Dissenters to sue Chávez at the International Criminal Court

Venezuelan dissenters living in Miami on Wednesday described as a "crime against humanity" President Hugo Chávez's decision to close Venezuela's consulate in Florida, and said they are going to file a lawsuit against the Venezuelan president at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The 23,000 Venezuelans registered to vote in the presidential election of October 7 at the Venezuelan consulate in Miami -the largest polling place outside of Venezuela, which was closed in January- waited on Wednesday for the National Electoral Council (CNE) to rectify its decision to relocate voters to New Orleans (Louisiana), more than 838 miles from Miami, Florida, about 14 hours away by car, AFP reported.

"Your actions may be considered only as genocidal, full of hate and social resentment, using the argument of the alleged guilt of the federal government of the United States to hide the real reason for this intemperate, atrocious and criminal action against your own fellow countrymen," said Pedro Mena, the executive secretary of the Unified Democratic Panel (MUD) in Miami, in a letter addressed to Chávez.

Meanwhile, Timoteo Zambrano, the international secretary of opposition Un Nuevo Tiempo party and a member of the Latin American Parliament, rejected the CNE's decision. He claimed that such move "violates the constitutional provisions that protect the political rights of these Venezuelans and runs counter to the CNE legal obligation to ensure equality in the election process."