Linares Palace in Madrid, headquarters of Casa de América. Photo: Carlos Delgado/Wikipedia/file photo.
On Sunday, March 16, Venezuelan Culture Ministry officials condemned the censorship of a Venezuelan film showcase in Madrid, which was initially set to take place at Spain’s Casa de AmĂ©rica cultural center. They claim the cancellation occurred after pressure from Isabel DĂaz Ayuso, the head of Madrid’s regional government. The films affected by the ban include AlĂ Primera by Daniel Yegres, La batalla de los puentes by Carlos AzpĂşrua, and OperaciĂłn OriĂłn by RubĂ©n Hernández RemĂłn.
“Spanish authorities succumbed to right-wing pressure and censored a Venezuelan film showcase originally planned at Madrid’s Casa de AmĂ©rica. The veto was communicated to our ambassador in Spain, Gladys GutiĂ©rrez, with whom I confirmed the information minutes ago,” Venezuelan Culture Minister Ernesto Villegas wrote on social media.
“All three directors are currently in Madrid, having traveled there to attend the screenings and participate in post-film discussions. The suspension came as a result of pressure from Isabel DĂaz Ayuso, the regional leader of Madrid — an admirer of Francisco Franco and JosĂ© MarĂa Aznar,” Minister Villegas added.
However, Villegas noted that Spanish civil society groups have since contacted Venezuela’s embassy to organize alternative screenings: “Their plan backfired. Upon learning of this outrageous decision, numerous unions, academic institutions, and civil organizations have reached out to our embassy to arrange alternative screenings.”
Carlos AzpĂşrua, head of Venezuela’s National Autonomous Center of Cinematography (CNAC) and director of one of the banned documentaries, criticized DĂaz Ayuso’s actions on social media platforms:
“They seek to block three Venezuelan films that showcase our truth … She censors Venezuelan cinema and tries to stifle dialogue with Spanish audiences about our realities. Why? Is it fear of the truth? Does this expose Spanish media’s systematic campaign to demonize Venezuela’s revolution? We will screen our films and show Spaniards our true history.”
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The film series, titled Cinema and Memory: The People’s Voice and the Struggle for Sovereignty, was organized by Venezuela’s embassy at Casa de América for March 17, 18, and 24.
Casa de América is a public institution jointly managed by Spain’s Foreign Ministry, Madrid’s regional government, and Madrid City Council.
DĂaz Ayuso, a far-right Spanish politician and journalist, has served as head of Madrid’s regional government since August 2019 across three consecutive terms. She also leads Madrid’s branch of the conservative Popular Party.
(Alba Ciudad) by Luigino Bracci
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/DZ
Luigino Bracci
He is passionate about computer science since he was about 14 years old, at that age “a man gave me a small computer that he had bought in the eighties, of those that were connected to a television and had to be programmed to work (a Sinclair ZX81 ), and I really liked it.” On his political inclination, his parents were a great influence. “They were people of very humble origins, both emigrants, dissatisfied with injustice and inequality. But they were not militants of the left. I had many other influences, classmates in HS whose parents were on the left, as well as several teachers who were trained in the Pedagogical and gave us classes at a time as conflictive as it was the presidency of CAP and the military insurrection of Chávez ” He enrolled in the UCV and in 2006 he graduated in Computing, a career that he complements with popular communication in the digital field.
