CARACAS, Venezuela, July 23 (UPI) -- A new Venezuelan government office is at the forefront of official efforts to limit public debate in the country, Human Rights Watch said.
The answer, the campaign group said, is to close down the organization.
The Center for Situational Studies of the Nation was recently created on orders of President Hugo Chavez, who earlier shut down or took control of several independent media outlets and groups that gave voice to critics of the government's policies.
Venezuela suffered major shrinkage in economic growth this year after prolonged drought and what critics called government mismanagement. Chavez hit back at critics, but shortages of consumer goods, electricity and water remain and have angered citizens.
Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas' director at Human Rights Watch, said Venezuela's government should stop seeking to discredit human-rights defenders and prosecuting critics.
On June 1, 2010, Chavez issued a presidential decree creating Centro de Estudio Situacional de la Nacion. The new Center for Situational Studies of the Nation was given broad powers to limit public dissemination of "information, facts or circumstance[s]" that it decides should be confidential.
CESNA will operate within the Ministry of the Interior and Justice to "compile, process and analyze" information from government offices and civil society "regarding any aspect of national interest".
Chavez also called for criminal investigations into human-rights organizations trying to operate in the country. Chavez said the organizations were funded from the United States.
UPI
