Venezuela’s Supreme Court rules that RCTV must give up equipment

Caracas, NU Online
Venezuela’s Supreme Court ruled Friday that broadcasting equipment and infrastructure used by a television channel critical of leftist President Hugo Chavez must be made available to the state-run TV channel set to replace it on May 28.

The Supreme Court said on its Web site that Venezuela’s telecommunication commission would be responsible for Radio Caracas Television’s equipment, including microwave dishes and antennas, while the court reviews RCTV’s appeal of Chavez’s decision not to renew its license.<>

The station — the most widely watched channel in Venezuela — is scheduled to go off the air at midnight Sunday. Chavez defends the decision as a legal move to democratize the airwaves by reassigning RCTV’s license to a public service channel, while critics call it an attempt to silence criticism of the leftist president.

RCTV’s general manager, Marcel Granier, said Friday’s high court ruling is the product of “the immense pressure the government has put on magistrates” to guarantee that RCTV is shut down as planned.

“This equipment belongs to RCTV,” he said.

Earlier Friday, talk show host Miguel Angel Rodriguez, whose program is a daily rant against Chavez, ended his segment by blowing a kiss to the camera and saying defiantly: “There is no goodbye. It’s ’see you later.”’

Information Minister Willian Lara has said the new channel, TVES, will start broadcasting in every corner of Venezuela early Monday, raising suspicions among Chavez opponents who said the new channel does not have the necessary equipment to reach nationwide.

In a speech on Friday that Venezuela’s private TV channels were obliged to broadcast, Chavez rejected allegations that his decision threatens freedom of expression.

“There is no country in the world where there is so much freedom of expression,” he said. “The license expires at midnight on May 27, and it’s not going to be renewed.”

Inside the studios of RCTV, the mood was somber yet defiant, with some employees wearing T-shirts reading “No to the closing.”

“There is a lot of uncertainty. It’s very hard,” technician and 22-year RCTV veteran Alejandro Gonzalez Natera said, wiping away tears as he spoke.

Some of the station’s 2,500 employees will stay on to produce soap operas that air on other stations throughout Latin America.

Founded in 1953, RCTV broadcasts a mix of talk shows, sports, telenovelas and the popular comedy program “Radio Rochela,” which often pokes fun at Chavez. RCTV has regularly been the top channel in viewer ratings. (ap/dar)