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| - Venezuela has dismissed as "biased" a United Nations report that said the independence of the Latin American country's justice system is undermined by insecurity and a lack of transparency. The damning 15-page document said that alleged victims of human rights violations had difficulty obtaining justice in Venezuelan courts. "This biased report... is a palpable example of the double standards, manipulation and shameful political use of international mechanisms by a small group of countries," the foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. It accused the United States and other nations of "aggression" towards Venezuela, which has been in political turmoil since last year. The report by Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, was released on Tuesday, a week after Venezuela's Supreme Court ordered Juan Guaido to relinquish his position as leader of the main opposition party. It said the justice system is "considerably undermined due to insecurity of tenure of judges and prosecutors, the lack of transparency in the process of designation, precarious working conditions, and political interference." Last year, Guaido declared himself acting president, charging that President Nicolas Maduro's 2018 re-election was fraudulent. The United States no longer recognises Maduro as leader and has been trying unsuccessfully to oust him, in part by recognising Guaido as the country's interim head. Around 60 other countries have followed Washington's lead. Guaido backed the report and its recommendations on Twitter, but the foreign ministry hit back in its statement. "Neither the Human Rights Council, nor any international body or legal authority has any mandate to try and evaluate the constitutional functioning of the public powers" of Venezuela, it said. atm/erc/dg/kaf/qan
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