When everyone is a fascist, is anyone a fascist?

Venezuelans on both sides of the political divide have spent the last frenetic days calling each other fascists. Nothing novel about this, other than the increased frequency. But banging on pots and pans (and now bumping salsa at full blast) in protest is one thing. Beating up opposition politicians and stripping them of their right to speak unless they recognize Maduro as president is quite another. Pictured above is William Davila, deputy of the National Assembly and former governor for Merida. His face was smashed with a microphone this week by others in the assembly. Then, President of the Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, refused to let opposition lawmakers speak and stripped them of their committee posts.

So does one side have a point? I refer to Merriam-Webster. Fascism; a political philosophy, movement, or regime that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition

Is their a lightswitch for this?

Venezuelan VP, Jore Arreaza, explains just why the internet was shut off within the country, on election day no less, for several minutes. "Foreign conspirators." Is Anonymous sticking it to the Bolivarian Republic? Nevertheless, talk about awesome power. Right up there with the superhero power to be invisible.

Compatriotas no hay problemas con internet. Calma!! Fue una maniobra breve para impedir más hackeos conspiradores del exterior.

— Jorge Arreaza (@jaarreaza) April 14, 2013

What happened in Cauca?

Colombian friends took to Facebook this week following a stand-off between soldiers and people from the indigenous Nasa community in the Department of Cauca with an unusual intensity for a country often numbed to so much violence.

Why such a reaction? I can't begin to explain. The more I learn about Colombia the more clouded and undefinable the layers of conflict in this beautiful country seem to me. Here are some resources that hopefully provide context to the ongoing battle between the military and the FARC, and the immense toll such violence takes on the innocent people caught in the middle.

Latin American Working Group's Colombian Campaign. Noticias 24's coverage with video of President Santos' statement. A write-up from Foreign Policy. Images from the BBC. The fairly in-depth AP story with a focus on political fallout.

Get familiar with this guy

On Sunday, Venezuelans went to the polls to elevate Chavez's challenger from a diverse slate of opposition candidates for the October 7 election. Even though pro-government pundits forecast a turn-out of 900,000, nearly 3 million people, some threatened with losing their job, turned out to vote.

They chose Henrique Capriles Radonski, the 39-year old current governor of Miranda, Venezuela's second-most populous state, former mayor of a large Caracas suburb and former diputado. Capriles also earned his opposition cred by serving a 4 month term as a political prisoner on false charges.

HCR emerges as the leader of the most well-organized, and frankly most credible, opposition that Chavez has encountered since taking power 13 years ago. Moreover, he won with over 62% of the vote in a field of 5 candidates by maintaining a moderate tone relative to some of the more radical anti-Chavez candidates. In fact, he's mentioned Lula as a model for his own governing style.

Defeating Chavez, who maintains an approval-rating of near 60%, and a deeply passionate faction of support will not be easy. The odds are not in Capriles' favor, especially considering the government's tactics of intimidation by fiat and brute force. Nevertheless, this election will be incredibly informative on many levels about Venezuela's toleration for one-man rule and a sky-rocketing crime rate vs. an alternative narrative of pragmatism and the rule of law.

Ed. note: As mentioned before, a great starting point for the ins and outs of the election is the admittedly pro-opposition blog, Caracas Chronicles.

Dinged for "Stirring Public Anxiety"

The last of Venezuela's networks critical of Hugo Chavez's government has been fined over $2 million USD for their reporting on the Rodeo II prison riots. Globovision was sanctioned under articulo numero 27 de la Ley de Responsibilidad Social de Radio y Television for, among other things, "failing to transmit the government's point of view in a timely manner."

The June standoff between the military and prisoners, which led to the deaths of 22 people, was a massive crisis for the Venezuelan government and an international black eye which focused attention on the hellish conditions of the country's prisons. The government did not officially comment on the riots until the six days had passed and have disputed independent reports about the number killed, among other key facts.

The principal government response in the aftermath of the riots was to appoint a new prisons chief, an observably unstable legislator and close confidante of Chavez, who promptly ordered wardens to suspend all prisoner intake. Why didn't the last guy think of that?

Globovision, which has a long history of doing battle with the Chavista government, says that the fine, which must be payed prior to any appeals, equals 7.5% of the network's 2010 gross income and puts existence on very thin ice.

Reigning in Mexico's Military

In a country where the military is still disappearing its citizens amidst the fog of the war on drugs, the Mexican Supreme Court's unanimous decision last week ordering military personnel to be tried in civilian courts, not secretive military tribunals, for human rights violations is a step in the right direction. The tribunals proceedings are hardly transparent and result in very few convictions. Allegations of serious abuses are also on the rise. Since the beginning of President Calderon's term, the National Human Rights Commission, CNDH, has received 4,772 reports of kidnapping, torture, and murder.

However, Mexico's civilian courts are rife with massive problems of their own. Endless detentions, due process, and witness intimidation are institutionalized. The documentary film, Presunto Culpable, demonstrates the depth of the challenges facing judicial reformers and the impunity that bad actors within the security forces enjoy. What's more, top military brass are grumbling in public about the Court's decision, pinning allegations of murder and kidnapping on drug gangs seeking to, in the words of Secretary of the Navy Admiral Mariano Francisco Saynez, "damage the image of our institutions."

The case of Rene Jasso Maldonado belies the Navy Secretary's assertion. Jasso's home in Monterrey was raided in June and he was taken from his family. He has not been seen since. The New York Times clearly states that it was the military who conducted the raid yet they, and the state police, claim they were not in the area and don't have their son. The family flatly denies that the raid and kidnapping could have been the work of a drug gang posing as the military. His brother claims that, "they would have wiped out the witnesses."

The Court's ruling is a first step. Beyond the massive reforms needed within civilian courts is a plan to quickly move existing cases out of the military tribunals and free up courts to open new cases. Apparently, a process has not yet been unveiled and the military's full cooperation is doubtful. President Calderon and Congress should move to create a special civilian court to hear cases of alleged violations committed against Mexican citizens by members of the military sworn to protect them. This though would be further than Calderon has been willing to move thus far. His military campaign has been mostly popular with Mexicans and his full recognition of the military abuses would cut against his strategy and public statements.

Prison Reform al estilo Chavez

Last week Presidente Hugo Chavez appointed Iris Varela, a PSUV diputado known as La Comandante Fosforito (Commander Firecracker), to be his new prisons minister. This follows the month-long stand-off between Venezuelan security forces and inmates at the wretched El Rodeo I and II prisons. Reports from independent media and watchdog groups claim that between 30-60 prisoners and guards were killed in the unrest. For its part, the Chavez government countered through its interior minister that, "Fortunately, the massacres they talked about in headlines occurred only in the minds of these people who look down on the masses and hate the inmates." So utterly constructive Señor Ministro.

The Miami Herald reported back in July about Venezuela's prison system:

"The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has issued “provisional measures” against seven of Venezuela’s 33 prisons, including Rodeo II, citing the government for dangerous overcrowding and failing to set up controls to keep weapons and drugs out. A penal system designed for 14,000 inmates is crammed with almost 50,000. About 80 percent are awaiting trial.

Venezuela has one of the highest murder rates in the hemisphere. But being in jail is particularly deadly. In 2010 there were 466 prison murders and almost 1,000 assaults, according to the IACHR. And more than 4,500 inmates have been killed in the last decade. By comparison, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons reported 15 homicides in 2010 — that in a prisoner population four-times larger than Venezuela’s."

Varela announced today that she plans to release up 40% of Venezuela's inmates, over 20,00 of them. Fine. Overcrowding is an obvious problem and has contributed to an institution rife with human rights violations and deadly violence. But like everything else in Chavez' Venezuela, this will be accomplished through the prerogative of the claudillo and that of his circle of appointed compadres. The rough and tumble Varela threatened, "Si un juez me pone una traba, le digo a la presidenta del TSJ que lo saque del cargo," (if a judge gets in my way, I'll tell the president of the Supreme Court to strip them of their office).

What a wonderful endorsement of the rule of law and the balance of powers.

And why isn't Varela the one in prison herself? She has a record of bloodying up opposition diputados and intimidating journalists. Witness her inexcusable harassment of the journalist and politician Gustavo Azócar, a former prisoner of conscience from the state of Tachira and a man still under threat from the capricious justice system of Venezuela.

Get this Article to the President

The Economist, of all publications, has suggested a solution to the Posada Carriles issue that would send the admitted terrorist to Venezuela to face trial in exchange for the USAID subcontractor, Alan Gross. Gross was sentenced in Cuba last month to 15 years in prison for delivering video phones to the island's Jewish community. President Jimmy Carter returned from Havana empty-handed shortly after his conviction.

The article doesn't address the all but certain certain fallout in Little Havana, where Elián pt. II could ensue, but does point out that the initial extradition order issued by Venezuela was blocked by a Florida judge for specious reasons. The judge cited fear of torture in Venezuela, which the author claims, despite its many other problems, doesn't have a significant track record of torture.   

The Cubana flight 455 that Posada Carriles has admitted to bombing was headed from Barbados to Jamaica, could President Obama broker a deal where one of these two nations would put him on trial?

Ya Basta! Who's Killing LGBT People in Honduras?

The blog blabbeando has focused attention (mine at least) on the rise of hate crime murders of LGBT people in Honduras. Read here for more information, some of which is quite graphic. The US Embassy has also stepped up the awareness and the pressure by issuing a public statement.

"Architect" of Dirty War on Trial in Argentina

Argentinean military junta leader, Jorge Videla, has gone on trial for the deaths of 31 political prisoners. Videla is already serving a life sentence after his 1990 Carlos Menem-granted presidential pardon was overturned in 2007.

Miguel Angel Ceballos is representing the families of the disappeared, who included his own father:

"They shot him in a ravine a few blocks from the jail along with other prisoners," Ceballos said. "When they came looking for my father at the prison, he knew he would be killed. He said goodbye to his friends and left a photo of our family so they could tell us what had happened."

The body was delivered to the family shortly thereafter. The other victims, lefists between 21 and 45 years old, were killed in similar fashion — "shot while trying to escape" — in the months after the coup on March 24, 1976.

Romero

This week marks the 30th anniversary since Archbishop Oscar Romero was killed during El Salvador's civil war, and while the Salvadoran government has overcome its previous unease with Romero's legacy the hierarchy of the Catholic Church has not. President Funes led a commemoration of Romero's life saying, "This is something that should have been done a long time ago" and that he would work to "correct the historic error" that led to decades of official silence within the country.

The National Catholic Reporter, a favorite publication of mine, discusses the struggle within the church over Romero's canonization which is symbolic of the Vatican's timidity and discomfort with the liberation theology that Romero came to preach and which sealed his fate at the hands of El Salvador's rightest death squads. Fr. Dean Brackley, an American Jesuit, describes the paradox this way, "Romero sought not what was best for the institution as such, but what was best for the people. In the long run, that is what is best for the church, too. The institution that strives to save itself will lose itself. If it loses itself in loving service, it will save itself.” 

Amen.

Unsettling narco-war thought of the day

From the LA Times:

"If the fundamental institution of any state, the armed forces, can't prevail in the battle against narco-trafficking, then what is next?" asked Jose Luis Pineyro, an expert on national security at Mexico City's Autonomous Metropolitan University. "It is the last recourse." 

In DF, love is in the air

From the LA Times:

"I never in my life thought I'd see this," said Rodriguez, 61, an accountant. "There is very strong change coming to my country. Very slowly, like everything here, but change is coming."

Musica para animarse

It's been a difficult couple of months across the Americas. Chile confronts bouts of social breakdown that it believed its economic progress had inoculated it from, Cuban dissidents suffer stepped up repression, and Bogota endured a major transit strike. It's a really good time for some music. All week long, Armar una Bronca will feature music from across the region. Hope you enjoy.

First up is Beken from Haiti.

As Haitians tries to imagine a way forward, one of its most beloved troubadours recently picked up his guitar for the first time since the earthquake. “Beken usually sold best after a hurricane,” an admirer said, referring to the singer. “But since the earthquake, demand for his music is the strongest in years, the customers love the way he sings about suffering.”

His music can be heard here, courtesy of the NYT.

WOLA and LAWG call Zapata's death "a tragedy", "indefensible"

The Washington Office on Latin America and the Latin American Working Group have now each issued statements criticizing the death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo at the hands of the Cuban state on February 23. From WOLA:

"The death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo is a horrible tragedy. Mr. Zapata should not have been in prison. The Cuban government should not criminalize peaceful political activity or those who defend human rights. Prison authorities should have recognized his deteriorating health, and responded." 

and LAWG:

"This tragic death, and the continuing practice of detaining opposition voices in Cuba, calls us even more strongly to change U.S. policy toward Cuba. We look forward to a time when U.S. citizens and Cuban citizens may freely associate, traveling to one another’s countries without restriction from either government."

It is good for policy organizations who advocate for an end to the travel ban and el bloqueo, as does Armar una Bronca, to forcefully, frequently and publicly call on the Cuban regime to respect human rights, democratize, and free prisoners of conscience. This robs parties opposed to US-Cuban dialogue the space to criticize steps taken towards closer relations.

Passed along without comment

From AP:

Power failures have become a fact of life in Venezuela, but the energy problems have not affected the presidential palace — until now. President Hugo Chavez was giving a televised address Thursday when the broadcast on state TV was suddenly interrupted. TV screens went fuzzy for a couple of seconds, then the channel switched to a spot urging Venezuelans to save electricity. When the live broadcast resumed minutes later, Chavez said the interruption was caused by problems with a power generator.

Chavez blames energy shortages on a drought and low water levels at the Guri Dam, which supplies about 70 percent of Venezuela's electricity. Critics argue Chavez has failed to invest enough in electricity production.

This article from the LA Times digs deeper into the politics of power outages in Chavez' Venezuela.

In other Hugo news, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the strongest, most autonomous body of the OAS, issued a strongly-worded report detailing the erosion of civil liberties in Venezuela. Key section:

"The commission finds that the state's punitive power is being used to intimidate or punish people on account of their political opinions...Venezuela lacks the conditions necessary for human rights defenders and journalists to carry out their work freely."

More from the Guardian:

The report said there was a "troubling trend" of harassment, violence and judicial action to deter and criminalise protests, leaving Venezuelans cowed.

It detailed cases of dozens of judges who were sacked or sidelined for issuing rulings the government did not like. "The lack of judicial independence and autonomy vis-á-vis political power is one of the weakest points in Venezuelan democracy," the commission said.

Chavez predictably lashed out on state TV, not only at the report but at the head of the IACHR, the argentino Santiago Canton, who headed up Latin American programs at NDI in the 1990's. I should say, I've not been able to verify if the previously mentioned power outage occurred while Chavez was addressed the report.

Lastly, the Supreme Court has removed the elected mayor of the Zulia municipality in the state of Sucre for failing to pay $292 in taxes. He's been replaced with a Chavez ally. See comments above on judicial independence.

Dolor de la madre del fallecido

From Generacion Y:

This afternoon, hours after the death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo, Reinaldo and I were able to approach the Department of Legal Medicine, where autopsies are performed, in Boyeros Street.

A cordon of men from State Security were watching the place, but we managed to approach Reina, the mother of the deceased, and ask her the questions in the recording posted here.

Pain, indignation in our case…sadness and fortitude in hers.  Here is the recording, amateur and in very low light, but the heartbreaking testimony of an anguished mother.

English transcript of Yoani Sanchez video interview of Reina Tamayo, mother of Orlando Zapata Tamayo

Yoani Sanchez: We are here to express our condolences. We would like to know at what time did he pass away, what do you know about his last minutes, what are your feelings right now, and what is going to happen after he is released by the coroner?

Reina Luisa Tamayo Dangier: I am Reina Luisa Tamayo Dangier, the mother of prisoner of conscience Orlando Zapata Tamayo who was interned in the hospital of the Habana del Este Prison. Last night he was moved to the Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital where he passed away at 3:00 PM.

I can tell you I feel a horrible pain, but I am holding on, enduring through this pain. I was able to be at his side until he passed away and now hope to have the courage to dress my son Orlando Zapata Tamayo.

We will leave for Banes, Holguin Province, Embarcadero road, house number six, where we will hold the wake before our family altar, at my home, for as long as required.

I want to tell the world about my pain. I think my son’s death was a premeditated murder. My son was tortured throughout his incarceration. His plight has brought me great pain and has been excruciating for the entire family. Even, as he was transferred to this prison, he was first held in Camaguey without drinking water for 18 days. My son dies after an 86-day hunger strike. He is another Pedro Boitel for Cuba. [Pedro Luis Boitel died in 1972 during a hunger strike while serving a 10-year prison sentence in Cuba]

In the midst of deep pain, I call on the world to demand the freedom of the other prisoners and brothers unfairly sentenced so that what happened to my boy, my second child, who leaves behind no physical legacy, no child or wife, does not happen again. Thank you!

Cuban Dissident, Orlando Zapata, Dies in Jail

A Cuban dissident has died after a hunger strike lasting 86 days. Orlando Zapata had been imprisoned since the so-called Black Spring of March 2003 when over 75 dissidents were rounded up and given lengthy sentences under summary trials. Raul Castro called the death lamentable and uttered some unintelligible accusations against the US while his security forces surrounded the home of the fallen activist threatening to arrest anyone attempting to visit the family. Government officials who transported the body to his hometown of Banes insisted that he be buried immediately but his family refused. His funeral will occur on Thursday.

Particularly galling was the response from pro-government lackey, Enrique Ubieta, who wrote on Cubadebate that Zapata was a, "common prisoner-with a long rap sheet not at all connected to politics," and that Zapata's cadaver is "now cynically exhibited as a trophy."

La Impunidad

Within the past several days, two disturbing incidents occurred across Latin America which underscore the profound challenges for the rule of law and the struggle against impunity. Following the military operation in Mexico that resulted in the death of Arturo Beltran Leyva, one of the country's three most powerful narcos, questions were raised about photographs that showed the body in a disrespectful manner echoing the calling cards of murders committed by the narcos themselves.

One member of the Mexican Navy was killed in that operation and on Tuesday morning Beltran Leyva's cartel sought revenge. Hours after the family of that fallen soldier buried their son at a funeral attended by President Calderon they were killed by hitmen aligned with Los Zetas. Four people have now been arrested and it appears that members of the Tabasco state police force, where the family lived, were also involved.

Javier Ibarrola had this to say in an L.A. Times article, "We are not facing a criminal group but a corps of combatants who are going to exact revenge and take territory from the government. The government is not prepared for this. Presidential speeches do not scare them."

The second incident occurred in Colombia. There, the governor of the state of Caqueta was abducted and found dead less than a day later. Luis Francisco Cuellar had been kidnapped on four previous occasions. He appeared with President Uribe as recently as this past Saturday. Ten assailants, presumably FARC members, killed one guard, injured others, and used grenades to gain entry into Cuellar's residence.

Both of these attacks, on two targets with distinctly different public profiles, demonstrate that Mexico and Colombia's success in rolling back these destabilizing elements has not had a significant impact on their ability to wage high-profile operations. The narcos, and to a lesser extent, FARC, have used fear in unprecedented ways to preserve their power. Gruesome murders and indiscriminate violence against journalists and other members of society not involved in government or security have abetted their sense of impunity.

These groups have also benefited from the deep levels of mistrust that many Colombians and Mexicans have in their governments. Whether it is the complicity of politicians or members of the security apparatus (from the highest levels down to rank and file police officers) in Mexico's drug trade or Colombian officials implicated in violence committed by paramilitary groups, entrenched corruption in these countries has stifled the popular support for not just the objectives of these campaigns against criminal activity, but for the methods and individuals waging them. The impunity afforded to narcos and rebel groups across Latin America will be protected as long as this critical support is lacking.

"So that they learn repect"

Mexico's limited success in the drug war is becoming its own worst enemy in the struggle for hearts and minds. This past weekend, an elite Mexican navy team killed one of the nation's most powerful cartel leaders in a gun battle that lasted over 90 minutes outside of Cuernavaca. The images of a lifeless Arturo Beltran Leyva that appeared in the country's newspapers echoed the public relations objectives of the narcos themselves when leaving behind victims. Namely, to instill fear and demonstrate unchecked power.

The Mexican political commentator, Jorge Chabat, wrote in El Universal that, "The humiliated corpse, with its pants lowered, covered with bloody bills in one photo and religious objects in another, showed the typical modus operandi of narco-traffickers." He continued, "The only thing missing was a sign saying 'so that you learn to respect' to confirm the unmistakable stamp of an act of narco revenge."

For his part, the Interior Minister, Fernando Gomez-Mont said that, "The Mexican government fulfills its duty to halt organized-crime activity, but it does not get into personal humiliation." An investigation has been opened to determine who "dressed up" the corpse-the military or local coroner specialists. If in fact members of the military are increasingly adopting such narco tactics it seems hardly appropriate that they investigate themselves, afterall we know how well narcos respect the rule of law.