By Margaret Janelle R. Hutchinson
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

 CARACAS, Venezuela – Hugo Chávez, 58, won his third six-year term as president of Venezuela last week.  Yesterday he swore in a new vice president and replaced six senior Cabinet ministers.  Many of the replaced government officials announced their plans to run in gubernatorial races in states currently controlled by the opposition.

It appears Chávez is wasting no time strengthening his party’s influence throughout the nation as part of his strategy to achieve his stated intention of remaining in power until 2031.

The race up to the election last Sunday October 7, 2012, was the tightest Chávez has faced since he first gained power in 1996.  The obvious inequity in campaigning has lead some to declare that the election was “free, but not fair.”  Nevertheless, Chávez won 55 percent of the vote in the election, beating the opposition candidate, Henrique Capriles Radnski, by 11 percentage points.

Chávez’s win may prompt a reexamination of relations between the government and the opposition, which, up until now, have been so polarized that neither side has recognized the other’s legitimacy. During the campaign, Capriles even refused to pledge himself to accept the official results announced by the National Electoral Council.

Signs immediately following the elections indicate that the mutual distrust may be easing.  Keeping a promise he made on election day, Chávez phoned Capriles and for the first time refrained from using derogatory language against his former rival.  More important, Chávez committed himself to “extending a hand” to his opponents and made a call for “national reconciliation,” which would even include business interests of all sizes.

All major opposition leaders firmly resist the use of massive government expenditures to finance ambitious goals.  Up until now, the programs that Chávez claims create the conditions for “socialism” have been financed by windfall oil revenue.  Thus, for instance, expropriations to bolster the nation’s mixed economy are designed to allow state companies to compete with private ones in hopes of controlling inflation, which at over 20 percent is the highest in the continent.  Another costly and ambitious area of investment has been community councils, which receive financing to carry out their own public works projects and to form what the government calls “communes.”  The main opposition parties may be divided with regard to the role of the state, but none of them go along with the type of transformation to which Chávez is committed.

Perhaps the knowledge that he couldn’t move forward with many of his plans with opposition leaders in power is what prompted Chávez to shake up his Cabinet yesterday.

Former Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro, 49, replaced Elias Jaua as Chávez’s vice president. Maduro, a burly former bus driver, is considered the member of Chávez’s government with the closest ties to Cuba’s Fidel and Raul Castro.

The vice presidential job has assumed new importance because of Chávez’s recent struggle with cancer and rumors have circulated that Maduro is being groomed as his successor.

Jaua will be the ruling United Socialist Party’s candidate for the governorship of Miranda, Venezuela’s second largest state, which is the power base of Capriles.

Among the Cabinet changes was the appointment of General Nestor Reverol as the new minister of the interior and justice, replacing Tareck El Aissami, who will run to be governor of Aragua. Reverol had led Venezuela’s anti-drug body.

Admiral Carmen Melendez is the new head of the Office of the Presidency, replacing Erika Farias, who will seek the governorship of the west-central state of Cojedes.

Chavez also named journalist Ernesto Villegas to run the ministry of communications and public affairs; Aloha Nunez to the head of the ministry of indigenous affairs and Cristobal Francisco to the top post at the environment ministry.

In the swearing-in ceremony aired on state television, Chávez called on his new ministers to continue “the fight to transform the old capitalist and bourgeoisie state … into a socialist state.”

He also called for greater government efficiency.

Years of inadequate maintenance, corruption and perceived incompetence have left Venezuela’s infrastructure in a sorry state.  A blast in the Amuay oil refinery in late August killed 42 people (six are still missing).  Across the country, roads and bridges have collapsed or been washed away by rains, severing main transport arteries.

Citizens complain of crime, unemployment and poor public services.

Over the past year or so, the president has begun to spend his war chest. Calculations are that public spending has expanded by 30% in real terms over the 12 months prior to August.  Some of this has gone on new “grand missions”, as Mr. Chávez calls his social programs, the most important of which promised in 2010 to provide over 350,000 new homes by the end of 2012. That compares with under 600,000 new homes (by official estimates) in the previous 11 years.

Notably, over 3 million people are registered for the new program, providing the government with valuable electoral data.  The government insisted up to the election that an opposition victory would dash the hopes of the homeless, even though Mr. Capriles promised to keep that program going.

Chávez is at a strategy crossroads.  The continuation of far-reaching programs that invigorate the rank and file will meet resistance from opposition leaders who claim they are not sustainable over the long run.  On the other hand, major concessions to the opposition would run the risk of dampening the enthusiasm of his followers.  While the strategies of change and national reconciliation may not be mutually exclusive, it will take considerable political skill to combine the two in ways that overcome the intense political schisms that have divided Venezuela in recent years.

For further information, please see:

The Auburn Plainsman – Venezuela election reminder of how bad it could be – 14 October 2012

iFocus – Venezuela’s Chavez names new cabinet ministers – 14 October 2012

Fox News – Venezuela’s Chavez swears in vice president, 6 other ministers in post-election shake up – 13 October 2012

Reuters – Venezuela’s Chavez shuffles cabinet, then tweets about it – 13 October 2012

venezuelanalysis – Venezuela Reelects Hugo Chavez. What’s Next? – 12 October 2012

The Economist – The autocrat and the ballot box – 29 September 2012

By Margaret Janelle R. Hutchinson
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BOGOTÁ, Colombia – The ‘week of indignation’ is a movement, organized through social media, of various socially conscious groups to raise government awareness of how the armed conflicts have affected them and demand an active role in the upcoming peace talks.

Social organizations of Colombians have publicly supported the peace talks between the government and the Revolutionary Forces of Colombia (FARC) that are set to begin in Olso, Norway next week.  However, some of these groups are not content to sit idly by and allow the government to handle the negotiations; they are demanding their voices be heard.

According to groups such as Marcha Patriotica (Patriotic March), Congreso de los Pueblos, and Coalition of Social Movements and Organizations of Colombia (COMOSOC) the political and economic nature of the dialogues affects them directly and therefore they want a place at the table.

Among the many blogs who have promoted the demonstrations, the students of the University of Antioquia present the reasons to participate in this march and other activities as part of the week of indignation. They point out, among other reasons:

“The gradual deterioration of quality of life and the systematic loss of rights, guarantees and democratic freedoms are fundamental reasons to show our rejection and indignation against neoliberal policies and globalization implemented by imperialism, the Colombian ruling classes and the regime of [President] Juan Manuel Santos.

Outrage for the killing, displacement, threat and intimidation of union, social, indigenous and popular leaders. Also the criminalization of people who think differently and don’t agree with imposed policies.”

The marches and protests started on Monday October 4, 2012, and have affected 25 of Colombia’s 32 departments.

Today marches organized by left-wing movement the Patriotic March and other social sectors will take place simultaneously around the country.  In Bogotá 116 popular organizations will congregate in different parts of the city and intend to converge in the capital city’s central Plaza Bolivar.

“The government has not heard the cry of social organizations … the government has refused these social and popular organizations a presence at the round table … where will civil society be represented?” said Carlos Lozano, spokesperson for the left-wing Patriotic March movement.

Across the internet there are postings by various groups promoting the week of indignation.  Links to several of these postings are provided below.

For further information, please see:

Colombia Reports – Colombia marches for ‘week of indignation’ – 12 October 2012

Global Voices – Colombia to Close ‘Week of Indignation’ With Nationwide Protests – 11 October 2012

Facebook – PROGRAMACION DE LA MOVILIZACION EN CALI ESTE VIERNES 12 DE OCTUBRE; SEMANA DE LA INDIGNACION – Last Updated10 October 2012

Facebook – Operation Colombia – ¿A ti que te indigna? – Last Updated 08 October 2012

YouTube – Semana de la indignacion Cali – 03 October 2012

Estudiantes U. de A. – Cronograma Semana de la Indignación 4-12 Octubre 2012 – 1 October 2012

By Margaret Janelle R. Hutchinson
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BRASÍLIA, Brazil – As a young, vibrant, democratic nation, it seems counterintuitive that Brazil would be a leader in digital censorship.  Brazil submitted 418 requests, more than any other country, to block or remove content from Google’s various servers last year.

Attempts to censor content were elevated to another level last week when a judge ordered the arrest of Google’s most senior executive in Brazil, Fabio Jose Silva Coelho, after the company failed to take down YouTube videos attacking a local mayoral candidate.

A different Brazilian judge ordered Google to remove versions of the “Innocence of the Muslims” video that has sparked deadly riots across the Middle East from Brazilian YouTube within 10 days or face fines.

The cases are reviving a debate about Brazilian laws that hold services such as YouTube responsible for the videos posted on them, making the country a hotbed of attempts to stifle digital content.

Brazilian law currently treats content on the internet like material in newspapers, television and radio.  Consequently, Google is considered responsible for user posted material.

Brazil carefully monitors racial issues and has strict electoral laws that limit criticism of candidates in the run-up to elections.  There are lawsuits in at least 20 of its 26 states seeking deletion of Google content.  The video that drew controversy last week aired paternity claims against a mayoral candidate in Campo Grande, a state capital in Brazil’s interior.

Google says it resists restrictions it regards as illegitimate but complies with lawful requests from government officials.  The company appealed the ruling in the Campo Grande case but blocked the video after the court rejected the appeal and police arrested Coelho.

“Our goal with YouTube is to offer a community that everyone can enjoy and, at the same time, is a platform for freedom of expression worldwide,” Coelho said in a blog post after his brief detention.  “This is a great challenge, mainly because content acceptable in one country may be offensive — or even illegal — in others.”

Many Brazilians criticized the government’s handling of the Campo Grande case and what they see as elevating the rights of political candidates over the free-speech rights of their constituents.

“It’s a step back in terms of freedom of expression, something like we see happening in countries like China,” said Monica Rosina, professor at Fundaçao Getulio Vargas Law School. “It’s bad for the Brazilian image abroad.”

In the video case, the judge said Google would be fined 10,000 Brazilian reais ($4,926) per day if it doesn’t comply with his order.  Still, the judge acknowledged the complexity of policing videos on YouTube.

There is pending legislation in Brazil that would provide some protection for intermediaries such as Google.  The legislation, known as Marco Civil, would not fully prevent the kind of case that resulted in Coelho’s arrest, which was brought under Brazil’s more specific electoral laws.

Maria Clara Garcaz, a 20-year-old university student in Rio de Janeiro, expressed worries about the court action.

“It’s like we live in a silent, disguised dictatorship.  When we had our real dictatorship, at least you knew for certain what you could and couldn’t say,” Garcaz said.  “Political speech can be censored at any time and it’s moving into the Internet, exactly where people speak out.”

For further information, please see:

The Independent – Governments in young democracies fret over social media – 4 October 2012

PKKH – Google’s Brazil Chief Detained; Court Bans Anti-Islam Video – 27 September 2012

Yahoo Finance – Arrest of Google Brazil head stirs debate over Web – 27 September 2012

The Guardian – Google executive in Brazil faces arrest over video – 25 September 2012