Venezuela keeps regional rights seat in blow to U.S.

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Venezuela keeps regional rights seat in blow to U.S.

By Brian Harris
1 hour, 23 minutes ago

PANAMA CITY (Reuters) - Venezuela held onto its seat on a
Pan-American human rights commission on Tuesday in a blow
to U.S. diplomacy a day after the countries traded barbs
over media freedom and the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay.

Member countries of the Organization of American States,
or OAS, voted at a meeting of the hemispheric body in
Panama to give Venezuelan Luz Patricia Mejia one of four
seats opening up on its seven-member regional human
rights commission.

The United States and its foe Venezuela both hold seats
but the Venezuelan-held position is one of four due to
change hands by December. Washington, which is at
loggerheads with leftist President Hugo Chavez, had
pushed for Bolivia to fill the seat.

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Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070606/pl_nm/venezuela_us_oas_dc_1