The protest yesterday seems to have been more or less “sucessful”, in the sense of getting a good number of people out. Could have been more people but the government deployed some 6000 police and army in Caracas alone to
preemptively repress and stop people from joining the main body of the protest.
And in the middle of all this, a few days ago the Chavista Assembly approved their Anti-NGO law. I mean, thats not the title, but thats more or less the thing.
Similar to the laws in place in Nicaragua and Russia, the law says every NGO and “similar” organization has to register and basically tell the government all about their finances going on. If you thing “similar” to be too broad, you are not the only one. They also are forbidden from “promoting fascisms, intolerance, hate and discrimination”. Which, again, for the Chavista goverment means anything they dont want you to say.
Diosdado Cabello, the #2 PSUV boss, “explained” that this was because they found 60 NGOs that had been financing protests and “terrorism”. As usual, the explanation never went into what actual proof they have for that, because the proof is that he said so; try to say the opposite and see how fast you are found promoting fascism. The law also specify how an NGO can be dissolved in a “fast process” by the courts when found to not comply or not pay the fines.
Also a lot of stuff about foreign NGOs, foreign donations, etc.
They have been toying with this law for a year, basically using it as a threat that is coming, but well, clearly now is the time for implementing this and any other idea related to shutting down civic society and allowing only the groups approved and controlled either directly by them, or by the fear of being shut down at any moment.
