Venezuela: Inter-American Court of Human Rights ordered … – BBC

Image copyright AP

Image caption RCTV was forced to stop broadcasting in May 2007.

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (CIDH) on Monday ruled in favor of the restoration of the signal from the Venezuelan television channel Radio Caracas Television ( RCTV), which was forced to close in May 2007 after President Hugo Chavez ordered to end the granting of the media, one of the oldest in the South American country.

“The State shall restore the grant of the frequency spectrum corresponding to Channel 2 television ” the ruling also ordered the Venezuelan state “return the assets subject to precautionary measures” that favored the canal. The ruling was five votes in favor and two against.

“Once the restoration of RCTV’s concession is made, the State shall within a reasonable time order the opening of an open, independent process and transparent to the granting of the frequency corresponding to the channel 2 television radio spectrum for this purpose following the procedure laid down “in local laws.

Image copyright AP

Image caption The air outlet RCTV generated widespread student protests.

RCTV, inaugurated in 1953 not only was forced to stop its transmissions but also the government seized transmission equipment and within minutes it took It signals a new state channel called TVes .

The Commission stated that such a situation can not be repeated so he asked the state to take “the necessary measures to ensure that all future allocation processes and renewal of radio frequencies and television carried out, are conducted in an open, independent and transparent manner “.

The channel argued that President Chavez ordered not to renew the lease because its position during the attempted coup of 2002 that kept the president out of power for two days.

The Commission, based in Costa Rica, also ordered a series of economic reparations for applicants include “compensation for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages, and reimbursement of costs and expenses”.

Many critics of the Chavez government Venezuelans see the decision of the Commission as a victory in the name of freedom of expression.

According to the BBC correspondent in Caracas, Daniel Pardo, the ruling party has reiterated both in this as in other instances international- arbitration disputes that suspicious of these courts, as being “arbitrary”.

In fact, when the Commission questioned the Venezuelan democracy in 2013, Venezuela abandoned the American system of justice, which lost jurisdiction in this country.

For that reason it is unlikely that Venezuela abide by the decision of the Court on RCTV.