Opposition blames Venezuelan president after attacks on protesters

CHRISTOPHER TOOTHAKER, Associated Press Writer Friday, January 10, 2003

(01-10) 00:16 PST CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) --

Opponents of President Hugo Chavez accused the embattled leader of promoting political violence on Thursday after opposition-led marches in several cities were attacked by government supporters.

"It's the leader of the country who is provoking this violence," said Carlos Ortega, president of the Confederation of Venezuelan Workers, the nation's largest and most powerful trade union.

Government supporters attacked anti-Chavez marches in Caracas and outside oil facilities around the country, the latest incidents of political violence in this crisis-stricken South American country of 24 million.

"Chavistas," as the president's backers are called, attacked a rally outside a refinery in Cardon, 270 miles east of Caracas, wounding a 40-year-old worker and a 28-year-old demonstrator, said Luis Arends, a civil defense worker.

In Caracas, gunmen fired several shots and threw tear gas at an opposition rally. No one was hurt, and the rally resumed. There were no arrests.

Chavez supporters armed with machetes and sticks also prevented a demonstration at an oil facility in central Carabobo state, Globovision television reported. A minor clash occurred at a plant in Barinas state.

Chavez, a leftist former paratroop commander who was elected in 1998 and re-elected two years later, denies he is fomenting escalating violence. Chavez opponents claim the president's fiery rhetoric incites violent reactions from his most radical backers.

In January 2002, four supporters of Chavez' ruling party were slain in western Zulia state. Nineteen died last year on April 11, when rival marches clashed in downtown Caracas. The bloodshed spurred a coup and Chavez' brief ouster. Loyalists in the military returned him to power on April 14.

Three more citizens were killed, presumably by a lone gunman, at an opposition rallying point on Nov. 6 and two government supporters died of gunshot wounds at a street march last Friday.

Thursday's aggressions occurred as thousands of Venezuelan bank workers stayed home to support a nationwide strike seeking new presidential elections, further weakening the currency as analysts speculate that Chavez' government is running out of money.

The nationwide strike begun Dec. 2 has shut thousands of businesses and brought Venezuela's vital oil industry -- a top U.S. supplier and once the world's fifth-largest exporter -- to a virtual halt. Gasoline has been imported.

Amid fears of a banking crisis, Venezuelans bought U.S. dollars and sent the bolivar currency to a record low of 1,593 to the dollar -- 5 percent weaker than Wednesday and down 12 percent for the year.

Analysts speculated Chavez's government may have to devalue the bolivar to balance its budget. Most government income is in dollars and a weaker bolivar would increase its domestic spending power.

Spokesmen at three of Venezuela's largest banks -- Banco de Venezuela, Banco Provincial and Banesco -- said 80 percent of the country's nearly 60,000 bank employees stayed home Thursday.

Jose Torres, president of the opposition-aligned Fetrabanca workers union, urged employees to provide only minimal services -- such as processing payments for medical emergencies -- Thursday and Friday.

But Luis Boris, secretary general of the pro-government bank workers union Sutrabanca, accused bank owners of closing doors without consulting workers.

A nonbinding referendum on Chavez's rule is scheduled for Feb. 2. Chavez insists the constitution only requires him to respect a possible recall referendum in August, the midpoint of his six-year term.

Strike organizers -- including leaders of the nation's largest trade union, its business chamber and the state-run oil company -- claim their protest is as strong as ever. Many factories, industrial parks and supermarkets remained closed.

But there were signs many are tiring of the strike. There was more traffic on streets and sidewalks and in shops, restaurants and markets.

Efforts by Chavez to jump-start operations at Petroleos de Venezuela S.A., the state oil company, have been partially successful.

Crude output is estimated at about 400,000 barrels a day, compared with the pre-strike level of 3 million barrels. Exports, normally 2.5 million barrels a day, are at 500,000 barrels a day.

Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez claimed the company will produce 1.5 million barrels a day by next week and will reach full capacity next month. Dissident oil workers doubt production can reach those levels so soon.