To say that Hugo Chavez has a thin skin qualifies as an understatement. The Venezuelan dictator has announced that any foreigner who criticizes him insults the “national dignity” and will be forcibly removed from the country:
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has vowed to expel foreigners who publicly criticise him or his government.
“No foreigner can come here to attack us. Anyone who does must be removed from this country,” he said during his weekly TV and radio programme.
Mr Chavez also ordered officials to monitor statements made by international figures in Venezuela.
This outburst came after Mexican politician Manuel Espino, head of the National Action Party that controls the government, spoke at a pro-democracy conference in Caracas. Did he call Chavez a tyrant? Implore Venezuelans to conduct a coup d’etat? Espino didn’t do either; he pointed out that Chavez’ plan to end term limits on the presidency would turn him into a Presidente-for-life and undermine democracy.
For this unforgivable sin of pointing out the obvious, Chavez has decided to expand the police state. Not only will foreigners get expelled for voicing criticism of Chavez, the dictator wants his security forces to monitor them constantly just in case tourists get crabby in Caracas. It promises to become a Gestapo-like regime, where every little complaint gets reviewed by police to determine whether it offends to the point of deportation.
And if Venezuelans think this system will only affect foreign visitors, they will be fooling themselves. Chavez’ paranoia will not limit itself to foreigners, who wouldn’t be his biggest threat in any case. When calling the dictator a tyrant becomes a crime against the state, the law will not apply to non-citizens alone.
Chavez is well on his way to making Venezuela another Cuba, and perhaps even worse. The cult of personality has already begun under his dictatorship, and is history is any guide, it will get worse in a short period of time. Venezuela looks set to become the Turkmenistan of South America, and Chavez its new Turkmenbashi. And if anyone wants to travel to Venezuela, they’d better develop a case of laryngitis first.
UPDATE: This may not be the most disturbing story out of Venezuela today. Sean Hackbarth notes that Chavez is expanding his petroleum monopoly into all sorts of other ventures, squeezing out private enterprise in the meantime:
Petróleos de Venezuela, the state oil company that controls the biggest reserves in South America, may begin making shoes, building ships and farming soybeans as President Hugo Chavez widens the government’s role in the economy.
Chavez has approved the creation of seven subsidiaries that range from oil services to agriculture, according to a written report to the company’s management.
The plan would make PDVSA an even bigger force in the country’s daily life and put it in competition against companies from around the world.
PDVSA already controls the oil production that accounts for 90 percent of Venezuelan foreign trade and about half of government revenue. The effort to expand may siphon off managers and capital, hobbling efforts to reverse a slide in energy production.
“Having more of the economy under one roof, you’re more and more vulnerable,” said Robert Bottome, an analyst at Caracas-based research company Veneconomia. “The state is taking over everything. Maybe that wouldn’t be a bad idea if they knew what they were doing.” Declining oil output “suggests they don’t know what they’re doing,” he said.
He knows what he’s doing when it comes to imposing a dictatorship. That seems to be the extent of his talent.