(El Universal) - "The head of the Commission of Permanent Representatives of the Common Market of the South (Mercosur), Carlos 'Chacho' Álvarez, claimed in Brasilia that there is full freedom of the press in Venezuela.

'I can see a country where opponents speak up, they appear on the press, there is no gag on press freedom in Venezuela,' Álvarez told AFP in the context of a meeting of the Economic and Social Development Council (ECSD) in Brazil. The meeting was attended by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Álvarez said that he was in Venezuela two weeks ago and found that 'there is press freedom; two dissenting daily newspapers, El Universal and El Nacional are opposition newspapers and some more that I could not read,' said the former Argentinean Vice-President.

The issue about freedom of the press in Venezuela got hemispheric in scope following the decision of the government of President Hugo Chávez not to renew a broadcasting license for private TV channel Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV). The station went off the air last May".