Human Rights Watch said Venezuela was actually more democratic than many nations, contrary to some popular U.S. perceptions.

WASHINGTON -- Human Rights Watch on Thursday said Venezuela does not belong to a group of nations like Pakistan and Russia that use the veneer of democracy to mask autocratic rule -- directly contradicting U.S. government assertions.
The New York-based group's position also runs contrary to allegations by many opponents of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez that he is undermining democracy at home and around Latin America.

Chávez and his government have long argued that Venezuela is fully democratic, with regular elections, a free news media and an organized opposition. The president accepted his defeat in a close vote on constitutional revisions last year.

''We did not include Venezuela in the list of closed countries because it is not,'' Human Rights Watch executive director Kenneth Roth said, unveiling the organization's 2008 World Report, which highlighted leaders who claim to be democratic but take autocratic measures............