STEPHEN IXER, <a href=www.sfgate.com>SFGate.com-Associated Press Writer Sunday, April 13, 2003
(04-13) 18:33 PDT CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) --

President Hugo Chavez looked beyond Venezuela's simmering political crisis Sunday to celebrate the first anniversary of his return to power following a brief military coup.

The festivities came one day after a bomb ripped through the building where Venezuela's government and opposition have been negotiating a proposed referendum on Chavez's presidency.

No one was injured in the pre-dawn blast but it renewed tensions in Venezuela just as rival groups appeared to be close to resolving some political differences.

Chavez addressed tens of thousands of his supporters gathered on a central Caracas avenue after presiding over the closing ceremony of an international forum in support of his so-called "Bolivarian Revolution."

"Nobody is leaving! We will stay for ever, fighting battles," Chavez said to the cheering crowd. He promised to remain in power until 2021.

Chavez railed against global imperialism and "savage neoliberalism," and claimed the coup against him had been promoted by foreign interests and carried out by "the fascist oligarchy" within Venezuela.

"God bless April 13," Chavez said. "A miraculous day, the miracle of the start of the century. The first great victory of the people this century in the whole world."

Ricardo Perez, a 62-year old carpenter waiting to hear Chavez at the rally, said he was glad Chavez's left-wing movement was not toppled for good.

"Those days (of the coup) were terrible for the country. Thank God the loyal armed forces managed to restore democracy," Perez said as Venezuelan folk music blared out from huge loudspeakers and barbecue smoke drifted over the crowd.

Chavez was ousted by dissident military generals after 19 people were killed during an opposition demonstration on April 11, 2002. Pedro Carmona, a businessman who swore himself in as president the next day, immediately dissolved the National Assembly, the Supreme Court and the constitution.

A popular backlash against the coup began and thousands converged on the presidential palace to demand Chavez's return to office. Carmona resigned on April 13 and loyalist troops restored Chavez to power in the early hours of the 14th.

Chavez promised to reconcile the deeply divided population but never succeeded. The opposition began a two-month strike in December demanding early elections or Chavez's resignation. The strike briefly crippled Venezuela's crucial oil industry and cost the country $6 billion.

The Organization of American States announced Friday that the two sides agreed to pave the way for a midterm referendum on Chavez's presidency. The OAS has been sponsoring the peace talks since November.

OAS Secretary General Cesar Gaviria said Friday the agreement would be signed after Easter, but Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said the deal still awaits Chavez's approval.

In the document, both sides agree to play by the rules as the opposition works toward a midterm referendum on Chavez's presidency. The government said it will not obstruct such a vote.

But tensions have heated up again since Saturday's bombing, with each side blaming the other of being behind the attack that destroyed three floors of the Caracas building.

An opposition negotiator said the blast was intended to intimidate his delegation at the talks, while the government blamed "coup-plotting" sectors of the opposition.

Chavez, elected to a six-year term in 2000, accuses Venezuela's traditional elite of seeking his ouster and foiling his efforts to distribute Venezuela's oil riches to the poor.

His opposition accuses the former army paratrooper of imposing an authoritarian regime and ruining the economy.

<a href=reuters.com>Reuters Sun April 13, 2003 04:15 PM ET

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (Reuters) - An official from the U.S. embassy in Guyana was abducted by gunmen Saturday while playing golf, held for several hours, and then released unharmed, government officials said Sunday.

Steve Lesniak, 37, was freed late Saturday. He was seized earlier by armed men at a golf course at Lusignan, about 10 miles east of the capital Georgetown.

The motive for the abduction was not immediately clear, but officials said armed criminal gangs have carried out several kidnappings recently around the capital of Guyana, a poor and racially divided nation located between Venezuela and Suriname.

U.S. Embassy officials were not available to comment on the incident, and it was not clear whether there had been any negotiations to secure Lesniak's release or whether any ransom had been paid.

Over the last year, armed gangs have shot dead several police and civilians in a wave of violent crime in Guyana.

stuff.co.nz 12 April 2003

LONDON: The Government's stance on the war in Iraq is unlikely to prevent Fonterra supplying dairy products to the war-ravaged nation, chief executive Craig Norgate says.

"It's still pretty clear how we are going to feed the Iraqis," Mr Norgate said.

Because of the humanitarian needs of the Iraqi people, it was unlikely New Zealand products would be excluded due to United States disapproval of anti-war comments coming out of New Zealand.

The needs of the Iraqi people would come before political decisions, he said. "Where the food comes from is not important."

Mr Norgate said the rebuilding of the Iraqi economy was vital, because it had been a good market for Fonterra and, more importantly, for global economic stability.

"The key determinant for global markets is how the Iraqi situation is resolved. That's far more important than any localised issue."

Mr Norgate was talking to NZPA after speaking at the Dairy Industry Newsletter conference in London, where he said continuing economic uncertainties made for "tough conditions" for his company in world markets.

Mr Norgate said Fonterra shareholders would have to wait to see the benefits of improved prices between September last year and February this year.

"The rise in prices we saw has still not come through – but it will next season."

The higher value of the Kiwi dollar has been a factor in lowering the forecast for milk solid payouts to farmers, he said.

The Fonterra chief executive rejected any suggestion the company had sold its products at "fire sale" prices, contributing to low forecast earnings.

"Milk is a perishable product. Customers know if you have it sitting there and they are not going to buy it.

"We said to the market last September we are fully sold up, it's time for the price to rise."

Once Europe finally believed this, prices did rise, he said.

Mr Norgate's contract as CEO finishes in July and, although he would not confirm he had reapplied, he said: "I have made it clear that I have a passion for this business".

A Serious Fraud Office investigation into the so-called "Powdergate" scandal, involving allegations Kiwi Milk Products were exported illegally, is continuing and Mr Norgate said he had not heard of any new developments.

The SFO investigation was unlikely to affect his position, or chances of reappointment, as CEO of Fonterra.

"I'd be very surprised if it found anything different to what we did," he said.

Mr Norgate returns to New Zealand later today (UK time) after a week in Europe and Russia, and predicted Fonterra, one of the world's largest dairy companies, would grow at a slower rate than it had since its inception in 2001.

"We have built our business rapidly, now it's about settling things down and gaining clarity," he said.

"We are now in a position to step back and make sure we are doing things well."

In terms of the European and American markets, Mr Norgate thought strained relations between the US and France over the Iraq crisis could take two possible routes.

"Either the US focus turns to the trade environment to rebuild relationships, or you will see a situation where the wounds take longer to heal."

Other important markets for Fonterra would perform well, he said.

Southeast Asia will remain a focus; with the advantage Fonterra has in freight terms over its major Northern Hemisphere rivals.

"We will see progress in Australia and China, but not at the pace you have seen in the last few years."

Fonterra's alliance with Nestle in Latin America was also performing well, he said.

Fonterra's strong performance in Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela would see the company "roll out" operations in other Latin American countries, he said.

Mr Norgate said he was confident Fonterra would find markets for its butter, but admitted this would not be easy.

"Yes, you have a structural stockpile in Europe, but I would not compare it to ten years ago when you had a butter mountain."

There are still markets for New Zealand butter in Russia and the Middle East but selling butter "has always been a challenge", he said.

"We always think we will be able to sell the product, but do we think the price will rise? No"

Mr Norgate said the company's stance on genetically engineered (GE) food was that it simply could not afford to own it, he said.

"We will make sure we invent stuff, then decide what we do with it."

Responding to reports Agresearch could seek other partners or customers for its GE research, Mr Norgate said a lot of the work Agresearch did in this area was in collaboration with Fonterra.

"For us, it's a defensive investment."

Sunday, April 13, 2003
(04-13) 09:55 <a href=www.sfgate.com>SFGate.com-PDT MANAGUA,
Nicaragua (AP) --

Nicaraguan President Enrique Bolanos ordered his Interior Ministry Sunday to investigate how a U.S. company obtained government files on Nicaraguan citizens, information that was later passed on to the U.S. immigration service and other agencies.

The Associated Press reported on Friday that Atlanta, Georgia-based ChoicePoint Inc. said it bought official registry files from subcontractors in Nicaragua, as well as Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. The company has refused to name the sellers or say where those parties obtained the data.

"In the United States these are very serious offenses," Bolanos said of the apparent unauthorized disclosure of private information such as drivers' license registries, "and if there are severe penalties there, there could also be the same here, if we find someone committing this crime."

Bolanos told reporters "the Interior Ministry is investigating this to see if it is true, to see if a crime is being committed, and if so, to stop it."

Interior Minister Eduardo Urcuyo said he knew little as yet about the scheme. "The truth is that I don't know if this is an established business, or if these people are registered in this country to sell information about personal credit history, drivers' licenses or tax rolls."

The story also made headline news in Mexico, where Choicepoint reportedly got hold of voter registration lists.

Victor Aviles, the spokesman for Mexico's officials Federal Electoral Institute, said such data sales were against the law, especially if they came from someone within the institute. "If someone sold it, he is committing a crime," Aviles said.

Over the past 18 months, the U.S. government has bought access to data on hundreds of millions of residents of 10 Latin American countries -- apparently without their consent or knowledge -- allowing myriad federal agencies to track foreigners entering and living in the United States.

ChoicePoint collects the information abroad and sells it to U.S. government officials in three dozen agencies, including federal immigration investigators who've used it to arrest illegal immigrants.

While laws vary from country to country, privacy experts in Latin America question whether the sales of national citizen registries have been legal. They say government data are often sold clandestinely by individual government employees.

Most of the files appear to originate in agencies that register voters or issue national IDs and drivers licenses. The company's contracts require data sellers to declare they obtained the information legally.