PRESS FREEDOM UPDATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 002005 SIPDIS SIPDIS HQSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD DEPT PASS TO AID/OTI RPORTER COPENHAGEN FOR DLAWTON E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/10/2031 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM SCUL VE SUBJECT: PRESS FREEDOM UPDATE REF: A. CARACAS 1768 AND PREVIOUS ¶B. CARACAS 1909 CARACAS 00002005 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Mark Wells, A/Political Counselor, for Reason 1.4(b). -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (U) This cable is the next in a series of updates on the repressive tendencies of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (BRV) towards the freedom of press. As indicated in reftels, the BRV employs a variety of mechanisms - legal, economic, regulatory, judicial, and rhetorical - to harass the private media, engendering a repressive, almost fascistic, attitude towards the free press. Topics addressed in this update include: -The puzzling murder of journalist Jose Joaquin Tovar Figueroa; -Mayor lashes out at local media; -Embattled newspaper Correo del Caroni's travails continue; and -Rangel and Maduro talk up the media. END SUMMARY -------------- Chavista Newspaper Editor Murdered -------------- ¶2. (U) Journalist Jose Joaquin Tovar Figueroa, editor of the pro-Chavez Caracas weekly "Ahora," was killed in Caracas on June 16, reportedly shot between seven and eleven times. Political motives were immediately assigned to Tovar's death, although pro- and anti-chavista publications have each insinuated the other's involvement. Pro-government sources implied opposition complicity, citing "Ahora's" support of the Bolivarian regime and emphasized Tovar's involvement with the Independent Electoral Movement, a pro-Chavez group. Reporters Without Borders agreed that Tovar's murder was possibly a direct result of his critical reporting, but indicated Tovar's writings were critical of both the government and the opposition. Finally, amid all these claims that Tovar's murder was a direct result of his journalistic activity, police investigators are tying the murder to Tovar's involvement in a community housing project and his possible involvement in a scheme to bilk ten million Bolivares (almost $5,000) from as many as fifteen employees of a Caracas restaurant. -------------- MATURIN MAYOR MAULS MEDIA -------------- ¶3. (U) The mayor of Maturin, Monagas, and member of the ruling Fifth Republic Movement, Numa Rojas, acted against two local newspapers on June 19. Rojas withdrew all municipal advertisements and indicated reporters from the two papers would be denied access to city hall and party headquarters. Rojas's actions were reportedly taken in retaliation for the papers' accusations of corruption against the daughter of the mayor's girlfriend. Rojas held a public rally in Maturin inviting municipal employees to assemble and protest against those media that oppose him. ¶4. (U) Rojas is echoing the President's words of June 14 (reftel b),saying the press is trying to divide chavismo. In addition to the local papers cited above, Rojas accused major national media outlets El Nacional, RCTV, and Globovision of leading a campaign for his ouster, stating that such efforts will transform him into a national leader. CARACAS 00002005 002.2 OF 002 Before anointing himself a national hero, however, Rojas is having difficulty with fellow Chavez supporters. Two deputies and several Monagas state mayors have denounced Rojas's behavior as unilateral and without popular support. -------------- BOLIVAR STATE'S CORREO DEL CARONI -------------- ¶5. (U) The ongoing saga of the Correo del Caroni, a newspaper in Bolivar state, took a sinister turn on June 26. An act of sabotage left the newspaper without electricity and caused an explosion. The newspaper reported that this act was an attempt to prevent the newspaper from publishing an issue on June 27, the newspaper's 29th anniversary. The paper's owner and editor showed visiting Press Attache how electrical wires had been tampered with and said a small explosion temporarily crippled the newspaper's production when power was restored. -------------- BRV: WE'RE THE GOOD GUYS... -------------- ¶6. (U) Senior government officials are publicly and loudly defending BRV actions while at the same time trumpeting Venezuela's track record with regard to press freedom. On June 26, National Assembly President Nicolas Maduro asserted that the Chavez administration has not undertaken any retaliatory action against media outlets or journalists. Maduro proclaimed that Venezuela has never seen more freedom of expression than it sees presently. Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel claimed that 90% of Venezuelans believe their country enjoys freedom of expression and expounded, "We have absolute, unrestricted, and total freedom of expression, like in no other country in the world." Government media outlets aired several ceremonies in which it bestowed awards on pro-Chavez journalists, many of whom attacked the private media. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶7. (C) The chavistas continue to stick to their "never been better" defense regarding press freedom. Actually handing out awards for "responsible journalism" is a standard practice mimicking real-world activities with a farcical Bolivarian spin. Certain local players have sunk to juvenile levels that smack of desperation. Either tactic provides a platform for the BRV to impugn the private media and discredit its reporting. BROWNFIELD