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HUGO CHAVEZ REVAMPS INTELLIGENCE
AGENCIES IN VENEZUELA
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chavez is revamping his
intelligence agencies to counter what he
calls U.S. attempts to undermine his
government. Four new spy agencies will
replace the current DISIP secret police
and DIM military intelligence agency,
Interior Minister Ramon Rodriguez Chacin
said Thursday.
A new law has established the General Intelligence Office and
the General Counterintelligence Office,
both overseen by the Interior Ministry,
plus similar military intelligence and
counterintelligence components,
Rodriguez Chacin told reporters. He did
not say how they will differ from the
current spy agencies or whether any top
officials will be replaced.
Rodriquez Chacin announced the change the previous
night, saying the new agencies are meant
to confront U.S. attempts to meddle in
Venezuela's internal affairs. Chavez
often accuses the United States of
espionage against his leftist
government. In 2006, he expelled a U.S.
military attache he accused of spying.
The same year, Washington named a career
CIA agent as "mission manager" to
oversee intelligence on Cuba and
Venezuela. |
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VENEZUELAN CITIZENS FORCED TO COOPERATE
WITH INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES -- IT
means to beCOME AN INFORMER "chivato"
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Following the entry into force of the
National Intelligence and
Counterintelligence System Law
enacted on Wednesday by President Hugo
Chávez, any Venezuelan or foreign
individual, corporation or
non-governmental organization is bound
to "cooperate" with covert agencies as
needed.
Anyone refusing to meet the request for help will be
"causing damage to security, defense and
comprehensive development of the
nation." Therefore, under the Organic
Law on Security of the Nation, ordinary
people are subject to 2-4 years of
prison and public servants could be held
from four to six years.
The recently enacted legal instrument, composed of 29
articles and two transitory provisions,
considers that "national or foreign
individuals and corporations, as well as
bodies and entities of the national,
state and municipal public
administration; social networks;
grassroots and community organizations,
are entities set to back intelligence
and counterintelligence activities,
where their cooperation to obtain
information or for technical support, is
requested by the bodies of special
competence jurisdiction." |
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VENEZUELAN NATIONAL GUARD DETAINS
ALLEGED DEA AGENT IN WESTERN TACHIRA
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
The VENEZUELAN National Guard
reported on Thursday on the arrest of an
individual identified as official of the
US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),
who held documents of multiple
citizenships.
General Gabriel Oviedo, head of regional command No. 1, told
state-run TV channel Venezolana de
Televisión (VTV) that the presumed agent
was detained in a checkpoint on the
Colombian border, in western Táchira
state.
The individual held Canadian and French documents, as
well as a Venezuelan identity card for
foreigners. "He was examined and claimed
to be a DEA agent," said Oviedo. The
general explained that the suspect,
coming from Colombia, was held at the
police office located in La Fría; later,
he was taken to the jail in Táchira
state. |
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GERMAN EXPERT WARNS AGAINST POTENTIAL US
OPERATIONS IN VENEZUELA
MONTEVIDEO,
URUGUAY --
The
possibility of a US military incursion
into Venezuela "is nearby,"
according to German political expert
Heinz Dieterich. "Washington is not
prepared to lose Latin America in the
competition with India, China and
Europe," said Dieterich on Tuesday night
during a debate in Montevideo, DPA
quoted.
He thinks it is a "live-or-die" situation for the US
government. Therefore, they would be
ready to implement a military plan,
which could include an invasion or an
attack from Colombia. "For that reason,
they brought the Fourth Fleet back,
wiped out the Colombian guerrillas and
will make Colombia play the same role
that Honduras played against Nicaragua"
in 1979.
In the opinion of the German expert, a PhD in Social
Sciences of Bremen University who holds
a Master degree from Frankfurt's Goethe
University, "conventional military
pressure will increase" on Venezuela.
"If this happens," he said, "Venezuelan
generals will stage a coup d'état
against President Hugo Chávez. Most
generals are not to immolate in a war
against gringos." |
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HUGO
CHAVEZ, FIDEL CASTRO AND GEORGE BUSH ARE
SPANIARDS' LEAST VALUED LEADERS
MADRID,
SPAIN --
Spaniards valued the least Hugo
Chávez, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro and
US President George W. Bush, as opposed
to Chilean Michelle Bachelet, who is top
in the list of the highly valued,
according to the 2007 Latinobarómetro, a
survey disseminated on Thursday by the
Spanish Sociological Research Center
(CIS).
In a scale from 0 to 10, interviewees gave Chávez the
lowest score, 1.27; followed by Castro,
1.89, and Bush in the third place, with
1.99. In the middle of the list are
Bolivian President Evo Morales (3.42),
Peruvian Alan García (3.93), Ecuadorian
Rafael Correa (4.00), Uruguayan Tabaré
Vázquez (4.06) and Mexican Felipe
Calderón (4.10), Efe reported.
Based on the poll conducted on November 16-25, 2007,
with almost 2,500 interviews to female
and male adults, the highest valued
leaders are Bachelet (4.93), followed
by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula
da Silva (4.61), Colombian Álvaro Uribe
(4.40) and Argentinean Néstor Kirchner
(4.22). |
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EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT CALLS FOR FREEDOM
FOR VENEZUELAN MEDIA
BRUSSELS,
BELGIUM --
The President of the European
Parliament, Hans-Gert Pöttering,
on Wednesday urged the Venezuelan
government to "respect the freedom of
the media," one year after the broadcast
license of private TV channel Radio
Caracas Televisión (RCTV) was not
renewed.
In a press release issued on the occasion of this
anniversary, Pöttering stated that
Caracas' decision of discontinuing "one
of the oldest and more important
Venezuelan channels" has "profoundly"
affected press freedom in the country
and "has deprived a large part of the
audience of plural information,."
The controversial decision took by Venezuelan President Hugo
Chávez was criticized by the European
Parliament in a resolution issued on May
24, 2007. That resolution reminded
Caracas of its obligations to protect
and respect freedom of expression,
opinion and press. The President of the
European Parliament reminded once again
that the non-renewal of the broadcast
license of RCTV is "at odds with the
press right to fulfil its role as power
counterweight." |
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MANUEL MARULANDA "TIRO FIJO" TALKED
ABOUT HUGO CHAVEZ MONETARY OFFER
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
The
late top leader of the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) Pedro
Marín, known as Manuel Marulanda Vélez
and Tirofijo, made reference in
his last message delivered to the other
six guerrilla leaders to an alleged
offering of money by Venezuela.
The document, one of the many files found in the laptop of
Raúl Reyes, alias Luis Edgar Devia, the
FARC second-in-command who died last
March 1st during a raid of the Colombian
military on Ecuadorian territory, is
dated November 20th, according to the
version released on Tuesday by daily
newspaper El Tiempo.
In the message, Pedro Antonio Marín referred to a
meeting with Iván Márquez or Luciano
Marín Arango, another member of the FARC
Secretariat. The meeting was held in
Caracas on November 8th with President
Hugo Chávez and Colombian opposition
senator Piedad Córdoba. When mentioning
the presumed money offer for FARC by the
Venezuelan government, the rebel leader
said, "the purpose is to improve and
entrench friendly relations."
|
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VENEZUELA'S
INFORMATION MINISTER OFFERS HIS
RESIGNATION
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --A
top aide to Hugo Chávez has
offered to resign after he ordered
Venezuela's privately owned networks to
pay for broadcasting the president's
speeches.Information Minister Andres
Izarra announced during a brief
television appearance Tuesday that he
would submit his resignation because the
decision ''was made without consulting''
with Chávez.
It was not immediately clear if Chávez would accept Izarra's
resignation.Television executives were
outraged after Venezolana de Television
-- Venezuela's main state-run TV channel
-- announced earlier Tuesday that it
would require private networks to pay
$200,000 per hour for the right to
broadcast Chavez's speeches.
Privately-owned channels had said they would legally
challenge the measure. “Venezolana de
Television is a company that belongs to
all Venezuelans, and because of that its
services should be available to all
Venezuelans,'' said Marcel Granier,
director of the privately owned channel
Radio Caracas Television. |
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COLOMBIA
DENIES ANY ATTEMPT AT PREVENTING ARMS
SALE TO HUGO CHAVEZ
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Colombian Vice-President Francisco
Santos dismissed on Tuesday that
a visit to Russia the first week of June
is aimed at preventing the sale of
Russian weapons to Venezuela, as
reported by daily newspaper Kommersant.
"It is a high level visit with plenty of business, political
and geopolitical contents. The arms
issue is not in the agenda," said Santos
in a press conference in Bogotá. "It
could be a misunderstanding of what was
said in an interview" with the Russian
newspaper, he added.
Asked "if we were worried about the arms sale to
Venezuela, I told them that yes,
absolutely, but we were aware of
Russia's stringent controls." "There was
not a different discussion for that
matter," the Vice-President added. |
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VENEZUELAN COMMUNIST PARTY SAYS FAREWELL
AND APPLAUDED FARC TOP COMMANDER "TIROFIJO"
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
The
plenary of the Central Committee,
Venezuelan Communist Party (PCV),
said farewell and applauded late number
one leader of the rebel Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC), on
Monday reported PCV leader Oscar
Figueras.
"In the plenary of the Central Committee, PCV, we held
one minute applause in memory of 'Tirofijo'
or 'Manuel Marulanda Vélez' anda ll of
the heroes fallen in the fight against
the Colombian oligarchy," Figueroa told
news TV channel Globovisión.
After explaining that "the criteria of the PCV" and the
criteria of Venezuelan president Hugo
Chávez -one of its allies- are not
necessarily the same, Figueroa said that
"ideological and programmatic closeness"
between his party and the FARC "does not
compromise the Venezuelan state or
Chávez." |
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CUBAN
POLICE VIOLENTLY BROKE UP A DISSIDENTS'
MEETING
HAVANA, CUBA --Cuban
police violently broke up a dissidents'
meeting, leaving at least two
people in need of medical treatment,
opposition sources said Monday.
At least 30 people were detained briefly after a
weekend raid on the home of well-known
dissident Jorge Luis "Atunez" Garcia
Perez in the central city of Placetas,
opposition leader Martha Beatriz Roque
said in a communique sent to journalists
by fax.
Veteran dissident Elizardo Sanchez said he
independently confirmed the details of
the raid and that all who were detained
were later released. At least two people
needed medical care, including one man
who required a head X-ray, and were
later sent home, said Sanchez, head of
the Cuban Commission on Human Rights and
National Reconciliation. "This is the
most violent police action we have seen
in many months," he said. |
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IRAN
MAY BE HIDING NUKE EVIDENCE FROM
INVESTIGATORS
VIENNA,
AUSTRIA --
Iran may be withholding information
needed to establish whether it
tried to make nuclear arms, the
International Atomic Energy Agency said
Monday in an unusually strongly worded
report. The tone of the language
suggesting Tehran continues to stonewall
the U.N. nuclear monitor revealed a
glimpse of the frustration felt by
agency investigators stymied in their
attempts to gain full answers to
suspicious aspects of Iran's past
nuclear activities.
A senior U.N. official familiar with the investigation into
Iran's nuclear program said none of the
dozens of agency reports issued in that
context had ever been as plain spoken in
calling Tehran to task for not being
forthright. He agreed to discuss the
report only if granted anonymity because
he was not authorized to comment to the
media.
Gregory L. Schulte, U.S. Iran's chief delegate to the IAEA,
suggested the report was a strong
indictment of Iran's defiance of the
international community's efforts to get
answers about troubling parts of its
nuclear program, noting it "details a
long list of questions that Iran has
failed to answer." "At the same time
that Iran is stonewalling its
inspectors, it's moving forward in
developing its enrichment capability in
violation of Security Council
resolutions," Schulte. He described
parts of the report as a "direct
rebuttal" of Iranian claims that all
nuclear questions had been answered. |
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VENEZUELA ARMY UPSET ABOUT LINKS WITH
THE FARC
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
From
800 to 1,000 colonels, brigadier
generals and division generals of the
Venezuelan armed forces are
relegated to their homes, with no
responsibilities or command whatsoever,
mainly because they are at odds with
indoctrination and the attempts at
turning the military into a socialist
army, modeled after the Cuban army.
According to the newspaper, which quotes intelligence
sources, 10 out of the 30 brigadier and
division generals included in this list
graduated in the same 1978 class of
Defense Minister Gustavo Rangel Briceńo.
Orlando Ochoa Terán, a security and
defense analyst in New York, thinks that
the issue of the alleged relationship
between the Venezuelan government and
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC) has demoralized the army officers
and soldiers, because the guerrillas
have been the traditional foes of the
Venezuelan military.
For her part, analyst Rocío San Miguel claims that the
parties involved "are generals who have
not taken a pro-government stance, have
an opinion on their own and are widely
recognized by the troops, because they
have an ethical behavior, have been the
first in their classes and are
respected. |
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TWO
MONTHS AGO, HUGO CHAVEZ STOPPED NAMING
MARULANDA
CARACAS, VENEZUELA --
Hugo
Chávez mentioned Marulanda last
time on March 8, 2008, during the
commemoration of the International
Women's Day. Then, the president asked
the leader of the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) to
release ex Colombian presidential
candidate Ingrid Betancourt.
"I send Marulanda a request from here: Send us Ingrid, on
this International Women's Day, in the
name of Venezuelan women, of Colombian
women, in the name of Yolanda (Pulecio,
Betancourt's mother)," urged Chávez.
"Marulanda, I ask you, at your convenience and as
possible, to release Ingrid, who is the
only woman still in the hands of FARC;
holding her in the jungle makes no
sense," he added. The Venezuelan
government has issued no opinion on the
death of the guerrilla leader. |
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LONDON
TERMINATES ENERGY DEAL WITH HUGO CHAVEZ
LONDON, ENGLAND --
Incoming Mayor of London Boris Johnson
announced that he would
discontinue an agreement reached with
Hugo Chávez in February 2007 that
provided half-price gas for London's
iconic red buses to the benefit of
low-income residents. Under the
agreement signed by ex mayor Ken
Livingstone, London would provide advice
on public transport and urban planning
in exchange of an amount of money to
cover one fifth of fuel expenses for the
bus fleet in the capital city. The
agreement provides for fuel at
20-percent discounted prices.
Money saved on gas was put into a program providing
half-rate bus fares for low-income
Londoners. Livingstone said the
anti-poverty initiative was the idea of
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, AP
quoted.
Members of the opposition Conservative Party have
criticized the deal signed by
Livingstone and said that one of the
world's richest cities, such as London,
should not exploit a lesser developed
country or make business with a man they
called "a third-rate South American
dictator." "I think many Londoners felt
uncomfortable about the bus operation of
one of the world's financial powerhouses
being funded by the people of a country
where many people live in extreme
poverty," said Johnson. |
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manuel marulanda, top commander OF THE
FAR, dies after 40 years of war
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Manuel Marulanda, the founder and
top commander of Colombia's main
left-wing rebel army, has died of a
heart attack after more than four
decades fighting a fierce guerrilla war,
his rebel group said. Nicknamed "Sureshot"
by his rebel comrades, Marulanda
organized the Revolutionary Armed Forces
of Colombia, or FARC, as a
communist-inspired army in 1964, and his
death is the heaviest setback in its
history.
Colombia's military said on Saturday that intelligence
sources showed Marulanda died in late
March, and the news was confirmed by
rebel commander Timoleon Jimenez in a
video played on Venezuelan-based
television channel Telesur on Sunday.
"Our maximum leader, Manuel Marulanda Velez, died of a
heart attack on March 26... in the arms
of his companion," Jimenez said, dressed
in combat fatigues and standing before a
Colombian flag in an unknown location.
Alfonso Cano, already a member of its
seven-man leadership, will replace
Marulanda as its chief, the FARC said.
Cano, 59, is known as a more of a
political leader than a military
strategist and entered the FARC as a
student activist. |
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US SAYS
CUBA SHOULD USE DIPLOMATIC CHANNELS
WASHINGTON, D.C. --
The
U.S. diplomatic mission in Cuba on
Saturday called on the island's
communist government to use diplomatic
channels rather than news conferences to
criticize American officials.
The U.S. government will not respond to Cuban charges that
its top diplomat funneled money to
dissidents on the island until Cuba
files a formal complaint, according to a
statement from the U.S. Interests
Section, America's de facto embassy in
Havana. Cuba has released e-mails,
letters, videos and audio tapes it
claims prove that Michael Parmly,
America's top diplomat in Havana,
carried funds to activist Martha Beatriz
Roque, who allegedly passed them on to
other dissidents.
Parmly has declined to comment on the charges, despite
demands by Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe
Perez Roque. The U.S. government
acknowledges it provides ''humanitarian
assistance'' to dissidents in Cuba, but
has not said specifically whether Parmly
hand-carried cash from a Miami-based
group that the communist government
calls a terrorist organization. |
|
SENATOR BARACK OBAMA: CHAVEZ IS
DIMINISHING DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS IN
VENEZUELA
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --US
Democrat presidential pre-candidate
Barack Obama Friday claimed that
his likely Republican rival John MCCain
is trying to continue US President
George W. Bush' policy of rapprochement
to Latin America -a posture that has
damaged the US image in the region and,
in his view, has helped shore up
Washington foes such as Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez. "Instead of
engaging the people of the region, we
have acted as if we can still dictate
terms unilaterally," Obama stated.
According to the US Senator for
Illinois, the Bush administration's
"clumsy attempts to undermine Chavez
have only strengthened his hand."
Obama accused Chávez of degrading Venezuelan democratic
institutions, stressing that if elected
US president he would not be lenient to
the alleged Venezuelan government's
support to the rebel Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC). "We
will shine a light on any support for
the FARC that comes from neighboring
governments. This behavior must be
exposed to international condemnation,
regional isolation, and -if need be-
strong sanctions. It must not stand."
For a long time now, the United States has been
suspecting that Chávez has provided
assistance to the FARC. "It is time for
a new alliance of the Americas. After
eight years of the failed policies of
the past, we need new leadership for the
future," said Obama last Monday in his
speech before the Cuban American
National Foundation, in Miami. During
his presentation, Obama warned that his
administration would "fully support
Colombia's fight against the FARC." |
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SOUTH
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS INITIAL UNASUR
AGREEMENT
BRASILIA, BRASIL --
The presidents of South American
countries executed on Friday in
Brasilia the Charter of the Union of
South American Nations (Unasur), a new
space for the hemispheric political
accord.
The
Unasur charter, still to be approved by
national congresses to be fully
effective, is the institutional
framework for the new bloc. One of its
purposes is to establish its own
parliament, to be seated in Cochabamba,
Bolivia.
The paper
defines a structure based on three
councils -heads of state, ministers of
foreign affairs and delegates- based in
Quito, and it includes a proposed South
American Parliament, headquartered in
Cochabamba.
In addition to the institutionalization of Unasur, the
presidents would hold a session on
energy, infrastructure, social policies
and education. Unasur is composed of
Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile,
Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay,
Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Earlier on Friday, Venezuelan President
Hugo Chávez backed in Brazil the union
of South American nations and warned
that the "US imperialism" was the major
foe of integration.
Chávez landed in Brasilia early in the morning to attend a
meeting of 12 South American presidents.
"The enemy number one of the South union
is the US empire. It is something basic:
divide and rule," said Chávez. "We will
always denounce the imperialist attempts
of the US government, trying to provoke
wars in South America, trying to curb
the strides of this (Unasur) project,"
he added. |
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VENEZUELAN OFFICIAL DENIES "DIRECT LINK"
BETWEEN HUGO CHAVEZ AND THE FARC
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez must explain a lot
about his close relations with the
largest Colombian guerrillas, as appears
from the files found in the computers of
a slain rebel leader, said a US top
government official.
However, th Minister of the Interior and Justice Ramón
Rodríguez Chacín on Tuesday stated that
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez has not
had a "direct link" with the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC).
Rodríguez Chacín added that the "only contacts" between the
Venezuelan government and the FARC were
carried out by myself, at request of
Colombian President Álvaro Uribe's
government and within the framework of
the peace process," reported Efe. Chávez
and opposition Colombian Senator Piedad
Córdoba mediated the exchange of 45
hostages held by FARC for some 500
rebels in Colombian jails. |
|
ACTIVE DUTY ARMY GENERAL ASKED THE
hIGH COURT TO PROHIBIT USE OF CUBAN
SLOGAN IN THE VENEZUELAN ARMY
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA -- Active
army Brigadier General Ángel Omar Vivas
Perdomo filed with the
Constitutional Court of the Supreme
Tribunal of Justice a joint file to
order Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez
to stop using the slogan "Homeland,
Socialism or Death, We Will Win!" in the
armed forces.
The action is based on violation of articles 1 and 328
of the Constitution; articles 6 and 7 of
the National Armed Forces Organic Law,
and articles 1 and 41 of the Regulation
of Disciplinary Sanctions No. 6. General
Vivas Perdomo was the head of the army
Finance Department and is part of a
group of almost one thousand officers
waiting for a new appointment. He was
classmate of Defense Minister Gustavo
Rangel Briceńo, who goes into retirement
this year.
One of the pleadings states that the slogan sponsored
by President Chávez "does not fit in the
Venezuelan nationalism because it does
not represent the fervent feeling of the
whole nation. It is embraced only by a
group of citizens who show a clear
ideological political trend." In
addition, the slogan "is an expression
of fight of Fidel Castro's revolutionary
movement in Cuba;" therefore, it is "a
foreign slogan that implies recognition
of values and persons that are not
related at all to our nationality." |
|
TRANSPARENCY
OF VENEZUELAN AID TO NICARAGUA INTO
QUESTION
MANAGUA,
NICARAGUA -- US
Ambassador to Nicaragua Paul Trivelli
on Thursday pointed to the
alleged lack of transparency by which
the government of Nicaraguan President
Daniel Ortega uses the millionaire aid
received from Venezuela.
"The use of those funds is worrisome because if there is
really USD 520 million entering the
country from Venezuela, it is not clear
how they are being channeled," Trivelli
told Managua's TV Channel 2, AFP quoted.
He added that so far nothing was known
about the use of the aid. In his
opinion, the United States, as well as
European cooperators, wonders "what is
the point of supporting the government,
if the government is not accountable."
Ortega said last May 14th that his government had spent
more than USD 520 million out of the
budget with the "unconditional" support
provided by his Venezuelan counterpart
Hugo Chávez through the Bolivarian
Alternative of the Americas (ALBA). |
|
COLOMBIAN ATTORNEY GENERAL MARIO IGUARAN
ASKS TO INVESTIGATE PIEDAD CORDOBA FOR
LINKS WITH FARC
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Colombian Attorney General Mario Iguarán
on Thursday asked the Supreme Court of
Justice (CSJ) to investigate Senator
Piedad Córdoba, who was a mediator in
talks with rebel Colombian Revolutionary
Armed Forces (FARC) aimed at attaining
the release of hostages held by FARC,
and a Venezuelan citizen, Amílcar
Figueroa, a member of the Latin American
Parliament.
Iguarán said that the names of Córdoba and Figueroa are in
documents extracted from three computers
allegedly seized by Colombian military
officials on March 1st, when they
carried out an incursion into Ecuadorian
territory to attack a FARC camp. |
|
hugo chavez accuses the united states of
spying on venezuela
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez made reference to the
violation of Venezuelan air space by a
US Navy VS-3 Viking , accusing the US
government of spying on Venezuela.
"Three days ago, a US war plane violated the Venezuelan air
space and flied over a place banned even
for civil aviation. We know for sure
that they are spying," said the
Venezuelan ruler, as quoted by AFP
"Afterwards, they said no, these are
operations against drug trafficking.
Lies! It is like saying that the (US
4th) Fleet comes here to fight drug
trafficking. It is a war fleet, a threat
no only against Venezuela, but against
all of us (Latin Americans)," Chávez
added.
"They are spying, even testing our capacity to react,"
Chavez said during a televised speech.
The Venezuelan President warned
Washington that he would dispatch
(Russian-made Sukhoi) fighter jets "in
order to guarantee sovereignty of our
air space". |
|
JOINT
TASK FORCE CONFIRMS THAT THERE WAS NO
COLOMBIAN INCURSION ON VENEZUELA
TERRITORY
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA -- Colombian
and Venezuelan commissions met
last Monday on the border to check an
alleged incursion of Colombian troops
into Venezuelan territory last May 16.
The survey found that the area belongs
to Colombia, reported the Colombian
Ministry of Defense in a press release.
According to the notice, Colombian General José Rafael
González, commander of the 18th Brigade,
met on the site with General Florencio
Carreńo, the commander of the Number 1
theater of operations. Carreńo insisted
on saying that the area was Venezuelan
territory. However, with the help of an
expert team, it was found that the
territory belonged to Colombia.
General Carreńo crossed River Arauca together with 20
officials. They returned in a Venezuelan
helicopter that had to enter the area to
pick them up. Carreńo spoke on the phone
with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez,
who asked to talk to the Colombian
General and "told him that he did not
want the issue to escalate." |
|
COLOMBIA PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE DECLINES
UNASUR CHAIR DUE TO CLASHES WITH HUGO
CHAVEZ AND RAFAEL CORREA
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Colombian President Álvaro Uribe
said on Wednesday that his country did
not accept the chair of the Union of
South American Nations (Unasur) in the
face of the differences about the
Colombian conflict with the governments
of his colleagues Hugo Chávez of
Venezuela and Rafael Correa of Ecuador.
Uribe, who is heading on Thursday for Brasilia to sign the
charter of the organization, said also
that his country would not take part in
the Regional Security Office proposed by
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da
Silva. Instead, he valued the current
Organization of American States (OAS).
The Colombian president told RCN Radio in an interview that
he commented these decisions to Lula
last week in Lima during the 5th Summit
of Latin America, the Caribbean and the
European Union (ALC-EU). "It is not wise
at this time, given the troubles with
the presidents of Venezuela and Ecuador,
that Colombia takes up the presidency of
the South American Union," he said. |
|
JOHN MCCAIN: I WILL PREVENT BOLIVIA AND
VENEZUELA FROM TAKING THE CUBAN ROAD
MIAMI,
FLORIDA --
Republican Senator John McCain,
speaking before a noisy crowd in Miami
on Cuban Independence Day, on Tuesday
pledged to keep the embargo against the
Caribbean island, prevent Bolivia and
Venezuela from taking the same road
taken by Cuba, and strengthen ties with
Brazil, Chile and Peru, if he is elected
as US president.
McCain criticized his Democrat rival, Senator Barack
Obama, for saying that he is willing to
sit down with Cuban President Raúl
Castro.
"If I am elected president (…) We will work to prevent
Venezuela and Bolivia from taking the
same road to failure Castro has paved
for Cuba, and we will broaden and
strengthen ties with key states like
Brazil, Peru, and Chile," McCain said.
Likewise, McCain criticized Obama for
opposing to a free trade agreement with
Colombia. "Colombia is a beacon of hope
in a region where the Castro brothers,
[Venezuelan President] Hugo Chávez, and
others are actively seeking to thwart
economic progress and democracy," McCain
added. |
|
PRESIDENT BUSH WILL ALLOW AMERICANS TO
SEND CELL PHONES TO CUBA
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President
Bush announced Wednesday that
Americans soon will be allowed to send
cell phones to Cubans - a move that he
hopes will push the communist regime to
increase freedom of expression for Cuban
citizens. Addressing recent changes in
Cuba, Bush said, "Cubans are now allowed
to purchase mobile phones, DVD players
and computers and they have been told
that they will be able to purchase
toasters and other basic appliances in
2010."
"If the Cuban regime is serious about improving life for the
Cuban people, it will take steps
necessary to make these changes
meaningful," Bush said at the White
House as he marked Cuba's 106th
anniversary of independence this week.
If the Cuban people can be trusted with
mobile phones, "they should be trusted
to speak freely in public," he said.
Dan Fisk, National Security Council senior director for
Western hemisphere affairs, emphasized
that the new policy, which is to take
effect in a few weeks, is not a
loosening of the U.S. economic embargo
against Cuba, but a change in U.S.
regulations that will allow cell phones
to be in gift parcels that Americans can
send to Cubans. |
|
INTERPOL SECRETARY GENERAL RONALD NOBLE
INSISTS ON VISITING CARACAS TO EXPLAIN
HIS REPORT
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
INTERPOL SECRETARY GENERAL RONALD NOBLE
expressed again his willingness to come
to Venezuela and Ecuador to dispel any
doubts about his much questioned report
on the e-files examined by the
international criminal police
organization.
"My offer to go to Ecuador and Venezuela is still
effective to explain what we did and how
we did it," Noble told Ecuadorian daily
newspaper in an interview released on
Tuesday. "I am ready to meet with the
press, with the newspapers editors,
whoever, for them to ask me what we
did," the official added.
The head of the International Criminal Police
Organization (Interpol) released in
Bogotá a report, questioned by both the
Venezuelan and Ecuadorian government,
that certifies that the evidence
submitted by Colombia belonged to the
Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC)
and was properly safeguarded, AFP
quoted. Noble clarified, however, that
the expert analysis did not attest to
the contents of the files that,
according to the Colombian government,
would reveal the ties between the
government of Venezuelan President Hugo
Chávez and the Colombian guerrillas. |
|
DOCTORS: TED KENNEDY HAS MALIGNANT BRAIN
TUMOR
HYANNISPORT,
MASSACHUSETTS --
Kennedy, 76, was hospitalized
Saturday morning after suffering a
seizure at his family's compound at
Hyannisport, Massachusetts. "Preliminary
results from a biopsy of the brain
identified the cause of the seizure as a
malignant glioma in the left parietal
lobe," according to a statement from the
doctors treating the senator.
Malignant glioma is the most common primary brain tumor,
accounting for more than half of the
18,000 primary malignant brain tumors
diagnosed each year in the United
States, according to the National Cancer
Institute. Learn more about Kennedy's
condition ť Kennedy had surgery in
October to clear his carotid artery in
hopes of preventing a stroke. In recent
days, the powerful Democrat appeared in
fine health. He suffers chronic back
pain from injuries suffered in a plane
crash in 1964.
The usual course of treatment for Kennedy's type of
tumor includes radiation and
chemotherapy, said a statement from Dr.
Lee Schwamm, vice chairman of the
Department of Neurology at Massachusetts
General Hospital, and Dr. Larry Ronan,
primary care physician at the hospital.
"Decisions regarding the best course of
treatment for Sen. Kennedy will be
determined after further testing and
analysis," the doctors continued. Watch
CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta describe
treatment options ť "Sen. Kennedy will
remain at Massachusetts General Hospital
for the next couple of days according to
routine protocol. He remains in good
spirits and full of energy." |
|
BRAZIL IS CERTAIN OF REGIONAL SUPPORT TO
SOUTH AMERICAN DEFENSE COUNCIL
LA PAZ,
BOLIVIA --
There is a favorable stance in the
region towards the creation of a
South American Defense Council, said on
Monday Brazilian Defense Minister Nelson
Jobim in La Paz.
Jobim
added that such support could be made
official during the Unasur summit next
Friday in Brasilia. "I spoke to all and
there is a position favorable to this
institution. Some are more enthusiastic
than others, but there is uniformity
about the creation of the Council," said
Jobim after a meeting with Bolivian
President Evo Morales.
The Council suggested by Brazil is a pooling of regional
defense policies, joint armies and
peacekeeping forces, as well as a joint
analysis of the international and
hemispheric state of affairs. |
|
EVO
MORALES BACKS CAMPAIGN WITH HUGO CHAVEZ
CHECKS
LA PAZ,
BOLIVIA --
Bolivian
President Evo Morales handed over
last weekend checks for the amount of
USD 271,000 granted by Venezuela, at the
beginning of his "Yes" campaign ahead of
a recall referendum next August 10th.
The vote will decide the destiny of
Morales, his Vice-President and nine
governors.
Morales
delivered last Sunday a USD
136,000-check in Cliza municipality,
central Cochabamba department, intended
to be spent in works and development of
multiple projects.
The president, who took part in a parade to commemorate the
170th anniversary of Cliza, promised to
give the municipality USD 2 million as
proceeds from the tax joint
participation system. |
|
US DRUG CZAR JOHN WALTERS SAID THAT HUGO
CHAVEZ HAS A LOT OF EXPLAINING TO DO
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Hugo Chávez must explain a lot
about his close relations with the
largest Colombian guerrillas, as appears
from the files found in the computers of
a slain rebel leader, said a US top
government official. Interpol certified
the authenticity of the files found in
the computers of Raúl Reyes, the head of
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC) killed on March 1st during a
Colombian military operation in
Ecuadorian territory. However, the
international criminal organization
refrained itself from attesting to the
accuracy of the contents.
Chávez, like Ecuadorian President
Rafael Correa, has denied any links with
or support to FARC, as claimed by the
Colombian government, based on the
documents found in Reyes' computers.
"President Hugo Chávez has a lot of
explaining to do. I know that they deny
it. However, I do not know of anybody
else different from Chávez who thinks
that the files are not true. The fact is
that nobody who has seen them thinks
that they are false," US drug czar John
Walters told daily newspaper El Tiempo
in an interview.
The official maintained that the
files found in the laptops show how deep
were the relations between the
Venezuelan president and FARC,
considered a terrorist organization by
the United States and the European
Union. ''They were fluid contacts from
both sides. This is a group that wants
to violently overthrow a democratic
government. This is very serious and
requires more than just a simple
denial,'' said Walters. "This shows the
seriousness of the FARC threat to
Colombia and the region. Venezuela's
behavior is alarming. The region must
understand that there is need to attack
FARC, its infrastructure and its
networks," he added. |
|
THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT BACKS POLICE
CHIEF CHIDED BY HUGO CHAVEZ
SANTIAGO
DE CHILE, CHILE --
The Chilean government "supported
absolutely" on Friday the civil police
chief and current Interpol president
Arturo Herrera, who was accused by
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez of
human rights abuses.
"We support absolutely the Investigation Police director
Arturo Herrera," said Government
Secretary General and official spokesman
Francisco Vidal during a press
conference with foreign correspondents.
Chávez blasted Interpol and Herrera because of a report
submitted by the international police
organization apropos the files found in
the computers presumably property of
Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
second-in-command Raúl Reyes. The leader
of the rebel group was killed by
Colombian troops last March 1st in a
raid on a FARC camp located in
Ecuadorian territory. |
|
THE CHILEAN GOVERNMENT PROTESTS HUGO
CHAVEZ CHARGES AGAINST POLICE CHIEF
SANITAGO
DE CHILE, CHILE --
The Chilean government forwarded
a notice of protest to the Venezuelan
government following the remarks of
Hugo Chávez, who ascribed human rights
abuses to investigation police chief
Arturo Herrera.
The notice was submitted last Friday to Venezuelan ambassador
María Lourdes Urbaneja at the Chilean
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reported
daily newspaper La Tercera. Last
Thursday, Chávez lambasted Interpol
interim president Herrera when
criticizing a report authored by the
international criminal police
organization. The report certified that
Colombian authorities did not manipulate
the files contained in three laptops
allegedly found in a camp of the
Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC)
in Ecuador.
According to Chávez, Herrera ordered to modify a police
report that incriminated retired general
Miguel Trincado Araneda in the illegal
exhumation of the bodies of 26 people
executed for political reasons and threw
them onto to the sea to cover the crimes
perpetrated under the dictatorship of
General Augusto Pinochet. |
|
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC PRESIDENT LEONEL
FERNANDEZ WINS RE-ELECTION
SANTO
DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC --
Dominican President Leonel Fernandez
coasted to a third term in
office, vowing Saturday to push ahead
with policies he says have lifted the
Caribbean nation's economy from crisis.
Mr. Fernandez beat his main rival,
center-left construction magnate Miguel
Vargas, with 54% to 40% of Friday's
vote, according to a final tally
released by election officials late
Saturday. The remaining votes were
shared by six other candidates.
The Organization of American States, or OAS, observed the
election and congratulated Mr. Fernandez
on a "clear and definitive victory."
Election officials said voter turnout
was 71%. The New York-raised incumbent
said his win signaled renewed confidence
in his Dominican Liberation Party, and
he vowed to continue with plans to
revitalize the nation's economy.
Mr. Fernandez's victory makes him the first Dominican
president to be re-elected since the
country's last strongman was ousted 12
years ago -- showing many voters have
overcome hesitations about long-serving
politicians in a country with a painful
history of iron-fisted rule. Mr.
Fernandez also served as president from
1996 to 2000. |
|
EUROPEAN UNION AT ODDS WITH HUGO
CHAVEZ'S COMMENTS ON COLOMBIAN
GOVERNMENT
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Javier
Solana, the European Union (EU) High
Representative, took issue with Hugo
Chávez, who called the Colombian
government a "liar, paramilitary and
drug trafficker."
"We cannot agree with that," Solano told succinctly
Bogotá's radio RCN when asked about the
issue, AFP quoted.
Chávez lambasted the Colombian government and his
Colombian counterpart Álvaro Uribe and
disregarded the authenticity of the
files found in a computer seized in
Ecuador from Raúl Reyes, the slain chief
of the Colombian Revolutionary Armed
Forces (FARC). |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ
TRIED TO PUT AN END TO DISAGREEMENT WITH
GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL
LIMA,
PERU --
Hugo
Chávez tried in Lima to settle a
dispute with German Chancellor Angela
Merkel by shaking her hand twice and
promising that he did not mean to annoy
her, reported German government sources.
Chávez and Merkel met before and after the group photo of the
heads of state and government attending
the Fifth Summit of Latin America, the
Caribbean and the European Union held in
the Peruvian capital city, DPA reported.
According to the sources, on both occasions the Venezuelan
president approached the Premier to
greet her. The first time, Chávez told
her that his remarks were not intended
to bother her. |
|
FIFTH LATIN AMERICA-EUROPEAN SUMMIT
ADVOCATES DEMOCRACY
LIMA,
PERU --
The Fifth Latin America,
Caribbean-European Union Summit
-held in Lima- Friday made a call
whereby the two regions undertake to
enhance their relations and find a
solution to the problems hitting people
worldwide. The meeting -attended by some
60 heads of state and presidents from
the two regions- was closed by Peruvian
President Alan García late Friday.
EU, Latin American and Caribbean representatives whose
countries have agreements pending for
execution -including those under the
Common Market of the South (Mercosur),
the Andean Community of Nations (CAN),
the Central American Integration System,
among others- are meeting on May 17 in
the Peruvian capital city.
García hailed the fact that the summit reached an agreement
to "take actions to fight against
poverty," a problem hitting almost one
third of Latin Americans. The Peruvian
ruler also urged to uproot illiteracy
and put an end to the "insanity" of an
arms race and rivalries among countries
in the two regions. The next Latin
America, Caribbean-European Union Summit
is scheduled to be held in 2010 in
Spain. |
|
RAFAEL CORREA DENIES HUGO CHAVEZ IS A
TROUBLEMAKER; RAIDS ON URIBE
LIMA,
PERU --
Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa
Friday rejected claims that his
Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez is a
troublemaker, and rather accused
Colombian ruler Álvaro Uribe of
"slandering" through a report Interpol
disclosed in connection with late
Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
leader Raúl Reyes' laptops, thus
deteriorating relations among Latin
American countries.
"We have to look beyond the forms we may
like or not. Yet I do believe that some
presidents in the region are more
difficult than Hugo Chávez, not only in
form but also in content," said Correa
before attending the opening session of
the Fifth Latin America and
Caribbean-European Union Summit in Lima,
AFP reported.
According to Correa "a smear campaign in under way with a
goal to justify the shelling (by the
Colombian Army) last March 1 (against a
FARC camp in Ecuador)." |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ SAID THAT COLOMBIAN
PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE "IS GOING TO END
UP ALONE"
LIMA,
PERU --
Hugo
Chávez said on Friday in Lima
that his Colombian counterpart Álvaro
Uribe "is going to end up alone," in the
latest clash in a verbal exchange that
also involves Ecuadorian ruler Rafael
Correa.
"Here, everything is alright. The one who is going through a
bad patch is the Colombian government.
The big reflection: Uribe's government
is going to end up alone, because it is
the Colombian government who is wrong,"
said Chávez, who is attending the Fifth
Summit of Latin America, the Caribbean
and the European Union, which is taking
place in Lima on May 16-17.
Chávez added that Uribe's government "is one of the biggest
problems" in the region, because, he
said, it is involved in "lies and
manipulation," reported DPA. |
|
US GOVERNMENT: TIES BETWEEN VENEZUELA
AND FARC ARE REALLY WORRYING
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
The alleged ties between Venezuela and
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC), which were revealed in
press reports "are really worrying," but
there is no reason to doubt about their
accuracy, according to the US
government.
"The information provided by some draft reports and
disclosed over the past few days is
worrying, really worrying," Sean
McCormack, the US Department of State's
spokesperson, said in a press conference
held on Thursday, AFP quoted.
The Washington Post disclosed on Thursday that
Venezuelan high-ranking government
officials offered to help FARC buy
surface-to-air missiles to keep up the
war against the Colombian government.
The newspaper stated that it had seen
the files of the computers confiscated
by the Colombian authorities after an
attack on a FARC camp in Ecuador. |
|
COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE NOT TO
MEET WITH HUGO CHAVEZ AND RAFAEL CORREA
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA --
Colombian
President Alvaro Uribe is holding 11
bilateral meetings during the Fifth
Latin America-European Union Summit, in
Lima. However, a meeting with his
Ecuadorian and Venezuelan counterparts
is not in his plans, Minister of Foreign
Affairs Fernando Araújo said.
"President Uribe is to attend a total of 11 bilateral
meetings in which neither Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez nor Ecuadorian
President Rafael Correa is included,"
Araújo told radio station Caracol, in
Bogotá.
The Fifth Latin America-European Union Summit is taking place
on 16-17 May in Lima. At least 50
presidents of Latin America and Europe
are expected to attend the meeting, |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ TO RESUME UNILATERAL CONTACTS WITH FARC
CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- UBA -- Hugo
Chávez said he would try to
contact the Colombian Revolutionary
Armed Forces (FARC); asked his French
counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy to help him
release the hostages held by FARC, and
regretted also how difficult it was to
hold relations with the Colombian
government.
The relationship between Chávez and Colombian President
Álvaro Uribe has worsened since Chávez
was removed from the talks held with
FARC last year towards a humanitarian
swap, Reuters reported.
"I told Sarkozy right now that we will keep on
contacting FARC to take again the way of
the release, the humanitarian agreement
and peace in Colombia. That is all we
want," the Venezuelan head of state said
during a ceremony with Portugal's Prime
Minister, who was on visit to Venezuela. |
|
INTERPOL CONFIRMS LINK BETWEEN FARC,
HUGO CHAVEZ; THE COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT
DIDN'T MANIPULATE THE COMPUTERS
LONDON,
ENGLAND -- Interpol
said Thursday that it is ''absolutely
certain'' that documents that link the
Venezuelan and Ecuadorean governments to
FARC rebels came from computers
belonging to slain rebel leader Raúl
Reyes and that the documents were not
modified or altered in any way.
Investigators from the international
security body examined three laptop
computer hard drives, three portable
thumb drives and two external hard
drives that Bogotá said it seized after
the March 1 cross-border raid that
killed guerrilla leader Raúl Reyes in
Ecuador.
''We are absolutely certain that the computers came from a
jungle camp and they belonged to the
FARC. It was the physical equipment
belonging to Reyes,'' Ronald Noble, head
of Interpol, said during a press
conference. Interpol's forensic exam was
limited to certifying the integrity of
the electronic files. Investigators did
not analyze the content of close to
38,000 e-mails and 210,000 pictures and
videos, which indicate that the
Marxist-inspired FARC rebels had a cozy
relationship with the governments of
both Hugo Chávez in Venezuela and Rafael
Correa in Ecuador.
The documents released so far by Colombian authorities --
some of which were obtained and
published by The Miami Herald --
indicate that rebel leaders met
regularly with Venezuelan Interior
Minister Ramón Rodríguez Chacín, who on
at least one occasion asked the FARC to
provide guerrilla warfare training for
an unidentified armed group in
Venezuela. |
|
THE
WASHINTON POST SAID THAT VENEZUELAN
AUTHORITIES OFFERED TO HELP FARC
WASHINGTON, D.C. --
Venezuelan senior government officials
offered to help the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) and
even acted as middlemen for arms
purchases, according to the files found
in a computer property of Raúl Reyes and
released on Thursday by The Washington
Post.
The officials offered to help the guerrillas in an
effort to change the balance of power in
their war against the Colombian
government and acted as liaison officers
between the FARC and Australians arms
dealers. The move was aimed at
facilitating the arms purchases,
including surface-to-air missiles,
reported the newspaper.
According to the files accessed by The Washington Post,
the Venezuelan authorities helped also
guerrilla commanders to travel to the
Middle East and get training in missiles
handling. Raúl Reyes, the FARC
international spokesman, died along with
25 people in a raid carried out by the
Colombian government last March 1st on a
guerrilla camp in Ecuador. |
|
HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERT TO REPLACE U.S.
ENVOY IN CUBA
HAVANA, CUBA --
The top U.S. diplomat in Cuba, Michael
Parmly, will be leaving his post
and will be replaced by a top official
at the State Department's Bureau of
Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, the
Department confirmed Thursday.
Jonathan D. Farrar, now acting assistant secretary at
the bureau, has broad experience in
Latin America, with previous postings at
the U.S. embassies in Mexico, Belize,
Paraguay and Uruguay. State Department
spokeswoman Heidi Bronke confirmed
Farrar will succeed Parmly this summer.
There was no immediate word on Parmly's
next assignment after completing a
normal three-year posting in Havana.
Parmly was assigned to head the U.S. Interests
Section in Havana in 2005, replacing
James Cason, who had earned a reputation
in his three years in Cuba as an
aggresive critic of the Fidel Castro
government. Parmly took a different
style, and even Castro initially noted
the difference between him and Cason,
describing Parmly's correspondence as
"RESPECTFUL.'' |
|
us government calls "slippery slope"
chavez's oil policy
WASHINGON, D.C. -- The use of oil by Venezuelan President
Hugo Chávez as a political tool is not
healthy, said on Tuesday US Secretary of
Energy Samuel Bodman.
Bodman paid a visit to Trinidad and
Tobago to discuss energy cooperation
with Trinidadian government authorities.
The island meets more than 60 percent of
the US needs of liquefied natural gas,
said Reuters. "I think that every time
he uses energy, or the presence of
energy, or the cost of energy as a
political tool, it tends to be a
slippery slope and one tends to take the
wrong direction," Bodman told reporters
after a meeting with a business group.
Venezuela supplies oil to several
Caribbean nations under Petrocaribe, an
initiative where importing countries can
repay their purchases at low interest
rates and defer apportion of the payment
up to 25 years. |
|
14
COLOMBIAN PARAMILITARY WARLORDS
EXTRADITED TO US
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
In A SURPRISE move, the Colombian
government early Tuesday morning
extradited 14 notorious paramilitary
warlords to the United States, where
they are wanted on cocaine-trafficking
charges. Interior Minister Carlos
Holguín said the paramilitary leaders
were taken from their cells shortly
after midnight and, after a medical
exam, were put on planes bound for
Miami, New York and Washington, D.C.
The paramilitary leaders, Holguín said,
continued to engage in criminal
activities behind bars in Colombia and
failed to make reparations to victims,
in violation of a 2003 pact under which
they surrendered and received lenient
terms.
The massive extradition comes at a time
when Colombian President Alvaro Uribe is
facing accusations that he and senior
leaders of his party -- including many
members of Congress -- have had close
ties with the right-wing paramilitary
leaders. Uribe was expected to address
the Colombian people Tuesday morning to
explain what was happening and why.
Among those extradited were Salvatore
Mancuso, Rodrigo Tovar Pupo (better
known as ''Jorge 40''), Diego Fernando
Murillo (``Don Berna''), Hernán Giraldo,
alias ``Pablo Sevillano,'' and Ramiro
''Cuco'' Vanoy. A few are set to land at
Opa-Locka Airport in Miami on Tuesday
afternoon. |
|
GERMAN NEWSPAPERS OUTRAGED AT COMPARISON
OF CHANCELLOR MERKEL WITH ADOLF HITLER
BERLIN, GERMANY --
The German press
was infuriated as
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez
compared Chancellor Angela Merkel with
Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler during his TV
and radio show "Aló, Presidente."
Chávez said that Merkel and her party,
the Christian Democratic Union (CDU),
belonged to the same rightwing that
supported Hitler and fascism. Earlier,
Merkel had said in an interview that
President Chávez was neither the voice
nor represented the interests of the
whole Latin America, Efe reported. Under
the headline "Chávez offends the
chancellor by comparing her with
Hitler," conservative newspaper Die Welt
commented that, in spite of everything,
the German government reacted
even-tempered to the insult and just
stated through spokesman Thomas Steg,
"President Chávez's remarks speak for
themselves."
Daily Bild entitled "Hatred attack on
our chancellor" a story that quoted the
reaction of some politicians, such as
Foreign Policy expert Eckart von
Klaeden. "Hugo Chávez just says
nonsense. He would rather follow the
advice the King of Spain gave him." |
|
VENEZUELAN GOVERNMENT SURPRISED BY
MERKEL'S REMARKS
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
The Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign
Affairs issued an official
communiqué in respect of the remarks
made by German Premier Angela Merkel
during an interview with DPA.
In the official paper, the government was surprised to learn
that the German chancellor, on the eve
of her visit to Latin America, to attend
the European Union-Latin America summit,
blasts Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez.
For the Venezuelan government, her
remarks just distort the bilateral
relationship, because they cast doubt on
the German government intention to
strengthen ties with Latin America and
the Caribbean.
Merkel declared that Chávez is neither the voice, nor
represents the interests of all Latin
America, and suggested keeping distance
from Venezuela. Because of that comment,
President Chávez said last Sunday during
his TV and radio show "Aló, Presidente"
that both Merkel and her Christian
Democratic party (CDU), belonged to the
same rightwing that supported Hitler. |
|
SPANISH
PRESIDENT JOSE LUIS ZAPATERO ASKS CHAVEZ
TO RESPECT SPANISH INSTITUTIONS
MADRID,
SPAIN --
Spanish head of government José Luis
Rodríguez Zapatero advised
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez one
more time that he should respect Spanish
institutions, following Chávez's renewed
criticism of the King of Spain.
"The relationship with Venezuela and President Chávez is
based on two principles: Chávez should
respect Spanish institutions, as well as
the Spanish government does respect the
Venezuelan ones. A positive relation is
most convenient," said Zapatero during a
press conference when queried about
Chávez's recent remarks on the King of
Spain.
The King of Spain "thinks he is superior and fails to
understand what is going on in Latin
America," said Chávez last Sunday during
his TV and radio show "Aló, Presidente."
Then, he recalled that King Juan Carlos
suggested him to shut out during the
Ibero-American Summit held last November
in Chile, AFP quoted. On that occasion,
Chávez accused former Spanish president
José María Aznar of being a fascist. "If
Hugo Chávez goes to the summit between
the European Union and Latin America, I
will very likely have a talk with him,"
added Zapatero. |
|
RAUL REYES'S LAPTOP DISCLOSES THE
AUTHORS OF APURE MASSACRE IN 2004
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA --
According to the materials contained in
the laptop property of Raúl Reyes,
the second-in-command of the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC), and
seized by the Colombian government, the
FARC perpetrated the massacre of
September 2004 in southwestern Apure
state, where five military and one
engineer of state-run oil holding
Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa) were
murdered.
The leading character of the bloodshed was presumably the
FARC tenth front, and Reyes himself
wrote: "There will be the need to
apologize for what happened," reported
Colombian magazine Semana.
The files -over a dozen internal messages of the
rebels- describe some years of close
cooperation between the Venezuelan
military and FARC members. According to
the information, a letter from Reyes to
"Mono Jojoy" stated: "There is the need
to capitalize on the meeting of the head
of the Venezuelan Directorate for
Military Intelligence (DIM), General
Hugo Carvajal, with Iván Márquez, to
apologize to the Venezuelan government." |
|
BOLIVIA PRESIDENT EVO MORALES WILL FACE
RECALL VOTES ON AUGUST 10
LA PAZ,
BOLIVIA --
President Evo Morales committed
himself and Bolivia's nine state
governors on Monday to face recall votes
on Aug. 10, gambling that citizens will
endorse his populist reforms halfway
through his five-year term. "Personally
I have no fear of the people," Morales
said. "Let the people judge us." But the
terms of the referendum make it much
easier for Morales to survive than for
some of his political opponents.
Morales originally proposed the recall vote in December
amid a fierce battle over his proposed
draft constitution that would increase
the political power of Bolivia's
long-oppressed indigenous majority.
Bolivia's lower house of Congress
approved it, but the idea went nowhere
until last week, when it was suddenly
revived by the opposition-controlled
Senate. The president's opponents
figured Morales had been weakened by the
landslide victory of the autonomy
measure in Santa Cruz, Bolivia's largest
and richest state. But they apparently
neglected to consider the fine print of
the recall referendum - which clearly
gives Morales the upper hand.
Morales immediately accepted his opponents' challenge in a
nationally televised address, and signed
the bill on Monday. The referendum
requires removal from office if the
officials get more "no" votes than the
votes they won when they were elected,
and if the percentage of "no" votes is
greater than the candidates' winning
percentage in 2005. For example, Morales
won the presidency with 1.5 million
votes - 53.7 percent. If 1.6 million
vote to recall him, he'll be forced to
call for a new presidential election -
unless turnout is high enough to keep
those "no" votes below 53.7 percent.
Bolivia's governors all won office with
less than 50 percent, creating a much
lower bar for their recalls. |
|
HUGO
CHAVEZ LASHES OUT AT GERMAN
CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chavez
lashed
out at Germany's chancellor on Sunday,
suggesting that her party shares the
political ideals of Adolf Hitler. The
Venezuelan leader criticized Chancellor
Angela Merkel for belonging to the
conservative Christian Democratic Union,
calling the movement "the same right
wing that supported Hitler and fascism."
Chavez was on the verge of launching
more insults at Merkel, but suddenly
stopped short. "Ms. Chancellor, you can
go to ..." he said during his weekly
television and radio program, before
pausing. Then he added: "Because you are
a lady, I won't say any more." Chavez
said that Merkel recently urged some
Latin American leaders to avoid forging
ties with Venezuela's government. Her
original comments could not immediately
be confirmed.
Chavez grabbed headlines worldwide in
2006 for calling President Bush "the
devil" in a speech before the U.N.
General Assembly, and has taunted other
leaders including former British Prime
Minister Tony Blair, Spanish King Juan
Carlos and former Mexican President
Vicente Fox. |
|
GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL SAID
AGAIN THAT "CHAVEZ IS NOT THE VOICE OF
LATIN AMERICA"
BERLIN, GERMANY --German Prime Minister Angela Merkel
reacted calmly against the new attack of
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. During
a speech disseminated on Monday in
Berlin, she insisted on saying that the
Venezuelan ruler is not the voice of
Latin America.
Regarding Merkel's statements, Chávez
replied during his radio and TV show "Aló,
Presidente" that the Christian Democrat
Chacellor comes from the same "right
wing that supported Adolf Hitler,
fascism."
"The Venezuelan ruler's statements speak
for themselves," a spokesman of the
German government stated on Monday in
Berlin after claiming that there was
nothing to add to Merkel's original
statements, DPA pointed out. |
|
documents recovered from raul reyes
computers indicate that hugo chavez
helped colombia rebels
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Documents that Colombia says it
recovered from a slain guerrilla leader
give the clearest indication yet that
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez sought
to arm and finance insurgents across the
border. The documents - more than a
dozen internal rebel messages - detail
several years of close cooperation
between top officials in Venezuela's
government and military and the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia,
or FARC, including the construction of
rebel training facilities on Venezuelan
soil.
They also suggest Venezuela was preparing to loan the
rebels at least US$250 million (euro190
million), provide them with Russian
weapons and possibly even help them
obtain surface-to-air missiles for use
against Colombian military aircraft.
Most importantly, they outline a joint
strategic project between Venezuela and
the Colombian rebels, with Venezuela
even seeking rebel training in
"asymmetrical warfare" in preparation
for a feared U.S. invasion.
The documents were shown to The Associated Press
on Friday, days before Interpol is to
issue a report that Colombia's
conservative government hopes will
dispel any doubts about the documents'
authenticity. A U.S. intelligence
official in Washington vouched for the
documents' authenticity, telling the AP
that the Bush administration received
them in March. The official spoke on
condition of anonymity because of the
matter's sensitivity. |
|
BOLIVIAN PRESIDENT EVO MORALES AGREES TO
VOTE OF CONFIDENCE
LA PAZ,
BOLIVIA --
Bolivian President Evo Morales
said Thursday he supports a
congressional decision to hold a
referendum on whether he and his
administration should remain in power
amid a move for autonomy that he
opposes. "Democracy is to be defined at
the ballot box, not through violence,"
Bolivian President Evo Morales says.
"We politicians can't forget that the people decide the
destiny of the country, the presidents,
the prefects," he said in a televised
address from the presidential palace in
La Paz. "Democracy is to be defined at
the ballot box, not through violence,"
he said. "How many times have we said
yes to the ballot box, no to the arms?"
The announcement came shortly after the National
Congress passed the call for a vote, and
a few days after a referendum on
autonomy passed in Santa Cruz, the
nation's richest of nine departments.
The leftist president rejected the Santa
Cruz vote as illegal, and therefore
nonbinding, and criticized its
supporters as opposed to his plan to
share the wealth of their communities
with the rest of the country, which is
the poorest in Latin America. |
|
ANOTHER TOP-RANKING POLICE OFFICER
KILLED IN MEXICO
CIUDAD JUAREZ, MEXICO --The
No. 2 police officer in a Mexican border
city across from Texas was shot
dead Saturday, the latest high-ranking
official killed in an onslaught of
attacks blamed on gangs resisting a
crackdown. Gunman sprayed Juan Antonio
Roman Garcia's car with bullets outside
his home in Ciudad Juarez, officials
said. The attack came months after his
name appeared at the top of a hit list
left at a monument for fallen police
officers.
Mexico has been shaken by a wave of drug-related
violence as gangs battle security forces
and each other for control of
trafficking routes north. The son of
suspected Sinaloa cartel chief Joaquin
Guzman was killed in a shootout Thursday
in another northern city. The same day,
Mexico's acting federal police chief,
Edgar Millan Gomez, was gunned down in
front of his Mexico City home.
President Felipe Calderon said Friday that the
attacks against police showed weakened
gangs were trying to counter his fight
against drug trafficking. Since taking
office in 2006, Mr. Calderon has sent
more than 25,000 soldiers into states
throughout Mexico to combat drug gangs. |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ SUPPORTS EVO MORALES AND
PROMISEs TO KEEP BOLIVIA UNITED
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez Sunday declared that
Bolivia would not be "divided" through a
referendum on the autonomy of central
Santa Cruz state. Chávez made reference
to Bolivia's situation during his weekly
TV and radio show "Aló Presidente". The
Venezuelan ruler even contacted a
reporter of Caracas-based multi-state
television channel Telesur who was
covering the vote.
"We highly regret violence…Who are the
people responsible for these violent
actions? The same occurred in Venezuela:
The culprits were the oligarchic and
fascist groups," he said after Telesur
reported violent clashes in some places
in Santa Cruz. The Venezuelan ruler
branded the low turnout, as pointed out
by the reporter, as a "good sign."
"These attacks from our countries'
desperate oligarchies help strengthen
our peoples' awareness," he stated.
Furthermore, he highlighted that "US
organizations have openly funded
autonomist movements, or rather
separatist movements." "We are certain
that Bolivians will smash the plan to
shatter Bolivia to pieces."
Striking Bolivia amounts to striking
both South America and all the regional
unity efforts that are under way, such
as the Union of South American Nations (Unasur),
as well as the project of Bolivian
President (Evo) Morales," Chávez said.
"In Venezuela, we have said that
Bolivians are resisting and will keep
resisting this aggression." |
|
INTERPOL
TO DISCLOSE REPORT OF AUTHENTICATION OF
RAUL REYE'S COMPUTER FILES
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA --Interpol
is to submit next Thursday, May 15th, to
Colombian authorities a public report
and findings on its forensic analysis of
the informational material seized from
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC), followed by a press conference.
Previously, the Colombian authorities will receive the
confidential version of the report.
Pursuant to an agreement executed with Colombia on
March 12th in Bogotá, the Interpol aid
would include sending a crisis
management taskforce to Bogotá in order
to get exact copies of the data
contained in three laptops, three USB
keys and two external drives.
Afterwards, they would conduct an
independent analysis of the data, said
the agency website. |
|
ZULIA STATE GOVERNOR MANUEL ROSALES
CALLS THE VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION TO
"REMOVE HUGO CHAVEZ FROM THE PRESIDENCY
LEGALLY"
ZULIA, VENEZUELA --
Replying
to pro-government lawmakers' claims
that he was promoting a
separatist movement in northwestern
Zulia state, governor Manuel Rosales
urged opposition groups "to
democratically and legally remove
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez from
the presidency."
During a press conference Thursday, Rosales rejected
Chávez's statements last Sunday, when
the Venezuelan ruler suggested that
separatist plans were under way in
northwestern and southwestern Venezuelan
states. The governor also branded the
accusation as an "absurd affront."
"Secession is in Chávez's mind," Rosales
said. In his opinion, the Venezuelan
ruler is trying to divert people's
attention away from the fact that he is
disregarding the results of a referendum
held last December 2, when his proposed
changes to the Constitution. Further,
Rosales stressed that the Venezuelan
ruler want to continue to waste public
monies to fund foreign countries. |
|
US INTELLIGENCE LINKS HUGO CHAVEZ WITH
THE FARC
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
Officials of the US Intelligence
think that the computer files that tie
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez to the
rebel Colombian Revolutionary Armed
Forces (FARC) are true and accurate,
reported on Friday The Wall Street
Journal.
The files, all of them of 2007, depict meetings between
guerrilla commanders and Venezuelan
government authorities, including
Chávez, according to the daily, based on
the review of more than 100 papers.
"There is complete agreement in the
intelligence community that these
documents are what they purport to be,"
a senior US official told the daily with
regard to the files that, according to
the Colombian government, were taken
from the guerrillas following a raid to
one of their camps.
The files indicate that Venezuela apparently made concrete
offers to help arm the FARC, the daily
said, and also the use of one of its
ports to receive arms shipments. In
another document, a high-ranking
official asked FARC to train Venezuelan
military in guerrilla warfare. |
|
RETIRED
GENERAL RAUL BADUEL FEARS THAT HUGO
CHAVEZ IS EAGER FOR AN INTERNATIONAL
CONFLICT
CARACAS, VENEZUELA --Hugo
Chávez is looking for an
international conflict in an attempt at
refreshing popularity and postpone local
elections next November, said former
Defense Minister, General Raúl Baduel.
"What happens in Bolivia is the Bolivians' own
business," the ex senior officer told
private news TV channel Globivisión, and
added that the agreements entered into
by Bolivia and Venezuela involve the
military only in activities tied to
development instead of belligerent
operations.
Chávez repeated on Thursday that he would not remain
"arm crossed if the empire and its
tokens" succeed in dividing Bolivia and
held responsibility in advance for any
future meddling in the Bolivian internal
affairs. |
|
VENEZUELA RAILS ON THE INTER-AMERICAN
HUMAN RIGHTS COURT AND COMMISSION
SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA --
Attacking
the victims, informers and
fact-finders was the defense strategy
used by Venezuela in a hearing at the
Inter-American Court of Human Rights of
the Organization of American States
(OAS) for the attacks and harassment of
44 journalists, cameraman, and directors
of private news channel Globovisión.
Venezuela's agent before Inter-American organizations
Germán Saltrón accused the
Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights of being "partial," AP and Efe
stated.
The Inter-American organization, based in Washington,
stated that the Venezuelan government
had not taken the measures necessary to
prevent persecutions against
journalists. Consequently, it decided to
sue the Venezuelan government before the
Inter-American court. |
|
PRESIDENT BUSH SAID HUGO CHAVEZ TURNED
VENEZUELA INTO A SAFE HAVEN FOR FARC
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
"To counter the influence of an anti-US
Venezuelan government," US President
George W. Bush advised US
Congress to endorse a Free Trade
Agreement (FTA) with Colombia. However,
his motion is rejected by most
Democratic Party members. Colombian
President Álvaro Uribe "is facing
continued affront from the terrorist
group called (Colombian Revolutionary
Armed Forces) FARC," said Bush. In his
opinion, the Colombian government faces
also the influence of an "anti-US
neighbor, such as Venezuela."
"In the middle of the fight (against FARC) Uribe has been
faced with the setback of the lack of
cooperation from Venezuela -a country
whose soil has become a safe heaven for
FARC units," said Bush. If the ties
between Chávez's government and FARC are
proven true, the US administration could
include Venezuela in the list of
countries sponsor of terrorism, which
comprises Iran, Cuba, North Korea,
Sudan, and Syria.
In a report issued by the US Senate Committee on Foreign
Relations, staff member for Latin
America Carl Meacham -who visited
several countries in Latin America
before presenting his final conclusions-
suggested US lawmakers to act cautiously
to avoid imposing sanctions that may
isolate the United States from Latin
America, particularly in the areas of
trade and cooperation. The report was
submitted to all the US Congress
Senators and leaders of the House of
Representatives. It comprises a more
moderate approach on how the US
government should respond to the
findings of an Interpol investigation
into the computers confiscated after the
attack against rebel FARC in Ecuador.
|
|
RETIRED
GENERAL RAUL BADUEL SAID THAT HUGO
CHAVEZ IS INCITING AN INSURRECTION IN
VENEZUELA
CARACAS, VENEZUELA --BRetired
General Raúl Isaías Baduel, a
former Defense Minister, accused
Venezuelan President Chávez of inciting
insurrection in Venezuela.
Baduel claimed that President Chávez's latest moves,
such as plans to introduce a new
syllabus, dismantle decentralization,
and develop a socialist economic plan,
as well as the recent statements made by
senior military officers, bear witness
to the Venezuelan ruler's intentions.
Baduel stressed Chávez is pushing his intended changes
to the Constitution -which were rejected
by the Venezuelan people in a vote last
December 2. According to Chávez's ex
Defense Minister, the Venezuelan ruler
has been illegally enforcing a number of
regulations provided under such reform.
In Baduel's view, Chávez has implemented
such moves with the support of the
remaining Venezuelan state's branches
which, he claimed, are subordinate to
the president's will. |
|
ACTING CHIEF OF MEXICO'S FEDERAL POLICE
SHOT DEAD IN THE CAPITAL
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO --
The
Public Safety Department said Edgar
Millan Gomez was shot 10 times
and died hours later in a hospital. Two
of his bodyguards were wounded. A police
official, who was not authorized to give
his name, said Millan had been
temporarily heading the federal police
since his superior was promoted to a
deputy Cabinet position on March 1.
Police have arrested a suspect with a record of car theft but
have not yet determined a motive for the
pre-dawn attack Thursday. The official
said police were investigating possible
drug links. Mexico has suffered a wave
of organized crime and drug-related
violence in which more than 2,500 people
died last year alone. Millan was in
charge of coordinating drug operations
with the military. Since taking office
in 2006, President Felipe Calderon has
sent more than 24,000 troops to drug
hotspots. Cartels have lashed back,
killing soldiers and federal police.
Millan was the second top federal police official
killed in less than a week in Mexico
City. A Mexican federal police
intelligence analyst was killed on May 2
in an apparent armed robbery attempt
outside his home. In January, police in
Mexico City arrested three men armed
with assault rifles and grenade
launchers who were allegedly planning to
assassinate Jose Luis Santiago
Vasconcelos, a top prosecutor who
oversees the extradition of drug
traffickers. |
|
PRESIDENT BUSH SAYS THAT RAUL CASTRO'S
REFORMS ARE ONLY "EMPTY GESTURES"
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH said Wednesday
that Cuba's post-Fidel Castro leadership
has made only "empty gestures at reform"
and rejected calls for easing of U.S.
restrictions on the communist island.
"Until there is a change of heart and a
change of compassion and a change of how
the Cuban government treats its people,
there's no change at all," Bush said at
the State Department to the Council of
Americas, a business group that
advocates for democracy and open markets
in the Western Hemisphere. "Cuba will
not be a land of liberty so long as free
expression is punished and free speech
can take place only in hushed whispers
and silent prayers. And Cuba will not
become a place of prosperity just by
easing restrictions on the sale of
products that the average Cuban cannot
afford."
The White House also said Wednesday that the president spoke
by videoconference this week with
democratic activists in Cuba, an
unprecedented move that may enrage the
Castro government. The developments are
part of a stepped-up effort by Bush to
talk about Cuba and press for political
change since Fidel Castro officially
stepped down in February after nearly a
half-century ruling the island. Fidel's
brother, Raul, took over as president in
the ailing leader's place, and has
unveiled a series of changes in Cuba
since then, from raising salaries to
dropping irritating limits on what
Cubans can buy and sell.
Bush has stressed that a new Castro does not mean a new
Cuba, and he did so again on Wednesday.
He said Cuba's government must allow
Cubans "to pick their own leaders in
free and fair elections," release all
political prisoners and respect human
rights "in word and deed." "This is the
policy of the United States and it must
not change until the people of Cuba are
free," the president said. In the
teleconference that occurred Tuesday,
Bush spoke with Martha Beatriz Roque,
one of the 75 pro-democracy activists
arrested in a 2003 crackdown for
offenses against the Castro regime;
Berta Soler, the wife of an activist
still jailed for treason, and Jorge Luis
Garcia Perez, who was released last year
after 17 years in prison. |
|
U.S. SENATE COMMITTEE DEEMS IT
RISKY LINKING HUGO CHAVEZ WITH TERRORISM
WASHINGTON, D.C. --The
US government should take care of
its influence in Latin America if it is
going to take unilateral actions against
Venezuela in the event of proving any
links between Venezuelan President Hugo
Chávez and the Colombian Revolutionary
Armed Forces (FARC), said a report of
the US Senate.
Some lawmakers, particularly Republicans, have
requested to add the government of
Chávez, an outspoken critic of
Washington, to a list of countries that
sponsor terrorism. A decision in this
regard could lead to multiple, even
economic, sanctions on Venezuela.
However, a 49-page report accessed by Reuters warns
that taking such decision without the
support of organizations such as the
Organization of American States, could
be counterproductive for the United
States. The report was authored by Carl
Meacham, advisor to Senator Richard
Lugar, the highest ranking Republican in
the US Senate Committee on Foreign
Relations. |
|
COLOMBIAN TRADE UNION ASKS HUGO CHAVEZ
TO RECONSIDER RESTRICTION PLACED ON THE
IMPORT OF VEHICLES
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA --The
trade union of workers of the Colombian
automotive industry asked Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez on Tuesday to
reconsider a restriction placed on the
import of vehicles that has led already
to the dismissal of 5,000 employees from
Colombian assembly plants.
"We are facing a critical situation, because if things
continue this way, dismissals will
increase," Guillermo Charca, the trade
union leader, told reporters, AFP
quoted. Charca said that he asked the
Venezuelan president to change up his
mind to prevent the layoffs and
subsequent hunger among thousand
Colombian families.
The Venezuelan government set a quota beginning this
year that limits to 160,000 units the
number of imported vehicles, 20,000 of
which come from Colombia. In 2007, that
country exported 60,000 cars to
Venezuela. |
|
3,500
U.S. TROOPS SET TO LEAVE IRAQ IN COMING
WEEKS
BAGHDAD,
IRAQ --
About 3,500 American soldiers who
were part of last summer's troop "surge"
are scheduled to leave Iraq in the
coming weeks, the U.S. military said.
The soldiers, part of the 3rd Heavy
Brigade Combat Team, will redeploy to
Fort Benning, Georgia, said a statement
released late Monday. The U.S. sent some
30,000 additional troops into Iraq last
summer to help stem growing violence.
Those troops, along with the rise of Sunni
fighters who allied with the U.S. and
began battling al-Qaida and a truce
called by a key Shiite militia, were
credited with a sharp decrease in
violence during the last 10 months. The
soldiers are part of the third of five
"surge" brigades scheduled to redeploy.
The other two are expected to return to
the U.S. by the end of July.
"The continued drawdown of surge brigades demonstrates
continued progress in Iraq," Brig. Gen.
Dan Allyn said in the statement. "After
July, commanders will assess our
security posture for about 45 days and
determine future force requirements
based on these conditions-based
assessments." The so-called "pause" in
the further redeployment of U.S. troops
was pushed by Gen. David Petraeus, the
top U.S. commander in Iraq, when he
spoke before Congress last month. |
|
U.S. SENATE COMMITTEE PROBES HUGO CHAVEZ
WASHINGTON, D.C. --
The US Senate Committee on Foreign
Relations ponders to penalize
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez if the
ties between Venezuela and the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) are
proven.
This is the main conclusion gotten from a document prepared
by the Committee and disclosed by
newspaper El Tiempo.com. Such
report recommends including Venezuela in
the list of terrorist countries as the
authenticity of Raúl Reyes' computer
files was confirmed.
If this suggestion is accepted, "US legislators must
ensure that laws are made carefully
based on a flexible approach. Thus, they
can guarantee that penalizations affect
Chávez, and do not strengthen his
chances to manipulate public opinion in
his favor, both in Venezuela and South
America," ElTiempo.com reported. |
|
BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT LUIZ LULA DA SILVA
READY TO HELP US CALM HUGO CHAVEZ DOWN
RIO DE
JANEIRO, BRAZIL --
In March 2005, Brazilian President Luiz
Inácio Lula da Silva offered the US
government to help soothe Hugo Chávez
and defuse the tension in Bolivia with
the impending takeover of Evo Morales,
said on Tuesday a Brazilian newspaper.
The then Brazilian Chief of Staff José Dirceu conveyed the
proposal to US Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice, according to a
telegram sent from Washington to the US
embassy in Brasilia and accessed by
daily newspaper Valor, Efe reported. The
telegram, to which the economic daily
asked for access after having expired
the legal secrecy term, is the abstract
of a conversation held by Rice and
Dirceu on March 3rd, 2005 in Washington.
At that time, Dirceu was viewed as the
Brazilian President's right hand. Later
on, he was forced to resign amidst a
corruption scandal.
In the conversation, according to the paper quoted by the
daily, Rice said that Brazil should cash
in on its influence on the hemisphere to
send Chávez a "clear message." |
|
bad
news for hugo chavez -- interpol
confirms authenticity of raul reyes's
computer files
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA -- The
information found in the
computers of the deceased leader of the
rebel Colombian Revolutionary Armed
Forces (FARC), Raúl Reyes, was not
manipulated by Colombian authorities,
according to an Interpol's report to be
released next May 15, as disclosed by
Bogota El Tiempo daily newspaper.
The report stated that a committee comprising computer
science experts from Korea, Australia,
and Singapore working for the
International Criminal Police
Organization (Interpol) completed last
May 2 the investigation into the three
computers found in Reyes' camp in
Ecuador, Efe reported.
"The first finding was that Reyes' files were not
manipulated and that security agencies
and citizens who had the computer in
their hands kept them safe," the
Colombian newspaper stated.
|
|
VENEZUELA
JOINS THE LIST OF COUNTRIES WITH POOR
PRESS FREEDOM
WASHINGTON, D.C. --
The conditions to practice journalism
and press freedom have worsened
in 11 Latin American countries in 2007,
according to the first report of the
Observatory in Defense of Freedom of
Expression, promoted by UNESCO Chair in
Communications, at Malaga University.
The most dramatic revelation of such deterioration is
the murder of 18 communications
professionals last year, according to
the numbers provided by the Federation
of Journalists in Latin America and the
Caribbean (FEPALC) and included in the
report. The paper highlights that there
are other reasons to reach barely
hopeful conclusions, Efe quoted.
Reasons include the gradual monopolization of the media
in Venezuela, the government use of
advertising for political purposes in
Argentina, or the dangerous state of
affairs imposed by Colombian guerillas
and drug trafficking in Mexico. |
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ZULIA
STATE GOVERNOR MANUEL ROSALES DENIES
SEPARATIST PLAN REPORTED BY HUGO CHAVEZ
ZULIA,
VENEZUELA --
Zulia
state governor Manuel Rosales
denied on Monday an alleged plot,
reported by Venezuelan President Hugo
Chávez, to create a "territorial half
moon," or an autonomous state along with
other western states of Venezuela.
"We do not want a half moon, but a full moon, which is
Venezuela. We want to take it to the way
of progress and development," Rosales
told Venezuelan radio station Unión
Radio, as quoted by Efe.
After lambasting a move "to break Bolivia into pieces,"
Chávez stated on Sunday that he had
collected information in Washington and
Miami about "the United States and its
lackeys" plan to unleash "a major
internal conflict" in Venezuela next
year. |
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PRO
GOVERNMENT PEASANT GROUPS BURNED BALLOT
BOXES SUNDAY IN SANTA CRUZ'S AUTONOMY
REFERENDUM
SANTA
CRUZ, BOLIVIA --
Pro-government peasant groups are
being blamed for burning dozens of
ballot boxes Sunday in Bolivia's largest
state of Santa Cruz, where voters are
casting their ballots in an autonomy
referendum. 1 of 2 The violence has
been described as isolated by Santa
Cruz's provincial Gov. Ruben Costas, who
had warned of attempts to subvert the
vote.
In addition to the destroyed ballot boxes,
pro-government groups blocked roads and
attacked polling stations in the
districts of San Julian and Yapacani,
according to local media reports and
video of the incidents. It's unclear
what effect the incidents will have on
the outcome of the referendum.
Costas said he would hold the government of President
Evo Morales responsible for any acts of
violence surrounding the controversial
vote. A Bolivian government minister
said his government will not recognize
Sunday's referendum on autonomy in
Bolivia's largest state, calling it
"illegal and unconstitutional." "This is
the official position of Bolivia and
will absolutely not change," Minister
Alfredo Rada said in an interview with a
Bolivian television channel Saturday
evening. |
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POLLING ENDED IN VIOLENCE-MARRED
AUTONOMY VOTE IN SANTA CRUZ
SANTA CRUZ, BOLIVIA --
Polling ended Sunday in an
autonomy vote in Bolivia's richest
province of Santa Cruz that was marred
by violence between supporters of the
move and indigenous backers of President
Evo Morales, who called the poll
illegal.
At least 20 people were injured in the clashes in the
east of the country, the chief of staff
in Bolivia's government, Alfredo Rada,
told reporters in La Paz. The referendum
aimed at adopting statutes that would
give relatively prosperous Santa Cruz
authorities control over their province
and the right to create their own
security force.
Those two issues are key, because the eastern region
sits atop the country's biggest gas
fields that are crucial to the economy
in Bolivia, South America's poorest
nation. But Morales described the
autonomy push unconstitutional, and
vowed to ignore it. His military chiefs
also warned they viewed it as a threat
to the nation's territorial integrity.
Three other neighboring opposition-run
provinces are to hold their own autonomy
votes next month, and two more are
thinking of following suit. |
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BOLIVIA'S RICHEST REGION OF SANTA CRUZ
VOTES OVERWHELMINGLY "YES" ON AUTONOMY
SANTA
CRUZ, BOLIVIA --
Bolivia's richest region of Santa Cruz
voted overwhelmingly for autonomy on
Sunday in a vote widely seen as a
rejection of President Evo Morales'
leftist reforms, exit polls showed. The
vote was the first of four referendums
on greater autonomy from central
government being planned by Bolivia's
eastern lowland provinces, deepening a
divide between Morales' supporters and
the conservative opposition.
According to the pollster Focaliza cited by local television,
Santa Cruz residents voted 86 percent in
favor of autonomy and 14 percent
against. The result had been widely
expected because Morales backers vowed
to boycott the polls and the exit polls
did not estimate turnout. On the streets
of Santa Cruz city, residents honked car
horns as they celebrated victory in a
referendum that Morales had branded as
illegal.
The referendum theoretically gives Santa Cruz's
conservative leaders more control over
natural resources that include fertile
farmland and about 10 percent of
Bolivia's oil and natural gas reserves.
Despite Morales' rejection of the
validity of the ballot, the resounding
"yes" vote could force him to negotiate
with his opponents in Santa Cruz and
three other pro-autonomy regions in
Bolivia's eastern lowlands.
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CUBAN-AMERICAN
BUSINESSMAN KIDNAPPED IN PANAMA CITY
PANAMA CITY,
PANAMA --
The attorney general's office
said three police officers have been
arrested in connection with the
abduction of Cecilio Padron, and
authorities are searching for two other
suspects. The officers face charges of
depriving someone of their freedom, a
less serious charge than kidnapping
because no ransom has been requested,
officials said.
Luis Martínez, a top federal police investigator,
declined to give details, saying only
that Padron, 66, was kidnapped April 4.
He was last seen in an exclusive
residential section in Panama City,
where he has lived for several years.
A police spokesman said that a Colombian reportedly was the
mastermind behind the kidnapping. He
would not say more and Martinez declined
to comment on the nationalities of those
involved. The director of the judicial
police, Ayu Prado, has said Padron's
relatives told him they were contacted
by his captors who indicated Padron is
alive. Padron is a member of the board
of directors of the Cuban American
National Foundation, a politically
influential organization based in
Florida that lobbies for U.S. pressure
on the Cuban government of Fidel and
Raul Castro. |
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BILL CRACKING DOWN ON CUBA-TRAVEL
AGENCIES APPROVED BOTH THE HOUSE AND
SENATE OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA --
With three days left in the legislative
session, Rep. David Rivera, a
Miami Republican, was able to pass a
controversial measure targeting travel
agencies specializing in trips to Cuba.
Florida-based travel agents selling
trips to Cuba -- or any country on the
U.S. State Department's list of
terrorist nations -- will have to pay up
to $2,500 in registration fees to the
state and provide up to $300,000 in bond
money under Rivera's measure, which
cleared both the House and the Senate
Wednesday night. The bill still must be
approved by Gov. Charlie Crist.
Rivera's bill, sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Carey
Baker, a Eustis Republican, passed
despite the protests of several
Miami-based travel agents who visited
the Capitol to lambaste the measure as
''political pandering.'' Several
lawmakers questioned the need for state
regulation of the agencies, which are
already monitored by the federal
government.
''This bill has little to do with terrorism.... This
will make it more difficult and
expensive for Cubans in my district to
visit their families, their loved ones,
in Cuba,'' said Rep. Michael Scionti, a
Tampa Democrat. Rivera has said the bill
is necessary because the travel agencies
are ``business partners with the Castro
regime.'' ''Ninety miles from the United
States there's a country that harbors
cop killers, drug traffickers, and
terrorists.... Do not support these
terrorists,'' Rivera told House members
Wednesday night. |
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HUGO
CHAVEZ DISREGARDS US REPORT ON WORLD
TERRORISM
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez said the United
States "did not get the satisfaction" of
including Venezuela in the list of
countries sponsor of terrorism.
Chávez disregarded the US State Department report on
global terrorism, AP reported. "The
United States did not get the
satisfaction of including Venezuela in
the list of countries sponsor of
terrorism. But they will keep working on
that," Chávez said.
Iran, Chávez's allied country, remains the "most
active" state sponsor of terrorism, as
it tries to build up regional influence
and expel the United States from the
Middle East, according to the report,
which labeled Iran as "the most
outstanding" country sponsor of
terrorism.
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CHINA BUILDS SECRET NUCLEAR SUBMARINE
BASE IN SOUTH CHINA SEA
LONDON,
ENGLAND
--
CHINA has secretly built an underground
nuclear submarine base in the South
China Sea, posing a new threat to powers
in the region, the Daily Telegraph has
reported. Satellite photos of the base
obtained show a large harbor and massive
tunnels that defense experts say could
shelter as many as 20 nuclear subs,
according to the Telegraph.
The base, centrally located along a major sea route and just
a few hundred miles from neighbors, may
pose a threat to U.S. naval dominance of
the region.
Analysts for Jane's Intelligence Review,
a defense magazine, said that the secret
base could allow Chinese subs to "break
out to launch locations closer to the
U.S.," according to the Telegraph. The
base has immediate access to very deep
waters, which would make launched
submarines very difficult to detect.
The Defense Department has estimated that by 2010 China will
have five operational 094-class nuclear
submarines capable of carrying 12
nuclear missiles each, the paper
reported.
Some military analysts believe this
secret build-up of forces by the Chinese
government is speeding up even as it
presents a far different face in public
as it prepares for the 2008 Beijing
Olympics, the newspaper reported. |
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US MISSILE STRIKE KILLS REPUTED AL-QAIDA
LEADER IN SOMALIA
MOGADISHU, SOMALIA --
U.S.
missiles destroyed the house of
the man identified by the U.S. military
as the top al-Qaida commander in
Somalia, killing him and 10 others
Thursday in a pre-dawn attack that
analysts warned could torpedo peace
talks. The killing of Aden Hashi Ayro
comes amid escalating fighting and a
spiraling humanitarian crisis in the
Horn of Africa nation.
Islamic fighters have staged a series of attacks on
towns in the months leading up to the
U.N.-sponsored talks, scheduled to start
May 10. The insurgents typically hold
the towns for a few hours, free people
from jails, then withdraw with captured
weapons. Somali government officials
have said Ayro, who was believed to be
in his 30s, trained in Afghanistan
before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks on the United States and headed
al-Qaida's cell in Somalia.
Few Somalis had heard of him before 2005, when Ayro
desecrated a colonial Italian cemetery
in Mogadishu, throwing hundreds of
exhumed corpses into the sea. He then
built a mosque on the site and began
training fighters there - many of whom
would be eager to take his place. An
International Crisis Group report linked
Ayro to the murders of four foreign aid
workers, a British journalist and Somali
peace activist Abdulqadir Yahya. |
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COMPUTERS GO ON SALE TO GENERAL PUBLIC
IN CUBA FOR FIRST TIME
HAVANA,
CUBA -- Cubans
are getting wired. Computers went on
sale to the general public on the
communist island on Friday and potential
consumers were lining up outside store
windows to gawk and consider buying.
Cuban dictator Raul Castro had authorized the sale of
personal computers to average Cubans
more than a month ago, but they were not
made available until Friday. Computer
sales are the latest of a series of
measures Castro has taken to make life
easier for ordinary Cubans.
The new government also has erased bans on cell phones
and luxury hotel room rentals, and has
made it easier for state workers to own
homes they once rented as part of their
jobs. It also is letting more private
farmers and cooperatives take a crack at
putting fallow government land to better
use. |
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DOCUMENTS RETRIEVED FROM RAUL REYES'
LAPTOPS REVEALED THAT HUGO CHAVEZ SOUGHT
FARC FOR TRAINING
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA
--
HUGO CHAVEZ
asked Colombia's main leftist guerrilla
group to ''share its experience in
guerrilla warfare,'' citing a possible
U.S. invasion. A senior Colombian
official said the documents were
retrieved from a computer belonging to
Raúl Reyes, the FARC leader killed March
1 in a Colombian military strike on a
rebel hide-out in neighboring Ecuador.
In one of the e-mails someone who signs as ''Iván''
tells the Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia's main leadership, known as the
Secretariat, that the request for
military cooperation came from the
minister of the interior of Venezuela,
Ramón Rodríguez Chacín. The senior
Colombian official -- who requested
anonymity as a condition to discuss the
documents -- identified ''Iván'' as Iván
Márquez, a member of the Secretariat.
The authenticity of the documents could not be
independently confirmed. Colombian
authorities said the documents survived
the bombing at the rebel camp because
the computers were protected by metal
casings. The Colombian government has
asked Interpol to verify the
authenticity of the files, and results
are expected soon. According to one
e-mail exchange, Rodríguez Chacín sought
extensive training. |
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HUGO CHAVEZ NATIONALIZES SIDOR
CARACAS, VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez initialed a
decree-law that nationalizes steelmaker
Siderúrgica de Orinoco, Sidor. The
announcement was made on Wednesday night
during a ceremony held to commemorate
the Labor Day.
Chávez stated that the law would be submitted for endorsement
by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice. He
added that a commission would be
entrusted with the task of taking
control of the company.
Negotiations with the Argentinean holding Techint,
which has the control over Ternium, have
continued so far to settle the
compensation for the assets of the
largest steelmaker in the Andean region
and the Caribbean. President Chávez
requested unity from all revolutionary
trade unions and all workers to build up
the Bolivarian socialism. |
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HUGO CHAVEZ ALLOWS IRANIANS AND SYRIANS
TO SKIP TRAVEL PROCEDURES
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA -- HUGO
CHAVEZ is allowing passengers on direct
flight from Damascus and Tehran to enter
without proper screening, a State
Department report on counterterrorism
released Wednesday says. The report,
which examines terrorism trends
worldwide, also criticizes Venezuela for
its friendly ties with Cuba and Iran and
notes Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's
''ideological sympathy'' for the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia,
or FARC -- a group seeking to overthrow
the Colombian government.
Venezuela and Iran established the weekly flights with
Syria and Iran in March of last year and
passengers arriving at the Simón Bolívar
International Airport were ``not subject
to immigration and customs control.''
Venezuela's U.S. Ambassador Bernardo
Alvarez denied the accusations.
''Everybody who enters Venezuela must
present documents,'' he said.
The Venezuela-Iran-Syria flight has raised alarm bells
among U.S. officials given that
Venezuela, unlike Canada, Mexico and
many Caribbean nations, refuses to
provide advance lists of passengers so
U.S. authorities can cross-check them
with U.S. terror suspect lists. |
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U.S.
TERROR LIST DOES NOT INCLUDE VENEZUELA
WASHINGTON, D.C. --
While the report says it
"remained unclear to what extent the
Venezuelan government provided support
to Colombian terrorist organizations,"
it notes that Venezuelan weapons stocks
have turned up in the hands of Colombian
terrorist organizations. It also notes
that Iran and Venezuela began weekly
flights between their capitals and the
passengers were not subject to proper
checks. Among the passengers was a
suspect in the plot to bomb New York's
John F. Kennedy International Airport.
"Venezuelan citizenship, identity, and travel documents
remained easy to obtain, making
Venezuela a potentially attractive way
station for terrorists," the report
says. Once again, the report says, Iran
"remained the most active state sponsor
of terrorism." "Elements of its Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps were directly
involved in the planning and support of
terrorist acts throughout the region and
continued to support a variety of groups
in their use of terrorism to advance
their common regional goals," it says,
citing the group's support for
Hezbollah, Hamas, Iraq-based militants,
and Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
The report says that despite promises to stabilize Iraq, Iran
"continued to provide lethal support,
including weapons, training, funding,
and guidance, to some Iraqi militant
groups that target coalition and Iraqi
security forces and Iraqi civilians." |
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VENEZUELAN
FORMER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE GENERAL RAUL
BADUEL SAID THE ARMY IS WORRIED
MADRID, SPAIN --
The Venezuelan army is
"concerned" and some commanders "have
already thought about a violent action,"
said retired General and former Minister
of Defense Raúl Isaías Baduel.
"The Venezuelan army is concerned. I say so upon sound
grounds because I have permanent
contacts, especially with medium-ranking
officers of the armed forces," said
Baduel in an interview published on
Wednesday by Spanish newspaper "El País."
Baduel, who was appointed Ministry of Defense in July
2006 and then removed in July 2007,
pointed out that could confirm, during
that period, that "the Venezuelan
president's only pretension was to
perpetuate his power and handle public
and oil revenues arbitrarily."
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MAJOR BLACKOUT HITS MOST REGIONS IN
VENEZUELA
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Minister of the Interior and Justice
Ramón Rodríguez Chacín Tuesday
informed that a major blackout hitting
most of Venezuela at 3:59 pm (local
time) was the result of a power outage
in Guri dam, in southern Bolívar state,
which caused a 800-KW high tension line
to overheat. "Because of such
overheating, another high-tension line
that was operating had to be brought out
of service, in order to make the
necessary repairs. When the second
high-tension line was brought out of
service, a blackout occurred in 13
states nationwide. Power supply has been
resumed progressively."
The states most seriously hit were central Carabobo
state, northwestern Zulia state,
northern Miranda state, north central
Capital District, north central coastal
Vargas state, eastern Nueva Esparta
state, eastern Sucre state, central
Aragua state, western central Yaracuy
state, northwestern Lara state,
southwestern Mérida state, southern
central Portuguesa state and y
southwestern Apure state.
According to Rodríguez Chacín, no serious emergencies
emerged amidst the blackout in hospitals
and the Caracas subway other than power
outage. In a hospital in Coche,
southwest Caracas, the standby
powerhouse would not operate, "but an
auxiliary power plant was installed
already to face any problems." Power
supply is expected to be restored fully
Tuesday night. "Some substations are
likely to take two hours until power
fully restores." He asked Venezuelans to
be patient, as the blackout was caused
by "mechanical problems" that "will be
solved soon." |
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