Venezuelan dissident officers leave for asylum in the Dominican Republic
JORGE RUEDA, Associated Press Writer Tuesday, June 3, 2003
(06-03) 17:52 PDT CARACAS, Venezuela <a href=www.sfgate.com>(AP) --
Two former army captains who allegedly held President Hugo Chavez in custody during a brief coup last year left the country Tuesday for exile in the Dominican Republic.
Supporters of the two brothers, Alfredo and Ricardo Salazar, cheered and pounded on their car as they left the Dominican Embassy in Caracas for their flight out.
They later arrived in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo, where they made no immediate comment.
The brothers and other soldiers allegedly held Chavez at a military base after rebel officers ousted him on April 12, 2002, blaming him for the shooting deaths of 19 people during a clash involving opposition marchers, Chavez supporters and security officials. Loyalist troops, backed by thousands of civilian protesters, restored Chavez to power two days later.
The officers, who faced charges of engaging in "despotic and vulgar" behavior toward the president, had sought asylum at the embassy, saying they had received death threats.
The Dominican Republic granted the brothers asylum on April 30, and Venezuela's government granted them safe conduct on May 27.
Several other Venezuelans have fled abroad after facing rebellion charges filed by Chavez's government. They include Pedro Carmona, a businessman who became interim president during the coup and now lives in Colombia.
Carlos Ortega, a labor leader who led a general strike earlier this year to demand Chavez's resignation, is in exile in Costa Rica, fleeing charges of rebellion and treason.
Chavez was elected in 1998 and re-elected in 2000 to a six-year term. His opponents are seeking a referendum on his presidency later this year, accusing the former army lieutenant colonel of trampling democratic institutions and ruining the economy.
Chavez counters his efforts to help Venezuela's majority poor have been sabotaged by an elite trying to overthrow a democratically elected president and restore power to corrupt political parties that ruled for 40 years.