海角大神

Venezuela's fiery leftist President Hugo Ch谩vez is laughing off an international court's decision to clear opposition leader Leopoldo L贸pez's bid for the presidency next year.

鈥淥ne of my haircuts is worth more than this court,鈥� Mr. Ch谩vez joked Saturday, playing on the fact that the Spanish 鈥渃orte鈥� means both 鈥渃ourt鈥� and 鈥渃ut.鈥�

Venezuela鈥檚 government insists that the Friday decision was politically motivated and is attacking the Costa Rica-based Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) for its association with the Organization of American States (OAS), which it has accused of being a tool of US hegemony in the region.

IACHR decisions are supposed to be binding and the court is unlikely to reverse its decision in favor of Mr. Lopez, a charismatic leader and former mayor who was banned 鈥� along with hundreds of others 鈥� from standing for public office based mostly on what the opposition claims are trumped up corruption charges.

Whether Ch谩vez's government maintains the ban on Lopez in spite of the IACHR ruling will be a test of Venezuela's commitment to democracy, experts say.

It's a test L贸pez believes Venezuela will pass, and 鈥� bouyed by the court's ruling 鈥� the top opposition leader is sounding increasingly confident heading into the 2012 election season.

鈥淭he government has no option. They must follow what the constitution says,鈥� says L贸pez. 鈥淣ot accepting the decision by the court [is] a sign of weakness by the government and Ch谩vez himself鈥�. Why not accept the ruling? It鈥檚 a sign of a weak, authoritarian regime.鈥�

L贸pez confident of victory over Ch谩vez

The former mayor of Chacao, a wealthy neighborhood in Caracas, insists that he will take the opposition to victory against Ch谩vez on Oct. 7, 2012, the date set last week for the presidential election.

The allegations against L贸pez stem from the late 1990s, when his mother was in charge of state oil firm Petr贸leos de Venezuela鈥檚 (PDVSA) public affairs office. Part of her job was to authorize donations to charities and civic groups. One of these grants went to Primero Justicia (Justice First), a judicial reform advocacy group and political movement to which her son belonged.

PDVSA was 鈥� and still is 鈥� widely known for its corruption. While L贸pez鈥檚 case was never brought to trial, popular opinion may associate him with the old guard of Venezuelan politics.

Verdict's wider impact

The verdict may have wider ramifications. Venezuela is not the only Latin American nation with similar laws that bar citizens from standing for office without granting them fair trial.

鈥淭here are eight [countries] on the continent that have disqualification as part of their legal framework so a decision in our favor will have an impact in the continent,鈥� L贸pez says.

One of these nations is Colombia, where nearly 500 candidates that were hoping to run in this month鈥檚 municipal elections have been banned from doing so, many without fair trial.

L贸pez believes next year鈥檚 elections could be a turning point in Venezuela, not just a change of government but the dawn of a new era, a succession of governments that will improve his country.

鈥淲e need to be capable of building up 鈥� the pillars of that new era of Venezuela,鈥� L贸pez says.

L贸pez criticizes Ch谩vez's 12 years in power, focusing on rhetoric that has failed, he claims, to deliver.

鈥淭his was a period of lost opportunities and a great capacity of creating hope,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he next period will be the period of creating and making a reality of those opportunities and delivering results. The great contrast will be that between promise and results.鈥�

Background as mayor, focus on crime

L贸pez is familiar with the city鈥檚 problems with crime and was on the cusp of winning the mayoralty of it in 2008, before his disqualification. One of his primary policies is to cut the crime rate. According to the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, more than 10 people are killed every day in Caracas.

鈥淎ll Venezuelans live under fear,鈥� says L贸pez, who wants to halve the number of homicides in the next four years. 鈥淚f we are capable of changing that, we will have great stability for years to come.鈥�

Allowing L贸pez to stand could benefit Ch谩vez politically, however. The move could split opposition support between L贸pez and is charismatic state governor Henrique Capriles Radonski, the first Venezuelan politician to rival Ch谩vez in the polls.

The president announced that he was being treated for cancer on June 30 and is about to enter his fourth round of chemotherapy, hoping it will be the last allowing him to prepare for October鈥檚 vote.

L贸pez believes that this has, for the first time, forced Venezuelans to think about a future without Ch谩vez, who, says L贸pez, is no longer unbeatable.

鈥淭he challenge now is to draw that future with certainty for Venezuelans,鈥� he says.