Opposition leaders denounce President's OAS comments

www.vheadline.com Posted: Tuesday, February 25, 2003 By: Robert Rudnicki

Opposition leaders have strongly criticized President Hugo Chavez Frias' comments regarding Organization of American States (OAS) secretary general Cesar Gaviria, saying they are just an attempt to discredit the OAS chief in a bid to stall the negotiation process that Gaviria is facilitating.

This follows comments by the President urging Gaviria to stay out of affairs that he shouldn't be meddling in after the OAS chief expressed concerns over the detention of Venezuelan Federation of Chambers of Commerce & Industry (Fedecamaras) president Carlos Fernandez.

Opposition negotiator Timoteo Zambrano insisted "he cannot be accused on meddling" and warned that opposition negotiators may be forced to withdraw their support for the non-violence pact signed recently. The pact was the first concrete agreement produced in over 100 days of negotiations and was signed last week as a direct initiative of the OAS chief.