes such a future scenario. The future of Venezuelan information is Internet and its people's journalism; and back to newspaper until the regime kills all of that too.  A matter of time.

Maria Corina Machado victim of a Cuban character assassination technique (counts as XXI century fascism too)

Today the fascisto-communist regime of Venezuela (your pick!) has crossed a new line.  Maria Corina Machado, noted Venezuelan National Assembly representative, former primary candidate, one of the main members of the opposition international outreach, and the one of the broken nose during her line of duty at the Nazional Assembly has had her private conversations taped, edited and passed as if it were a conspiracy phone call. Cuban G2 modus operandi.

The regime presented earlier today the "phone taping" as a proof that MCM was into some form of dark conspiracy, just another one of the fantastic ones presented daily in Venezuela, without a shred of evidence even when they claim to involve the purchase of a dozen and a half of war planes.  Brouhaha for a while but the reply came back smashing tonight as MCM told us that in fact, the words in that conversation (which would have been badly wiretapped to begin with) were a illegal recording of a 2 hours conversation that she had in the library of German Carrera Damas, a noted historian.

That is right, the regime managed to bug the library of an elderly intellectual, something not too difficult to do, and took that private conversation, took words out of context and built up an alleged 2 minutes phone conversation that never occurred.

Why the regime would take such a risk today? To begin with, after such a fiasco no future "conspiracy conversation" will benefit of much credit now that we know what the regime is willing to lower itself. On this respect, outside of the idiotic chavista fringe, nobody will believe at face value any future recording. Also, the ones presenting that "conversation" not only probably discredited themselves utterly but may lose big in politics. One is harshly criticized Caracas-Libertador mayor, Jorge Rodriguez, who may have killed his reelection dreams (which I personally do not think he had as he was forced by Chavez to a job he did not want). The other is formerly appreciated journalist, Ernesto Villegas who has turned into the totally discredited information/propaganda minister from whom you may not even trust his watch for time of the day.

No, the point is elsewhere.

Now chavista officials, in the middle of a never ending succession war now that even their at home private conversations are not safe anymore (cell phone conversations are gone of the repertoire for conspiracy of any type). The more so that mayoral candidacies must be decided inside chavismo and the regime tries to avoid desperately primaries.

All the rest is inconsequential. MCM will come out the bigger person for her spirited defense and counter attack. Capriles has been enough attacked but is enough of the consensus leader that this will not scratch him (she supposedly complained about the lack of response on late April which not only she is not alone for that but that she voiced already). Guillermo Aveledo by now has a Teflon coat. And all appreciate the hard work she does in her role to blame her of a personal opinion. After all, contrary to chavismo, inside the opposition the debate is lively and primaries held when pertinent.

The home lesson is dramatic: from now on we ALL know that even our bedroom conversations are fair game for a regime that has lost any respect for individual rights.

Notes.

Jorge Rodriguez and Villegas can be sued. I hope MCM does follow through. When the regime changes she can have them fined heavily even though they are not corrupt rich.

Snowden is an idiot: bringing up Venezuela (among Ecuador, Russia and Cuba) as countries to protect him and favor his trips only shows that he is an ignorant, no matter how justified his crusade may be. To protect his right of free speech he uses countries where freedom of speech in under attack or nonexistent. thus, once again, Wikileakes et all are not about freedom, they are about finding ways to attack the US.

Media shopping and its future use

We are in an economic crisis of increasing dramatic proportions and yet "groups of investors" are buying media groups....

A few weeks ago it was Globovision, and this week it is the Cadena Capriles, holder of Ultimas Noticias, the newspaper most read by the middle to lower sectors of the population (income and/or education, not that this means Ultimas Noticias is a lousy paper, it is not in its context). The neutralization of Globovision has already started but Ultimas Noticias does not really need to be neutralized. So why? To sneak in more propaganda? That would not work as "el pueblo" has largely ignored the attempts of the regime at pro Chavez rags (Ciudad Caracas, Correo del Orinoco, Vea, all with dismal sales). If Ultimas Noticias were to start resembling regime propaganda its sales would go down fast.

My hypothesis is that bolibourgeois groups are used as fronts by chavista political tendencies for future political needs. If the regime exits soon, they will be the new private "opposition media". If chavismo stays and if the internal warfare of chavismo continues, these newly sold media could be used by one faction against the other.  The only victim for sure is freedom of information for all.....

Globovision last gasp?

It looks like the end of Globovision as we knew it is at hand.  The top group of journalists is fired or resigning and the network new owners have decided after their meeting with the regime to stop broadcasting anything about Capriles. We even learn that Globovision twitter followers are dropping quite fast, a bare few weeks Globovision had bragged becoming the most followed TV account in Venezuela (Note: for full disclosure I never followed Globovision, too many tweets).

Oh well...  back to the newspapers, nothing left to listen or watch in all of Venezuela....

Catastrophic news for the regime: Inflation at 4.3% and RCTV revenge

The regime got two major knockdowns today.

It had to admit, confess, after a week delay, that inflation for April was 4.3%.  Think about this: how many countries in the world have an ANNUAL inflation BELOW 4.3%?  To make things worse, the central bank also confessed to a scarcity index of almost 30%, which roughly means that when you go to a grocery store one out of three basic food staples you are looking for will be missing.

JUST FOR FOOD, for El Pueblo, inflation was 6,4%..........

The second blow comes from 2007. The Inter-american Commission for Human Rights got tired to wait for a response from the Venezuelan government for its arbitrary closing of RCTV in 2007 (link to the many posts I wrote on that topic, for those new here). The regime refused to attend the recommendations, gracious one by the way since they accepted that Tves was displaced as long as new bands were made available for an RCTV revival. In fact, apparently the regime did not even bother replying.... So the Commission has decided to sue the regime in the Inter-American Court where the the regime will be forced to defend its arguments for the closing on RCTV in public.

This is big, my friends. And the timing is perfect as the regime shows that it has become a dictatorship  A reminder that full freedom of expression has been denied to Venezuelans since 2007 is a major plus for us.

Excerpts of today's communique by the IACHR: (my emphasis and my comments)

"In its Merits Report, the Commission concluded that this decision violated the right to freedom of expression, the right to equality and non-discrimination, and the administrative due process. Although the formal objective declared by the State to support diversity and pluralism was indeed a legitimate public interest, the evidence of the case showed that the decision was based on the editorial line of the station. In this way, the decision was a clear act of deviation of power and an indirect restriction incompatible with the right to freedom of expression."

"In addition, RCTV was treated differently in comparison with other TV operators whose circumstances related to the concession were identical. The IACHR submitted the difference of treatment to strict scrutiny and concluded that the State could not justify its acts and, therefore, it also incurred in a violation of the rights to equal protection under the law and non-discrimination. The Commission also concluded that the process that led to the confiscation of property of RCTV violated the administrative due process."

In short, ALL of the actions in 2007 were condemned by the IACHR. ALL....

"... the Inter-American Commission recommended the State of Venezuela to initiate proceedings to allocate a free-to-air nationwide television frequency in which RCTV is able to participate, at a minimum, under conditions of equality. The process should be open, independent and transparent, apply clear, objective and reasonable criteria, and avoid any political consideration that discriminates on the basis of a media outlet’s editorial stance, in keeping with the standards set forth in this report; to make reparations to the victims for the damages they sustained as a direct result of the due process violations; and to adopt the measures necessary to guarantee that the process whereby radio and television frequencies are granted and renewed comports with the Venezuelan State’s international obligations vis-à-vis freedom of expression."

See, it was not so bad.  The IACHR only asked that all be treated equal, and not differently. Remember that Venevision who accepted to remove all of its talk shows was granted its renewal of license while its news hour became absolutely worthless as far as news were concerned.

"This case will allow the IA Court to analyze for the first time the effects on the right to freedom of expression, in its individual and social dimensions, as a consequence of the actions of the State related to the assignment of radio and television licenses. When deciding this case, the Court will have to establish which are the substantive and procedural guarantees necessary to assure that this procedures do not become a mean to indirectly restrict the right to freedom of expression which, although having a legality veil, seek to pressure or punish as well as reward journalists and media outlets based on their editorial lines."

And once again, as it was for the case of Leopoldo Lopez won, the abuse of Chavez regime gives an opportunity to the Court to define broadly rights for the continent. Idiot chavistas!
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Really a bad day for the regime as Maduro is outside trying to salvage what can be salvaged....  And by the way, when the electoral challenge will reach the IACHR as it is prone to be, this trial will play in our favor as a precedent on why political campaigns cannot be fair in Venezuela.