Jimmy Carter renews mediation efforts in Venezuela

www.startribune.com Fabiola Sanchez Associated Press Published Jan. 21, 2003 VENE21 

CARACAS, VENEZUELA -- Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter renewed efforts to mediate Venezuela's political crisis Monday even as violence surged between supporters and opponents of President Hugo Chavez. Gunfire during a protest march left one dead and 15 wounded, officials said.

Miranda state Gov. Enrique Mendoza, a Chavez opponent, said Chavez supporters attacked an opposition march in Charallave, about 20 miles south of Caracas, on the 50th day of a strike to unseat Chavez.

Raul Gonzalez, 38, said he and other Chavez supporters blocked a road as opposition marchers approached and both sides began throwing rocks and bottles.

"There were shots from all over. Everything was in confusion," Gonzalez said at an area hospital, where he was being treated for a bullet wound in his leg. He said he didn't know where the gunfire came from.

Opposition marcher Mayordina Morales, 52, said both sides were throwing objects at each other when police started shooting.

Officials identified the fatality as Carlos Garcia, about 30 years old.

Fifteen people were wounded by gunfire, said Milagros Toro, an official with the state epidemiology department. Twelve people incurred other injuries.

Six people have died in protests since Venezuela's opposition called the strike Dec. 2, crippling the world's fifth-largest oil exporter.

Carter met with Chavez, opposition figures and Cesar Gaviria, secretary-general of the Organization of American States (OAS). Gaviria has tried since November to mediate an electoral solution to the crisis.

"I have always hoped for a resolution, and I hope there will be one," said Carter, who was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. His Atlanta-based Carter Center is sponsoring the talks with the OAS and the United Nations.

Chavez has threatened to abandon the talks. On Sunday, he accused the opposition of trying to oust him even as its leaders sat at the negotiating table.

The National Elections Council has agreed to organize a Feb. 2 nonbinding referendum asking citizens whether Chavez should step down.

Chavez says the constitution only allows a binding referendum halfway through his six-year-term in August. The Supreme Court is considering the matter.