Giant demonstration of Venezuelans supports democratisation of the airwaves

Here’s another piece which I got yesterday from Katherin in Caracas. Despite my translation it’s worth reading. It shows how the hard right is using students who have not been demoralised by previous defeats and how the revolutionary forces are mobilising. The other noteworthy thing is how a discussion of freedom of expression is right in the heart of things.

Venezuelans will march today to support the government’s decision not to renew RCTV’s licence and to reject the violence stirred up by some media outlets to raise the temperature on the streets and incite violent demonstrations.

Scores of social and political groups which support the democratisation of the airwaves will assemble in avenida Bolivar in Caracas. Member of the National Assembly Dario Vivas says “it will show that the big majority is in the streets in solidarity with President Chávez and the Bolivarian revolution”.

Two marches will set off from Parque del Este and La Bandera at 10am. One of these will go post the pro-revolution CANTV station.

““There we will give a document of solidarity to the new manager of Cantv and then we’ll go to Plaza Morales to give another one to the public defender, Germán Mundaraín” said the deputy.

The march will call on the investigating authorities to speed up the investigations into those who are causing chaos and conflict in the capital and in some other parts of the country.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Frías announced on December 28 2006 that RCTV’s licence would not be renewed because of its constant violations of the country’s laws. The private channel came off air on May 27^th and Televisión Venezolana Social (TVes), the country’s first public service broadcaster began transmitting. This new channel is the first step towards the real democratisation of the country’s airwaves.

Since Monday 28th May some of the private media companies, taking their lead from Globovisión and some right wing politicians have started a campaign to raise the political temperature on the streets. Groups of students from the universities and Caracas’ private schools responded to their messages and began peaceful protests that, within hours, became violent.

Later National Assembly Deputies Desirée Santos Amaral, Calixto Ortega y Gabriela Ramírez declared on the radio that radical sectors of the Venezuelan opposition Un Nuevo Tiempo and Comando de la Resistencia were behind the supposedly “spontaneous and peaceful demonstrations.

How much does a tear cost?

The people on the streets are giving an answer to the manipulation of the artists who “wept” for the loss of RCTV. During the anti-imperialist march in support of the Bolivarian revolution some groups of students and other protestors marched past the headquarters of broadcast network ViVe to show their support for president Chávez and to oppose the private companies’ distortions of the truth.

Liliana Ortega, a law student at Universidad Arturo Michelena said “the artists were an instrument of the opposition, helping them with their plan to destabilise the country. The script for Sunday 27^th called for the artists to appear without make-up crying in front of the cameras.” She appealed to fellow students who are protesting at “being robbed of their freedom”. “Please be calm. We live in a society with laws. Our Constitution and our legal system provide many guarantees of freedom of expression for all Venezuela’s citizens. I would ask my fellow students not to take part in these demonstrations and to return to classes as normal on Monday.”

Edison Garcés said “you don’t have to be a professional to realise that what these stations are doing is not very ethical. They are abusing the fact that viewers identify with these actors’ characters. They shouldn’t be using them to manipulate people in this way.” He also mentioned the expansion of the rights and freedom to participate in broadcasting that people in Venezuela now enjoy. “It’s striking that people who before were not able to enjoy educational and informative programmes now are able to take decisions in their own communities. We now have legal protection to discuss decisions about the economy, the infrastructure and education. It’s clear to me that the President is the person pushing this forward.

Cabo Guanipa, a representative of the contractors of Elecentro said “we have freedom of expression here and we aren’t going to let ourselves be manipulated. That’s why we’ve come out to defend this process and the Presidents. Patria, Socialism or Death!”.