VENEZUELA: Government and Opposition Sign No-Violence Pact

ipsnews.net Humberto Márquez

CARACAS, Feb 18 (IPS) - The government and the opposition in Venezuela signed a joint declaration Tuesday against political violence, the first tangible achievement since César Gaviria, secretary-general of the Organisation of American States, began as mediator more than three months ago in negotiations for a way out of the country's political crisis. In the eight-point ”Declaration against violence and in favour of peace and democracy”, the two sides announce their commitment to dismantle the tensions that have pervaded the political sphere in Venezuela over the last few years, and reiterate their commitment to the Constitution and democratic law. In the statement, representatives of the Hugo Chávez administration and of the opposition reject verbal ”intemperance”, mutual recriminations, hurtful language and ”rhetoric that in any way encourages confrontation.” The two sides propose instead ”a language of mutual respect, tolerance, consideration of others' ideas, and the supreme appreciation of human life and dignity.” The tripartite group, comprising the OAS, the U.S.-based Carter Centre, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which is facilitating the dialogue, had repeatedly urged the two sides to ”lower their tone” and ”moderate the language” of their political discourse. Similar efforts were made by the so-called ”Group of Friends”, countries backing the OAS effort in Venezuela. The group was established in January by the foreign ministries of Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Portugal, Spain and the United States. The second point of Tuesday's joint declaration states that violence in any form, regardless of who perpetrates it, is ”absolutely unjustifiable”. The two sides ”summon all authorities and competent administrative and juridical bodies to act to investigate and penalise the loss of human lives.” In the last year, the death toll resulting from political violence in Venezuela has reached more than 80, with hundreds of people injured. During the social chaos associated with the failed coup d'état in April 2002, 61 people died, according to the non-governmental Venezuelan Human Rights Education-Action Programme. Street demonstrations or political rallies in Caracas, whether supporting the Chávez government or the opposition, another 10 people have died. In rural Venezuela, several peasant leaders have been assassinated. Tuesday's declaration rejects all expressions of violence, intolerance or vengeance. Six government delegates and six delegates from the opposition Democratic Coordinator, the document's signatories, exhorted the Venezuelan people to cease any ”direct or indirect attitude of aggression, threat, harassment or violence,” and urged churches, trade unions and all social organisations to help in the effort. During the past year, opposition protesters and pro-Chávez demonstrators have clashed in the streets of Caracas, and military officials are staying away from certain public places, such as restaurants in middle-class neighbourhoods, because they are subjected to insults or surrounded by crowds of residents banging pots and pans. The point in the declaration that required most effort to achieve consensus is about the communications media. The text calls on journalistic enterprises to ”promote peace, tolerance and peaceful coexistence” in their programming and to comply with and exercise their constitutional and legal rights and duties. The privately owned media championed the cause of the opposition during the two-month anti-Chávez strike that ended earlier this month. Television stations, for example, replaced normal advertising for political propaganda against the government. And the government followed suit, using state-run television and radio stations to disseminate its messages. The declaration's signatories are now obligated ”to maintain and improve the work” of the negotiations panel, which ”with this declaration approaches the possibility of an electoral way out” of the crisis, opposition leader Humberto Calderón told IPS. The delegates also agree to take up related issues, such as setting up a Truth Commission to clear up the events surrounding the April 2002 coup and deaths, and disarming the civilian population -- demanded by the opposition, which claims that many government supporters are carrying weapons illegally. ”The dialogue had started at the end, and with the Tuesday declaration we have returned to the beginning, and the road has been cleared so we can discuss anything,” commented Vice-President José Vicente Rangel. He was referring to the opposition's insistence on an ”electoral” way out of the political crisis -- such as a referendum on Chávez's mandate --, while the word order in the declaration is ”peaceful, democratic, constitutional and electoral”. Andrés Cova, representing the anti-Chávez trade unions in the negotiations, says he is confident that ”with this accord we can find an electoral solution in the middle term.” The opposition is seeking a constitutional amendment to declare an end to Chávez's presidential term, which lasts until 2006, and to convene new elections this year. After the six delegates from each side signed the joint declaration, representatives from the OAS, the Carter Centre and UNDP added their signatures. (END/2003)