Ecuador’s president Rafael Correa recently stated that when he takes office as head of Unasur he will sponsor the creation of organizations to monitor the unethical, irresponsible press and another to monitor human rights.

Hmm. So one organization to monitor (censor) ‘unethical and irrsponsible’ press, relative terms at best when they oppose political leadership and at the same time creating another organization to monitor human rights? Is this a practice in irony? Is the latter simply a phantom organization made to appease the masses as they watch freedom of speech, an international pillar of human rights, be besmirched by political bureaucracy?

In a joint press conference over the weekend at the Yellow Hall at the Palace of Carondelet, seat of the Ecuadorian Executive, Chávez added that he is “increasingly certain that the Organization of the American States (OAS) is something that is useless for our people. Besides a rapporteur on freedom of expression, the OAS has an Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, which condemns us every year. Let us create within Unasur our own commissions on human rights, social movements and media. Stop the orders dictated from the North and this cynical outrage”.

It doesn’t take a political scientist to clearly see what Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez is trying to accomplish. The United States takes OAS meetings as opportunities to scrutinize the blatant human rights atrocities that occur in certain Latin American countries, namely Venezuela for one, and Hugo doesn’t want that kind of bad publicity anymore. He knows, as we all do, that bad publicity can dramatically shift political risk.

Who are Correan and Chávez really trying to fool? Unasur should be heavily scrutinized following the inauguration of Correan as its head and Hugo - well, that comes as no surprise given the fanatic’s recent history of creating his own fugitives to distract his citizenry from the fact that he is driving Venezuela in to bankruptcy.

One mustn’t take the ramblings of Chávez about rejecting OAS membership seriously just yet. However, political risk and indeed human rights in Latin America fall in serious jeopardy if Correan’s organizations come to fruition.