08-31

CUBAN PUNK ROCKER GORKI FINED AND ORDERED FREE         HAVANA, CUBA--Cuban punk rocker Gorki Aguila is irreverent, vulgar -- and bolder than any other performance artist in modern Cuban history. His lyrics blasting the Cuban dictatorship are very strong. The founder and lead singer of the 10-year-old group ''Porn for Ricardo'' walks around his western Havana neighborhood with T-shirts that say things like, ``59: Year of the Mistake.''     In a case that has drawn attention around the world, the 39-year-old rocker went on trial Friday on charges of ''pre-crime social dangerousness.'' He faced a sentence of up to four years in prison, but in the end the court fined him the equivalent of $28 and promised to free him.     Wire-service reports from Havana said the singer yelled ''freedom!'' as he was led into a courthouse. Diplomats, human rights activists, artists and journalists swarmed the municipal courthouse Friday morning awaiting the trial, which began some eight hours late. Some family, friends and political activists chanted Aguila's name as he arrived in a police car and was escorted inside the building, the Associated Press reported.

KILLER HURRICANE GUSTAV HITS CUBA AS CATEGORY 4         HAVANA, CUBA-- Hurricane Gustav morphed into a ferocious Category 4 storm Saturday as it slammed into western Cuba. With 145 mph winds, Gustav is an ''extremely dangerous'' storm, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center warned. While the hurricane batters Cuba and promises to continue on a course toward a U.S. Gulf Coast landfall, people in New Orleans began to line up for buses to take them to safer places.      Hurricane Gustav's eye was directly over Cuba's Isle of Youth at 2 p.m. Saturday and moving toward the country's western coast. It was about 110 miles south of Havana and moving northwest. About 190,000 people had been evacuated from the Pinar del Río province in western Cuba, newspaper Guerrillero reported. 'Nobody is more expert in hurricanes than pinarenos,'' Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage said to the paper, using the nickname for Pinar del Río residents.     Forecasters said Gustav could reach chart-topping Category 5 strength later Saturday, and hurricane watches may be posted along the northern Gulf Coast. The death toll mounted in Gustav's wake, with at least 81 confirmed fatalities: 66 in Haiti, eight in the Dominican Republic and seven in Jamaica. No fatalities were reported in the Cayman Islands, where Gustav's winds toppled power lines, trees and light poles. Two people had to be rescued after they were swept out to sea while trying to take photographs of the storm. The government issued an all-clear declaration for Grand Cayman, signaling that the danger had passed.

JUDGE STRIKES DOWN CUBA TRAVEL BAN FOR PROFESSORS         MIAMI, FLORIDA--A federal judge has struck down a controversial state law that essentially banned professors at state universities in Florida from traveling to Cuba for research purposes, declaring it unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Patricia Seitz ruled that the 2006 law, pushed aggressively by State Rep. David Rivera, ``is an impermissible sanction and serves as an obstacle to the objectives of the federal government.'' The law prohibited the use of state and nonstate funds for travel to Cuba and other countries labeled by the U.S. government as state sponsors of terrorism.     The judge struck down one provision of the law -- the one banning nonstate or private funds from being used for such travel. That means most academics at state universities would be allowed to resume travel to Cuba because most of those trips are covered by private funds, said Florida International University Professor Lisandro Perez, who founded the university's Cuba Research Institute.      The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit challenging the law in 2006 on behalf of FIU's faculty senate. ''It was a mean-spirited bill,'' said FIU Faculty Senate Chairman Tom Breslin. ``It was made to turn back the clock. I'm glad it's gone for the sake of academic freedom.'' Rivera, who is in Minnesota for the Republican National Convention, said he vowed to continue pushing the principles behind the law. ''I think the judge has erred in her decision by overstepping into what is clearly a state issue in terms of budget authority, and I look forward to either an appeal of the decision or remedying her error through the budget process year after year,'' he said.

-2008

08-30-2008

ASIAN ALLIANCE DENIES RUSSIAN PLEA FOR SUPPORT IN GEORGIA CONFLICT

       DUSHANBE, TAJIKISTAN--China and several Central Asian nations rebuffed Russia's hopes of international support for its actions in Georgia, issuing a statement Thursday denouncing the use of force and calling for respect for every country's territorial integrity. A joint declaration from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, or SCO, also offered some support for Russia's "active role in promoting peace" following a cease-fire, but overall it appeared to increase Moscow's international isolation.

    Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had appealed to the SCO alliance — whose members include Russia, China, and four Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan — for unanimous support of Moscow's response to Georgia's "aggression." But none of the other alliance members joined Russia in recognizing the independence claims of Georgia's separatist regions, Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

    "The participants ... underscore the need for respect of the historical and cultural traditions of each country and each people, and for efforts aimed at preserving the unity of the state and its territorial integrity," the declaration said. "Relying exclusively on the use of force has no prospects and hinders a comprehensive settlement of local conflicts," the declaration added, in what could also be seen as criticism of Georgia, which tried to retake South Ossetia by force.

COLOMBIA EXPELS TWO VENEZUELANS DUE TO "NATIONAL SECURITY" CONCERNS 

        BOGOTA, COLOMBIA.--Colombian secret service agents deported on Thursday two Venezuelan citizens who, according to Colombian authorities, were conducting political activities in the city of Ibagué (center-west of the country), where they were caught in a hotel, after having convened people from different Colombian regions, official sources reported.

    Santiago Vásquez, the director of the secret service agency, i.e. the Administrative Department of Security's office in Tolima, said that two foreigners "were acting against the national security, because two persons who entered the country as tourists should not engage in such actions", DPA reported.

     According to the DAS director, the two Venezuelan citizens were identified as Mario Arias, former deputy of the Venezuelan National Assembly (AN), and Nadiuska Josefina, who allegedly is an employee of the Venezuelan Food Ministry.

SENIOR CONGRESSMAN TRUSTS IN PARAGUAYAN BLESSING FOR VENEZUELA'S MEMBERSHIP IN MERCOSUR

        ASUNCION, PARAGUAY--The Paraguayan Parliament "has plans" to okay next September Venezuela's inclusion in Mercosur, said deputy Saúl Ortega, the chairman of the Foreign Policy Commission, National Assembly (AN).

    "To the latest, in the second fortnight of September, they have plans to approve the admission," said the parliamentarian, as posted on Monday on the website of state-run Radio Nacional de Venezuela.

    Earlier, Ortega reported that a delegation of Paraguayan Senators would visit Venezuela from August 29 to September 3 "to speed up the incorporation," Efe quoted.  "This is a commission of the highest rank, and they are presently dealing with the issue of Venezuela's inclusion in Mercosur with the approval of the Paraguayan Parliament," he said.

08-29-2008

U.S. AID SHIP ARRIVES IN GEORGIAN PORT AMID ESCALATING REGIONAL TENSIONS

       BATUMI, GEORGIA-- A U.S. Coast Guard ship carrying humanitarian aid docked in the Georgian Black Sea port of Batumi Wednesday, as Georgia's Western allies renewed their criticism of Russia amid escalating tensions. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Dallas arrives in the Georgian port of Batumi.

    The cutter Dallas bypassed its original destination, the Georgian port of Poti, which is controlled by Russian troops still in the country despite a cease-fire deal to end conflict between the two countries. In another development Wednesday, Georgia has recalled some of its diplomatic staff from its Moscow embassy, Russia's foreign ministry said.

     The arrival of the Dallas cames as Western leaders renewed criticism of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's move Tuesday to recognize the independence of two Georgian breakaway provinces, Abkhazia and South Ossetia -- over which Georgia and Russia have been fighting. The move, which controvened a French-brokered cease-fire deal to end the conflict, was condemned as illegal by European leaders.

WASHINGTON: HUGO CHAVEZ FAILED IN DRUG WAR

        WASHINGTON, D.C.--Director of the National Drug Control Policy John Walters accused Venezuela of failing to fight back against drug cartels moving huge amounts of cocaine through the South American country.

    Angered by what he branded as Venezuela's refusal to work with Washington in the war on drugs, the White House drug czar said Caracas has not done enough to stop Venezuela from being overrun by drug cartels.  Walters told Reuters that drug gangs now move about 250 tons of cocaine a year through Venezuela, almost a five-fold increase in the last four years, mainly for shipping to the growing European market. "You do not see anyone arrested, you do not see an active effort against corruption," the US official added.

    While Walters stressed that Washington has not interest in arguing with Venezuela, he said Caracas should do more to stop the cocaine cartels because US officials have passed on detailed reports showing drug trafficking routes.   "Venezuela has an air force; it has a radar; it has a trained military (...) It can stop drug smuggling on air flights," he said.

BOLIVIA'S EVO MORALES FORCED TO USE FOREIGN AIRFIELD

        LA PAZ, BOLIVIA--Bolivian President Evo Morales may have high approval ratings, but protesters literally forced him out of the country briefly.

    Morales was trying to return from an event in northeastern Bolivia on Wednesday, but protesters raided airfields and blocked them with stones and poles. Hydrocarbons Minister Carlos Villegas told Radio Erbol that meant his helicopter could not stop to refuel.

    So Morales went by land to a Brazilian airport, where a Bolivian military plane picked him up for the flight back to La Paz. Morales won approval from 67 percent of voters in an Aug. 10 referendum, but his leftist government has faced repeated protests in eastern regions seeking greater autonomy from the central government.

08-28-2008

HUGO CHAVEZ: THE OPPOSITION LOSES TIME BY APPEALING TO INTERNATIONAL BODIES

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA--Hugo Chávez said on Wednesday that dissenting leaders are losing their time by appealing to foreign agencies to claim that the 26 presidential directives issued under the enabling law violate the Constitution.

    "They are losing your time by going, as it were, to the Organization of American States. The OAS has nothing to do with a country's laws. This is an absolutely internal affair," he said. He regretted that Leopoldo López, the leader of opposition Un Nuevo Tiempo (UNT) party, and other opposition representatives showed up at the Mercosur Parliament Commission on Human Rights and other international bodies to talk about the issue of politicians barred from elected public office.

    "US fans are desperately looking for all their contacts. They should not be underestimated though. They play the game by using their buddies here and anywhere else. In Europe too. They are moving to and fro. They have gone to Mercosur, OAS, the Inter-American Court of whatever." "In the meantime, I will continue calling them after what they really are: homeland-sellers, US minions, groveling."

HUGO CHAVEZ'S NATIONALIZATIONS RESTRAIN FOREIGN INVESTMENT IN VENEZUELA 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--The nationalization of foreign companies in strategic sectors of the Venezuelan economy during the past year have spread fears among the transnational companies operating in Venezuela and have made the country unattractive for future foreign investments, according to experts.

    Currently the Venezuelan government controls more than 90 percent of the cement industry as well as most companies in the electricity, oil and steel sectors and a share of the telecommunication sector. As a result, foreign companies have been forced to reduce or sell their interests in Venezuela, AFP reported.

     The increase of government control of economy, which is also subject to price regulations and exchange controls that reduce the profitability and competitiveness of foreign firms in Venezuela, has slowed the pace of foreign investments in the country, analysts said. "Foreign investments should be at least 3 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), about USD 6 billion, and we do not reach 10 percent of that figure, the Venezuelan economist Orlando Ochoa told AFP.

VENEZUELAN DETAINED FOR DRUG TRAFFIC FLEES GUINEA-BISSAU 

        BISSAU, GUINEA-BISSAU--Four South Americans -one Venezuelan and three Colombians, fled Guinea-Bissau, where they had recently let out on probation after their arrest by mid July for alleged traffic of 500 kilograms of cocaine, reported on Monday the Attorney General Office.

    "The Venezuelan pilot and the three Colombians managed to leave the country, surely with somebody else as accomplice," said public prosecutor Luis Manuel Cabral, who did not specify the day and time or the circumstances of the rush out, AFP reported.

    The aircraft coming from Venezuela was seized on July 12 in Bissau after landing without clearance, loaded with 515 kilograms of cocaine. The cargo vanished afterwards.

08-27-2008

RUSSIA PRESIDENT DMITRY MEDVEDEV RECOGNIZES INDEPENDENCE OF THE TWO BREAKAWAY GEORGINA PROVINCES T OF AT LEAST FIVE U.S. NAVAL SHIPS ARRIVED WITH RELIEF SUPPLIES IN GEORGIA

       MOSCOW, RUSSIA--Russian President Dmitry Medvedev recognized independence of the two Georgian breakaway provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia on Tuesday, in a move expected to further escalate tensions between Moscow and the West. In a televised address, Medvedev said he signed a decree sent to him by both houses of Russia's parliament asking him to proclaim the rebel provinces independent.

    The move was immediately condemned by Georgia's foreign minister as "unconcealed annexation" by Russia of Georgian territory. Speaking Tuesday at a press conference in the West Bank, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Medvedev's declaration is "regrettable" and "puts Russia in opposition to the Security Council resolution to which it is a party." Rice's counterparts in France and Britain, Bernard Kouchner and David Milliband, also spoke out forcefully against Medvedev's announcement.

     The United States has been a vocal backer of Georgia in its brief but fierce conflict with Russia following the former Soviet republic's assault on South Ossetia on Aug. 7. Russia responded by driving Georgian forces out of South Ossetia and sending thousands of troops, backed by tanks and armoured vehicles, deep into Abkhazia before taking up positions far inside Georgian territory. The conflict has led to a chilling of relations between Moscow and Washington over what U.S. officials have called Russia's "disproportionate" response to the initial actions of Georgia, which has been lobbying for membership in NATO.

HUGO CHAVEZ: "IF THE OPPOSITION WINS NOVEMBER ELECTION, THEY WILL SABOTAGE MY GOVERNMENT"

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--The launching of April 13 Mission and the presentation of the Point and Circle Plan in low-income neighborhood La Bombilla, eastern Caracas, were the major topics in the 319th edition of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's weekly radio and TV show Aló Presidente (Hello, President) last Sunday.

    However, Chávez devoted most of the time (more than 4 hours) to ask Venezuelans to vote for government candidates in the local and regional elections for mayors and governors that will be held next November 23. Chávez warned that if the opposition parties won the election, his administration could be at stake.  

     "Imagine opposition candidates -who are going around like crazy claiming they will the Mayoralty of Petare (a poor neighborhood eastern Caracas), who are the (United States President, George) Bush' candidates, and who want to destroy me- winning the election. Do you think that the missions are going to operate as they usually do? No! they are going to sabotage them and then put the blame on me. They want to win in November to damage my government and overthrow me!", Chávez said.

VENEZUELA MAY BE EXPELLED FROM INTER-AMERICAN SYSTEM

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- Former judges of the First Court on Contentious and Administrative Matters Juan Carlos Apitz, Perkins Rocha and Ana María Ruggeri, appeared in the headquarters of TSJ on Monday to file an action voicing their willingness to administer justice in an autonomous and independent way.

    Since the Inter-American Court on Human Rights (IACHR) ordered the Venezuelan government to reinstate Apitz, Rocha and Ruggeri to their positions in the judiciary, the former judges asked TSJ to reinstate them in their positions in the First Court on Contentious and Administrative Matters. They believe the ruling issued by the Organization of American State's judicial body was lawful and dignified the role of judges in Venezuela.

    The Supreme Tribunal of Justice issued a statement claiming that the OAS body found that Venezuela did not violate the rights of the former judges to be tried by a competent court nor violated any articles of the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights.  Meanwhile, Apitz said that failure to enforce the ruling of IACHR would leave Venezuela on the sidelines of the Inter-American System of Human Rights.

08-26-2008

THE FIRST OF AT LEAST FIVE U.S. NAVAL SHIPS ARRIVED WITH RELIEF SUPPLIES IN GEORGIA

       BATUMI, GEORGIA-- A U.S. Navy destroyer delivered 55 tons of humanitarian aid for war-weary Georgia on Sunday as residents staged a second day of protests against Russian forces still occupying the country. The USS McFaul, the first of at least three U.S. ships bringing relief supplies to ally Georgia, anchored one mile off the Black Sea coast of the southwestern city of Batumi, where crews used barges to ferry ashore bottled water, nonperishable food, blankets, diapers, cooking utensils and other items.

    Stephen Guise, a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi, the Georgian capital, said that the ship would have docked at Georgia's deep-water port at Poti, but that the port had suffered too much damage during the war to accommodate the destroyer. Batumi's port is too shallow to accommodate the McFaul.

     At least two other ships were en route to Georgia carrying relief goods, Guise said. A Coast Guard cutter also was due to arrive within days. Russian officials didn't respond immediately to the arrival of the U.S. vessel, but they have criticized humanitarian deliveries by other NATO countries, including Spain, Germany and Poland, as fueling tension in the Black Sea. ''I do not think that this will contribute to the stabilization of the situation in the region,'' Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, the deputy head of the Russian general staff, said Saturday.

CUBAN TAEKWONDO CHAMP BANNED FOR LIFE AFTER KICKING REFEREE IN THE FACE

        PEKIN, CHINA--A Cuban taekwondo athlete and his coach were banned for life after Angel Matos kicked the referee in the face following his bronze-medal match disqualification. Cuban coach Leudis Gonzalez offered no apology for Matos' actions during the men's over-80 kg match. Matos was winning 3-2, with 1:02 in the second round, when he fell to the mat after being hit by his opponent, Kazakhstan's Arman Chilmanov. He was sitting awaiting medical attention when he was disqualified for taking too much injury time. Fighters get one minute, and Matos was disqualified when his time ran out.

    Matos angrily questioned the call, pushed a judge, then pushed and kicked referee Chakir Chelbat of Sweden. Matos then spat on the floor and was escorted out. "He was too strict," Gonzalez said, referring to the decision to disqualify Matos. Afterward, he charged the match was fixed, accusing the Kazakhs of offering him money.

     "This is a strong violation of the spirit of taekwondo and the Olympic Games. The sanctions are the following and are effective immediately: Lifetime ban of the coach and athlete in all championships sanctioned by the [World taekwondo Federation] and at the same time, all records of this athlete at the Beijing Games will immediately be erased," said the announcer, reading a WTF release. In his first match, Matos defeated Italy's Leonardo Basile, then beat China's Liu Xiaobo 2-1 in the quarterfinals. But he lost to South Korean Cha Dong-min in the semis to land in the bronze-medal match. The bronzes went to Chilmanov, who beat Matos, and Chukwumerije.

MIRIAM LEIVA, FOUNDER OF WOMEN IN WHITE, DROPS OUT

        HAVANA, CUBA-- Miriam Leiva, one of the founders of the Cuban movement Women in White, announced Monday that she was leaving the group of wives, mothers and sisters of imprisoned dissidents to dedicate herself to "independent journalism." In a short statement distributed to several foreign media outlets, Leiva did not explain her decision, and it was not possible to locate her at her home to obtain further details.

    The activist is the wife of Oscar Espinoza Chepe, one of 75 dissidents sentenced to lengthy terms in 2003, who was later released on parole for medical reasons. Saying that she wanted to spend more time writing, Leiva added that although she would no longer be "committed" to the decisions and statements of the Women in White, she would continue to "proudly" consider herself one of the group’s founders. Laura Pollán, one of the group’s spokeswomen, said she was already aware of Leiva’s decision. "We will feel her absence, because she is a very competent, knowledgeable person, but we respect her choice," she said.

     Pollán also said Leiva’s decision would not affect the unity of the group. "There have been no clashes or disagreements among us, I want to make that clear," said the activist, who is married to Héctor Maseda, a dissident sentenced to 20 years in prison in the summary trials in 2003. Leiva clarified that she would remain committed to the struggle for the "immediate release" of the rest of the 75 dissidents who were convicted of conspiring with the United States to undermine the Cuban government. Of the original group, 55 remain in prison.

08-25-2008

US DRUG CZAR: MORE COCAINE TRAVELING VIA VENEZUELA

       WASHINGTON, D.C.-- The U.S. drug czar appealed to Venezuela's government on Friday to take action against the flourishing flow of cocaine being smuggled through the country.  White House drug czar John Walters told The Associated Press that Venezuela has shown no willingness to cooperate with U.S. officials against drugs. "Cooperation's gotten worse and the problem's gotten bigger," Walters told the AP in a phone interview from Washington. The flow of Colombian cocaine through Venezuela has quadrupled since 2004, reaching an estimated 282 tons last year, he said.

    "The flow is increasing as dramatically as it is because it is operating in a condition of impunity," Walters said. "The failure of the Venezuelan government to go after this is a failure to be serious." Venezuelan officials argue they are taking drug trafficking seriously and point to large seizures in recent years. Walters said his attempt to restart cooperation has been stymied as Venezuelan officials have yet to agree to his request for a meeting, and a visa request for him and other American officials has been held up for more than a week. "Frankly, this has gotten to the point where they're playing games," Walters said. "Usually drugs is beyond a lot of other political differences. We have a cooperative relationship with Cuba." But in Venezuela's case, he said, "there just has been no willingness to establish that cooperation or re-establish a working relationship."

     U.S. law enforcement officials have detected repeated flights by planes that take off from Venezuela, drop large loads of cocaine off the island of Hispaniola and return to Venezuela, Walters said. Other multi-ton loads are moving, largely by ship but also by air, from Venezuela to west Africa - a way station for shipments to Europe. In the latest bust, Dutch and U.S. officials said Friday that the Dutch Navy and U.S. Coast Guard seized 4.6 tons (4.2 metric tons) of cocaine last weekend aboard a freighter in the Caribbean that had set sail from Venezuela. The Dutch Navy said it is the largest haul of cocaine it has ever intercepted.

THE INTER-AMERICAN COURT ON HUMAN RIGHTS FINDS IN FAVOR OF EX-JUDGES WHO SUED THE VENEZUELA STATE

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--The Inter-American Court on Human Rights (IACHR) made a favorable finding including the reappointment of ex-judges to their positions in the judiciary, if they request it, and redress by the Venezuelan state.

     The ex-judges favored by the IACHR’s finding are Ana María Ruggeri Cova, Perkins Rocha Contreras and Juan Carlos Apitz Barbera.

    The former officials filed charges against the Venezuelan state following a decision by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) to fire them for having made a judicial mistake

VENEZUELA TO SEEK OUTPUT CUT IF OIL PRICES KEEP FALLING 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- Venezuela, South America's biggest oil producer, is likely to suggest the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut oil output quotas during their meeting in September, if prices continue to fall, Venezuelan Energy and Petroleum Minister Rafael Ramírez said on Tuesday.

    OPEC should take a responsible stance and not allow oil prices to tumble, Ramírez said. 

     "In the OPEC meeting we should determine whether prices continue to plunge (and) even consider a production cut. We will bring this proposal to the meeting," Ramírez said. Venezuela believes that oil inventory levels "are good," Ramírez added.

08-24-2008

BARACK OBAMA SELECTS SENATOR JOE BIDEN AS HIS running mate

       WASHINGTON, D.C.-- BARACK OBAMA INTRODUCED SEN. JOE BIDEN of Delaware. 65, as his Democratic running mate Saturday before a cheering crowd of thousands, hailing him as a "leader who is ready to step in and be president." Within minutes, Biden went on the attack against Republican presidential candidate John McCain, saying he would have to "figure out which of the kitchen tables to sit at" when considering his own economic future. It was a reference to McCain's recent inartful admission that he was not sure how many homes he owns.

    Before a vast crowd spilling out from the front of the Old State Capitol, Obama said Biden was "what many others pretend to be - a statesman with sound judgment who doesn't have to hide behind bluster to keep America strong." Democrats coalesced quickly around Obama's selection of the 65-year-old veteran of three decades in the Senate - a choice meant to provide foreign policy heft to the party's ticket for the fall campaign against McCain and the Republicans.

     Obama made a symbolic choice for the ticket's first joint appearance. It was a brutally cold winter day more than a year ago when he stood outside the historic structure in the Illinois capital to launch his quest for the White House. He returned in sunshine, the party's improbable nominee-in-waiting, a 47-year-old black man who outdistanced a crowded field of far better-known and more experienced rivals. Thousands of newly printed signs bearing the words Obama/Biden sprouted in the crowd that waited in anticipation in 90-degree temperatures.

VENEZUELAN LEGISLATORS AT ODDS IN MERCOSUR

        MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY.--Venezuelan pro-government legislators Desirée Santos Amaral and Hermes García engaged in a heated verbal clash with Mayor of Chacao Municipality Leopoldo López and Venezuelan legislator Juan José Molina in front of the media and at the doors of the seat of Mercosur in Montevideo.

    Venezuelan legislator Desirée Santos Amaral angrily told reporters that López had to wait to conclude this term in office to begin to comply with sanctions against him. Therefore, he can not run for local elections in Venezuela because he was banned by the Venezuelan Comptroller General and the Supreme Tribunal of Justice.

    Meanwhile, López asked repeatedly Santos Amaral to explain her views calmly. Santos Amaral replied that the Chacao Mayor was one of the leaders of the failed coup attempt of April 2002. Molina said that the pro-government members of the Venezuelan National Assembly are trying to institutionalize the violation of the Constitution and accused them of "buying consciences" within Mercosur.

THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF MERCOSUR POSTPONES DECISION ON HUGO CHAVEZ'S POLITICAL BANNING

        MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY-- The Human Rights Commission of the Mercosur Parliament postponed on August 19 a decision concerning the political ban of candidates in upcoming Venezuelan local elections, in order to "hear all the parties."

    Due to lack of quorum, the legislative body was unable to resume the discussion after the plenary session. Parliamentarians decided to discuss the item in the next meeting, scheduled for August 26 or for September 4, when Parlatino will meet in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre.

     Uruguayan parliamentarian Adriana Peña, who chairs the Commission, told DPA that the members of the legislative panel heard Chacao mayor Leopoldo López, who presented the case of the political ineligibility of a group of candidates in Venezuela. "López was heard and examined. But the conclusions will be drawn later, in a session behind closed doors. We have not decided yet whether to admit or dismiss the case", said the lawmaker.

08-23-2008

VENEZUELA CONGRESSMAN REGRETS ATTEMPTS AT MANIPULATION BY COUNTERPARTS IN A MERCOSUR HEARING

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- National Assembly (AN) deputy for pro-government Podemos party Juan José Molina, lamented on Friday the position taken by his counterparts who represented the Venezuelan government at the Mercosur Parliament on a hearing afforded to Chacao Mayor Leopoldo López last Monday.

    Molina feels that the Venezuelan government did not give clear answers to Mercosur Senators concerning the method used to bar people from elected public office.

    Molina said during a press conference that the Venezuelan congresspersons, particularly AN Vice-President Saúl Ortega, have tried to "manipulate" the public opinion as to what really happened. During the hearing, Mayor López brought up the issue of his banning, who prevented him from running for the Caracas Mayoralty in the local election to be held next November.  Molina claimed that the deputies representing Venezuela at Mercosur just demeaned López; they failed to make sound allegations and said instead, that he was a "coupster, imperialist."

IAPA WORRIED ABOUT ATTACKS ON VENEZUELAN JOURNALISTS 

        MIAMI, FLORIDA.--The Inter-American Press Association (IAPA) expressed on Thursday concern about multiple attacks on journalists and the media in Venezuela.

     "The IAPA is concerned about a decline in several countries concerning the assurances needed by the media and journalists to perform their duties and serve their communities," said in a communiqué Gonzalo Marroquín, the chairman of IAPA's Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information.

     Marroquín, the editor of Guatemalan daily newspaper Prensa Libre, complained about harassment of the press in Venezuela, prompted by the political polarization mirrored in clashes between opposing groups. Last Tuesday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez lambasted major newspapers El Nacional and El Universal for their headlines related to nationalization of cement maker Cemex and a package of statutory decrees enacted under the enabling law.

HUGO CHAVEZ DELEGATES TO PDVSA URGENT EXPROPRIATION OF THE MEXICAN CEMEX

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- HUGO CHAVEZ announced on Monday the expropriation of Cemex and on Tuesday his regime took operational control of plants owned by the Mexican company.

     In order to accelerate the expropriation process, the government ordered through a presidential decree that the Venezuelan state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa) would be responsible for enforcing the expropriation. However, the Organic Law on the Organization of Cement Manufacturers establishes that the procedure must be carried out by the Ministry of Basic Industries and Mining.

    Several committees from the oil industry have visited the offices of the cement company. On Wednesday, one of them went to the administrative head offices with the intention of starting to change the board of directors. However, the procedure was not implemented due to differences between the decree and the law.

08-22-2008

VENEZUELAN TOP LEGISLATOR REJECTS US COMMENTS ABOUT LAA-DECREES 

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- Carlos Escarrá, a Venezuelan legislator and top member of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) questioned that the White House has described as "peculiar" a potential visit of a Russian fleet to the Caribbean with the consent of Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez.

    According to Escarrá people should also wonder the reasons why the US government and Venezuelan opposition are concerned about the 26 decree-laws.

     Escarrá mentioned in an Op-ed the "curiosity" that certain "actions of the Empire" (the US government) could arouse in several regions. "People could be curious about the behavior of the Empire in many countries, such as Georgia, its intervention in Chile and Nicaragua and even in our country, during the April 2002 coup. However, the Empire is curious about a relationship of cooperation and brotherhood between Venezuela and Russia."

VENEZUELAN AIR FORCE TO USE CHINESE-MADE RADAR IN MILITARY EXERCISES WITH BRAZIL

        RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL--Every two years, the air forces of Brazil and Venezuela conduct the military operation "Venbra V," in the border areas of Santa Elena de Uairén and Boa Vista.

    In the joint military exercise, which ends on Friday, troops from both countries use air surveillance and monitoring equipments deployed in southern Venezuela and northern Brazil in order to perform the tasks of detection, identification, interception and transfer of simulated illegal flights. In addition, military exercises allow the training of both forces in air operations and cooperative security in an area of common interest for both countries.

    On this occasion, the Air Defense Command of the Venezuelan Armed Forces will use for the first time the JYL-1 radar, bought from China, with a detection range of 240 miles. Venezuela will deploy in Venbra V operation, several OV-10 Bronco and AT 27 aircrafts as interceptors, and Cessna 208 Caravan and T206H aircrafts as simulators or targets.

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS TO SEEK OAS INTERVENTION AGAINST 26 DECREE-LAWS

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- The Professional Association Front announced on Wednesday in a press conference that they will visit the headquarters of the Organization of American States (OAS) in Caracas with the support of "one million signatures for freedom" to denounce the violation of civil and private liberties by the Government, following the enactment of 26 decree-laws under the Enabling law.

    In the opinion of Gustavo Briceño Vigas, the president of the Disciplinary Board of the Caracas Bar Association, "the rule of law and the principle of justice are over." Therefore, we will ask José Miguel Insulza, the Secretary General of the OAS, to convene the foreign ministers of the region to discuss the violation of the Constitution by the Venezuelan government.

    For its part, Humberto Blanco, a director of the Venezuelan Engineers' Association warned: "we have no time. Either we confront the intentions of the government or we will face slavery. This is a battle for democracy. We will use every mechanism available. We do not rule out any options."

08-21-2008

POLAND SIGNS MISSILE SHIELD DEAL WITH U.S.

       WARSAW, POLAND-- The United States and Poland on Wednesday signed a formal agreement to base U.S. ballistic missiles on Polish soil, a move that has angered Russia and stoked regional tensions over the territorial conflict in Georgia. Signing the deal with Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice hailed it as a breakthrough in international cooperation but stressed the missiles would only be used for defense.

    "It will help both the (NATO) alliance and Poland and the United States respond to the coming threats," Rice said after the signing. "Missile defense, of course, is aimed at no one. It is in our defense that we do this."  Moscow says the missile-defense system is aimed at blunting Russia's nuclear deterrent. It has warned the deal could open Poland up to attack.

    Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose country has been pushing for the missile-defense system to be placed in Poland, said it strengthens the two countries' strategic partnership and will bring long term benefits to their security. The agreement will put a ground-based ballistic missile defense interceptor facility with 10 interceptor missiles in Poland close to the Russian border, according to the declaration. The United States will begin deploying the Patriot air and missile defense system next year, with a garrison to support it by 2012.

BOLIVIAN OPPOSITION PROTESTS IN REGIONAL CAPITALS

        LA PAZ, BOLIVIA--Government opponents held general strikes in five regional capitals on Tuesday to demand Bolivian President Evo Morales return state shares of oil and natural gas income his administration diverted to fund a pension for the elderly.  Banks, markets, offices and public transportation were almost entirely shut down in the capital of Santa Cruz state, a hotbed of anti-government sentiment. Youths armed with clubs patrolled the streets in the early morning to enforce the strike, fighting briefly with police.

    There were only scattered clashes, and no reports of serious injuries. Santa Cruz civic committee leader Branco Marincovik called the strike ''successful'' and said protesters would blockade highways in Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando, Tarija and Chuquisaca provinces on Wednesday. But Ruben Gammarra, vice minister of the interior, said the strike was partial and was observed only in the provincial capitals.

    Since being backed by voters in a recall referendum Aug. 10, Morales has renewed his push for reforms, including a new constitution aimed at empowering Bolivia's poor Indian majority. But with four anti-Morales governors also surviving the recall, the plebiscite may have only deepened Bolivia's political crisis by giving each side an electoral mandate. Four provinces in the energy-rich east have voted for autonomy in regional elections, though their legitimacy is questioned by the federal government.

CUBA DEFAULTS ON DEBTS  OWED TO JAPANESE FIRMS

        TOKYO, JAPAN-- The National Bank of Cuba told Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) on Aug. 11 that the bank would not be able to pay for imports into Cuba in due terms as the country is short of funds, the independent administrative institution said Monday.  Observers say more of Cuba's debts may become uncollectible in the near future as it has been seriously affected by soaring oil and food prices.

    Though the extent to which Cuba is short of settlement funds is unclear as it is not a member of the International Monetary Fund, observers say the influence of the country's financial situation on the global economy will be limited as its economy has been cut off from international financing.  Meiwa Corp., a midsize trading house, said Monday that 872 million yen worth of its accounts receivable for medical instruments and other items may be uncollectible.

    The company said it would not be seriously affected by the situation as 97.5 percent of the bad debts are covered by NEXI.  Exports from Japan to Cuba, mainly comprising medical and other precision instruments, were worth about 20.9 billion yen in 2007. Most of this amount was insured.  NEXI said it had already covered losses several companies have incurred on their exports to Cuba, but has not made the details public.  NEXI was established in 2001 to provide foreign trade and investment insurance services.

08-20-2008

COLOMBIAN SENATOR PIEDAD CORDOBA CONCEDES SHE RECEIVED MONEY FROM HUGO CHAVEZ'S PDVSA

       BOGOTA, COLOMBIA--HUGO CHAVEZ'S oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa) allocated funds to finance the political activities of Senator Piedad Córdoba, who opposes the government of  Colombian President Álvaro Uribe, the legislator admitted, noting that the money was used for humanitarian purposes.

    "It is true that company Monómeros Colombo Venezolanos, an affiliate of Pdvsa in Colombia, decided to support the process of humanitarian agreements granting an amount that I can not disclose," Córdoba said in a message published in Colombian newspaper El Tiempo.

     According to the politician, the money Monómeros Colombo Venezolanos gave her "was strictly intended to carry out cultural and public opinion events in solidarity with the humanitarian agreement, since the Colombian government did not provide any effective assistance for this costly and complex process."

VENEZUELAN ARMED FORCES CONFIRMS PARTICIPATION OF MILITIAS TO PROTECT THE UPCOMING ELECTORAL PROCESS   

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--General Jesús Gregorio González González, the chief of the Venezuelan Armed Forces Strategic Operational Command, said on Friday that members of the militias will be involved in the execution of Plan República, which is the name of the operation conducted by the armed forces to provide security and logistical support to the electoral process.

    "The Bolivarian national militia is part of the National Armed Forces. There is no doubt that, on this occasion, we will incorporate a great number of representatives of our Bolivarian national militia into this task (provide support to the Venezuelan National Electoral Council, CNE)", said González González.

     The top military officer added that the changes to some articles of the Organic Law of the National Armed Forces (Lofan) allow the participation of these troops.

HUGO CHAVEZ ADVOCATES "SOCIALIST PRODUCTION UNITS" IN THE COUNTRYSIDE  

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- Hugo Chávez made an appeal on Monday to organize "socialist production units" in agricultural areas in order to "eradicate capitalism" and move on to the revolutionary model.

    "There is the need to remove capitalism" from the Venezuelan countryside and organize "socialist production units" to give people access to food at fair prices, without speculators in the middle, said the president on visit to Calabozo, southwestern Guárico state.

    Chávez led an exhibition of the agricultural machinery imported from Argentina and Belarus, which will operate in Guárico's rice paddies, AFP reported. "There is need to build socialism. There is need to speed up. Capitalism is perverse and is finishing off the world," preached the head of state, who showed up together with Agriculture Minister Elías Jaua and government candidates to the local election next November.

08-19-2008

HUGO CHAVEZ BACKS RUSSIAN FLEET IN THE CARIBBEAN

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA--Hugo Chávez last Sunday announced "the possibility" that a Russian fleet visits the Caribbean, and particularly Venezuela. Chávez disclosed the plan cautiously, as opposed to his remarks late in July that Russian military bases would be established in Latin America, which Moscow denied later. "Russia has advised us of the plan to visit Venezuela, that is to say, of the plan that a Russian fleet comes to the Caribbean," Chávez said in his weekly radio and TV program Aló, Presidente. 

    "I told President (Dmitri Medvedev), 'if you are coming to the Caribbean, we will welcome you," Chávez said, adding that the Russian naval fleet would pay "a friendly and working" visit to Venezuela. "They will be welcomed in Venezuelan waters," said the Venezuelan ruler in his show broadcasted from the Air Force military base Captain Manuel Ríos, in the city of El Sombrero, Guárico state, 250 km south of Caracas.

     Chávez complained that the United States is "plotting" to prevent sales of spare parts for Hercules airplanes. The Venezuelan president said that he pondering the possibility to buy Russian Antonov aircraft and submarines.  On the economic front, Chávez announced that midnight Monday 18 is the deadline for the nationalization of the cement companies. The Venezuelan government intends to resume control of Mexico's Cemex, France's Lafarge and Switzerland's Holcim.

THE WHITE HOUSE SAID VENEZUELA'S INVITATION TO RUSSIAN FLEET IS "PECULIAR"

        WASHINGTON, D.C.--The White House said Monday that Venezuelan Hugo Chávez's invitation to host a Russian fleet was "peculiar" and accused him of neglecting his people's problems.

    "The Russians and the Venezuelans can engage in whatever cooperation they like. But it is peculiar, I am not sure that Venezuela needs or wins anything from a visit of the Russian fleet," said spokesman for the White House National Security Council, Gordon Johndroe, as reported by AFP.

    "You would think that President Chávez would concentrate more on the problems that the people of Venezuela are having rather than inviting the fleet in a port call," Gordon said, adding that he could not confirm the invitation.  Chávez said during his weekly radio and TV program last Sunday that Russian President Dmitri Medvedev wanted to send a naval fleet to visit Venezuela.

VENEZUELA FACES UNITED STATES SANCTIONS

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--Venezuelan Ambassador to the United States Bernardo Álvarez admitted on Sunday that "Venezuela is facing different types of sanctions" from the US government.  During weekly TV show "José Vicente Hoy," aired by Caracas-based private TV channel Televen, the diplomat said that one of the sanctions imposed is hitting "the Venezuelans who have activities in the United States. Apparently, they are having some problems in the (US) banks just because they come from Venezuela."

    According to Álvarez, while the US government accuses Venezuela of terrorism, President George W. Bush is protecting (alleged terrorist) Luis Posada Carriles. The diplomat said that, on the contrary, Venezuela has not taken any action against the United States. "We have rather increased cooperation." 

    Álvarez also claimed that Venezuela is ready to mend relations with the US, but within a framework of "mutual respect, and with no menaces. We want to avoid the situation where sanctions are used." He added that in the fight against drug trafficking there is the possibility of working together. "But this cooperation should not be used politically," he stressed.

08-18-2008

A RETIRED VENEZUELAN GENERAL FILED ACTION TO NULLIFY SIX ARTICLES OF THE ARMED FORCES LAW 

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA--General Ovidio Poggioli, former director of the Military Intelligence Division (DIM) made on Thursday, August 14, at the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) an appeal to reverse six articles of the National Armed Forces Organic Law (Lofan). "I came to ask for nullity of six articles that harm the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela," said Poggioli.

    "There are two articles that were included in the constitutional reform; one of them was added in a fraudulent manner, which is the article on the militias. Another article deals with renaming the armed forces component, and another article addresses the rank of the President of the Republic inside the armed forces," the general explained.

    In addition, he said that three articles related to military justice, financial inspection and freedom of expression are unconstitutional, because they are a glaring violation of the articles contained in the Constitution.

VENEZUELA - HUGO CHAVEZ'S BARRACKS 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--The recent passage of the new Bolivarian Armed Forces Organic Law will turn Venezuela in a militarized society. As a result, a constitutional reform yesterday championed by President Hugo Chávez and refused today by the people during a referendum last December is virtually nil.

    The democratic standard which states that the armed forces are subject to civil authority and provides for the non-deliberating character of the army has given in. According to the resident of Miraflores presidential palace, revolution is peaceful yet armed. In other words, either we accept it willingly or he will impose it forcefully. As simple as that.

    The original sin that laid the foundation for such outrage is the 1999 Constitution. Pursuant to it, in addition to being the commander in chief of the armed forces -as set forth also in the Constitutions of 1947, 1953 and 1961- this time the head of state leads and commands it. Further, citizens are subordinate to the military state and must defend it. The National Armed Forces Organic Law of 2005 and the recent one just shape the constitutional nonsense and the dream cherished by our president-lawmaker from the time when he lost his condition of active military officer -to return to the army and turn the nation into barracks commanded by him. (Read the complete article above in the VENEZUELA section)

VENEZUELA'S BONDS RISK EXCEEDS THOSE OF ARGENTINA

        BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA--In early August, the Argentinean government paid an exorbitant 15 percent interest rate to Venezuela to obtain USD 1 billion in financing, and President Hugo Chávez even advocated Argentinean bonds, saying that they "are not junk bonds like those of the United States." 

    Ironically, international investors have rated Venezuelan bonds with a higher risk than Argentina's, a country that has received in the past three years funds totaling USD 7 billion from Chávez government. In 2001, Buenos Aires failed to repay foreign debt.

    Country risk premium, an indicator that measures the spread between the yield an investor demands in order not to buy US Treasury bonds and purchase instead Venezuelan bonds, closed last Wednesday at 6.75 percent, while Argentina's closed at 6.51. In fact, Venezuela has the highest country risk among the major economies of Latin America. The spread is much higher than Mexico's 1.74 percent, Peru's 1.88 percent, Colombia's 2.10 percent, and Brazil's 2.28 percent.

08-17-2008

russian president dmitry medvedev signed peace plan after georgian president mikheil saakashvili

       MOSCOW, RUSSIA.--Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed an EU-brokered peace plan already inked by Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili that ended five days of hostilities between the two countries. Georgia said Russian troops still occupied parts of the country.  ``At the Security Council meeting, the situation around the South Ossetian and Abkhazian conflict was reviewed and the president informed the council that he had signed the six-point peace agreement,'' Medvedev's spokeswoman, Natalia Timakova, told reporters in Sochi today.

    The signature followed U.S. and German statements urging Russian withdrawal after the five days of fighting between the two countries which ended Aug. 12. ``With the signature of the Georgian president on this cease-fire accord, all Russian troops and any irregular and paramilitary forces that entered with them must leave immediately,'' U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters in the Georgian capital Tbilisi yesterday. The West sees Georgia as a key ally in the region, in part because it has a pipeline that carries Caspian Sea crude oil to Western markets, bypassing Russia.  

    Medvedev pledged to withdraw troops, according to French President Nicolas Sarkozy's office yesterday. Medvedev spoke by telephone with his French counterpart, the current head of the European Union.  Four days after Medvedev ordered a halt to hostilities, Russian troops are seizing military equipment at Georgian bases well beyond the breakaway South Ossetia region that sparked the conflict, according to Georgian and U.S. officials.  Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the army was continuing to seize trucks loaded with arms. Russia will ``reinforce'' its peacekeeping troops in South Ossetia and Abkhazia and its withdrawal from Georgia will take ``as long as necessary,'' he told reporters in Sochi.

SECRETARY CONDOLEEZZA RICE SAYS RUSSIAN FORCES MUST LEAVE GEORGIA IMMEDIATELY

        WASHINGTON, D.C.--Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday that Russian forces must leave Georgia immediately after Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili announced he has signed a cease-fire agreement. Rice said she had been assured that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will sign an identical document. "With this signature by Georgia, this (withdrawal) must take place and take place now," Rice said at a press conference alongside Saakashvili, who said he will "never, ever surrender" in the showdown with Russia.

    “Georgia has been attacked. Russian forces need to leave Georgia at once," Rice said. "The world needs to help Georgia maintain its sovereignty, its territorial integrity and its independence.” Rice said Russia's invasion has "profound implications" for the West. Rice said the time has come "to begin a discussion of the consequences of what Russia has done." She also noted humanitarian aid already being provided by the United States and other nations and said that access for these supplies "must be immediate and unimpeded."

    Rice spoke just hours after President Bush stood outside the Oval Office of the White House and accused Russia of "bullying and intimidation" against Georgia. Bush said the Georgian people had chosen freedom and "we will not cast them aside." Meanwhile, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said the separatist Georgian regions at the center of the conflict appear destined for independence. "After what happened, it's unlikely Ossetians and Abkhazians will ever be able to live together with Georgia in one state," he said in a joint news conference in the Russian resort of Sochi with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

RUSSIA WORKING HARD TO DESTROY GEORGIA'S WOUNDED MILITARY

        TBILISI, GEORGIA--Russian troops, in seeming violation of a cease-fire agreement set only on Tuesday, embarked Wednesday on what Georgian officials called a deliberate and systematic attempt to demolish what remains of the Georgian military. The actions ignited an angry response from the United States, with President Bush demanding that Moscow withdraw its forces from Georgia.

     The president also announced that U.S. military aircraft and ships would begin delivering humanitarian aid to the former Soviet republic in a "vigorous and ongoing" operation and that U.S. officials would expect unfettered access to Georgia’s ports and highways.  "The United States stands with the democratically elected government of Georgia and insists that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia be respected," Bush said in a brief White House appearance with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates by his side.

     The decision to dispatch aid aboard military aircraft potentially put the United States and Russia on a collision course. Pentagon officials said they were taking pains to make sure that the Russians were fully informed of all U.S. actions toi avoid isunderstandings. The U.S. action came on a day when Russian troops demonstrated that they could go anywhere they wanted in Georgia, and no one could stop them.

08-16-2008

PRESIDENT BUSH ACCUSES RUSSIA OF 'BULLYING AND INTIMIDATION' IN GEORGIA CONFLICT 

       WASHINGTON, D.C.--President Bush on Friday accused Russia of "bullying and intimidation" in its harsh military treatment of Georgia, saying the people in the former Soviet republic have chosen freedom and "we will not cast them aside." Bush ratcheted up his rhetoric against Moscow as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pursued a diplomatic solution to the week-old crisis. Rice was in Tblisi for talks with pro-Western Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili about details of the cease-fire, which would require Russia to withdraw its combat forces from Georgia but allow Russian peacekeepers to remain in South Ossetia and conduct limited patrols outside the region.

     "Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected," said Bush, speaking just outside the Oval Office before traveling to his Texas ranch for a two-week stay. Bush said he would get regular updates from Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates about the continuing showdown between Moscow and Tibilisi over two separatist provinces in Georgia.

     Bush said that Russia, with its air, sea and land attacks in Georgia, had damaged its relations with the United States and other Western powers. "Bullying and intimidation are not acceptable ways to conduct foreign policy in the 21st century," the president said. "Only Russia can decide whether it will now put itself back on the path of responsible nations or continue to pursue a policy that promises only confrontation and isolation.

PARAGUAYAN SENATE COMMITTEE TO VISIT VENEZUELA TO REVIEW HUGO CHAVEZ'S ADMISSION TO MERCOSUR

        MONTEVIDEO, PARAGUAY--"It is a committee of the highest level. They are currently dealing with the issue of Venezuela's admission to Mercosur, with the approval of the Paraguayan Parliament," said deputy Saúl Ortega

    A committee of the Paraguayan Senate will arrive shortly in Caracas to discuss Venezuela's admission to Mercosur, said the President of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Venezuelan National Assembly (AN) Saúl Ortega. "It is a committee of the highest level. They are currently dealing with the issue of Venezuela's admission to Mercosur, with the approval of the Paraguayan Parliament," said Ortega.

     According to the Venezuelan lawmaker, the Paraguayan committee sent a notice to confirm its visit. The paper lists the legislators that will visit Venezuela to discuss membership. The document was signed by Senator Alberto Grillón, the chair of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Paraguayan Senate.

PARAGUAYAN SENATE COMMITTEE TO VISIT VENEZUELA TO REVIEW HUGO CHAVEZ'S ADMISSION TO MERCOSUR
        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--The Federation of Trade and Industry Chambers (Fedecámaras) will appear at the National Assembly (AN) to ask for the abrogation of 26 decree-laws that were enacted by President Hugo Chávez in the context of the enabling law, reported Fedecámaras chair José Manuel González.

     In the opinion of González, the passage of the new laws was too much and their discussion by ministers should be open to public consultation. He considered that the laws endanger the national legal security and economic stability, shoo investments off the country, tend to increase imports and decrease the production capacity.

    In addition, González said, they run counter to the current Constitution and grant President Hugo Chávez full power and authority to manage the army, among other issues. Failure by the AN to make the statutory decrees null and void will make them resort to the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), the official said.

08-15-2008

POLAND, U.S. TO SIGN MISSILE SHIELD DEAL

       VARSOVIA, POLAND--Poland and the United States will sign a preliminary deal to place part of a U.S. ballistic missile defense system in Poland -- a plan that has drawn sharp objections from Russia, the Polish president's office confirmed . The Bush administration has long pushed to base missile interceptors in Poland. The interceptor rockets would be linked to an air-defense radar system in the Czech Republic, whose officials agreed in April to take part in the system.

     Both countries are former Soviet satellites but now are members of the U.S.-led NATO alliance. The United States' plans to base the anti-missile system in Eastern Europe have raised alarms in Russia. Moscow has mounted serious opposition to the missile shield plan, although the United States has insisted it is designed to counter threats from the Middle East and is not an aggressive move against Russia.

     The United States has also agreed to help Poland modernize its military, which it requested as a condition of its support for housing the missile defense system.Thursday's agreement comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and Russia over Moscow's invasion of Georgia, a U.S. ally.

U.S. MAYORS WORRIED ABOUT POLITICAL INELIGIBILITY IN VENEZUELA  

        MIAMI, FLORIDA--The United States Conference of Mayors expressed on Wednesday its concern about political banning in Venezuela and deemed it "an affront to Venezuelans' democratic principles."

    Manuel Díaz, Miami Mayor and president of the organization, voiced his colleagues' position in a letter sent on Tuesday to US President George W. Bush and released on Wednesday, Efe reported. "US mayors are worried to look at ongoing events in Venezuela. It is important to express our concern and show our support to those candidates and democratic principles in our hemisphere," said the Miami Mayor.

     According to Díaz, disqualification of 272 candidates, with the blessing of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), despite the lack of formal complaints against these politicians, attests to the court's lack of independence. "In addition to being a violation to the Venezuelan Constitution, it is a violation to the Inter-American Convention on Human Rights," he added.

BOLIVIA'S OPPOSITION GOVERNORS AND EVO MORALES MEET TO EASE CRISIS

        LA PAZ, BOLIVIA--Bolivia's opposition governors and President Evo Morales tried to find a solution to the nation's political crisis Wednesday in their first meeting since a bitter nationwide recall election. The heads of the independence-minded provinces of Beni, Tarija, Pando and Chuquisaca, and a representative from Santa Cruz, said they were prepared to meet with the leftist Morales to seek a national agreement. "We are interested in reaching an agreement to calm the nation," Pando Gov. Leopoldo Fernandez told journalists as he entered Morales' office.

     Just hours earlier the governors had been no-shows at the presidential palace, where Morales invited them for talks following the nationwide recall. Bolivians broadly backed Morales in the referendum, reaffirming his stated mandate to empower the country's poor Indian majority. The governors of Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando and Tarija, which are seeking greater autonomy from Morales' government, were also easily reaffirmed in their posts by voters. Two opposition politicians were among three governors ousted.

     Electoral officials reported Wednesday that with almost 96 percent of the ballots counted, the president's "yes" vote had risen to near 68 percent. Morales' agenda has put him at odds with the more prosperous east, which is home to most of Bolivia's natural gas deposits and has resisted the president's insistence that the central government control and distribute energy profits.

08-14-2008

VENEZUELAN INTELLIGENCE ALLEGEDLY GAVE ANTONINI USD I MILLION

       MIAMI, FLORIDA-- The Directorate of Intelligence and Prevention Services (Disip), a Venezuelan intelligence agency, reportedly transferred USD 1 million to Venezuelan-US businessman Guido Antonini Wilson as a bribe for him to conceal the true origin of the suitcase with USD 800,000 that Antonini tried to smuggle in Argentina on August 4, 2007, according to files in the Florida Southern District Court.

    Edward Shohat, the defense attorney of Venezuelan defendant Franklin Durán, asked Florida Attorney General to provide some information that he deems relevant to the defendant's allegations. According to Shohat, during a telephone conversation between Antonini and his partner Wladimir Abad, Antonini mentioned a sum of money that the Venezuelan intelligence service allegedly sent to him.

    "They told me that the Disip sent USD 2 million, out of which USD 1 million is for me, and they can double the amount," Antonini reportedly told Abad. Antonini Wilson said that defendants Carlos Kauffmann and Durán gave him the information. Antonini also said, "They told me -and I have some e-mails and SMS messages showing this-, more specifically Carlos (Kauffamann) told me personally 'If you (Antonini) do not take responsibility for this (the unsuccessful attempt at smuggling the cash-filled suitcase in Buenos Aires last year), they (the Venezuelan government) will destroy us." The aforementioned e-mails and SMS messages are part of the evidence Shohat requested from the prosecution.

FORMER MEXICAN PRESIDENT VICENTE FOX STRONGLY CRITICIZES HUGO CHAVEZ'S INTERFERENCE IN LATIN AMERICA

        MEXICO CITY, MEXICO--Former Mexican President Vicente Fox strongly criticized the "interference" of Venezuela's Hugo Chávez in Latin America, and accused him of boycotting a hemispheric free trade agreement in order to propose "his Bolivarian project, which has no real base. He (Chávez) can afford to promote his project thanks to the oil windfall," Fox said.

    "In Latin American democracy, there are some 'lights and shades'; some of them date back to a past of dictatorships and populist regimes such as the governments that ruled the hemisphere in the twentieth century," Fox said. The former Mexican president urged people to be alert in order not to "run into the same brick wall a thousand times."

     Fox cautioned against actions aimed at reforming the Constitution in order to be reelected forever and against the purchase of private media to control information and to eliminate free speech.  Fox accused President Chávez of boycotting a hemispheric free trade pact agreed in Quebec in 2001. 

MERCOSUR LEGISLATOR REPORTS ATTEMPT AT ARRESTING HER IN VENEZUELA

        MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY--Uruguayan parliamentarian Adriana Peña, the president of the Human Rights Commission of Mercosur Parliament, said Wednesday that Venezuelan authorities tried to arrest her in Caracas, when she paid a controversial visit to Venezuela.

     "When I was at Caracas airport about to take my flight, an immigration officer told me that he has detected some irregularities in my passport. It was a clear attempt at trying to detain me," said Peña in an interview with Montevideo's Radio Carve, EFE reported.

    "I told the officer that there were no irregularities with my diplomatic passport, the document I always use when I travel. I warned him that he was running into big trouble," the parliamentarian said. "Finally, I was able to travel to Bolivia, where I served as electoral observer" in the Bolivia's recall referendum held last Sunday.

08-13-2008

HUGO CHAVEZ CELEBRATES EVO MORALES' VICTORY

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- Hugo Chávez congratulated his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales for the Bolivians' decision to ratify his mandate in a recall vote last Sunday, Venezuelan President's Office reported.

    During a telephone conversation with Morales on Sunday night, Chávez assured Morales of the Venezuelan government support in his search of a "peaceful transformation" of Bolivia, through a "democratic and cultural" revolution, DPA reported.

     "Once again, the truth triumphs over the campaigns of the empire (the United States) with this glorious election day, which is the most vivid historic demonstration of the Bolivian people's desire to control its destiny," Chávez told Morales.  For its part, the Organization of American States (OAS) said that Bolivian political leaders are obliged to sit down to reach an accord after the recall vote. The OAS chief recommended to set clear rules of negotiation.

ARGENTINA SETS DEBT BUYBACK FOLLOWING DRAMATIC FALL IN THE VALUE OF ITS BONDS  

        BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA--Amid growing doubts about Argentina's ability to pay debt and a dramatic fall in the value of its bonds, which was worsened by a controversial operation with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's administration, the Argentine government announced a plan to repurchase debt.

    The strategy of the government of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is to advance the payment of debt services due in the near future, to try to halt the fall in prices and send a positive signal to the market.

     The statement of the Argentine Economy Ministry says that the "value of some domestic securities is unjustifiably depressed. Therefore, the Argentine government would save almost USD 25 per each USD 100 invested in Argentine papers, only taking into consideration the maturities in current financial year". The repurchase, the amount of which has not been defined yet, includes bonds such as Boden and Bonar. The announcement of the buyback had a positive effect on the market and managed to halt the decline of Argentine bonds. The country risk decreased from 700 to 668 basis points.

VENEZUELA DEANS OF LAW REJECT STATUTORY LAWS ENACTED BY HUGO CHAVEZ

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA --Law Deans from a group of Venezuelan private universities such as Andrés Bello Catholic University (UCAB), Metropolitan University (Unimet) and Monteávila University (UMA) rejected a package of statutory laws enacted by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez last week. Their position was similar to the opinions expressed by members of the Venezuelan academies and groups of university professors.

    University Deans Rogelio Pérez Perdomo (Unimet), Eugenio Hernández-Bretón (UMA) and José María Casal (UCAB), in addition to a group of teachers from their respective universities deplored in a written statement that "the passage of a generic enabling law lacking the constitutionally required parameters has finally resulted in a rash enactment of several statutory laws contrary to the right of citizen participation."

     The deans asked citizens and members of different sectors of society to reject the legal instruments and denounced "the high interventionism of the government in economic affairs, the breakdown of the constitutional principle of decentralization, the modification of the constitutional concept of the Venezuelan Armed Forces and serious threats against some fundamental rights."

08-12-2008

BOLIVIANS SUPPORT EVO MORALES IN SUNDAY REFERENDUM

       LA PAZ, BOLIVIA-- A bold gamble by President Evo Morales to break a political deadlock and re-energize his leftist revolution paid off as Bolivia's voters resoundingly endorsed him in a recall referendum. "Democracy is to be defined at the ballot box, not through violence," Bolivian President Evo Morales says.

     More than 63 percent of voters in this bitterly divided Andean nation ratified the mandate of Bolivia's first indigenous leader and his vice president, Alvaro Garcia, in Sunday's vote, according to partial unofficial results. Eight of the country's nine governors were also subject to recall -- and two Morales foes were among the three ousted, according to a private tally of votes from 1,000 of the country's 22,700 polling stations.

    Morales had sought the referendum to try to topple governors who have frustrated his bid to improve the plight of Bolivia's long-suppressed indigenous majority, which is concentrated in the country's barren western highlands. All four governors there easily survived Sunday's plebiscite, as expected.

TUMBLING ARGENTINEAN DEBT ATTRIBUTED TO HUGO CHAVEZ'S MANEUVER WITH DEBT BONDS

        BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA--The Argentinean press continued highlighting the dramatic collapse last week of the Argentinean debt bonds. Daily newspaper Clarín headline read "Chávez maneuver with Argentinean bonds sank the market," referring to the operations in Venezuela involving such titles.

    The Argentine section of JP Morgan's Emerging Market Bond Index Plus (EMBI+), a key indicator of investor's aversion to risk, plunged significantly. Argentina's spreads widened more than 43 basis points to 727 basis points whereas total yield fell 4.86 percent, Reuters reported.  On Friday, Argentina confirmed the sale of USD 1.46 billion in dollar-denominated Boden 2015 bonds. Venezuela paid USD 1 billion in cash, with an interest rate of 15 percent.

    "The Chávez Administration resold the Argentine bonds to Venezuelan banks, which dumped the paper on the international market, at any price. Selling the bonds was the way to realize profits from exchange gains the Venezuelan government offers to the players in this operation," Clarín said. "Traders wonder what the sense of the operations is, if the buyer does nothing but clouding the market," the Argentinean newspaper added.

HUGO CHAVEZ BUYS USD 1 BILLION IN ARGENTINEAN BONDS

        BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA-- Hugo Chavez on Tuesday said his government bought $1 billion worth of Argentine bonds in the last few days.  "Venezuela bought a few days ago, or a week ago, $1 billion in Argentine bonds," he told a news conference in Buenos Aires. "We have great trust in the Argentines."

    Venezuela bought $1.36 billion of Argentine paper in May, putting purchases over the last few years at well over $6 billion. The amount that Venezuela actually paid out was $1 billion, meaning the yield was 12.9 per cent.  A high-level source at the Economy Ministry said late on Tuesday that Venezuela had once again purchased Argentina's dollar-denominated Boden 2015 bonds, adding this latest deal went through "in the last few hours."

     "The amount is the same as before, Venezuela paid $1 billion to buy these bonds," the source said, adding that the direct placement to Caracas was part of the Argentine government's financing plan. The official said the government would reveal the yield and terms of the sale in the coming days.

08-11-2008

U.S. SUGGESTS RUSSIA WANTS "REGIME CHANGE" IN GEORGIA

       UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK-- The United States suggested on Sunday that Russia was interested in "regime change" in Georgia after Moscow rejected Tbilisi's offer of a cease-fire in the separatist region of South Ossetia. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had told U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that the president of Georgia "must go," the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad, told the Security Council.

    Khalilzad then looked straight at Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin and asked if Moscow was looking for "regime change." "Is the goal of the Russian Federation to change the leadership of Georgia?" he said. Churkin did not directly address the question but said there are leaders who "become an obstacle."

     "Sometimes those leaders need to contemplate how useful they have become to their people," Churkin told reporters later.  Khalilzad told reporters the telephone call between Rice and Lavrov was "disturbing," adding that the days of overthrowing European governments by force were over. Moscow plans to "erase Georgian statehood and exterminate the Georgian people," he said. Khalilzad said Russia was waging "terror" in Georgia. "We must condemn Russia's military assault on the sovereign state of Georgia ... including the targeting of civilians and the campaign of terror against the Georgian population," he said.

GEORGIAN TROOPS WITHDRAW FROM THE BREAKAWAY PROVINCE OF SOUTH OSSETIA 

        TBILIS, GEORGIA--  Georgian troops today pulled out of the capital of the breakaway province of South Ossetia under massive Russian shelling. Georgia’s Reintegration Minister Temur Yakobashvili said the Georgian troops left Tskhinvali to change their location. He said Georgian troops remained in South Ossetia. He said the pull out will help provide a humanitarian corridor to evacuate those wounded from Tskhinvali.

     The city has been ravaged by fierce battles since Friday when Georgian troops launched an offensive to regain control over South Ossetia. Georgia's Security Council chief Alexander Lomaia said the Georgian troops had to move out of Tskhinvali because of heavy Russian fire. “Russia further escalated its aggression overnight, using weapons on unprecedented scale,” Lomaia said. “In these conditions our forces conducted redeployment.”

    A Russian general said yesterday that his troops had driven Georgian forces out Tskhinvali and were moving to push them away from heights overlooking the city. But another Russian officer Gen Marat Kulakhmetov said intensive fighting for the city continued overnight and this morning. Hopes for an end to the fierce fighting Ossetia were dashed earlier today when Russia refused to agree to a ceasefire or a diplomatic agreement.

EVO MORALES PINS BOLIVIAN REVOLUTION ON REFERENDUM

        LA PAZ, BOLIVIA-- Evo Morales is hoping victory in a referendum on his presidency Sunday will re-ignite his stalled crusade to remedy age-old inequities in South America's poorest country. Polls strongly indicate he'll keep his job. But Bolivia's first indigenous president will need more than votes to unite a country that has been splintering apart since he took office 2 1/2 years ago.

    "In many, many ways, Bolivia is a failed state," said Bolivian political scientist Eduardo Gamarra of Florida International University. "We're becoming sort of a collection of city-states.  "Morales and his ministers are finding it increasingly difficult to even set foot in the unabashedly capitalistic eastern half of the country, where resistance to his leftist agenda is mighty.

    Protests forced him to cancel visits to nearly half the country this week. In one instance, blockades of burning tires at airport exits forced the cancellation of an energy summit with the presidents of Argentina and Venezuela in the natural gas-rich province of Tarija. "We may very well wake up on Monday morning with a president who has the support of 55 percent of the electorate but who can't land an airplane in four of the nine departments (provinces)," said political analyst Jim Shultz of the nonprofit Democracy Center think tank in Cochabamba.

08-10-2008

MERCOSUR PARLIAMENT DISAVOWS LEGISLATORS' VISIT TO CARACAS

       BRAZILIA, BRAZIL -- President of the Mercosur Parliament, Brazilian legislator Florisvaldo Fier, said on Thursday that the visit Uruguayan legislator Adriana Peña is paying to Caracas is "a personal affair" and, consequently, the body he presides over does not have any comments on the matter, Efe reported.

    "As a citizen, she can travel anywhere and introduce herself as a member of the Mercosur Parliament. However, she cannot speak on its behalf, and she has not done so thus far," said Fier in connection with the activities in Venezuela of Peña, who is the President of the Human Rights Commission, Mercosur Parliament. 

    Meanwhile, Venezuelan government officials claimed Peña is interfering in the country's domestic affairs. Minister of Foreign Affairs Nicolás Maduro hinted that Peña could be expelled from the country if she intervenes in domestic affairs.

MERCOSUR PARLIAMENTARIANS COULD NOT COMPLETE REPORT DUE TO VENEZUELAN GOVERNMENT'S INDIFERENCE 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA--Mercosur parliamentarians visiting Venezuela, Adriana Peña and Mirtha Palacios, on Thursday said that they are leaving the country with an "unfinished report" on the political banning issue.

    Peña and Palacios said that they could not complete the report because government officials disregarded their requests for exchanging information regarding the political ineligibility decided upon by the Comptroller General's Office. The parliamentarians said they do not want to leave Venezuela with a partial view on the issue and that it is necessary to have the pro-government point of view in order to come to more accurate conclusions.

    Both representatives insisted on meeting with Comptroller General Clodosbaldo Russián, even if the encounter takes place on Friday, the last day they will stay in Venezuela.

MERCOSUR PARLIAMENTARIANS LEAVE THE COUNTRY WITH A "VERY NEGATIVE" appraisal

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- "After the meeting with opposition sectors our appraisal is very negative. That is the reason why we requested a meeting with the counterpart; that is the reason why we needed to have an overview of the problem. Now, our report to the Human Rights Commission, aside from being partial, is not going to be positive"  The President and the Vice-President of the Citizenship and Human Rights Commission of the Mercosur Parliament, Adriana Peña (from Uruguay) and Mirtha Palacios (from Paraguay), were received neither by government officials nor by Comptroller General, Clodosbaldo Russián. "Silent gives consent," as reported by the Uruguayan legislator.

    On Thursday, representatives of major Venezuelan opposition parties, politicians barred from elected public office, student leaders and relatives of political prisoners visited the Caracas Palace Hotel. Until early afternoon, a meeting with Clodosbaldo Russian was in the agenda of the Mercosur parliamentarians, but they were informed at the last minute that the Comptroller General was "very busy".

    "(After the meeting with opposition sectors) our appraisal is very negative. That is the reason why we requested a meeting with the counterpart; that is the reason why we needed to have an overview of the problem. Now, our report to the Human Rights Commission, aside from being partial, is not going to be positive. And that is worrying for all of us," Peña said.   For her part, Mirtha Palacios said: "We realized that certain rights have been violated. It is difficult, however, to draw a conclusion since we have not listened to both parties."

08-07-2008

VENEZUELAN HIGH COURT UPHOLDS POLITICAL BANNING

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- The Constitutional Court of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) declared the constitutional character of article 105, Organic Law of the Comptroller General Office and Tax Monitoring. Arcadio de Jesús Delgado Rosales was the hearing judge. The decision was approved the majority of the justices, but Justice Pedro Rondón Haaz cast a dissenting voice.

     It is an official and final decision: the Comptroller General of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has the power to prevent people from exercising political rights.  Consequently, the 260 politicians whom Venezuelan Comptroller General Clodosbaldo Russián included in a list of people barred from public office, either elected or designated, will not be allowed to run for any of the 603 seats to be elected in November 23 state and municipal polls.

     The Justices of the Constitutional Court, Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), in a ruling drafted by Justice Arcadio Delgado Rosales, dismissed Tuesday an action filed by Xiomara Lucena Guédez seeking annulment of Article 105 of the Organic Law of the Comptroller General Office and Tax Monitoring.   The ruling means that the high court upheld the constitutional character of Article 105, which empowers Venezuelan Comptroller General Clodosbaldo Russián to rule on the administrative liability of any elected and appointed public servants who fail to comply with administrative laws to the detriment of the public property.

THE CHACAO MAYOR, LEOPOLDO LOPEZ, SAID THAT THE HIGH COURT MADE THE DECISION OUT OF FEAR

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- Fear of the expression of most people prompted the Constitutional Court, Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), to grant on Tuesday article 105, Law of the Comptroller General, a constitutional status, said Chacao Mayor Leopoldo López.

    "A decision was made on behalf of a government that handles the public branches to impose its authority because it is aware that it lost the people, because it lost the people's support. A decision was made on behalf of a government that looks at itself losing in the election of November 23rd. This is the truth. A decision was made out of fear," said López on Wednesday at Chacaíto's Brión Square, eastern Caracas.
 
    The mayor promised to waive his nomination and let the opposition agree on a single choice for Caracas Mayoralty next November 23rd. He stressed that the TSJ move on Tuesday could not stop them. "The force of change goes beyond that." "We do not need a position to boost changes. We will continue in the street with the people. As long as there is unfairness, we will remain in the street, advocating Venezuelans. We will keep on building that dream."

VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION PARTY REJECTS PASSAGE OF 26 STATUTORY DECREES

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA-- Julio Borges, the national coordinator of opposition Primero Justicia party (PJ), urged Venezuelans to reject the enactment of 26 statutory decrees issued by President Hugo Chávez.

    "We call upon the Venezuelan people to rebut any law contrary to the Constitution. We are talking to retailers, workers, to the Venezuelan people affected by these laws that violate their constitutional rights. We already rejected these laws-decrees last December 2," Borges said.  

    However, the leader of PJ said that his declaration was not intended to ignite violence.    Borges stressed: "We are urging the institutions not to enforce these laws. The Venezuelan people must reject this package of laws. This is not a call to violence but a serious appeal."

08-06-2008

IRAN TESTS 'NEW WEAPON', SAYS IT CAN EASILY CLOSE THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ

       TEHRAN, IRAN --  Iran tested a new weapon for use at sea and says it can "easily" close a major oil passageway, the chief of the country's elite Revolutionary Guards was quoted Monday as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

    The commander, Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari, claimed the new marine weapon is "unique in the world" and has a range of 186 miles. The report provided no further details and didn't say when or where the weapon was tested, but it quoted Jafari as saying that there is "no similar weapon in the service of armies in the world." The alleged new weapon's range indicated it may be some type of torpedo.

    The Revolutionary Guards chief said Iran would easily be able to close the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil shipping route, if the country were attacked over its nuclear program. Iran has "the possibility of closing the Strait of Hormuz easily and on an unlimited basis," Revolutionary Guards commander-in-chief Mohammad Ali Jafari said, according to state radio.

ATTORNEY GENERAL SAYS THE US IS NOT PROTECTING GUIDO ANTONINI

        WASHINGTON, D.C.-- The United States Attorney General Office said it has not vowed to protect Venezuelan-US businessman Guido Antonini Wilson from being extradited to Argentina, where a bench warrant was issued against him on charges of money laundering.

    Last Thursday, during a hearing where Venezuelan defendant Franklin Durán's attorney, Edward Shohat, filed some allegations, Assistant US Attorney Thomas Mullvihill said that no promises had been made to protect Antonini. Mulvihill apologized for "not being able to comment some issues concerning the extradition procedures between Argentina and the United States," according to the files of the hearing.

    Even though the US Attorney General denied the claims that it has been protecting Antonini, based on the court files, the US government gave USD 29,682 to the "bagman" to afford expenses related to his safety and relocation.

FERNANDEZ, LULA, CHAVEZ INTERESTED IN AIRLINE, REGIONAL TRAIN

        BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA-- The presidents of Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela on Monday decided to expand their strategic alliance to the transport sector and took the first steps toward the development of a joint airline and a train that connects the three countries, "something that today seems to be a utopia," reported the Argentinean Ambassador.

    "There is as new issue in the agenda that I think is most important, the issue of transport (…) the idea of forging an alliance with the Venezuelan state airline and Brazil's flagship airline, so that we can have our Southern Airline," Alicia Castro, Argentinean ambassador to Venezuela, told reporters after a meeting among presidents Cristina Fernández, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Hugo Chávez.

    "We are also working on a dream that today seems to be a utopia, but one day would be a reality, the Southern Express, a train that connects Caracas with Buenos Aires'," she added. Meanwhile, Argentinean Foreign Affairs Minister, Jorge Taiana, told reporters that the presidents would meet again on September 6 in Pernambuco, Brazil, in order to deal with "energy and fertilizers projects." "It was a very good, positive meeting," he added.

08-05-2008

PRIME MINISTER Vladimir putin: restore russia's position in cuba

       MOSCOW, RUSSIA-- Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is calling for Russia to restore its influential position in former Cold War ally Cuba, Russian news reports said Monday.  The statement comes amid persistent speculation about whether Russia is seeking a military presence in the country just 90 miles from the United States in response to U.S. plans to place missile-defense elements in Poland and the Czech Republic.

     ''We should restore our position in Cuba and other countries,'' Putin was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. Putin spoke Monday while hearing a report on a recent Russian delegation's trip to Cuba. Vice Premier Igor Sechin and others met with the Cuban leadership and discussed an array of cooperation projects. ''We agreed on the priority for the direction of cooperation -- energy, mining, agriculture transport, health care and communications,'' Sechin said, according to the RIA-Novosti news agency.

      Military issues were not mentioned in the reports. But separately RIA-Novosti quoted an influential analyst and former top defense official as saying Russia could make a military return to Cuba. 'It is not a secret that the West is creating a `buffer zone' around Russia, involving countries in Central Europe, the Caucasus, the Baltic states and Ukraine,'' the agency quoted Leonid Ivashov, the head of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems, as saying. ``In response, we may expand our military presence abroad, including in Cuba.''

WORLD POWERS TO PURSUE NEW SANCTIONS ON IRAN

        WASHINGTON, D.C.-- Representatives of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council — Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States — and Germany decided in a high-level conference call that Iran's lack of response to an incentives package aimed at getting it to halt sensitive atomic activity left them no option other than to pursue new punitive measures, the Bush administration said Monday.

     Representatives of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany decided in a high-level conference call that Iran's lack of response to an incentives package aimed at getting it to halt sensitive atomic activity left them no option other than to pursue new punitive measures, the Bush administration said. "We are disappointed that we have not yet received a response from Iran," State Department spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos told reporters. "We agreed in the absence of a clear, positive response from Iran (that) we have no choice but to pursue further measures against Iran."

     The conference call among senior diplomats from the six nations took place after Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalali told European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana that Tehran would deliver a written response to the offer on Tuesday, Gallegos said. He would not say if sanctions would be pursued if Iran accepted the offer then.

THE COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT UNAWARE OF ANY PLAN TO ASSASSINATE HUGO CHAVEZ IN CARTAGENA 

        BOGOTA, COLOMBIA-- The Colombian government said on Monday that it was unaware of any security problem that prevented the attendance of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez to a counter-narcotics summit held in Cartagena last week.

     Colombian Minister of Defense Juan Manuel Santos and Minister of Interior Fabio Valencia said on Monday that the Colombian government was not aware of an alleged plan to assassinate the Venezuelan president, Efe reported.   Chávez declared on Sunday that he failed to show up at last minute for a Latin American anti-drug summit because of security concerns.

     The Colombian Minister of Interior and Justice said to Colombian radio network Caracol that the meeting took place normally. He stressed that none of the six presidents attending the meeting in Cartagena had any inconvenient for security reasons. 

08-04-2008

VENEZUELA cites lack of security in HUGO CHAVEZ cartagena summit no show

       CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA-- Hugo Chavez failed to show up for a narcotics summit of Latin American leaders on Friday and his government said he did not attend because of security concerns. Chavez, a fierce foe of the United States who often blasts U.S. counter-narcotics efforts in the region, had said on Thursday he would attend the summit led by Colombia, Mexico and other Latin American and Caribbean nations to debate cooperation against trafficking and drug-related violence.

     "Security reasons have prompted us to decide that President Hugo Chavez should not participate directly and he has sent a delegation instead," Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro told reporters on arriving in the Caribbean city of Cartagena.

     Chavez, a self-styled revolutionary, has called the U.S. war against drugs a failure and an "imperialist" attempt to gain a foothold in Latin America. He has ended cooperation with U.S. anti-drugs agents after charging they were spying on his left-wing government. U.S. officials say he has made Venezuela a haven for traffickers, charges he dismisses as propaganda.

BOAT CARRYING 40 CUBANS CATCHES FIRE OFF CANCUN

        CANCUN, MEXICO-- A MEXICAN official says a boat carrying at least 40 Cuban migrants caught fire off Cancun but all of the passengers reached shore safely. Police detained seven of the migrants, but the rest fled into the resort town.

    Regional Deputy Attorney General Luis Canche Aquino says investigators suspect Friday's fire may have been set deliberately. He said Saturday the detained migrants told police they had left Havana in a makeshift boat, but were later picked up by a luxury vessel.

     Authorities suspect the migrants were picked up by smugglers, who are increasingly involved in taking Cuban migrants to the United States through Mexico. The route is becoming popular among Cubans trying to avoid detection by the U.S. Coast Guard.

BENCH WARRANT AGAINST GUIDO ANTONINI IN BRIEFCASE SCANDAL

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA --At the request of public prosecutor Daisy López, a bench warrant was issued against Venezuelan-US businessman Guido Antonini Wilson as a result of the investigation into the issue of a suitcase filled with USD 800,000 that was seized in Argentina on August 4th, 2007.

     The Attorney General Office reported in a press release that a Caracas court instructed state security agencies and Interpol to arrest Antonini Wilson and make him appear in court to hear the charges against him.

08-03-2008

VENEZUELA PROSECUTOR CONCEDES BANNED CANDIDATES HAVE NOT BEEN CONVICTED

        VENEZUELA, CARACAS--The Attorney General Office admitted that over 200 citizens who are currently ineligible to hold public office, whether elected or appointed, have not been convicted by any court.

    Under the 1999 Constitution and the American Convention on Human Rights, no citizen can be prevented from holding public office if not convicted by a court of law.

     Roxana Orihuela, the special prosecutor before the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), acknowledged the fact, when she answered a question made by Justice Pedro Rondón Haaz during the public hearing that the Constitutional Court held last Thursday. The hearing was intended to deal with a motion several potential candidates banned by Comptroller General Clodosbaldo Russián filed with the high court seeking annulment of Article 105, Organic Comptroller's Law.

VENEZUELAN CONGRESS REBUTS NEWS ABOUT VISIT OF MERCOSUR COMMISSION 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- Mercosur is not to send any commission to Venezuela in order to investigate the political ineligibility of 272 people decreed by the Comptroller General, said on July 31 Venezuelan Deputy Saúl Ortega.

     "A Mercosur commission has nothing to do with an internal affair of Venezuela and I do not know why the media are so interested in trying to sell outside the country things that are not happening," said Ortega, the chair of the Foreign Policy Commission, National Assembly (AN), Efe quoted.

     The congressman made particular reference to the chair of Mercosur Commission of Citizenship and Human Rights, Uruguayan Adriana Peña, who advised on the upcoming arrival in Caracas of a commission to hear the case of banning.

DOCUMENTS RELATED TO VENEZUELA POLITICAL INELIGIBILITY SUBMITTED TO URUGUAYAN EMBASSY 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA --  Oscar Pérez, a member and representative of opposition Comando Nacional de la Resistencia party (National Resistance Command, CNR), appeared on July 31 at the Uruguayan embassy to submit a set of papers dealing, in their opinion, with illegitimacy of an action to prevent some potential candidates from running for local elections this year.

    He said that the initiative was taken with the advent in Caracas of several representatives of the Mercosur Human Rights Commission to discuss the issue onsite.

     "Therefore, we decided to forward all these documents and complaints to the embassies and diplomatic missions of Mercosur member states; to fight, not only in the political and legal ambits, but also against the lie intended to be institutionalized in the country by the official sector," said Pérez.

08-02-2008

HUGO CHAVEZ NATIONALIZES THE BANK OF VENEZUELA OWNED BY A SPANISH GROUP CALLED SANTANDER GROUP

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA --  Hugo Chávez said he will nationalize the Bank of Venezuela, one of the country's largest, and has asked the bank's Spanish owners, Grupo Santander, for a meeting to set a price for the deal. "We're going to nationalize Bank of Venezuela. I'm calling on (Grupo Santander) to come and start negotiating," Chávez said Thursday in a speech on television and radio.

    "They wanted to sell the bank to a Venezuelan banker, and as head of state I'm saying no. Sell it to the government, to the state. "We're going to recuperate Bank of Venezuela. We're very much in need of a bank of that magnitude," Chávez said.

     Chávez said the Santander group withdrew its offer to sell the bank to a private banker once the government expressed interest. He said he had a "copy of the pre-agreement document" between Santander and the banker, whose identity he did not disclose. Reports point to Victor Vargas, owner of the Banco Occidental de Descuento, as the unnamed banker in question. Vargas is also a relative of the king of Spain. Bank of Venezuela president Michel Goguikian in June denied his bank was up for sale after bank shares jumped on the Caracas stock market on rumors of an impending transaction.

VENEZUELA EXTRADITES TO COLOMBIA GABRIEL CULMA ORTIZ, A FARC MEMBER 

        CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on Thursday sued the Venezuelan government before the Inter-American Court on Human Rights for failing to fulfill its recommendations on several cases.

    The IACHR brought before the court the facts pertaining to the criminal proceeding against retired General Francisco Usón Ramírez on charges of discrediting the Armed Force for explaining the operation of flamethrower in a television show, reported Efe.

     Usón was sentenced to five years and six months in jail. The IACHR stated in its report that the Venezuelan state violated the right to free expression, to personal freedom and Usón's judicial guarantees.

IACHR SUES VENEZUELA GOVERNMENT FOR GENERAL USON

        SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA -- The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on Thursday sued the Venezuelan government before the Inter-American Court on Human Rights for failing to fulfill its recommendations on several cases.

    The IACHR brought before the court the facts pertaining to the criminal proceeding against retired General Francisco Usón Ramírez on charges of discrediting the Armed Force for explaining the operation of flamethrower in a television show, reported Efe.

     Usón was sentenced to five years and six months in jail. The IACHR stated in its report that the Venezuelan state violated the right to free expression, to personal freedom and Usón's judicial guarantees.

08-01-2008

PRESIDENT BUSH SAYS SHORTER DEPLOYMENTS IN IRAQ WILL 'EASE THE BURDEN ON OUR FORCES' 

      WASHINGTON, D.C.-- President Bush said progress in Iraq resulting from last year's troop surge has allowed U.S. forces to come home, and troop deployments to be shortened. The length of tours of duties for forces serving in Iraq will fall from 15 months to 12 months beginning Friday. The tours had been extended in spring 2007 as part of the troop surge as a way to increase the number of active-duty personnel who could be deployed to Iraq.

    "This will ease the burden on our forces, and it will make life easier for our wonderful military families," Bush said, speaking to reporters at the White House Thursday morning. Bush said July "has been a month of encouraging news from Iraq. Violence is down to its lowest level since the spring of 2004, and we're now in our third consecutive month with reduced violence levels holding steady.'

    While his top deputies in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Amb. Ryan Crocker, say "progress is still reversible," they are saying there appears "to be a degree of durability to the gains we have made," Bush said. Last year's troop surge was one reason for the success, Bush said, but so is "the increasing capability of the Iraqi forces." He said he expected more Iraqi forces in the future to be taking the lead in the fight against Al Qaeda.

SENATOR ARLEN SPECTER SEEKS MEETING WITH RAUL CASTRO AND HUGO CHAVEZ

        WASHINGTON, D.C. --  Sen. Arlen Specter said Wednesday he hopes to meet with Cuban President Raúl Castro and Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez during a trip to Latin America in August.  "I'm a firm believer in dialogue," the Pennsylvania Republican told reporters. Speaking to reporters on a wide range of subjects Wednesday, Specter said his experience has been that meeting with world leaders leads to change.

     "I think President McCain will understand ... an independent senator that has a different point of view," he said when asked about his view vs. McCain's on the matter. Specter said he met with Fidel Castro during previous stops in Cuba and talked to him about drug interdiction. He said he'd like to follow that up with Raúl Castro, as well as to discuss trade and tourism during a visit there. He said he believes the United States is "on the cusp" of re-establishing formal relations with Cuba.

"I've been to Cuba three times and I think the chances are really on the horizon for re-establishing relations with Cuba now that Fidel Castro is no longer in charge," Specter said. He said he wrote a letter to Raúl Castro requesting a meeting, but has not heard back. The senator said he met with Chávez in August 2005 in Venezuela and as part of his visit, a meeting was arranged with a Venezuelan official and a U.S. ambassador that led to the two countries developing a protocol for mutual cooperation on drug cases.

SIX LATIN AMERICAN PRESIDENTS HEAD FOR ANTI-DRUG SUMMIT IN COLOMBIA

      BOGOTA, COLOMBIA -- The officials responsible for external affairs of 24 countries of the Americas will start on Wednesday in Cartagena, Colombia, the sessions of the Regional Meeting on the global issue of illicit drugs, which will be attended by six presidents in the hemisphere.

     A spokesman of the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Efe that the presidents of Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, the Dominican Republic and Mexico will take part in the event.

     According to the source, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez will be represented by his Minister of the Interior Ramón Rodríguez Chacín, even though it was initially planned to send some officials in the anti-drug sector. Colombian President Álvaro Uribe will open the formal summit on Friday morning, within a half-working day that includes a private session and the execution of multiple papers, including the Cartagena Declaration.