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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWash Post editorial: Maduro shoves aside democracy
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/nicolas-maduro-shoves-aside-democracy-in-venezuela/2013/04/16/4edf4bd2-a6c4-11e2-8302-3c7e0ea97057_story.html
THE ATTEMPT by the followers of Hugo Chavez to install a successor to the dead caudillo through a one-sided election is faltering. Now the Venezuelan regime appears to be preparing to maintain itself in power through brute force and the oil-producing country is headed for a crisis that demands the attention of the United States and Latin Americas democracies.
On Tuesday, Nicolas Maduro, the former bus driver and Cuban protege who was designated as Mr. Chavezs successor, went on national television to announce that he would not permit a march Wednesday called by the opposition to support its call for a recount of votes in Sundays election. Promising to use a strong hand a hoary phrase from Latin Americas history of dictatorship Mr. Maduro spoke of protesters filling [Caracas] with death and blood, words that rang like a threat. The government said that seven people already had been killed in post-election clashes and claimed that a coup was being prepared.
In fact, if anyone is preparing a coup, it is Mr. Maduro and his Cuban advisers. Opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski has put forward a peaceful and reasonable demand: that an audit be undertaken of the suspect presidential vote count. Mr. Maduro himself said Sunday that he would agree to a recount but on Monday the electoral commission he controls abruptly ratified a result that gave him a margin of 260,000 votes out of 14.8?million cast. The narrow outcome clearly shocked the Chavistas, who had already installed Mr. Maduro in the presidency by unconstitutional means; they expected that their domination of the media and orchestration of voting by state employees would produce an easy victory and legitimize the regimes continuation.
In fact a majority of Venezuelans, including many former Chavez supporters, appear to be fed up with a revolution that has produced double-digit inflation, severe shortages of power and staple foods and one of the worlds highest murder rates. Mr. Maduro has offered no answers to these problems only ludicrous claims that they are the product of conspiracies by the opposition and the United States. Amid signs that his movement may be splintering, Mr. Maduro appears to be preparing repressive measures that should be intolerable to members of the Organization of American States, who are bound by treaty to resist violations of democratic order.
(...)
THE ATTEMPT by the followers of Hugo Chavez to install a successor to the dead caudillo through a one-sided election is faltering. Now the Venezuelan regime appears to be preparing to maintain itself in power through brute force and the oil-producing country is headed for a crisis that demands the attention of the United States and Latin Americas democracies.
On Tuesday, Nicolas Maduro, the former bus driver and Cuban protege who was designated as Mr. Chavezs successor, went on national television to announce that he would not permit a march Wednesday called by the opposition to support its call for a recount of votes in Sundays election. Promising to use a strong hand a hoary phrase from Latin Americas history of dictatorship Mr. Maduro spoke of protesters filling [Caracas] with death and blood, words that rang like a threat. The government said that seven people already had been killed in post-election clashes and claimed that a coup was being prepared.
In fact, if anyone is preparing a coup, it is Mr. Maduro and his Cuban advisers. Opposition leader Henrique Capriles Radonski has put forward a peaceful and reasonable demand: that an audit be undertaken of the suspect presidential vote count. Mr. Maduro himself said Sunday that he would agree to a recount but on Monday the electoral commission he controls abruptly ratified a result that gave him a margin of 260,000 votes out of 14.8?million cast. The narrow outcome clearly shocked the Chavistas, who had already installed Mr. Maduro in the presidency by unconstitutional means; they expected that their domination of the media and orchestration of voting by state employees would produce an easy victory and legitimize the regimes continuation.
In fact a majority of Venezuelans, including many former Chavez supporters, appear to be fed up with a revolution that has produced double-digit inflation, severe shortages of power and staple foods and one of the worlds highest murder rates. Mr. Maduro has offered no answers to these problems only ludicrous claims that they are the product of conspiracies by the opposition and the United States. Amid signs that his movement may be splintering, Mr. Maduro appears to be preparing repressive measures that should be intolerable to members of the Organization of American States, who are bound by treaty to resist violations of democratic order.
(...)
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Wash Post editorial: Maduro shoves aside democracy (Original Post)
Enrique
Apr 2013
OP
R#1 & K for, no, I'm not for Oligarchs. The bullying thugs are on both ends. It's the people
UTUSN
Apr 2013
#3
It would be interesting to see what they had to say about our Election 2000
Proud Liberal Dem
Apr 2013
#4
catnhatnh
(8,976 posts)1. 260,000? Didn't Bush "win" one by 260 votes???
And didn't out "Supreme Court" he controlled "rapidly ratify a result" AND violate Florida's recount laws and state sovereignty???
Cal Carpenter
(4,959 posts)2. Wow, that's even worse than I expect from WaPo
Which is pretty bad to begin with.
A bunch of agenda-driven bullshit in that "editorial" piece.
UTUSN
(70,649 posts)3. R#1 & K for, no, I'm not for Oligarchs. The bullying thugs are on both ends. It's the people
caught in the middle.
Proud Liberal Dem
(24,395 posts)4. It would be interesting to see what they had to say about our Election 2000
cali
(114,904 posts)5. another truly awful editorial from the WaPo.