Open letter to the Government of Venezuela on the arrest of Oswaldo Álvarez Paz

We, the undersigned former delegates of the Forum 2000 Conferences, held annually in Prague since 1997, observe with astonishment and concern the arrest last week in Venezuela of the former Governor of Zulia state, former President of the Chamber of Deputies and former presidential candidate, Dr. Oswaldo Álvarez Paz (67).

Many of us met Dr. Álvarez Paz during the Forum 2000 Annual Conference “Openness and Fundamentalism in the XXI Century”, held in October 2008, and we know him as an honourable person with democratic principles. On that occasion, Dr. Álvarez Paz alerted us to the persecution which the opponents of President Hugo Chavez constantly suffer, as well as the decline of democracy in his country during the last decade. His arrest on March 22^nd is a clear evidence of the credibility of his testimony.

Dr. Álvarez Paz commented during the talk show “Alo Ciudadano”, broadcast by the private TV Channel Globovisión, on a resolution passed by the National Court of Spain (Audiencia Nacional de España) about the alleged relation between the Venezuelan government, the Colombian guerilla group the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Spanish terrorist group ETA and he called for this fact to be investigated. He was subsequently arrested on charges of conspiracy, spreading of false information and incitement of hatred, charges which could lead to up to 15 years in prison.

The arrest of Dr. Álvarez Paz is important evidence of the use of the legal system to persecute those who criticize the government of President Hugo Chavez. It also corroborates the reports published by international organizations and institutions like the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Human Rights Watch or Freedom House about the increasing deterioration of political liberties in Venezuela.