CARACAS (Reuters) -Venezuela’s National Assembly on Thursday unanimously voted to approve a law which could lead to bans on holding public office of up to 60 years for those who express support for the imposition of sanctions on the South American country.
The so-called Simon Bolivar Liberator law also includes measures to prosecute people in absentia, and represents the latest move by President Nicolas Maduro’s government to tighten regulations on everything from non-governmental organizations to social media, following July’s contested presidential election.
The vote by the ruling party-dominated legislature follows the approval earlier this month by the U.S. House of Representatives of the so-called Bolivar law, which would prohibit U.S. government bodies from hiring people who have business dealings with Maduro’s government.
The Bolivar law, which needs final approval from the U.S. Senate, has been labeled “trash” by Maduro.
Temporary bans on holding office, levied on opposition politicians over their support for sanctions on Maduro’s government and other accusations, are regular occurrences in Venezuela. Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado had her 15-year ban on holding public office upheld in January.
Broadcast media, including television and radio stations, that support sanctions could be closed down under the new law, while text-based media could face fines worth up to $51.7 million.
The legislative flurry has spread alarm among opposition politicians, who are still figuring out a way forward after Maduro was declared the winner of July’s election by electoral authorities.
The opposition, a number of Western countries and some international organizations have decried the election as non-transparent and have called for the full publication of ballots.
The opposition has published its own tallies showing its contender, Edmundo Gonzalez, handily won the contest. Gonzalez has since fled to Spain.
(Reporting by Vivian SequeraWriting by Oliver GriffinEditing by Rosalba O’Brien)
