Chavez: ‘Friends’ must recognize regime

www.qctimes.com Last Updated: 8:51 pm, Friday, January 17th, 2003 By Associated Press . CARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chavez welcomed foreign help to end a crippling seven-week strike but said Friday his government won’t be forced into negotiating with what he called a “coup-plotting, fascist” opposition. . Several countries, including the United States, Mexico, Brazil and Spain, agreed to create a “Group of Friends of Venezuela” this week to seek solutions to the work stoppage that has brought the country’s economy to a standstill.

Advertise Here | Advertising DirectoryChavez cautioned, however, that his government “won’t accept any restrictions from the Friends” group and warned other nations not to legitimize the opposition. . “Each country must make a great effort to understand what is happening in Venezuela,” Chavez said in his annual state of the nation address to Congress. “This is a democratic government, a democratic republic, confronting fascists, confronting terrorists, confronting coup plotters.” . Chavez announced he was traveling to Brazil late Friday to meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to discuss the “Friends” initiative. . Opposition leaders accuse Chavez of amassing too much power and ruining the economy. They called the strike Dec. 2 to urge Chavez to back a nonbinding referendum on his presidency Feb. 2. . Chavez says Venezuela’s constitution allows only a binding referendum halfway into a six-year presidential term. In Chavez’s case, that will be in August. . Chavez said if a majority of Venezuelans vote to shorten his presidential term in August, he will respect the outcome. . The strike has punished Venezuela’s oil industry, cost the nation at least $4 billion and led to food and gasoline shortages. Chavez called the strike leaders “cruel” for inflicting pain on Venezuelans. . He insisted his government was reviving petroleum production in what was the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter and the No. 4 crude exporter to the United States. . Venezuela produced 3 million barrels a day of crude before the strike. The country’s crude oil output was 512,000 barrels Friday, up from 484,000 barrels Thursday, according to striking employees of the state-owned oil monopoly Petroleos de Venezuela SA.