The last decade has not been easy for non governmental organizations in Venezuela. Since the famous sentence "How do you eat it?" uttered almost ten years ago by Luis Miquelena, once a political mentor of President Hugo Chávez, NGOs have confronted an increasingly hostile environment. Attacks on NGO members, court decisions trying to restrain their action and threats of investigation for receiving foreign funds are business as usual.

Such a scenario, in the opinion of Luis Alfonso Herrera, a professor with Central University of Venezuela (UCV) and Andrés Bello Catholic University (Ucab), shows "the siege" laid by government authorities upon whoever not subordinated to state policies or eager to join the highest political circles, but otherwise interested in supplying information on the performance of some sectors.

The specialist in administrative and constitutional law reckons that government authorities are applying NGOs the same recipe for the opposition or the media.

"There is a trend to silence critical voices in the society. It seems that they want to silence those who disseminate several problems in the country in the field of human rights, environment, private property or food security," Herrera said.

In his view, an investigation requested by government followers from the Attorney General Office into a number of NGOs for getting foreign funds are a way to restrain their action without "paying the cost" of passing measures, like the Law on International Cooperation. Such a legal instrument would shut the doors to foreign financing of Venezuelan NGOs.

The scholar is certain that receiving foreign funding is not a crime.

Article 13 of the Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms gives him the reason: "Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to solicit, receive and utilize resources for the express purpose of promoting and protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms through peaceful means."

Translated by Conchita Delgado