www.latintrade.com 02/20/2003 - Source: Latin American Newsletters

The Venezuelan authorities have issued an arrest warrant for the trade union leader Carlos Ortega, who helped lead a nine-week business strike against the government. The move follows the arrest of Venezuela's top business leader Carlos Fernández in the early hours of this morning.

Both men have been accused of 'civil rebellion, treason, incitement to crime, conspiracy and devastation', in a court summons issued at the request of the public prosecutor yesterday.

Carlos Fernández, the president of the business federation, Fedecámaras, was arrested by the intelligence services (Disip) leaving a restaurant in Caracas last night. He is being held in the police headquarters and has been seen by lawyers and his wife, who says he is physically well. Under Venezuelan law, he must appear in court within 48 hours.

Ortega, the president of Colombia's largest trade union confederation, the CTV, declared today that he would not hand himself in to the authorities, but would instead go into hiding. Ortega told 'Unión Radio' that the opposition would call an urgent meeting to discuss how to respond to 'this terrorist escalation by the government'. He said the opposition would call street demonstrations and appeal to the international community.

www.voanews.com Phil Gunson Caracas 20 Feb 2003, 16:26 UTC

Listen to Phil Gunson's report (RealAudio)   Gunson report - Download 224k (RealAudio)  

Venezuelan opposition leader Carlos Fernandez has been detained by armed men believed to be secret police. Opposition leaders called for protests in support of Mr. Fernandez, one of the organizers of a two-month anti-government strike. Mr. Fernandez is charged with treason and criminal conspiracy.

Carlos Fernandez, president of Venezuela's main business organization, Fedecamaras, was one of three main leaders of the two-month-long strike against the government of President Hugo Chavez.

Mr. Chavez has accused the leaders of the strike - which remains in effect in the economically crucial oil industry - of sabotage and of seeking to overthrow his government by force.

AP Opposition members waving national flags yell "Freedom for Carlos Fernandez" while blocking a street in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2003During his regular Sunday morning television and radio program this week, the president exhorted judges and public prosecutors to take action against the organizers of the work stoppage.

Two other strike leaders, Carlos Ortega of the main trade union confederation, the CTV, and former oil industry executive Juan Fernandez, have been warned to turn themselves in, or face arrest in similar circumstances.

Although government officials were slow to comment, the judge who claims to have issued the arrest warrant for Carlos Fernandez listed a series of charges against him. These include treason, rebellion and criminal conspiracy.

According to spokesmen for Fedecamaras, the armed men who detained the business leader presented neither identification nor an arrest warrant. They fired into the air to disperse a small crowd, before taking Mr. Fernandez away.

Leaders of the opposition umbrella group, the Democratic Coordinator, were quick to condemn the reported arrest as arbitrary and illegal.

The seizure of Carlos Fernandez comes just days after the torture and murder of three soldiers and a young woman involved in a four-month-old anti-government protest by military officers in a Caracas square. The circumstances of those murders have yet to be clarified.

The Washington-based organization, Human Rights Watch, has called on the government to carry out a full and impartial investigation of the murders, and to protect a teenage witness who was also seriously injured.

allafrica.com February 19, 2003 Posted to the web February 20, 2003 Augustine Beecher Freetown

The Management of the three major oil importing companies in the country, National Petroleum Company, Safecom and Mobil Sierra Leone Ltd. have decided to make price increases on their petroleum products with immediate effect.

The increases, which were announced during a press briefing yesterday, 17th February 2003 at the NP House in Freetown by the managers of the three oil importing companies in the country, were made in recognition of the changes that have taken place in the oil market since increase were last efected locally in October last year.

According to Mr. Vincent Kanu, Managing Director of the National Petroleum Company, the shortage experienced by the nation in the past weeks has been a result of negative development on the world oil market, prominent among which are the United States proposed war with Iraq (between the biggest oil consumer in the world and one of the biggest oil producers), the three-month long strike by oil workers in Venezuela, and the ongoing political crisis in the Ivory Coast.

These factors have not only led to a shortage of oil products on the local and world iol markets, the NP Managing Director said, but has also forced the prices of these products upwards.

With regards to the local market, Mr. Kanu disclosed that since December when the prices began to go up on the world market, two major local oil companies NP and Mobil have incurred over Le2 (two billion leones) due to their refusal to increase prices on the local market.

They have however been forced to increase prices this time, not because of their insensitivity to the plight of the people, which is always paramount, but because they can not continue to take the losses associated with the uncertainties of the oil industry.

The three local oil companies have hence decided, without any interference from the government, to increase the prices of basic petroleum products with immediate effect.

In this regard, Petrol now cost Le6, 050 (six thousand and fifty leones); Diesel, Le 6, 000 (six thousand leones); Kerosene, Le4, 750 (four thousand seven hundred and fifty leones) and Fueloil at Le3, 305 (three thousand three hundred and five leones).

The oil officials explained that to arrive at the current prices, both the local exchange rate and the international market price for oil were considered, along with the state of the current world events and the impact of the increases on the general populace.

The companies also consulted and collaborated with the Petroleum Unit, which is supposed to monitor the local oil industry operations, in their decision to make the price increases.

In a public announcement, the companies assured the public of the industry's commitment to rendering reliable and effective service at all times, and apologized for the temporary disruption in the supply of petrol to the public.

The officials present at the briefing were Mr. Vicent Kanu of the National Petroleum Company, Mr. Quincy Hegan, General Manager of Mobil Sierra Leone Limited, Mr. A.B. Ndoeka, Managing Director of Safecon, and Mr.

Tunde Cole of National Petroleum.

houston.bizjournals.com 11:50 AM CST Thursday 

ConocoPhillips on Thursday said it had proved reserves of 7.8 billion barrels of oil equivalent at the end of 2002, 600 million barrels of oil equivalent below 2001 pro forma figures.

The Houston-based company said its reserves would also continue to rise in the years to come as it looks to add to its reserves during 2003 from overseas ventures including Kazakhstan, Venezuela and its Ekofisk program in Norway.

ConocoPhillips, which has field developments in Alaska, Canada, China and Indonesia, also has substantial known (natural) gas resources awaiting commercialization including the Brass (liquefied natural gas) project in Nigeria, development of the Sunrise field in the Timor Sea, and Arctic gas from Alaska's North Slope.

ConocoPhillips could also see increased reserves in 2003 if Australia ratifies the Timor Sea Treaty, which would open up the Bayu-Undan gas export project in East Timor, according to the release.

www.voanews.com VOA News 20 Feb 2003, 17:37 UTC

Venezuela's secret police have seized a business leader who helped organize a lengthy anti-government strike, prompting the opposition to call for renewed protests.

Eight men stormed a restaurant in eastern Caracas Wednesday night and took the head of the Fedecamaras business group, Carlos Fernandez, into custody. The gunmen fired shots into the air to keep protesters back as they took Mr. Fernandez away from a restaurant in the Las Mercedes commercial district.

Mr. Fernandez's wife says her husband is being detained at the secret police headquarters and is meeting with his lawyers.

Judge Maikel Jose Moreno ordered the arrest of Mr. Fernandez and union leader Carlos Ortega on various charges including organizing the strike, treason, and civil rebellion. Officials have not yet taken Mr. Ortega into custody.

The Associated Press reports hundreds of demonstrators have taken to the streets of Caracas and other cities to protest the arrest.

The incident happened one day after government and opposition negotiators signed a deal to end the country's political violence. Opposition groups in all but the country's oil sector ended their two-month long strike on February third.