"Freedom of expression is the golden rule," Chilean President Michelle Bachelet said Monday in Helsinki.

The Chilean ruler was making reference to non-renewal of a broadcast license for private TV network Radio Caracas Televisión (RCTV) by the government of President Hugo Chávez.

Following a meeting with her Finnish counterpart Tarja Halonen, Bachelet recalled the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet in Chile (1973-1990) and said, "For Chile, freedom of expression is the golden rule, given our political history."

"Our role as Chileans is to show that the way chosen by Chile is possible -to grow with social justice, under a democratic government;" she told reporters both in Spanish and English, AFP quoted.

The tone between Chile and Venezuela heightened recently when the Chilean Senate endorsed a petition for censorship due to the Venezuelan government announcement of the license end. Chávez labeled the Senate as fascist.

Afterwards, both Bachelet and Chávez came to terms during a meeting.