Venezuelan Government Criticizes U.S. Human Rights Report
Venezuelan government officials on Wednesday rejected the United States report on human rights which criticized Venezuela's human rights record, and described the U.S. as immoral.

The U.S. government's annual survey of human rights practices, released on Tuesday, criticized Venezuela and Cuba for having the worst human rights records in Latin America. It said that at the end of 2006, there were at least 13 political prisoners or detainees in Venezuela.

"The U.S. is trying to stigmatize the peoples and nations that dissent from the (policies of) the government of George W. Bush, and that is why they dedicate whole pages to criticizing Venezuela," said German Mundarain, Venezuela's people's defender, adding that the U.S. record of starting wars disqualifies it from commenting on human rights.

Isaiah Rodriguez, the nation's attorney general, said that the report is politicized, and had the sole intention of discrediting Venezuela's institutions and justice system.

"They think that by doing this they will create a basis for weakening the government's authority and the Venezuelan state," Rodriguez said.

The report was released just two days before Bush's five-nation tour of Latin America, which aims to increase the U.S. influence in the region.

However, groups across the region have planned to demonstrate against Bush. Even not visiting Venezuela, Bush is also expected to spark protests there.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, Bush's strong critic, who is visiting Argentina, will host an event in a Buenos Aires stadium to criticize Bush.