Venezuela marches continue as street conflicts persist
europe.cnn.com Overnight: Grenade thrown at Algerian ambassador's home Friday, January 10, 2003 Posted: 1751 GMT
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Opponents of President Hugo Chavez blamed the embattled leader for attacks on opposition-led marches but vowed to take to the streets again Friday.
"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 trade union.
Bank workers on strike for a second day were marching in Caracas on Friday. Street protests were planned in 11 other cities. The demonstrations are part of a nationwide strike that 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.
The Central Bank suspended dollar auctions for a second day Friday after the bolivar currency dropped to a record low of 1,593 to the dollar Thursday -- 5 percent weaker than Wednesday and down 12 percent since the start of 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.
Unknown assailants tossed a grenade at the residence of Algerian Ambassador Momhammed Khelladi on Thursday night, embassy official Abdela Asis Yafri confirmed Friday. No one was injured and there were no arrests.
The explosion damaged walls of the entrance and two cars. Algeria has offered to send technicians to help jump-start Venezuela's oil industry.
Chavistas attack, prevent opposition rallies
On Thursday, 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.
A Chavez supporter joins in a Thursday rally outside a gasoline distribution center in Guatire.
"Chavistas," as the president's backers are called, attacked a rally outside a refinery in Cardon, 270 miles (435 kilometers) east of Caracas, wounding a 40-year-old worker and a 28-year-old demonstrator, said Luis Arends, a civil defense worker.
In Caracas, gunfire erupted 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 opponents claim the president's fiery rhetoric incites violent reactions from his most radical backers.
Chavez, a leftist former paratroop commander who was elected in 1998 and re-elected two years later, blames the opposition-aligned news media, which he accuses of campaigning for his overthrow.
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 December 6 and two government supporters died of gunshot wounds at a street march last Friday.
Most bank workers support strike, stay home
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.
The bank strike forced many supermarkets to close because shoppers were unable to pay with credit cards or debit cards, said Nelson Da Gama, president of the National Association of Supermarkets.
A nonbinding referendum on Chavez's rule is scheduled for February 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.