Radio stations critical of Maduro government silenced

CARACAS, Venezuela — Authorities have shut down two radio stations that aired critical coverage of President Nicolas Maduro’s government by refusing to renew their licenses, a broadcast executive announced as the country staged military exercises in defiance of Washington and new U.S. sanctions.

Enza Carbone, president of the country’s Radio Chamber, said late Friday in a statement that the National Telecommunications Commission did not renew the stations’ permits when they expired and ordered them to cease transmitting.

The National Media Workers’ Union accused the government of taking “arbitrary” action and violating freedom of expression.

The closures came less than 48 hours after the commission ordered cable providers to remove the signal of Colombian TV stations Caracol and RCN. Maduro had sharply criticized foreign news coverage of the country and its months-long political crisis.

About 900,000 people, including soldiers and members of civilian militias, were expected to take part in the two days of martial drills over the weekend. Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez inaugurated the exercises Saturday at a National Guard facility in eastern Caracas where dozens of snipers practiced their aim.

Washington accuses Maduro of imposing a dictatorship after the recent installation of an all-powerful constitutional assembly that has targeted political opponents and taken over lawmaking powers from the opposition-controlled congress. In remarks earlier this month, President Donald Trump would not rule out a “military option” for Venezuela.

Critics call the assembly’s creation a blatant, authoritarian power grab, while Maduro allies argue it offers a way out of the country’s political and economic crisis.

“To greater democracy in Venezuela, the empire responds with more aggression,” Padrino Lopez said, promising that the armed forces will support the government in standing up to the sanctions announced the previous day by Washington.

The oil-rich South American nation is suffering from three-digit inflation, shortages of foods and basic goods and a severe recession, with the International Monetary Fund estimating that the economy could shrink by 12 percent this year.