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Venezuela’s Opposition Asks for the Floor
Thousands marched in Caracas on Saturday to support RCTV after President Hugo Chavez's government said it would not renew its license when it ends on May 27. The opposition says Chavez attempts to do away with the last attribute of a democratic state, the independent media.
Tens of thousands marched in Karakas Saturday following the call of the RCTV and 26 opposition parties. In extend, it was the biggest rally of few months.
The cause of the march was the decision of Chavez not to extend the license of Radio Caracas de Television (RCTV), cutting of air Venezuela’s biggest private TV channel that emerged in 1953 and that is aligned with opponents of today’s president of the country and is generally viewed as a stronghold of democracy there.
According to authorities, the air frequency of RCTV will go to Venezuelan public television, for which the target is the socialist upbringing of the nation. RCTV will be able to proceed with the cable broadcasting, the authorities pledged.
When speaking to protestors, RCTV chief Marcel Granier urged Chavez to recall the words of Simon Bolivar, an independence icon in Latin America and personal hero of Chavez. “He who rules must listen; the people are speaking,” Bolivar said.
The polls show that roughly 70 percent is for extending the license of critical TV channel. But it is not the liberty of speech that is the concern of the people. The nation likes RCTV mostly for soap operas, sports and talk shows.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of May 21, 2007
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