Venezuelan lawmakers have taken the first step toward reforming a controversial law long used to jail dissidents, as the interim government continues to unwind tools of repression imposed under ousted leader Nicolás Maduro. In a vote Tuesday, the National Assembly gave preliminary approval to reform the so-called Anti-Hate Law, which the government has used to lock up thousands of people on hate speech charges. The overhaul would eliminate prison sentences in favor of fines and community service, establish clearer definitions and administrative procedures, and end the revocation of media licenses, said Pedro Infante, the National Assembly's first vice president.
The changes are the latest sign of political liberalization under acting President Delcy Rodríguez, following Maduro's capture by US forces in early January. Her government has released hundreds of political prisoners, loosened restrictions on independent media and allowed some exiled politicians and activists to return. Opposition leader María Corina Machado returned to Venezuela in late October after repeated unsuccessful attempts. Still, there were 322 political prisoners in Venezuela as of Oct. 26, including 140 members of the military, according to human rights group Foro Penal.
The reform, renamed the Law for Democratic Coexistence, Peace and Tolerance, stops short of the full repeal demanded by Venezuela's main opposition bloc and rights groups. Several opposition groups withheld support in Tuesday's vote. "It is not enough to propose replacing prison sentences with fines," said opposition lawmaker Amelia Belisario during the debate.
The bill will now undergo public consultation before a second, article-by-article debate and a final vote. The preliminary approval follows a third round of US-backed talks between the government and opposition, during which the law was among the issues discussed. Maduro originally proposed the law after months of deadly anti-government protests in 2017. Rodríguez, who then headed the Constituent Assembly that enacted it, championed the legislation at the time.
Source: Bloomberg Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing