<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Monday, June 23, 2003 By: David Coleman

Following up on a bilateral Brazil-Venezuela Enterprise Meeting in Manaus (Brazil), the Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) has submitted defined proposals for commercial and industrial exchange in hydroelectric power, iron & steel, aluminum, forestry, utilities and tourism sectors.

Some 400 Venezuelan and Brazilian businessmen had met in Manaus to thrash out details work and project achievements, including the second bridge over the Rio Orinoco ... 60 % has already been completed in a joint Venezuelan-Brazilian venture and is on-schedule for completion by the second half  of 2004.

Venezuelan- Brazilian Chamber of Commerce president Jose Francisco Marcondes explains that a Guayana Steel project aims to produce 1 million metric tonnes of especial iron for the automotive industry and expresses satisfaction over the quality and quantity of results from the Manaus meeting with representatives from Venezuela's Bolivar State and Brazil's Amazonas region ... "we feel a certain amount of cohesion between both nations and we have high hopes for exchange possibilities in agriculture, agro-industrial, tourism and the metal-mechanic sector where our focus is on each region's potential to provide raw materials and technology."

<a href=www.vheadline.com>venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Monday, June 23, 2003 By: David Coleman

The Venezuelan-Israeli Chamber of Finance and Israel's Ambassador Arie Tenne have submitted a project proposal to the Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) to open up a diamond marketing exchange in Ciudad Guayana.  CVG president, Major General (ret.) Francisco Rangel Gomez says the initiative to establish a diamond marketing center in association with a diamond carving and polished school will be strengthened with an estimated investment of $14 million.

Israeli Embassy representative Carlos Sequera Yepez and Venezuelan-Israeli Chamber director Salomon Cohen say that a team integrated by Rangel Gomez, CVG mining vice president John Madero and CVG-Minerven resident Franqui Patines “are prepared to take up the challenge presented by such a project start as the diamond marketing center.“

The diamond center will provide added local value to raw material, and will support infrastructure planning for diamond industry development to avoid illegal trading, establish competitive prices, create regional employment opportunities and contribute greatly to foreign currency revenues.

• The project also contemplates technical assistance for small diamond companies and the integration of gold and diamond industries for jewelry manufacturing.

Rangel Gomez says the state-owned CVG heavy industry conglomerate will support investment projects for Guayana region development and regional welfare projects within the ambit of national interests ... a commission will be formed to evaluate proposals and feasibility in parallel with a similar project submitted by India's DGDC Corporation ... “the CVG aims to choose projects and investments that guarantee the best conditions for Venezuela, within sustainable exploitation parameters.”

<a href=www.vheadline.com>venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Friday, July 04, 2003 By: Eva Golinger-Moncada

Eva Golinger-Moncada  writes: On May 29, 2003, the Venezuelan government and representatives of the Coordinadora Democratica (an opposition umbrella organization) signed an accord accepting the idea of a referendum on President Chavez’ mandate as permitted by Article 72 of the Venezuelan Constitution.

Venezuelan and international media have misinterpreted Article 72 on the referendum to their advantage ... making it appear as though the Venezuelan government plays a role in the referendum, and, as such, will try to impede its attainment.

This is false.

Article 72 of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela states:

“All popularly-elected officials’ and magistrates’ terms of office are subject to revocation. During the midway point of the term for which the functionary was elected, a number no less than twenty per cent of the registered voters can solicit the convocation of a referendum to revoke his/her mandate.

When a number equal or greater than the number of registered voters that elected the functionary have voted in favor of the revocation, and always assuring that a number equal to or greater than twenty-five percent of registered voters voted in the referendum, the functionary’s mandate will be considered revoked and the process will begin to fulfill the position immediately according to and conforming with all available means in this Constitution and in the Laws.

The revocation of a functionary will be conducted in accordance with established laws.

During the term for which a functionary was elected, no more than one petition for his/her revocation can be made.”

The Article 72 referendum is entirely at the initiative of the voting public in Venezuela and has two (2) separate requirements ... both of which must be fulfilled in order that a referendum on an official’s term shall be declared valid.

Those requirements can be summarized as follows:

Step 1: The first clause in Article 72 specifies that 20% of registered voters must solicit the convening of a referendum before the actual referendum can occur. Registered voters soliciting such a referendum must adhere to all established laws for valid petitions, and the signatures must be counted and verified by the National Elections College (CNE) to determine whether or not the actual referendum will take place.

Step 2: In the event that the Step 1 requirement is met, the referendum vote will take place ... in order for it to be successful, the following two requirements must be met:

a. An equal or greater number of voters that elected the functionary (in this case the President) must vote for the revocation of his mandate; and

b. At least 25% of the registered voters must participate in the referendum.

All votes will be verified and counted by the National Elections College (CNE) before a determination is made on the outcome of the referendum.

Please note: that the Venezuelan government does not play any role in the convening or determination of the referendum. It is a process initiated entirely by registered Venezuelan voters, and all Constitutional requirements must be met for the referendum to be valid.

Due to the gravity of the potential outcome of an Article 72 referendum, i.e. cutting short the term of office of an elected official or magistrate, it is necessary to place safeguard provisions within the Article itself ... which explains why the process contains two (2) steps, which must both be met and verified in accordance with established laws.

The date set out for the commencement of Step 1 of the Article 72 referendum is August 19, 2003.

However, before any signatures that result from a petition conducted on this date can be counted and verified, new members must be appointed to the Venezuelan National Elections College (CNE).  Any delay in such appointments will delay any determination of whether or not the amount of signatures necessary per Article 72 is obtained so that the referendum may proceed. The Venezuelan legislature is currently in the process of appointing these new members, but due to divisions along party lines in the legislature, such appointments could take some time.

What is the opposition now doing to sabotage the referendum and destabilize Venezuela?

• The opposition is proposing to hold a major “Firmazo” (signing) on August 19, 2003, the supposed half-way point of President Chavez’s term;  
• The opposition has manipulated supporters into believing that the actual referendum occurs on August 19, and not just the first part of the process which determines if the constitutionally required number of voters petitions for the referendum;  
• The opposition plans to initiate a new civil resistance strategy on August 20, 2003, since they already know that the referendum will not have occurred by this date -ú of course, it would be impossible!  
• But, they are manipulating the referendum rules, deceiving their supporters into believing that the government will sabotage the referendum and that is why it will not have passed by August 20 ... one day after the signatures are taken ... before they can even be officially counted!  
• The opposition will begin to again claim that the Venezuelan government is not constitutional, because they did not permit the referendum ... despite the fact that it is the opposition who is manipulating the concept of the referendum;  
• They will begin to initiate a new media campaign at national and international level, claiming that the Venezuelan government is unconstitutional and undemocratic because it did not allow the referendum, and could potentially call for international intervention from the US and the OAS.  
• They may try to invoke the Democratic Charter, and OAS Instrument that allows member states of the OAS to intervene militarily into another member state if that state’s government is undemocratic in order to restore constitutional order

Note: the Charter was first invoked on April 11, 2002 when the opposition led a coup d’etat in Venezuela which briefly ousted President Chavez ... in that case, constitutional order had truly been disrupted;

• The opposition is forming close ties with the Colombian government and Colombian paramilitary forces, and is planning on the US-led Plan Colombia to spill over into Venezuela. They are trying to spread rumors about the Venezuelan government harboring terrorists, FARC guerrillas and members of Al-Qaeda;  
• They could elaborate massive media campaigns, including “Pais Que Queremos” (The Country We Want), which will manipulate and distort information about the Venezuelan government, with the intention of destabilizing and creating a climate of violence and aggression similar to that proceeding the coup d'etat in April 2002;  
• They will again try to create enough civil unrest and destabilization to justify a military coup, with the hopes this time it will be successful.

Eva Golinger-Moncada evagolinger@hotmail.com Venezuela Solidarity Committee in New York

June 23 (<a href=quote.bloomberg.com>Bloomberg) -- Siderurgica del Orinoco, Venezuela's biggest steelmaker, reached an agreement with the government and bank creditors to reduce its $1.88 billion in debt by more than half, enabling it to turn around its money-losing operations.

Sidor said in a press statement the government will increase its share in the company to 40 percent from 30 percent as part of the accord. The company's overall debt will fall to about $791 million with the agreement, a company spokesman said.

The agreement also clears the way for $133.5 million in new investment in the steelmaker.

The company defaulted on its debt in December 2001 when it missed a $31.3 million interest payment, after its financial condition worsened because of declining global steel prices. The agreement caps about 18 months of talks.

Before the agreement, Sidor was 70 percent-owned by Argentina's Siderar, Mexico's Hylsamex, Tubos de Acero de Mexico SA, Brazil's Usinas Siderurgica de Minas Gerais and Venezuela's Siderurgica Venezolana Sivensa SA. The government owned the remainder.

Mon June 23, 2003 08:06 AM ET By Pascal Fletcher

CARACAS, Venezuela (<a href=reuters.com>Reuters) - Outgunned by criminals, dodging bullets, stones and fireworks at protests, Caracas' Metropolitan Police are under fire from another enemy: the government of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

Left-winger Chavez is threatening to take over control of the 9,000-strong autonomous force for the second time in seven months after officers used tear gas and shotgun pellets June 13 to disperse a violent stone-throwing mob of Chavez supporters.

The populist president regularly pillories the city police force, run by anti-Chavez mayor Alfredo Pena and known by its Spanish initials "PM," as a murderous, subversive band of coup plotters bent on trying to topple him.

Other regional units controlled by opposition state governors, who under the Constitution can run their own police forces, are also viewed by Chavez as hostile.

"If I have to take over these police again, I will. ... We, as the state, hold the monopoly of force," Chavez said recently.

Venezuela's police and security forces have been sucked into the political maelstrom over Chavez's rule that has kept the world's No. 5 oil exporter in turmoil for over a year.

Opponents of the soldier turned politician, first elected in 1998, have attempted a coup, a grueling two-month strike and waves of street protests to try to unseat him. They accuse him of amassing dictatorial powers in a bid to install a Cuban-style communist regime.

In this topsy-turvy world of polarized politics, Venezuela's police and security forces often appear to operate as rival armies instead of allies in preserving law and order.

'OUT OF CONTROL'

Chavez ordered the Metropolitan Police force to submit to military control last November. He accused Pena of running the force as a private army and blamed city officers for shooting dead several Chavez supporters during protests.

Opponents condemned this militarization of the force as a move by the president to neutralize hostile armed groups in the wake of an April 2002 coup that briefly toppled him.

The Supreme Court overturned the takeover five weeks later but the Caracas force is still "policed" by army detachments embedded in their stations. Police officers say their vehicles and heavy weapons have been confiscated, leaving them with only revolvers to confront heavily armed criminals.

"I think the initial move by the government may have been justified because the Metropolitan Police were a bit out of control and had weapons like heavy machine guns and even rocket launchers. But now the government may be going too far," one European diplomat observed.

Chavez's foes say that while he targets the Metropolitan Police, he uses the army, National Guard and DISIP security police to quell opposition protests and pursue political foes.

With the rival security forces all nervously eyeing each other instead of fighting lawbreakers, crime has increased by 30 percent in Caracas, already one of Latin America's most violent cities. Killings, kidnappings and robberies are rife.

"The people on the government side hate us, attack us, injure us and even kill us. ... The government is fighting us, but we are not fighting them," Caracas Metropolitan Police chief Lazaro Forero told Reuters.

Opponents of the firebrand president hail the Metropolitan officers as their only guarantee of protection against violent attacks by pro-Chavez mobs.

Forero denied his force acts as the "opposition police" and said that if his officers did not intervene to keep feuding government and opposition activists apart, there would be heavy bloodshed.

At least 50 people have been killed and several hundred injured in political violence over the past 14 months that has turned parts of Caracas and other Venezuelan cities into virtual war zones.

WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON?

On June 13, Caracas city officers repelled a group of pro-Chavez militants who were threatening to attack an opposition rally in a poor east Caracas neighborhood.

As National Guard troops stood by and did nothing, the pro-Chavez demonstrators threw stones, bottles and firebombs at the police and destroyed a police post, demolishing its plaster walls with clubs and setting it on fire.

"This gives the impression that the National Guard unit was protecting the government supporters," Forero said.

But Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel had a different view: "The National Guard ... acted to protect a group of citizens who were being attacked by the Metropolitan Police," he told reporters.

Rangel said nine people were injured by police gunfire. Police spokesmen said their own officers came under fire and at least one was injured.

The government condemned the holding of the opposition march in a pro-Chavez zone as a provocation.