I'm collecting versions of what is going on in Venezuela currently. Below I have copied 2 newswire accounts: AP and Reuters. It is quite remarkable how the two reports present the 'facts'. I would appreciate any additional reports that FWers could provide. I plan to use these reports to help my beginning high school English teachers become more media literate. Given that most of the major news networks are owned by multinational corporations, and that Chavez wants to share the oil revenue wealth more fairly with the people including the poor, the various spins are very enlightening.
Thanks, Brian McAndrews Dec. 7, 2002. 05:52 PM Chavez supporters march in Venezuelan capital Demonstration comes a day after 3 people shot to death at opposition rally CARACAS (AP) — Thousands of people wearing red berets marched today through the capital of Venezuela to support embattled President Hugo Chavez a day after three people were fatally shot at an opposition rally. Demonstrations by both sides of Venezeula's political conflict had police worried of increased violence after gunmen opened fire Friday night into a plaza crowded with opposition demonstrators. In addition to the three deaths, 28 people were wounded. The killings caused the opposition — until now seeking only a referendum on Chavez's four-year-old government — to demand his resignation. Leaders declared three days of mourning, calling for countrywide protests and the extension of a general strike that has already shut down Venezuela's giant oil industry. Police patrols in Caracas were drastically cut a month ago when Chavez seized control of the city force. Citing the threat of violence, the U.S. State Department on Saturday urged Americans not to travel to Venezuela. The United States depends on Venezuela for more than 10 per cent of its crude oil imports. A prolonged shutdown — coupled with the threat of war in Iraq — could drive up U.S. energy prices. Pro-Chavez crowds chanted "Chavez drives them crazy!" — referring to the opposition — as they marched to the presidential palace. "I had to come to show my rejection of the way the opposition is always blaming innocent people for the violence," said Peggly Martinez, 19, a university student. "There's no dictatorship here and we want the world to know it." Chavez, a former army paratrooper who led a failed 1992 coup, was overwhelmingly elected in 1998 by promising to eliminate a corrupt democratic system that failed to distribute oil riches to the poor. He was re-elected to a six-year term in 2000. His popularity suffered as his "peaceful revolution" against poverty produced few results. Venezuela's economy shrank seven per cent this year, despite relatively high oil prices. Inflation is at 30 per cent, unemployment at 16 per cent. More than half the work force does not have a full-time job. Chavez's approval among the poor — his core constituency — has slipped to about 45 per cent in recent polls, while his overall support hovers around 30 per cent. He has the support of Bolivarian Circles, neighbourhood groups that carry out social projects and other government-backed actions. In the past, radical armed members of the group have attacked opposition marches, politicians and journalists. Chavez appealed for calm after Friday's shooting at Plaza Francia, an opposition rallying spot since dissident military officers occupied it in October. He denied claims that he was behind the attack, which occurred moments after the opposition said it would extend its strike. Chavez asked former U.S. president Jimmy Carter, who has tried to mediate in Venezuela, to help calm tensions. The Organization of American States called for emergency talks between the two sides late Saturday. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell phoned mediator Cesar Gaviria, secretary general of the organization, to express his support for the talks, U.S. Ambassador Charles Shapiro said. A stumbling point is the opposition demand that Chavez call a nonbinding referendum on his presidency. Venezuela's constitution says a binding referendum may be held halfway into his term, or next August. Chavez said Saturday that the national elections council, which has approved a Feb. 2 referendum, must be changed "so we have someone impartial" to conduct elections. His government insists a constitutional amendment is needed to call an early referendum. Timoteo Zambrano, an opposition negotiator, said the opposition would now demand Chavez's immediate resignation at the talks. The general strike was non-negotiable, he said. Chavez, whom dissident military officers ousted briefly in April, accused the opposition of trying to provoke another coup. At a news conference Saturday, Chavez said he could decree a state of emergency if the strike was extended. "It's a possibility, depending on the evolution of the situation," he said. Inside Venezuela's oil industry — the world's fifth largest — all seven directors of the state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. oil company offered their resignations to protest the board appointment of a Chavez ally, Alfredo Riera, said dissident manager Juan Fernandez. Chavez said his government was in the process of replacing striking oil company managers and tanker crews. He said ``international clients haven't been affected, although there are some delays" in shipments. The president warned that "some television stations are very close to committing crimes" for their overt support of the strike. Just before he was ousted in April, he shut down private stations. The three days of mourning began with hundreds of opposition protesters in black clothing gathering at Plaza Francia. Confusion increased as protesters wrested handguns from two people in the crowd they called "infiltrators." Enraged by the pro-Chavez march, the opposition Democratic Coordinator political movement issued a statement accusing the government of having "declared war against the people." City heath department chief Pedro Aristimuno said Friday's attack killed a 17-year-old girl, a 70-year-old woman and a 44-year-old man. Twenty-eight people were wounded, all by gunshots. Attorney General Isaias Rodriguez said seven people were in custody, including a minor. Authorities said one suspect confessed to shooting at the crowd. Accusations against other detainees — including British citizen Frank Pietersz — were not clear. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------- FAQs| Site Map| Privacy Policy| Contact Us| Subscribe| My Subscription ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------- Home| GTA| Business| Waymoresports| A&E| Life ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------- Legal Notice:- Copyright 1996-2002. Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. All rights reserved. Distribution, transmission or republication of any material from www.thestar.com is strictly prohibited without the prior written permission of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. For information please contact us using our webmaster form. ----------------------------- Chavez Defies Strike, Orders Venezuela Oil Shakeup Sat December 7, 2002 08:09 PM ET By Pascal Fletcher CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, fighting back against an opposition strike that has choked off vital oil exports, announced on Saturday a shake-up in the state oil firm PDVSA, firing striking tanker captains and replacing executives. Condemning what he called the "coup-plotting, bloodthirsty, irrational" opposition, Chavez told cheering supporters he would not allow PDVSA operations to be halted by the six-day-old strike in the world's fifth-biggest oil exporter. His opponents launched the strike on Monday as part of a drive to pressure the leftist leader, who survived a coup in April, to hold an early referendum on his rule. The strikers, backed by Venezuela's upper and middle classes, call Chavez a dictator and accuse him of trying to impose Cuban-style communism. Chavez says the constitution rules out a referendum before August. Chavez dismissed the strike as a failure and rejected opposition charges he was to blame for the fatal shootings of three anti-government protesters on Friday. The shootings in Caracas, which also injured 21, enraged opposition supporters who held a silent march to mourn the victims on Saturday. Addressing a huge crowd outside the presidential palace, Chavez dismissed his foes as "saboteurs and conspirators" and accused them of trying to overthrow him by destroying the vital oil industry, which he called the "life of the nation." "The time has come to fight the big oil battle in Venezuela," Chavez said. Supporters chanted "Chavez, Chavez," and "Get tough, get tough." He said striking oil tanker captains and PDVSA staff, whose walkout had disrupted oil-well production, tanker loadings and refinery operations, were being replaced. CONFRONTING OPPOSITION OFFENSIVE Chavez added the PDVSA board of directors, many of whom had offered their resignations, would be restructured. He also ordered the military to step up protection of oil sites. His no-surrender speech indicated he would confront head-on, with force if necessary, his opponents' latest offensive in their year-old campaign to force him from power. He called on his supporters across the country to take to the streets to defend the crackdown on the state oil company. Hours earlier, enforcing the crackdown orders, troops swarmed aboard one of several state-owned oil tankers whose captains joined the opposition shutdown, triggering a port bottleneck. Chavez said the rebel captains could be jailed. Dissident PDVSA executives said the country had been forced to cut back 50 percent of its oil production because of the strike. They said the rest would be shut down in three days. Acknowledging the damage to the economy, Chavez described the situation in the state oil company as critical. Before he spoke, government and opposition negotiators resumed struggling peace talks brokered by Organization of American States Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria. The talks, started a month ago, have been deadlocked over the timing of elections in the oil-rich but socially divided nation, which is deeply split over Chavez's self-styled "revolution" that followed his election in 1998, six years after he was jailed for a coup attempt. MILITARY CALL FOR CALM The United States, worried about the disruption in one of its leading oil suppliers as it contemplates war with Iraq, expressed concern about the Venezuelan violence. Secretary of State Colin Powell called Gaviria on Saturday to back his peace efforts, the U.S. ambassador to Caracas, Charles Shapiro, said. After Friday's shootings, dissident military officers called on the armed forces to rise up against the president. It was a series of fatal shootings in April, also following a general strike hitting oil exports, that triggered a short-lived military coup against Chavez by rebel officers. He was later restored by loyal troops and supporters. Moving to counter coup fears, Defense Minister Jose Luis Prieto and the nation's military high command said in a television broadcast on Saturday the armed forces were "more united than ever" in support of constitutional rule. Thousands of government supporters rallied on Saturday outside the presidential palace in a show of support for the president. Patriotic music blared and firecrackers exploded in the sky. "He's the best president, because he loves the poor," said Doris Rivas, taking part with her children and her mother. In east Caracas, thousands of opposition supporters mourning the shooting victims marched in silence to demand Chavez quit. "Chavez, coward and killer" and "Chavez, out now," read some of the banners they carried with national flags. As the strike hit the petroleum sector, world oil markets shuddered this week at Venezuela's sudden oil drought. Oil provides 80 percent of exports and 50 percent of government revenues in a country already in steep recession. Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said investigators would find the killer or killers involved in Friday's shootings. Seven people were being held, including a Portuguese national, who officials said confessed to opening fire with a handgun. (Additional reporting by Jason Webb, Patrick Markey, Magdalena Morales, Ana Isabel Martinez) Email this Article | Print this Article | Purchase for Reprint Reuters The Company Products & Services Reuters
