Government & Politics

October, 23, 2009 - 06:45 PM / ET

President of the Brazilian Senate Jose Sarney Meets with Defense of Venezuelan Political Prisoner Eligio Cedeno
Robert Amsterdam invited to testify at joint Senate hearing

BRASILIA, Brazil, Oct. 23 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ -- The President of the Brazilian Senate, Jose Sarney, held an audience today with Robert Amsterdam, a Canadian international lawyer representing the political prisoner Eligio Cedeno of Venezuela.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20091023/NY98076 )

During their meeting, Amsterdam informed the President of the judicial violations currently being committed against his client and dozens of other political prisoners by President Hugo Chavez and the Venezuelan government. Last week an appeals court of the Supreme Court of Justice ordered the immediate release of Cedeno, but the lower control court refused to comply and allowed an illegal extension of the detention, followed by an unexplained reversal of the decision.

"I am grateful to President Sarney and many others in the Brazilian government for their interest in protecting basic human rights," said Amsterdam, who had also met with President Sarney last June 17, 2009. "The enormous risk posed by this lack of rule of law is not only limited to political opponents of Chavez, but will one day also come to damage businesses, investors, and foreign governments who work with Venezuela."

During the meeting with Cedeno's lawyer, Sarney expressed his concern over the deteriorating situation in Venezuela, and said he would circulate a white paper on political prisoners prepared by the defense to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for review.

Additionally, on Thursday, Brazil's Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved a petition for a joint hearing with the Human Rights Committee to discuss the situation in Venezuelan. Robert Amsterdam and others have been invited to provide testimony. The date for the hearing is to be set in coming weeks.

More information about the Eligio Cedeno case and the situation of political prisoners in Venezuela can be found in the white paper entitled "Bolivarian Rule of Lawlessness," available on www.eligiocedeno.com and www.robertamsterdam.com/venezuela.

CONTACT:
James T. Kimer
+1 (917) 355-0717
james.kimer@ksocialmedia.com

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