Venezuela: agreement between government and opposition on press freedom and judicial reform

The delegations representing the interim government of Delcy Rodríguez and the National Assembly elected in 2015 announced the conclusion of the second cycle of the negotiation process on the democratic transition and the achievement of agreements aimed at expanding the guarantees for the exercise of freedom of the press and the process of appointing a new Supreme Court (Tribunal Superior de Justicia - Tsj).

This was reported in a joint statement published on Friday night by the head of the president of the current National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, and the head of the opposition delegation, the former president of the Assembly elected in 2015, Dinorah Figuera.

On the right to information front, the statement states that it "supports the government's announcement to continue and extend the revocation of administrative measures against news portals, websites and digital newspapers" with an invitation to "all actors in the public and private media sectors to contribute responsibly - from their respective fields - to democratic coexistence, peace and national unity".

As regards the agenda of reforms in the justice system - a condition considered essential to subsequently be able to hold free and transparent elections - the parties have agreed on the appointment of a commission of seven experts responsible for examining and approving the requirements of the candidates for the new Supreme Court.

According to Jorge Rodríguez, the third round of negotiations is now scheduled for mid-October.