Daily Review - March 6, 2003
"This revolution is peaceful, but it is not unarmed. The revolution is willing to defend its maxims in any territory. Sirs: I'm staying until the year 2021. Whoever is desperate, well, you'll have to wait a little while. I'm only staying until 2021 and with my sword drawn, I will defend this revolution which is of the sovereign people. Afterwards, I'll hang in a hammock in the plains of Arauca, or here in Punto Fijo, to sing the songs of Ali Primero." - Hugo Chavez, while visiting a refinery yesterday Good day, Opec has a "dirty little secret" according to an analyst interviewed by Dow Jones. Opec has limited production capacity, and Venezuela is not producing the oil that the government claims. "They can't handle the Venezuelan situation. In spite of claims that production is ramping up, we just haven't seen that," said John Kilduff, an analyst at Fimat USA Inc, that tracks and forecasts oil markets. The problem is "serious enough that it may not be able to keep the world humming at the pace it's accustomed to." Saudi Arabia's claims that it can meet orders are false, and "[t]he only reassuring statistic is that combined strategic reserves around the world would be enough to put 12 million barrels a day on the market for about 45 days," reports Dow Jones. The Miami Herald reports that the Venezuelan suicide-bomb suspect arrested last month with a hand grenade after arriving at London's Gatwick airport had "spent time in Afghanistan, Sudan and other countries linked to international terrorism, according to Venezuelan sources close to the investigation." This has "renewed fears not only over security loopholes at Venezuelan airports but the possibility that Islamic terrorist organizations may be using the country as a base" Furthermore, [t]he suspect's travels and known activities are consistent with links to al Qaeda or other extreme Islamic groups, according to specialists in international security issues." A senior Venezuelan source told the Herald that passport copy showed that Hazil Mohamad Rahaman, 37, had traveled to Yemen, as well as twice, in 2000 and 2001, to Franfurt, Germany, where the World Trade Center attacks were planned, as well as attacks against the US missions in Kenya and Tanzania. The suspect said that he applied for political asylum in Germany using a false Palestinian id. In addition, the Herald reports that Ramaham disappeared from Caracas three years ago, and then returned on January 20 and stayed in a hotel. "He bought the grenade -- presumably on the black market...for 200,000 bolivares (around $125)." The grenade was found in his sole luggage, a backpack, that was rejected for its size and had to be checked. "When it was discovered, the grenade was wrapped in aluminum foil inside an infrared massaging device, which in turn was apparently concealed in a lead-lined wooden box." After Sept. 11, according to a former DISIP (secret police) agent, "Washington asked the Venezuelan government to check on the whereabouts of around a dozen terrorist suspects thought to be on Margarita. They were there, the agent said, ``but I've not seen any subsequent action to deal with them.'' Seven US House representatives asked Secretary of State Colin Powell to apply the Inter-American Democratic Charter in the Venezuelan case. (to read the charter, please read www.oas.org) The letter, written and delivered by Florida Republican Lincoln Díaz-Balart, asks that the secretary of state invoke the charter against Hugo Chavez, given that the government has violated Article 20 of the charter: The objectives of the programs and actions will be to promote governance, stability, good governance, and the quality of democracy with special preference given to strengthening political institutions and the wide range of social organizations which make up civil society. At the same time, and noting that democracy is not just a juridical structure and a political regime, but a way of life founded on liberty and the constant economic, social, and cultural improvement of its people, such programs will pay similar attention to strengthening a democratic culture and promoting democratic principles and practices and the values of liberty and social justice in child and youth education. US oil policy featured in news, due to a Senate Democrats report issued yesterday, claiming that even though the Bush administration last year "added 41 million barrels of oil to the reserve, kept in salt domes along the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. energy companies cut back comparably on their own oil inventories, resulting in no net increase in nationwide oil supplies," according to the Washington Post. In addition, "Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham rejected the notion that the government's decision significantly affected energy prices. He said the amount was too small to have an impact." In "India tanks up on Iraq oil" The Telegraph from Calcutta, India reports: "With no oil being available from nearby Venezuela, US companies had to go farther out to the Gulf and Russia to buy, which meant a higher demand for ships as the cargo had to be carried over longer distances." Newspapers across the US also offers features describing the plight of Venezuelans, both in Venezuela and the US. The Mercury News and AP offer "Supply Shortages Hit Venezuela Hospitals", Christopher Toothaker reports: " Supply shortages in public hospitals - a problem in this impoverished country for years - have sharpened since President Hugo Chavez imposed strict controls on foreign exchange in January." The Oklahoman provides the story of a Venezuela couple in "Venezuelan strife gives couple appreciation for U.S. comforts", which reports that "Mike Giordano, 28, remains in Venezuela while his wife, Alison, has returned to Edmond because they're worried about the political chaos gripping the South American nation."
In local news...
In his customary inflammatory tone, Chavez threatened to "recover" the governships held by opposition leaders. Furthermore, he said he planned to remain in power until 2021. Visiting a refinery, he said that Venezuela is currently producing 2.5 million oil barrels per day. * The commission that will choose 20 candidates for the National Electorate Council was sworn in by the National Assembly board yesterday. The commission includes six government National Assembly reps, five opposition reps, and ten representatives from civil society. * Army General Raúl Isaías Baduel denied the presence of FARC leaders in Venezuelan territory. * The first bilateral meeting scheduled for today between the government and opposition to debate an electoral solution was postponed until Thursday by the government representatives, due to a prior "commitments. These bilateral meetings are to replace the negotiations table, which will not meet this week since OAS head Cesar Gaviria is at an "important meeting" in Bolivia. * A fire left 75% of Caracas without electricity for more than 40 minutes yesterday. Opinions Today, I've included several opinion articles. As the Venezuelan crisis becomes a global topic and more people realize that Chavez is dragging down the world economy down with him, more editorials slant towards the opposition and the need to remedy the crisis. The International Herald Tribune offers "Chavez is creating a political abyss" by Moises Naim, who claims that Venezuela "has become a nightmare for its people and a threat not just to its neighbors but to the United States and even Europe." Naim also describes how Venezuela has defied all the assumptions shaped in the 1990's about how how the US could influence any country's politics, and also the precept "that global economic forces would force democratically elected leaders to pursue responsible economic policies. Yet Chávez, a democratically elected president, has been willing to tolerate international economic isolation - with disastrous results for Venezuela's poor - in exchange for greater power at home." The Washington Times editorial, "Chavez and the Media," states: "Regardless of how Mr. Chavez and his supporters regard the objectivity the press in Venezuela, the president would make a big mistake to limit its freedoms. After all, Mr. Chavez can use speeches and state-owned outlets to counter any perceived subjectivity or inaccuracies. Weakened accountability could well result in serious human rights abuses in Venezuela, as seen in other places in the world." In "Venezuela's democracy must not be forgotten," by the San Antonio Express, Jonathan Gurwitz writes that "the beauty of Venezuela, its democratic tradition, its rule of law, its respect for individual rights, and its vibrant economy are all in peril today as its leftist President, Hugo Chávez, threatens to turn Venezuela into the Iraq of the Western Hemisphere." USA Today provides an interesting interview with US Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, about the crucial topic of energy alternatives: "As the USA moves closer to war with oil-rich Iraq, gas prices are on the rise. So are concerns about terrorist attacks that might involve radiological materials available from widespread sources. In addition to tackling these pressing concerns, the Bush administration has proposed spending $1.7 billion over five years to start developing hydrogen fuel cells that could power cars, eventually eliminating U.S. dependence on foreign oil." In the Naples News, "Bonnie Erbe: Country remains passive toward failing economy" Bonnie Erbe wonders why "the American public seems to be as blithely tolerant of an economy that has been almost purposefully tipped away from the brink of recovery and toward (if not over) the brink of recession for more than a year now." She also claims that "President Bush's war strategy is directly responsible for higher gas prices, higher oil and natural gas prices to heat our homes, increased airline ticket prices, higher food prices (which must be shipped and trucked into grocery stores,) higher UPS and Fed Ex shipping costs (both companies have instituted fuel surcharges to ship packages) and more for, well, just about everything we eat, drink, drive to, and need to live." In "Brazil blocking conference to deal with Latin crises", The Miami Herald's Andres Oppenheimer reports that "there is a big bad boy who is blocking plans to solve Latin America's multiple crises -- Brazil," which is "paralyzed by 19th century fears of U.S. imperial designs, which have long driven it to instinctively reject almost anything coming from Washington or supported by Washington, regardless of its merits." Commentary The following is the letter I wrote to the New York Times, regarding the editorial by Moises Naim. (Republished by the International Herald Tribune). I encourage you to also write the New York Times with your views on Naim's editorial to letters@nytimes.com. Please include your name, address, and phone number at the end of your piece. Also, if you send me a copy, I will publish it in the Daily, (without your info). Remember that your letter can be no longer than 150 words. To the Editor, I am writing concerning Moises Naim's op-ed, "Hugo Chavez and the Limits of Democracy" (03/05/03). Mr. Naim describes the dangers of letting democracy merely mean elections, using Venezuela as an illustration of flawed thinking regarding developing countries. A shocking reality for Venezuelans is that the United States, the OAS, the United Nations, and the European Union - supposed global leaders - stood motionless as the lines between activism and treason were erased. You don't hire a demolition crew to construct a building. Chavez was adept at destroying all institutions in Venezuela - both good and bad. During the next decade, politicians will have to rebuild the country from scratch. That will not include Chavez, who should accept that his appointment with Venezuela ended. He is grasping to power like an acrobat hanging from a tightrope. Eventually, he will let go, but not before dragging the country further into despair. Alexandra Beech Events
On March 6, Dr. Margarita Lopez Maya of the Universidad Central de Venezuela will offer a talk titled "Venezuela on the Brink: Popular Protest and Civil Society in a time of Conflict" at 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM at The Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Lucha Democrática, Resistencia CiviI de Venezolanos en el Exterior (RECIVEX) , SAVE Venezuela and PROVEO would like to invite all Venezuelans to participate in the "Global Day in Repudiation of the Violence and Abuses of the Hugo Chavez Regime", which will take place on March 9 in cities around the world, including Washington DC and London.
For upcoming events, please check www.11abril.com, www.proveo.org, www.aveny.com and www.veninvestor.com. I hope you are safe, content, and peaceful, wherever you are, Alexandra Beech