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ePaper created 2015-11-10, 17:27:36 | version 1.33.00
REDACTED Page 72 of 190 Justices” take advantage of their powers to manipulate judicial outcomes.284 Using the Judiciary and the Office of Public Prosecutions, Chávez increasingly intimidated, censored, and prosecuted Venezuelans who were critical of the Presidency or hindered his political agenda.285 In addition, it is important to highlight that the lack of independence of the judiciary and the General Prosecutor Office in Venezuela, which have been acting under direct orders of the President Nicolás Maduro and the President of the National Assembly Diosdado Cabello makes impossible for victims to obtain justice for the victims of crimes against humanity committed in Venezuela since February 2014. Despite the creation of the Truth Commission, proposed by Diosdado Cabello to investigate the crimes committed since 12 February 2014, by the National Assembly on 18 March 2014, there has been no progress. Not only has Diosdado Cabello, himself been designated as president of the Commission286 but the Truth Commission has not presented any result or reports of its investigations. On the contrary, the Truth commission has been denounced by the NGO Foro Penal, a tool for deception with a political commitment aimed at political negotiation and not justice.287 c)The Presidency’s control over the National Security Forces since 1999 Viewing the military as the backbone of the revolution,288 Chávez increased the Executive’s power over the military.289 He started by merging the Army, the Navy and the Air Force into a single unified command promoting and dismissing army officers 284 HUMAN RIGHTS FOUNDATION. (2012) Report on the State of the Independence of the Judiciary in Venezuela. Human Rights Foundation. [Online] 26 September. Available from: http://humanrightsfoundation.org/uploads/Legal_report_Independence_of_Judiciary_Venezuela.pdf [Accessed 23 August, 2015] 285 The GoV also sought to reshape the country’s labor movement by promoting state interference in union elections refusing to bargain collectively with established unions, engaging in favoritism toward pro-government unions and punishing workers with job dismissals and blacklisting for legitimate strike activity in violation of its obligations under the conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Source: HRW. (2008) A decade under Chávez 286 INSERBIA. (2014) Government Establishes Truth Commission. Inserbia. [Online] 21 March 2014. Available from: http://inserbia.info/today/2014/03/venezuela-two-more-opposition-politicians- detained-government-establishes-truth-commission/ 287 EL UNIVERSAL. (2014) Foro Penal: Comisión de la verdad podría legitimar violación a DDHH. El Universal. [Online] 19 March 2014. Available from: http://www.eluniversal.com/nacional-y- politica/protestas-en-venezuela/140319/foro-penal-comision-de-la-verdad-podria-legitimar-violacion-a- ddhh 288 WILSON, P. (2014) A Revolution in Green. Foreign Affairs. [Online] 1 October. Available from: http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/142133/peter-wilson/a-revolution-in-green [Accessed 27 August, 2015] 289 FLEISCHMAN, L. (2013) Latin America in the Post-Chávez Era. Dallas: Potomac Books. p.45