Representatives of the Venezuelan organizations on human rights, Provea[1] and Espacio Publico[2], attended this Wednesday to the headquarter of the Public Ministry to lodge a complaint against the illegal intervention of private communications on both organizations by high officials of the national government.
Provea’s general coordinator, Rafael Uzcategui and the general director of Espacio Publico, Carlos Correa, demanded the General Attorney, Luisa Ortega Díaz, to start an investigation against Diosdado Cabello, National Assembly Chief by publishing in his TV show “Con el mazo dando” (by its name in Spanish) information that it is just possible to get through the intervention of communications.
The last May 13th of 2015, Cabello ensured through the channel of the Venezuelan State that “Rafael Uzcategui, member of Provea and Carlos Correa member of Espacio Publico, went to Panama on Saturday May 09th with final destination Lima city, Peru, where they will be participating in a forum on human rights alongside other organizations non-governmental representatives of Latin-American countries. After this activity they will travel to Chile where they will meet a member of the Observatorio Venezolano de Conflictividad Social[3] Marino Alvarado, who has been living outside of the country”
These organizations say in the communication given to the Public Ministry that “Even though, the information about our traveling itinerary and our international activities are possible to get by other sources, our meeting with the citizen Marino Alvarado, who has been living outside country for months and who only has contact us by digital communication was just possible to know it through the intervention of our digital media.”
Provea and Espacio Publico denounce these actions that infringe the article 48 of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela which says: “it is guaranteed the secret and inviolability of private communications in all their ways. Private communications will only be interfered by an order of the competent court with the fulfillment of the legal requirements and preserving the secret of private information that does not have relation with the corresponding process.” With this article, it is requested to the General Attorney of the Republic:
- As Provea and Espacio Public, we want to be informed if there is an investigation against us that has authorized a court the emission of the judicial order to interfere our communications. If this investigation and this order exist, the Public Minister has to start an investigation against the citizen Diosdado Cabello by the disclosure of information that does not have relation with the current process started against us.
- If an order from a court to interfere the private communications of Provea and Espacio Publico does not exist, we request to start an investigation against the citizen Diosdado Cabello by infringes the article 48 of the Constitution.
- A public pronouncement by the Public Minister about the validity of the data protection law that it is guaranteed in the 48 article of the Constitution
The representatives of these organizations also attended to the Ombudsman Bureau, where they requested the ombudsman, Tarek William Saab, to take actions to guarantee the constitutional rights of the Venezuelan human rights defenders and members of the NGOs.
Backgrounds
Between 2014 and 2015, the National Assembly Chief has used the national system of public media to criminalize the labor of the activist and organizations defenders of human rights. Between October and December of the 2014, the Institute for Media and Society registered disqualifications and harassment against 165 human rights activists, politics and journalists by the National Assembly Chief, Cabello, through his TV show. This behavior has been intensified from the participation of the human rights NOGs in the hearings of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and other sceneries of evaluation and monitoring of human rights in our country.
The Statement of the UN about the defenders of the human rights says “necessity and obligation of the State to provide support and protection to the defenders of the human rights on the performance of its labor”. Furthermore, in an increasing context of threats and criminalization of the activities of NGOs, the Inter-American Court on Human Rights has expressed its alarm against the continuous acts of intimidation and harassment against human rights defenders, and it has urged the Venezuelan State to guarantee the NGOs exercise their labors in a context free of threats and obstacles.
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[1] Venezuelan Program of Education and Action on Human Rights (Provea in its Spanish acronym)
[2] Espacio Publico is a non-governmental organization that defends the human rights in Venezuela as well as Provea.
[3] Venezolano de Conflictividad Social. This organization promotes and defends freedom, equality, fraternity, democracy and human dignity.
