Come in Houston ... opposition PR has a problem understanding democracy

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Sunday, June 08, 2003 By: Roy S. Carson (OPVPR: Official Paid Version, Please Reply)

The anti-Chavez Venezuelan Community Abroad (VCA) grouping has issued a press release ahead of an Organization of American States (OAS) assembly in Santiago de Chile, Monday,  claiming concern that the Venezuelan government will not comply with the Recall Referendum enshrined in the Bolivarian Constitution ... "the Venezuelan Community Abroad requests that the Group of Friends of Venezuela and international observers closely monitor the Venezuelan political process during until the country’s crisis is resolved."

Houston-based VCA contact person Cristal Montanez writes that "after seven months of negotiations between representatives of the opposition and the government, a 19-point Agreement was signed. The historical accord embodies the hopes of the majority of the Venezuelan people who want to participate in referendum vote to revoke the mandate of the autocratic government of Hugo Chavez, after August 19 of this current year."

Claiming that the Venezuelan opposition today comprises a majority of the country's population, Montanez continues that it "feels the need to communicate to the international community their deep mistrust of the agreement, since it sets no date for the recall referendum and is not binding. Since President Chavez was elected in 1998, he has shown a tendency to disregard agreements, laws, and even our constitution. We are concerned that he will also disregard the terms of this new accord."

VCA then admits that the agreement it mistrusts "mimics Article 72 of the Venezuelan Bolivarian Constitution, which states that the mandate of an elected official can be revoked after the midterm of his period."  The proceeds to state that "during the past few weeks, the government has taken an aggressively repressive stance against the opposition, refusing dollars to the private sector, and creating new laws that threaten our fundamental freedom of expression and our right to protest. In addition, it is arming urban militias called Bolivarian Circles, who (whose?) role is to intimidate and suppress the protest actions of the opposition, violating all the rules and regulations contemplated in the International Human Rights code."  In a complimentary addition to the slugfest Montanez adds that "The Bolivarian Circles are trained by Cuban military officers who are active in the country."

In a press release that appears honed to misinform North American newspapers, radio and television broadcasters, the opposition VCA demands that "international observers are urgently required to monitor the creation of the new National Electoral College (CNE) ... a prerequisite for the referendum, and the verification of signatures ... so that the recall referendum doesn’t become yet another unfulfilled promise. Without the assistance of the "Group of Friends" of Venezuela, the Organization of American States, the Carter Center and the PNUD, we (VCA) are concerned that the recall referendum will never materialize."

So far so good in the preemptive propaganda attack from Houston-base; the spin-doctors are obviously concerned that the Chavez Frias government will not abide by the 1999 Constitution ... totally forgetting (or conveniently laying aside) the fact that it was they, the opposition, who enacted the April 11 coup d'etat which saw the installation of Dictator-for-a-Day Pedro Carmona Estanga, who promptly dissolved the Constitution, the Congress and the Courts...

But let's continue:  VCA says it is imperative that these international organizations acknowledge the obstacle included in the Bolivarian Constitution, which states that if the people do not succeed in recalling the President’s mandate before he enters the last two years of his term, then there are no new elections, and the Vice President becomes President, completing the remaining portion of the term. That would mean that even if President Chavez’s mandate is recalled, the Vice President might still become President until 2006 (articles 71, 72, 231 and 233 of the Venezuelan Bolivarian Constitution).

Just a question:  Is there a 1999 Constitution or isn't there?  Was it not democratically authored by a democratically-elected National Constituent Assembly?  Was it not approved by a majority of Venezuelans in a December 15, 1999 National referendum?  Were not democratic elections duly held in accordance with that Constitution which returned the current government to power, in full compliance with all its democratically-arrived-at Articles?

NOW: In obvious rejection of the judicial process as well, VCA says that an February 3, 2003, the Venezuelan Supreme Court (TSJ) decided that the mid-term of President Chavez’s period is August 19, 2003.

Here comes the switch ... "By delaying the referendum until 2004, he (President Chavez) can then pressure the Supreme Court to revisit their decision concerning the Presidential term, and declare in a new ruling that their earlier decision was not in keeping with the Constitution, which clearly states that the Presidential term begins in January."

Come in Houston ... we have a slight problem with your speculation!

PR Cristal Montanez goes off into an extraterrestrial trajectory to conclude that the Supreme Court could declare that his term began in January of 2000 ... "not only would such a decision by the TSJ cause confusion about the referendum date, but it would also mean that if Chavez is still in office on January 1st, 2004, then there is not way to revoke President Chavez’s mandate before 2006."

Hey, come on Cristal and friends ... stop searching the skies for visitors from other planets, you're already spaced out ... the Constitution clearly states that a recall referendum's process begins after August 19 ... take August 20 as a starting-gate.  The opposition needs to gather its wits about it before that date to get together a series of Constitutionally determined prerequisites ... a number of supervised and authenticated signatures from registered voters to request a revocatory referendum; approval of such a referendum petition by the National Assembly (AN) and then due process by which to call a proper YES/NO vote on Chavez or whomsoever else will be subject to revocatory procedures.

Yes, we know you want a revocatory referendum with only one end result!

OAS General Secretary Cesar Gaviria has somewhat optimistically said that an eventual revocatory referendum will get off the ground sometime in November ... but looking realistically at Venezuela as we know it, yes, the date will probably be projected into December or perhaps even further into the early months of 2004.

But to extrapolate the lethargy of Venezuela's political process into a conspiracy theory of black helicopter proportions to "demonstrate" the rabid opposition's pet theory of impending Doom & Gloom is taking things a bit too far, don't you think?

...and you have to remember who it was who attempted to impose a dictatorship on April 12, 2002 ... and who moved immediately to dissolve the Constitution to which (rightfully) the VCA lays such fond acclaim, the democratically-elected Congress and the Courts!

We've seen clear and present evidence that it is elements within the Venezuelan opposition that wants to overthrow the Constitution ... we've seen no substantiation of allegations that the same qualifications apply to the Chavez Frias government...

Instead of screeching cat gut to orchestrate your violin serenade to the foreign media, Cristal, you should take pause for introspection and, as said "Come in Houston, we have a problem..."

Venezuelan Community Abroad (VCA): Cristal Montanez may be contacted at email: CJoslin@aol.com or telephone number +1-713-823-3621