Venezuelan students protest university law

[Bacchus39]

CARACAS, Venezuela – Police and soldiers fired water cannons and plastic bullets Thursday as thousands of students protested against a law passed by Venezuela's congress that increases government powers over the country's universities.

At least three people were injured, including a news photographer who was treated for a cut to the head after being hit with an object.

Dozens of police and National Guard troops in anti-riot gear blocked student protesters outside the Central University of Venezuela in Caracas, firing plastic bullets into the air.

The law governing universities was approved by the National Assembly early Thursday, and students denounced it as an attempt by President Hugo Chavez to clamp down on autonomous state universities that have been a bastion of opposition to his government.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101223/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_venezuela_chavez

[naaman fletcher]

1. I think Chavez should listen to the students.

Then again, these must just be paid right-wing agitators, right?

[social_critic]

3. Small crowd

A Venezuelan friend tells me it was a relatively small crowd of rabble rousers, and they were going to march to a large plaza, where they would snarl traffic. People are out shopping for Xmas, so I think the sense was please don't blockade the darned city when we're trying to do last minute shopping. I suspect next few weeks it will get a little rougher as the crowds get larger. And i also heard the chavistas are starting to complain about the new set of laws.

I don't like the way this is going. Chavez could have kept things on a much better footing if he had competent people around him, but they do seem to be really out of touch with reality. And I think Chavez being in power is good for Cuba, so more power to him. The problem is the economy isn't doing well, and what I see them doing is just not going to work.

[EFerrari]

2. This article neither quotes the text of the new law

nor gives an interpretation of the law from a pro-government viewpoint. IOW, it's cr@p. :)

[Bacchus39]

4. why don't you look up the law for us?? n/t

s

[EFerrari]

6. Because even if I knit it for you in a fisherman's pattern

it wouldn't change the fact that this article has an agenda?

[Bacchus39]

7. lets see, you posed that "response" as a question, so I'll just give you more info

it appears the article has been updated to give more info on what the students are protesting. Is this better??? happy knitting.



The law gives Chavez's higher education minister broad powers to decide on academic programs and university operations, and says universities should promote education that reinforces the government's aim of building a "socialist homeland."

Anti-Chavez protesters say the law gives too much power to the national government and also seeks to impose socialist ideology.

[social_critic]

5. Text of the new law in Spanish

I don't know whether this is the new law or not, but I just searched using Google for you, and this is the only thing I found:

http://lapatilla.com/site/2010/12/20/aunque-usted-no-lo-crea-otro-proyecto-de-ley-de-educacion-universitaria/

I think it's up to you to find a counter with a pro-government point of view - after all this is sort like an open debate, isn't it?

I read the document above, and it does look controversial. I also find the way it was approved to be a little bit off - they rushed it in just as the congress's mandate is about to expire, and didn't have the customary period for the law to be debated by the public. It just makes them look like they're rushing in a set of laws to avoid having the debate in a congress where the opposition is represented in larger numbers. Heck, they have the majority in the new congress anyway, so it's just silly to rush it this way.