Calls for free elections in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
Condemns the recent actions of Hugo Chavez as detrimental to democracy and a violation of the Charter of the Organization of American States (OAS).
[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H. Res. 161 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 161
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the need
for free, democratic, transparent, and fair elections in the Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela without threats or intimidation.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 11, 2009
Mr. Mack submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the need
for free, democratic, transparent, and fair elections in the Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela without threats or intimidation.
Whereas the Venezuelan Constitution provides that the President of Venezuela is
limited to two six-year terms;
Whereas subsequent to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's election in 2006, he
immediately called for an end to presidential term limits so that he
could run again;
Whereas Chavez has repeatedly undertaken efforts to extend his rule by
overturning term limits;
Whereas, on December 2, 2007, the Government of Venezuela held a constitutional
referendum on repealing presidential term limits and suspending certain
constitutional rights;
Whereas the 2007 referendum backed by Chavez was definitively defeated by the
people of Venezuela;
Whereas Chavez chose to ignore the mandate of the Venezuelan people and
instituted many of the provisions defeated in the 2007 referendum via
presidential decree;
Whereas Venezuela's November 2008 municipal elections were preceded by several
measures by Chavez to thwart the opposition, such as attacks on property
rights, threats against the media and the freedom of the press, and
threats to strip future funding if opposition gubernatorial candidates
were elected;
Whereas Chavez fulfilled these threats when opposition leader, Antonio Ledezma,
won the Caracas mayorship by revoking Ledezma's authority over the
8,000-member police force, Caracas' 18-hospital health system, and 1,200
sports and recreation facilities;
Whereas, in November 2008, Chavez once again proposed a constitutional amendment
that removes presidential term limits, thereby allowing him to rule
Venezuela until at least 2019;
Whereas the constitutional referendum will be held on February 15, 2009;
Whereas Chavez has increased his rhetoric against university students who have
organized protests ahead of the February referendum and has used the
threat of ``civil war'' if he loses the vote;
Whereas the United States is committed to promoting freedom, security,
prosperity, democracy, and the rule of law;
Whereas the Charter of the Organization of American States, of which the
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is a member state, stipulates that
``[t]he peoples of the Americas have a right to democracy and their
governments have an obligation to promote and defend it'';
Whereas democracy requires a system of political parties and organizations, the
separation of powers, the independence of the branches of government,
respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, the rule of law, a
free and independent press, and the guarantee of periodic, free, and
fair elections;
Whereas Venezuela was once a thriving democracy with a vibrant free market
system;
Whereas under Chavez, the Venezuelan economy has experienced substantial
problems and currently has the highest inflation in Latin America and is
experiencing shortages of basic food staples;
Whereas in the years since Chavez first took office, he has taken deliberate
steps to eliminate freedoms and launch his ``Bolivarian Revolution'';
Whereas Chavez continues to pursue close ties with state sponsors of terrorism
and international terrorist groups;
Whereas international human rights organizations have consistently condemned
Chavez's efforts to weaken democratic institutions and human rights
guarantees in Venezuela;
Whereas Chavez unilaterally increased the size of the Venezuelan Supreme Court
and appointed numerous pro-Chavez judges in clear contravention of the
principles of democracy and separation of powers; and
Whereas Chavez has packed the National Election Council with pro-Chavez
directors who are not able to guarantee a fair and transparent vote:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) calls for free and fair elections in the Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela, conducted in accordance with the
standards of responsible nations and free from interference,
threats, and intimidation;
(2) supports the efforts of the people of Venezuela and its
democratic civil society to create the necessary conditions for
free and fair elections;
(3) strongly condemns the recent actions of Hugo Chavez as
detrimental to democracy and a violation of the Charter of the
Organization of American States;
(4) affirms its strong opposition to all political elements
that continue to subvert democracy in Venezuela; and
(5) urges the Secretary of State to use all means at the
disposal of the United States to promote free, democratic,
transparent, and fair elections in Venezuela.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
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