Venezuelan president (T)Hugo Chavez is now picking fights with the Organization of American States. It seems that OAS Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza criticized (T)Hugo's taking away broadcasting licenses from independent television stations. (T)Hugo is pitching a fit.
OAS Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza warned Friday that refusing to renew the license "would be seen as a form of censorship against freedom of expression" and serve as warning to other media critical of the government.
The Foreign Ministry accused Insulza of "improperly meddling" in Venezuela's affairs and denied that the decision had any "appearance of censorship." The ministry demanded Insulza "retract a series of comments that go against the truth."
Tensions have risen to a new level between the government and Venezuela's largely opposition-aligned private media since Chavez's December re-election to a fresh six-year term.
Chavez has promised radical changes, including revising the constitution — possibly to get rid of presidential term limits — and creating a single, pro-government party. Many Chavez critics say they fear Venezuela is heading toward the tightly regulated communist system of Cuba's Fidel Castro, Chavez's ally and mentor.
This is the logic of the left: shutting down opposing views isn't censorship. Less is more. Light is dark. Bad is good. (T)Hugo is trying hard to turn the nation into another Cuba.
