Venezuela's Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) ordered the intervention of the Communist Party (PCV) of the South American country, known for its stance against President Nicolás Maduro, it was reported in Caracas.

The Constitutional Chamber of the TSJ appointed an “ad hoc board of directors” to “organize internal democratic processes that guarantee the rights of political participation of the associates”, in a ruling similar to rulings issued in 2020 against the main opposition political parties.

The PCV was an ally of the late President Hugo Chávez (1999-2013), but broke with Maduro due to economic discrepancies.

“We denounce before the Venezuelan people, the communist parties, the workers and the genuinely anti-imperialist forces of the world, that the government of Nicolás Maduro has consummated the assault against the Communist Party of Venezuela through an arbitrary judicial sentence,” PCV leaders wrote on social networks on Saturday.

The PCV opposes the dissolution of wages through inflation and devaluation, making Venezuelans earn less than 5 U.S. dollars, supplemented with state bonds.

The ousted secretary general of the PCV, Óscar Figuera, called those who filed the lawsuit a “mercenary group” and accused them of carrying out “an anti-democratic maneuver”. Last month, more than 300 politicians, intellectuals, trade unionists and activists from several countries signed a petition requesting Maduro to avoid “the judicialization” of the PCV.

In July 2020, the TSJ suspended the board of Voluntad Popular, the party of opposition leaders Leopoldo López and Juan Guaidó, who then called the TSJ a “judicial arm” of the Maduro government. The previous month, the TSJ had taken similar measures against Acción Democrática and Primero Justicia.

PCV twitter post referenced:

https://twitter.com/PCV_Venezuela/status/1690327599405322240