One Dead, 8 Hurt in Shooting During Caracas Rally

Sat May 24, 2003 12:07 PM ET CARACAS, Venezuela (<a href=asia.reuters.com>Reuters) - One person was shot to death and at least eight others, including three National Guard troops, were injured by gunfire as opponents of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez rallied on Saturday in a pro-Chavez district of Caracas, police and firefighters said.

Shooting erupted as several hundred supporters of the opposition Accion Democratica Party held an anti-government rally in a narrow street in Catia, a poor, crime-ridden neighborhood that is a bastion of support for Chavez.

Witnesses said some of the shots appeared to come from side streets where groups of Chavez supporters had gathered to shout insults at the opposition protesters.

Demonstrators scattered on several occasions as gunfire rang out.

A Reuters correspondent at the scene saw one man, a motorcyclist, lying bleeding from a bullet wound in his neck.

Earlier, three National Guard troops were shot nearby when a patrol came under fire from gunmen.

The violence erupted a day after government and opposition negotiators announced they had agreed to a political pact to hold a referendum on Chavez's rule after Aug. 19.

The agreement aims to end months of often violent political conflict in Venezuela over the presidency of the populist Chavez, who was elected in late 1998 and survived a brief coup last year.