About 130 radio stations in Costa Rica observed one minute of silence at 7:03 a.m. yesterday to protest the Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's decision not to renew the license of Radio Caracas Television (RCTV).

The station has long been an outlet for opposition parties, according to CNN's Web site. Chávez has accused RCTV of supporting the failed 2002 coup against him and violating broadcast laws. The 53-year-old station was scheduled to go off the air at midnight last night and be replaced a state-run station.

Costa Rica's National Radio Chamber (CANARA) organized the moment of silence, and all its member stations participated, as well as a few others, according to director Juan Sepúlveda.

The chamber considers Chávez's action “a threat against freedom of expression,” he said. Latin American governments should regulate broadcasts, but should do it “with tolerance in the political realm.”

The Costa Rican Institute for Press and Freedom of Expression (IPLEX) also expressed its “complete rejection” of the decision to close RCTV.

-ACAN-EFE