CARACAS (Reuters) – A regional human rights court criticized Venezuela yesterday for forcing an opposition TV channel off the air in 2007 and told President Nicolas Maduro’s government to grant the broadcaster its old frequency.
The government of Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chavez, declined to renew a concession for the nation’s then-oldest channel, Radio Caracas Television (RCTV), on grounds it backed a brief 2002 coup and its frequency was needed for a public service channel.
But the Costa Rica-based Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which is part of the Organization of American States (OAS), said Venezuela should re-establish the concession and return assets taken from the broadcaster.
The ruling was made public yesterday.
There was no immediate comment from the government or RCTV on the judgment in a case that became one of the emblematic disputes of Chavez’s 1999-2013 rule, outraging opponents but delighting supporters of the socialist leader.
RCTV, in operation since 1953 and enjoying a large audience, had argued Chavez’s move against it was purely political, due to its critical editorial line.
It now operates only via cable TV.
Foes and rights groups accuse Maduro and Chavez of squashing freedom of expression. Government supporters say private media got away with virulent bias in the past and are currently part of a wider international campaign to discredit socialism in the South American OPEC nation.
