Hugo Chavez...Venezuela May Lower Voting Age, Add Gay Rights in Constitution

[Joanne98]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aqg5jOxmM.Vg&refer=latin_america
Venezuela May Lower Voting Age, Add Gay Rights in Constitution

By Matthew Walter

Oct. 11 (Bloomberg) -- A Venezuelan legislative committee voted to lower the voting age and protect gay rights in a expansion of President Hugo Chavez's plan to rewrite the country's constitution.

Venezuelans would gain the right to vote at age 16 under the proposed changes, down from the current age of 18, and discrimination based on sexual orientation would be formally outlawed in the constitution, according to a statement on the National Assembly's Web site.

The Chavez-controlled National Assembly is likely trying to expand the voter base and tap increased support for the president's socialist ``Bolivarian revolution'' among younger Venezuelans, said Riordan Roett, head of Latin American Studies at Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies in Washington.

``The assumption is that the younger people are going to be Bolivarians,'' Roett said in a telephone interview. ``They are going to be the ones whose families have benefited from Chavez's social programs.''

During a session yesterday the mixed committee for constitutional reform added six more changes to the 33 in the president's original proposal unveiled in August. Chavez's plan would eliminate presidential term limits, do away with central bank autonomy and introduce new definitions for private property, which critics have called a power grab.

During a rally for Chavez's Unified Venezuelan Socialist Party, the president said citizens should turn out to vote and ignore efforts by the opposition to encourage abstentions. Chavez said the average age among the party's 5.7 million members is now 35 years old, and will likely fall should voters approve the plan to lower the voting age.

``It's a very young party,'' Chavez said.

The legislative committee will send the proposed constitutional changes to the full assembly next week, where it will be discussed for 15 days. Once approved there it will go to a national referendum, possibly as early as December.

To contact the reporter on this story: Matthew Walter in Caracas at [e-mail]

Last Updated: October 11, 2007 12:37 EDT
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aqg5jOxmM.Vg&refer=latin_america

[Cha]

1. Iran should learn from Venezuela~

"Venezuelans would gain the right to vote at age 16 under the proposed changes, down from the current age of 18, and discrimination based on sexual orientation would be formally outlawed in the constitution, according to a statement on the National Assembly's Web site."

[Joanne98]

2. Thanx!

[Cha]

3. After I left this thread I

I thought that the US could learn from Venzuela, too!

[Joanne98]

6. Some day in the future. I hope!

[stillcool]

4. There he goes again...

he's a bad, bad man...he closed down the oppositions tv station for participating in a coup! He wants to be re-elected? What a dictator! Allowing mere 16 year olds to vote? I suppose as long as they are not from Ohio...Sheesh...civil rights? What's next?

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
Insurrection against media dictatorship is on the way
By Pascual Serrano. Translated from Spanish for Axis of Logic by Manuel Tálens (Tlaxcala) and revised by Les Blough
May 25, 2007, 12

Editor's comment on Pascual Serrano's excellent report (below): At the end of May, 2007, the broadcasting license for RCTV will expire in Venezuela. RCTV was the television-spearhead that tried to overthrow the Venezuelan government in a coup d'etat attempt against President Chavez in April, 2002. Almost any other government in the world would have stripped them of their license at that time and jailed (or worse) the U.S.-funded RCTV executives who openly promoted the coup. But the Chavez administration didn't do that just as they didn't immediately imprison other coup-leaders.

Instead, the Chavez administration allowed RCTV to continue broadcasting disinformation (lies) in attacks against the government on a daily basis since 1998. If RCTV ever had any pretense of journalistic integrity (doubtful) they surrendered it a long time ago. In my numerous visits to Venezuela I bore witness to the raw hatred and pro-violence messages that spewed from RCTV throughout the day and night. Now the end of the RCTV license to broadcast is ending. The Chavez administration decided not to renew their license, just as other governments have not renewed over 600 media licenses this year throughout the world.

Recently, in our living room in Boston, we have been watching Globovision, the only Spanish-speaking station we can get on our TV cable plan. Globovision is another Chavez-hating television conglomerate and they are now organizing disgruntled RCTV media barons and reporters to foment more bitterness and hatred among the minority opposition - all under the pretext of "Freedom of Expression". The people of Venezuela are concerned about the possibility of more media-induced violence at the end of this month when RCTV's license will not be renewed. But this time, our sources in Caracas say that the government is ready.

If media-spawned violence against the people of Venezuela occurs again, all should know the direction in which to point their finger. The people of Venezuela are fed up with the constant bombardment of negative images of their country and incitations to violence, promulgated by the private media corporations. They deserve responsible media and they are beginning to get it through Telesur and the new television station (Channel 2) which will fill RCTV's expired license. Pascual Serrano's brilliant report, The Right to Inform and be Informed, explains the foundations being laid for the new, democratic media in Venezuela and throughout Latin America. - Les Blough, Editor
http://www.axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/article_24649.shtml

[Joanne98]

7. Hi stillcool47!!!

:hi:

[stillcool]

8. hey...good to see you...

:toast:

[Joanne98]

9. U to bud!!!!

[Mika]

5. Once again, following Cuba's lead.

Viva Cuba!
Viva Venezuela!

:party:

[eridani]

10. Wish he had the guts to take on reproductive rights n/t

[w4rma]

11. gay-rights = awesome. 18 years of age is usually the age, because teens are no longer dependent

on their parents at 18 and can't be as easily manipulated by them - assuming teens are independent at 18 in Venezuela, also.