A wonderful bit of legislation passed in Venezuela

Color me surprised - Chavez is the perfect example of why Marxism has never and will never be successful or stable. From The Associated Press:

Venezuelan intelligence law draws protests
A new intelligence law that President Hugo Chavez enacted by decree is drawing protests from human rights activists who say it could lead to serious violations of civil liberties and become a tool for cracking down on dissent.

Chavez says the Intelligence and Counterintelligence Law will help Venezuela detect and neutralize national security threats, including any assassination attempts or attempted coups.

But human rights activists warn that the law infringes on rights to due process and defense.

Under the law that Chavez decreed last week, Venezuelans who refuse to act as informants for intelligence agencies face up to four years in prison. Security forces don't need court orders for surveillance such as wiretapping and authorities can withhold evidence from defense lawyers if that is deemed to be in the interest of national security.

And the outcry from the left? . . . --crickets--