In Venezuela, 140 Characters Can Land You in Jail

[Bacchus4.0]

https://globalvoices.org/2015/11/09/in-venezuela-140-characters-can-land-you-in-jail/



Seven people in Venezuela had to trade a keyboard for prison bars in 2014. Ordinary citizens who wrote messages on Twitter — that were considered criminal by the Venezuelan government — are now behind bars. In most cases, Venezuelan intelligence forces took them from their houses and workplaces and incarcerated them.
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The most widely known case of a detained Twitter user is that of “Inesita Terrible”. A native of the city of Maracaibo, in the west of the country, with a postgraduate degree in chemistry from the United States, Inés María González worked for a year and a half for the Venezuelan Institute of Scientific Investigations.

In the eyes of the government, González committed the offense of having “mistreated” the public image of deceased legislator Robert Serra on Twitter. SEBIN visited her house on two occasions; the second time, they took her away, giving her the false impression that she was only being brought in for questioning. A dark, dank cell awaited her.
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María Magaly Contreras is a 55-year-old homemaker who runs a popular Twitter account where she tweeted some comments against the government. This was enough for authorities to arrest her, though they did so in a deceitful manner. Contreras received a call from Sebin to tell her that her son was detained and when she arrived to the headquarters of the political police of Maracaibo, where she lived, they arrested her.

[DetlefK]

1. Every time I hear about Venezuela, my mind goes back to communist Romania.

The food-shortages, the propaganda, the out-of-touch leader who doesn't realize what's going on... A rich country brought down by a communist economy...

The romanian revolution began with an insignificant event: A pastor was to be punished for criticizing the regime.
Which lead to a tiny demonstration.
Which lead to the secret intelligence brutaly hitting back.
Which lead to a large demonstration.
Which lead to the dictator giving a speech in which he promised the citizens all sorts of bribes, tax-presents and better social services...
But the citizens weren't interested in money. They wanted freedom and food.
The demonstration erupted into open warfare in the streets of the capital when the people saw that the dictator didn't even address their grievances. (There's video of his speech. You can see how he's all confused when the crowd turns on him.)
The main-part of the fighting lasted a week, during which the dictator was toppled. The fighting dragged on for two more weeks and then communist Romania was no more.

[Marksman_91]

2. Funny how some useful idiots in this site seem to reject this reality

They're utterly convinced that the failed communist system of governing can still be salvaged. Yet history and facts are there to prove it can't. They're like Teapublicans.

[Bacchus4.0]

3. I tend to think its blind loyalty to Hugo. Its very hard for them to let go nt