Reply #46: You failed to look at the HRW report in context.

[Selatius]

When taken in context, Venezuela under Chavez has done better than it has under previous leaders. Is the government in Venezuela perfect? Absolutely not. I doubt any government is. In fact, if one queries HRW with respect to the US, one would find reports just as grim with respect to civil liberties in the US, especially over the issue of prisoner detainees and the war in Iraq. Police abuse in the US is an ongoing problem as well. This doesn't detract from whatever wrong is still happening in Venezuela though.

In total, I would say Chavez' government is far cleaner than certain regimes the US has supported in the past or continues to support. (See Saudi Arabia, Chile, etc.) Given which side in Venezuela to support, I choose Chavez. When he was illegally overthrown by Pedro Carmona and many leading members of the current opposition, they not only liquidated the legislature but also the judiciary as well. They suspended the constitution entirely and were maneuvering to install another Latin American pro-business rightwing dictatorship.

With respect to "media independence," I would assert there was very little before Chavez arrived. Most of the major news outlets, like in the US, are wholly owned by corporations, and many of those corporations were big supporters of Carmona's aborted coup and Chavez' opposition. They did not provide unbiased reporting on the Chavez, and they still do not, so when people say Chavez is attacking media independence in Venezuela, they often leave out the fact that he is attacking the corporations who have used the news media to push forth their own agenda without regard to the people.