May 2007 RCTV protests
Encyclopedia
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
that began in the middle of May 2007. The cause of the protests was the refusal by the government
Politics of Venezuela
|The politics of Venezuela occurs in a framework explained in Government of Venezuela.There are currently two major blocs of political parties in Venezuela: the incumbent leftist bloc United Socialist Party of Venezuela , its major allies Fatherland for All and the Communist Party of Venezuela ,...
to renew the broadcasting license of Venezuela's oldest private television network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
, Radio Caracas Televisión
RCTV
Radio Caracas Televisión Internacional is a Venezuelan cable television network headquartered in the Caracas neighborhood of Quinta Crespo. It was sometimes referred to as the Canal de Bárcenas. Owned by Empresas 1BC, RCTV Internacional was inaugurated as Radio Caracas Televisión on 15 November...
(RCTV), instead creating a new public service channel called TVes
TVes
TVes is a Venezuelan public television channel. Its name is short for Televisora Venezolana Social and is pronounced , meaning you see yourself. It replaced the signal of Radio Caracas Televisión on Channel 2 on Monday, May 28, 2007, and began broadcasting at 12:20 am local time...
which began operations on May 28, the same day RCTV's license expired. RCTV had Venezuela's largest viewing audience, with 10 million of the country's 26 million people viewing its shows and soap operas.
Background
On April 11, 2002, supporters and opponents of Venezuelan President Hugo ChávezHugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
clashed at the Miraflores Palace
Palacio de Miraflores
The Palacio de Miraflores is the official workplace of the President of Venezuela. It is located on Urdaneta Avenue, Libertador Municipality in Caracas....
. According to BBC News, a sector of the Armed Forces asked for Chávez's resignation, holding him responsible for a massacre during the demonstrations. Commander of the Army Lucas Rincón Romero
Lucas Rincón Romero
General Lucas Rincón Romero was the highest-ranking Venezuelan military officer at the time of the 2002 coup d'état attempt against Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez...
reported in a nationwide broadcast that Chávez had resigned his presidency, a charge Chávez would later deny. Chávez was taken to a military base while Fedecámaras president Pedro Carmona
Pedro Carmona
Pedro Francisco Carmona Estanga is a former Venezuelan trade organization leader who was briefly declared President of Venezuela during an abortive 2002 military coup against Hugo Chávez. He occupied the office of President from April 12 to April 13...
was appointed as the transitional President of Venezuela, following mass protests and a general strike by his opponents.
Carmona's first decree reversed the major social and economic policies that comprised Chávez's "Bolivarian Revolution", and dissolved both the National Assembly and the Venezuelan judiciary, while reverting the nation's name back to República de Venezuela.
Carmona's decrees were followed by pro-Chávez uprisings and looting across Caracas. Responding to these disturbances, Venezuelan soldiers loyal to Chávez called for massive popular support for a counter-coup. These soldiers later retook the presidential palace, and retrieved Chávez from captivity. Carmona's regime was toppled, and Chávez resumed his presidency on the night of Saturday, 13 April 2002.
Over the following months, and again in the wake of the 2002 lock-out and general strike, Chávez stepped up his criticism of the country's private media companies, accusing them of having supported the coup. On his weekly television program Aló Presidente
Aló Presidente
Aló Presidente is a largely unscripted talk show hosted by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez which is broadcast on Venezuelan state television and radio stations every Sunday at 11:00 AM...
and in other forums, he regularly referred to the leading private media owners as "coup plotters", "fascists", and "the four horsemen of the apocalypse
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are described in the last book of the New Testament of the Bible, called the Book of Revelation of Jesus Christ to Saint John the Evangelist at 6:1-8. The chapter tells of a "'book'/'scroll' in God's right hand that is sealed with seven seals"...
". He reminded them that their concessions operated at the pleasure of the state and that if they "went too far", their concessions could be canceled at any time.
On December 28, 2006, President Chávez announced that the government would not renew RCTV's broadcast license which expired on May 27, 2007, thereby forcing the channel to cease operations on that day. The Supreme Court of Justice
Supreme Tribunal of Justice (Venezuela)
The Supreme Tribunal of Justice is the highest court of law in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and is the head of the judicial branch.The Supreme Tribunal may meet either in specialized chambers or in plenary session...
(Tribunal Supremo de Justicia or TSJ)—controlled by Chávez allies—ruled on April 17 that it is within the National Telecommunications Commission's power to decide on the issuing, renewal and revocation of broadcast licenses.
The government maintains that the non-renewal is caused by RCTV's alleged support for the 2002 coup attempt. Bernardo Álvarez, the country's ambassador to the United States, described the licensing decision as a simple regulatory matter, which "was not made based on RCTV’s critical editorial stance against the government, nor was it directed at silencing criticism of the government." Explaining that Venezuela wished to adopt a more European model of public broadcasting, he wrote that 79 of 81 Venezuelan television stations, 706 of 709 radio broadcasters, and 118 newspapers remain in private hands, citing a May 30, 2007 op-ed published in the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
: “Radio, TV and newspapers remain uncensored, unfettered and unthreatened by the government. Most Venezuelan media are still staunchly anti-Chávez.”
The government's position has been supported by the testimony of coup leader, Vice-Admiral Víctor Ramírez Pérez, who, when commenting on the coup, told a Venevisión reporter on 11 April 2002: "We had a deadly weapon: the media. And now that I have the opportunity, let me congratulate you."
An article from Reuters mentions the position of the Chávez government that the TV station, among others, "openly supported a coup against him in April 2002 and refused to show the massive mobilization of his supporters that turned the tide back in the president's favor."
RCTV plea rejected
On 17 May 2007, the government rejected a plea made by RCTV to stop the TV station's forced shutdown. On 19 May 2007, nearly thirty thousand protesters gathered in CaracasCaracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
protesting the government's decision two days earlier. Other marches took place in Maracaibo
Maracaibo
Maracaibo is a city and municipality located in northwestern Venezuela off the western coast of the Lake Maracaibo. It is the second-largest city in the country after the national capital Caracas and the capital of Zulia state...
and Valencia.
Prior to the end of the broadcasting license
On 21 May 2007, hundreds of journalists and students marched in Caracas carrying a banner reading "S.O.S. Freedom of Expression." A few days later, on 25 May 2007, university students from the Universidad Católica Andrés BelloUniversidad Católica Andrés Bello
Universidad Católica Andrés Bello is a private university in Venezuela. One of the biggest universities in Venezuela, UCAB has campuses in several cities, such as Caracas , Los Teques, Guayana and Coro....
, the Universidad Simón Bolívar
Universidad Simón Bolívar
Simón Bolívar University or USB, is a public institution located in Miranda State, Venezuela with scientific and technological orientation....
and the Universidad Central de Venezuela protested against the government's intentions. Thousands of protestors marched in the streets of Caracas on 27 May for and against RCTV. In the evening, demonstrations in front of Conatel, the National Telecommunications Commission, became violent, with protestors throwing rocks and bottles at police, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Eleven police officers were reported injured in this incident. In Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, followers of Hugo Chávez voiced their support of his closing of RCTV on 27 May in Managua. This small rally was met with negative reactions from local press, who condemned the involvement of the Venezuelan Ambassador Miguel Gómez.
On May 24, the Supreme Court ordered RCTV to stop broadcasting as soon as its license expired and approved the government's takeover of all of its equipment and stations, though it would review the station's appeal of the decision. Chávez announced plans to start broadcasting a public service channel, TVes
TVes
TVes is a Venezuelan public television channel. Its name is short for Televisora Venezolana Social and is pronounced , meaning you see yourself. It replaced the signal of Radio Caracas Televisión on Channel 2 on Monday, May 28, 2007, and began broadcasting at 12:20 am local time...
, using the infrastructure that belonged to RCTV.
Shutdown
RCTV ended its final day of broadcasting with a rendition of the national anthemGloria al Bravo Pueblo
Gloria al Bravo Pueblo was adopted as Venezuela's diverse national anthem by President Antonio Guzmán Blanco on May 25, 1885. The lyrics were written by the physician and journalist Vicente Salias in 1810. The music was later composed by musician Juan José Landaeta...
performed by network employees and on-air talent, followed by a shot of a pro-RCTV protest. The screen then faded to black. A few seconds later, a series of TVes idents appeared on Channel 2. At 12:20 a.m. AST
Atlantic Standard Time Zone
The Atlantic Standard Time Zone is a geographical region that keeps time by subtracting four hours from either Coordinated Universal Time or Greenwich Mean Time , resulting in UTC-4 or GMT-4...
(0420 UTC) on May 28, 2007, TVes began its programming airing a video recording with the national anthem, performed by a large choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
clad in Venezuelan colours and full sized orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
led by the famous young Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel
Gustavo Dudamel
Gustavo Adolfo Dudamel Ramírez is a Venezuelan conductor and violinist. He is currently the principal conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony in Gothenburg, Sweden, and music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Los Angeles, California...
. After some network promos, TVes switched to an auditorium, where station president Lil Rodríguez
Lil Rodríguez
Lil del Valle Rodríguez is a Venezuelan journalist.Her most recent position is president of the board of directors of Caracas-based television station TVes , which began its broadcasting on 27 May 2007, following the controversial non-renewal of the terrestrial broadcast licence of the station...
gave a speech to a crowd of Chávez supporters.
According to a "just in time
Just In Time
Just in time is a production strategy that strives to improve a business return on investment by reducing in-process inventory and associated carrying costs. Just-in-time production method is also called the Toyota Production System...
" ruling by the Venezuelan Supreme Tribunal of Justice, all RCTV broadcast equipment will be temporarily controlled by TVes.
The Venezuelan government has also denounced CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
and Globovisión
Globovisión
Globovisión is a 24-hour television news network in Venezuela. It broadcasts over-the-air in Caracas, Aragua, Carabobo and Zulia on UHF channel 33. Globovisión is seen in the rest of Venezuela on cable or satellite and worldwide from their website...
.
National reaction
Thousands of protesters marching both against and in support of the government's decision remained on the streets in Caracas on May 28, May 29, May 30, May 31, and June 1. The National Guard and Police remain on the streets in the event that violence occurs, such as on May 28. At least eleven police officers and one protestor from the incident at Conatel, as well as three students and one police officer from a separate protest at Brión plaza in Caracas, have been reported injured. Twenty other students at Brión plaza were treated for tear gas inhalation.In the afternoon and evening of 29 May, protests in Caracas and Chacao became violent, with protesters in Chacao blocking Avenida Francisco de Miranda. At least seventeen people have been reported by Globovision to be injured on 29 May.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is an autonomous organ of the Organization of American States .Along with the...
petitioned the Venezuelan government for information about arrested and injured protestors; the Venezuelan government has not provided the information, saying it would violate the confidentiality of the adolescents involved.
On 2 June, tens of thousands marched through Caracas to support President Chávez decision.
International reactions
Since the week prior to the shutdown of RCTV, many individuals, international organizations and NGOs—including the OASOrganization of American States
The Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
's Secretary General
Secretary General of the Organization of American States
According to the Charter of the Organization of American States:-Secretaries General of the OAS:-Assistant Secretaries General of the OAS:*William Manger *William Sanders...
José Miguel Insulza
José Miguel Insulza
José Miguel Insulza Salinas is a Chilean politician and statesman. He is currently the Secretary General of the Organization of American States. He is nicknamed El Panzer, for his tank-like drive and reputation due to his ability to take political heat with little apparent damage...
and its Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression
OAS Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression
The office of the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression of the Organization of American States was established by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in 1997 to monitor OAS member states' compliance with the American Convention on Human Rights in the area of freedom of...
, the Inter American Press Association, Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
, and the Committee to Protect Journalists
Committee to Protect Journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent nonprofit organisation based in New York City that promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journalists.-History:A group of U.S...
,—have expressed concerns for freedom of the press. However, Secretary Insulza also stated that it was up to the Venezuelan courts to solve this dispute and that he believed that this was an administrative decision.
The International Press Institute
International Press Institute
International Press Institute is a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of journalism practices. Founded in October 1950, the IPI has members in over 120 countries....
stated that it is "a flagrant attempt to silence the station's critical voice and in violation of everyone's right 'to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers,' as outlined in Article 19 of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly . The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled...
" The Committee to Protect Journalists
Committee to Protect Journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists is an independent nonprofit organisation based in New York City that promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journalists.-History:A group of U.S...
"concluded [Chávez's] government failed to conduct a fair and transparent review of RCTV's concession renewal. The report, based on a three-month investigation, found the government’s decision was a predetermined and politically motivated effort to silence critical coverage." Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders is a France-based international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press. It was founded in 1985, by Robert Ménard, Rony Brauman and the journalist Jean-Claude Guillebaud. Jean-François Julliard has served as Secretary General since 2008...
stated "The closure of RCTV [...] is a serious violation of freedom of expression and a major setback to democracy and pluralism. President Chávez has silenced Venezuela’s most popular TV station and the only national station to criticize him, and he has violated all legal norms by seizing RCTV’s broadcast equipment for the new public TV station that is replacing it." Freedom House
Freedom House
Freedom House is an international non-governmental organization based in Washington, D.C. that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights...
has given Venezuela a press freedom rating of "Not Free" since 2002, most recently describing a number of new laws, most particularly the 2004 Ley Resorte, that include prohibitions against broadcasting violent material between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m., targeting a group or individual for hatred, and insulting president Chávez, under penalty of severe fines and imprisonment.
The Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
approved a motion promoted by Senators Richard Lugar and Christopher Dodd
Christopher Dodd
Christopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
condemning the closing,
and Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia D'Alesandro Pelosi is the Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives and served as the 60th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011...
, Speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
of the U.S. House of Representatives, asserted that it was an attempt to silence the critics of the Government. The U.S. State Department
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
, the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, the senates of Chile and Brazil, and the legislatures of a number of other Latin American countries have also expressed concern over the incident.
European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
President José Manuel Durão Barroso
José Manuel Durão Barroso
José Manuel Durão Barroso is a Portuguese politician. He is President of the European Commission, since 23 November 2004. He served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 6 April 2002 to 17 July 2004.-Academic career:...
qualified the measure as regrettable, adding that "freedom of expression and press freedom are substantial components of democracy." Costa Rican President Óscar Arias Sánchez stated that any media closing was a deathly strike against any democratic system. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet
Michelle Bachelet
Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria is a Social Democrat politician who was President of Chile from 11 March 2006 to 11 March 2010. She was the first woman president of her country...
said she regrets the decision and that "freedom of expression is the golden rule." Along with her, Finnish President Tarja Halonen
Tarja Halonen
Tarja Kaarina Halonen is the incumbent President of Finland. The first female to hold the office, Halonen had previously been a member of the parliament from 1979 to 2000 when she resigned after her election to the presidency...
said she was watching the situation with concern. The Spanish Partido Popular
People's Party (Spain)
The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship...
, the main opposition party, called the closing an "attack against freedom of expression".
After the Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian Senate passed a motion urging Chávez to reconsider the revocation of RCTV's license, Chávez "accused the Brazilian Congress of acting like a 'puppet' of the US", prompting Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva , known popularly as Lula, served as the 35th President of Brazil from 2003 to 2010.A founding member of the Workers' Party , he ran for President three times unsuccessfully, first in the 1989 election. Lula achieved victory in the 2002 election, and was inaugurated as...
to say “Chavez has to take care of Venezuela, I have to take care of Brazil and (US President George W.) Bush has to take care of the US”. Later, Lula da Silva said the decision of not renewing the broadcast license was internal Venezuelan business, adding that the legal logic of each country should be respected.
Chávez said that presidents Daniel Ortega
Daniel Ortega
José Daniel Ortega Saavedra is a Nicaraguan politician and revolutionary, currently serving as the 83rd President of Nicaragua, a position that he has held since 2007. He previously served as the 79th President, between 1985 and 1990, and for much of his life, has been a leader in the Sandinista...
of Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
and Evo Morales
Evo Morales
Juan Evo Morales Ayma , popularly known as Evo , is a Bolivian politician and activist, currently serving as the 80th President of Bolivia, a position that he has held since 2006. He is also the leader of both the Movement for Socialism party and the cocalero trade union...
of Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
have phoned to show support to his decision and that Álvaro Uribe
Álvaro Uribe
Alvaro Uribe Vélez was the 58th President of Colombia, from 2002 to 2010. In August 2010 he was appointed Vice-chairman of the UN panel investigating the Gaza flotilla raid....
from Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
said that his country would not mess in Venezuela's internal affairs. President Rafael Correa
Rafael Correa
Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado born is the President of the Republic of Ecuador and was the president pro tempore of the Union of South American Nations. An economist educated in Ecuador, Belgium and the United States, he was elected President in late 2006 and took office in January 2007...
of Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
said that he would have canceled the broadcast license automatically (after the 2002 coup).