Former Tribunal Supremo de Justicia magistrate Carmen Elvigia Porras testified before a special committee at the National Assembly that she was forced to resign from her post in order to clear room for the appointment of a pro-PSUV magistrate last year. Porras, who was a magistrate at the Civil Cassation Chamber, made the allegations on February 17 as part of the National Assembly’s investigation into the rushed appointment of 13 magistrates and 21 back-up magistrates to the TSJ in December of last year.
Porras said that in August of last year, TSJ President Gladys Gutierrez called her into her office and presented her with a resignation letter, which she asked Porras to sign. Porras, along with 12 other magistrates, were originally scheduled to end their terms at the nation’s top court in December 2016.
If Porras and the other 12 magistrates had ended their terms in December 2016, then the current opposition-controlled National Assembly would have appointed their replacements. By resigning, the thirteen magistrates allowed the PSUV-controlled National Assembly to fill their seats with their own appointees.
Porras said that Gutierrez told her that the decision had already been made for her, and that the choice was not up to her at all.
Earlier this week, the TSJ issued a ruling barring the National Assembly from investigating the appointment process for the magistrates that replaced Porras and her 12 colleagues.
VTV Clip Causing Stir on Social Media
Venezolana de Television (VTV), a state-run media channel, has been airing propaganda videos that are causing a stir on social media.
In one of the videos that the network has aired recently, an actress playing the role of a working-class mom admits that while “things are really difficult” in the country today, they used to be much worse.
The video shows highly idealized images of life in the country today, contrasted with grim portrayals of life in Venezuela “before Chavismo”.
Below, the video along with my translation:
Woman: Venezuelans can’t cover the sun with a finger [meaning, “can’t get away from the truth]. We know things are really difficult. There are line ups to find certain products, there are shortages and everything is really expensive. There’s lots of speculation going on thanks to the economic war. I know things are difficult. I can’t deny that.
But this is nothing compared to what it was like living before Chavismo. I remember that sometimes we didn’t have anything to eat. My mom used to go to the supermarket looking for bones to make soup, and we eve had to eat dog food sometimes.
We definitely live better today than before. Today, we have food to eat, a home, health, and we have free education. I know that the global oil crisis is affecting us, but that’ll pass. I have full confidence in the fact that the government of President Nicolas Maduro will be able to overcome these times. I have lots of hope. I have faith in the future.
The video is being ridiculed not only for its questionable portrayals of the situation in the country today, but also for its overall message of asking people to simply have faith that the Maduro government will resolve the crisis affecting the country.
Opposition Politician Blooded in Attack by PSUV Supporters
Yesterday, a Puerto La Cruz city councilor from the Primero Justicia opposition party named Beatriz Perez Blanco was attacked by a crowd of PSUV supporters. During the scuffle, someone threw a bottle at Perez’s head, causing her to bleed profusely.
In an interview with NTN24, Perez said that she saw the vice-president of the Puerto La Cruz municipal chamber, Maria Daniela Carreño, throw the bottle which hit her. Carreño is a member of the city’s PSUV party.
A video of the event posted on YouTube can be seen below:
Starting at the 0:04 mark, Perez can be seen at the bottom right-hand corner of he screen. A man wearing a yellow shirt and a man wearing a red shirt stand in front of her. At 0:05, a woman standing in front of the man in the red shirt can be seen hurling a glass object in the direction of Perez. The man in the red shirt throws his hands up to block the projectile, causing it to shatter. Pieces of broken glass fly through the air, evidently hitting Perez in the face.
Maduro: “No One’s Getting Me Out of Here, Buddy”
In a televised speech last night, Maduro remained defiant that he would continue to be President of Venezuela until his term ends in 2019. While criticizing some of the laws proposed by the National Assembly, Maduro vowed to continue to fight for the country’s poor, saying:
That’s why the opposition wants to remove this servant, this worker, this revolutionary named Nicolas Maduro from Miraflores [the Presidential palace]. They want to get me out of here so that they can come after you, compatriots, and come after your homes. No one’s getting me out of here, buddy, just like no one’s getting you out of your homes. It’s that simple.
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