Caracas, Venezuela, Jul 23, 2010 / 11:57 am
On the heels of an effort to review the country’s accords with the Vatican, President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela has now set his sights on the Catholic channel, Vale TV, which the Archdiocese of Caracas has operated since 1998.
Chavez has ordered the Minister of the Interior, Tareck El Aissami, to review the granting of Vale TV to the archdiocese by former President Rafael Caldera.
“I have ordered a review so that we can repossess the channel and put it at the service of the nation,” Chavez said. “I said we need to recover that channel and put at the service of the people and not the cardinal,” he repeated in a recent speech.
Vale TV, a non-profit television station, issued a statement saying what is at stake is not only its work in “producing and broadcasting content, but also doing so in a way that guarantees editorial independence, plurality ... ratings, self-management, and financial sustainability.”