34 actions of the armed forces or brought into question the validity of the actions of the Administration.131 115. Altogether different is the judgment issued by the First Court on August 21, 2003, on which judges Marrero and Morales delivered a dissenting opinion, in the socalled case of the “Plan Barrio Adentro.” This decision concerned a Government health plan that allowed the participation of foreign medical doctors without requiring recertification. The First Court ordered “that the [f]oreign [d]octors be substituted with [V]enezuelan or [f]oreign doctors who meet the requirements laid down in the Medical Practice Law.”132 Such decision led high-ranking Government authorities to make statements to the press, including the President of Venezuela, who stated that: Do you believe that the Venezuelan people are going to follow an unconstitutional decision? Well, they are not. Which kind of court may rule the death of the poor, […] the court of injustice, […] and, even so, I repeat, there is a lot of excess fabric to be trimmed in the judicial branch, from the Supreme [Tribunal] of Justice on down, up to the parish courts, municipal courts, there was not much work done to transform the State, and that is so because we are still waiting the passing of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice’s Act […] And until today the Adecos rule in that First Court […] Because this Court has lodged an aberrant decision, no, of course, it is the opposition, the Adecos mainly and the copeianos and this “jinetera” oligarchy, inside that Court, manipulating the judges to try to stop, but it is not going to stop this, forget it! […] Suppose there is a tragedy such as the one in Vargas […] we would have to follow all that this crazy court has ruled. No, that every doctor who comes to help would have to be recertified […] Look, I am not telling you what feelings this Court arouse in me, the three of them, because there are two dissenting votes, I am not telling you about those feelings because we are talking to a nation […] But the people are telling the Court so: you know where you can go with your decision […] You can comply with it in your homes, if you wish […] Yesterday 140 additional doctors arrived, they are going to Sucre […]133 116. In her statement, former judge Ruggeri indicated that “when the President made that statement, it was obvious that it was not only an urging not to obey [the] judgments [of the First Court] but also an urging for [their] removal, which is what actually ended up happening.” 117. Moreover, the Minister of Health stated that she “[wa]s unaware of this arbitrary, excessive decision that does not conform to any rule of law.”134 The Mayor of the Municipality of Libertador stated that “there is no way the plan will get suspended”135 and urged “the population to get ready to demonstrate in defense of 131 In connection with the First Court’s decision regarding the de-militarization of the State of Miranda, the representative claimed that “both on television and on the radio, the President of Venezuela announced that he had ordered the military not to comply with any decision that was contrary to his specific instructions.” However, the representative failed to file any evidence in support of such claim. 132 Cf. judgment No. 2727 of August 21, 2003 issued by the First Court (Evidence file, Annex B.1.k, p. 976). 133 Cf. statement of the President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez Frías on Government Online, Aló Presidente No. 161, of August 24, 2003 (File on the Merits, Book I, p. 259). 134 Cf. newspaper article entitled “Gobierno desconoce la decisión judicial de reemplazar a los médicos cubanos” [“Government disregards court decision to have Cuban doctors replaced”], published in El Nacional, supra note 15. 135 Cf. newspaper article entitled “Ni en sueños se suspende el plan Barrio Adentro” [“No way the Barrio Adentro plan will get suspended”], published on August 28, 2003 in El Universal (Evidence file, Book IV, Annex C, p. 1255).