The report cites improvements in the areas of economic, social, and cultural rights, but maintains that every citizen should be able to enjoy all basis rights, including civil and political rights. The report insists on Venezuela's compliance with the obligations it "freely assumed under the American Convention" and with the recommendations laid out by the IACHR in its report.
Venezuela has been criticized repeatedly for its limits on freedom of expression and religion. Last year, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) added Venezuela to its "watch list" [JURIST report] of countries that limit religious freedom. Also last year, the US State Department criticized Venezuela for press restrictions [JURIST report] in its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. In 2008, Venezuelan officials ordered two senior Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] staff to leave the country [JURIST report] after the group released a report concluding that democracy and human rights have suffered during the Chavez administration.
