<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News</a. Posted: Wednesday, May 21, 2003 By: Elio Cequea

Date: Tue, 20 May 2003 18:57:09 -0500 From: Elio Cequea Feico57@aol.com To: Editor@VHeadline.com Subject: The fight for Venezuelan's souls

Dear Editor: The fight for Venezuelan's souls is not the real fight. The real fight is for their votes and political support. The Catholic Church is one of the contenders.

The official declaration that resulted from the 30th Episcopal Assembly presents a good selection of words and statements typical of what we are reading on the newspapers these days. Monsignor Baltazar Porras declared referring to the actual political crisis, "We have to bet and force the electoral exit."

The following statements were in El Universal presented as part of the Episcopal Assembly declaration:

"An election is for the Catholic Church authorities the only exit that will avoid degenerating to a national collapse."

"This alternative will allow restating confidence, tranquility and, will reinforced the institutions and legitimacy."

"The Church demands respect to the rules of the game transparence for the electoral process."

"*The Bishops questioned the revolution, its constitutional base and its democratic legitimacy. Also demanded for an impartial and efficient CNE."

These statements have a purpose ... they are aimed to the deepest corners of the brains, not the souls, of the opposition's sympathizers and to anybody who wants to swallow that bait. It crates the false expectation that the referendum IS the solution for our political unrest. That "solution/exit" will be a reality only with the electoral defeat of Hugo Chavez Frias.

Defeating Chavez is consequently the "only exit that will avoid degenerating to a national collapse," as expressed by the clergy ... his defeat "will allow restating confidence, tranquility and it will reinforced the institutions and legitimacy."

They went as far as questioning the democratic legitimacy of the Venezuelan government. Their demands for a transparent electoral process suggest that a result contrary to the desires of the opposition will be unacceptable for lack of transparency. They already have a reason to keep their fight in the case they lose. So, how can this be considered a "solution" or "exit"?

The solution IS NOT the referendum itself but THE RESULT expected from it ... can the electoral result be forced as insinuated by Baltazar Porras?

This is extremely grave. Somebody might believe this and suffer (again!) a big disappointment. Remember what happened to "Gente de Petroleo." People losing their jobs is insignificant compared to the consequences of plunging sectors of our society into an electoral delirium. The anticipated results might not be there. A Chavez victory in the referendum ... and this is a realistic assumption whether some people like or not ... might degenerate in violent reactions from disappointed member of the civil society.

The deceiving, poisoned and flammable rhetoric of the opposition ... through The "Holy" Church in this case ... has proven to be effective in some sectors of the population.

Some Venezuelan believe, for example, that "El Firmazo" four millions signatures are half plus one of twelve million.

Elio Cequea Feico57@aol.com

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

6 battalions of Cazadores (Hunters) will be dispatched to border badlands with Colombia to boost Army Operations Theaters.  

• A first contingent of 600 of 1,000  soldiers is expected to arrive in target areas within 15 days. 

The Cazadores were formed to fight Venezuelan Communist insurgents in the 60-70s and have been stationed in eastern Venezuela (Maturin, Cumana y Cocollar) where most of the guerrillas had set up camp and campaign. 

The new contingent will be placed under the orders of  TO-1 commander, Brigadier General William Warrick Blanco in La Fria (Tachira) and TO-2 commander, General Carlos Acosta Perez in Guasdualito (Apure). 

Troops will be employed in temporary camps  from which they will mounts patrols moving across border areas in Zulia, Apure, Barinas and Tachira.  The new tactics will also mean changes for troops already stationed in the operations theaters.

The government has finally approved a Unified Intelligence Command which General Victor Cruz Weffer had attempted to set up several years ago. The Command will consist of the Military Intelligence Directorate (DIM), State Political & Security (DISIP) Police and the intelligence services of the Army, Navy (Armada), Air Force (FAV) and National Guard (GN) with the aim of reinforcing the work of border  military units.

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Tuesday, May 13, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

The National Guard (GN) has seized 3,000 ID documents in Apure State ... the discovery was made during a routine car search at a checkpoint in the El Remolino sector of Paez municipality. 

GN Regional No. 1 (CORE-1) commander, General Rafael Doubront has confirmed that a Venezuelan citizen has been arrested but declined to reveal his name.  "During the car search, officers at checkpoint 17 found 1,652 laminated ID cards and 1,456 transitory permit cards hidden in the furnishings." 

• The suspect has been placed at the disposition of 3rd Apure State prosecutor's office for investigation. 

General Doubront says the documents had been taken out of the Guasdualito Passport & Identification Office. 

<a href=www.republicons.org>republicons.org by:   Wire Services 5/13/2003   A senior Venezuelan army general said the government of the South American country has proof the United States was involved in a short-lived coup against President Hugo Chavez last year.

Army Gen. Melvin Lopez, secretary of Venezuela's National Defence Council, said Tuesday "proof exists" the U.S. administration was involved in the mid-April putsch. He declined to give further details. "We have the evidence," Lopez said during an interview broadcast by Venezuela's state-run television channel.

Lopez said three U.S. military helicopters were on Venezuelan territory during the coup.

A spokesmen from the Pentagon declined comment on the allegation Tuesday night.

Dissident generals rose up against Chavez on April 11, 2002, several hours after 19 Venezuelans died and over 100 were wounded by gunfire as opposition marchers clashed with government supporters in downtown Caracas.

Loyalists in the military returned Chavez to power two days later.

Following his return, Chavez said "worrying details" had emerged suggesting a foreign country might have been involved in his temporary overthrow.

Chavez said a coastal radar installation had tracked a foreign military ship and helicopter operating over Venezuelan waters a day after his ouster. Chavez did not say which country had sent the ship and helicopter but governing party legislators have accused the United States of helping execute the coup.

The U.S. administration has repeatedly denied it was involved in the coup but acknowledged having held conversations with Venezuelan opposition leaders and military officers prior to the rebellion against Chavez.

A month after Chavez returned, the U.S. Embassy denied allegations U.S. military vessels were in Venezuelan territory.

The only U.S. vessels to approach Venezuelan waters during the coup attempt were two U.S. coast guard ships on a joint anti-narcotics mission with The Netherlands, the embassy said in a news release.

The embassy also rejected allegations by governing party legislators that two U.S. military officials who visited the Fuerte Tiuna military base in Caracas the day before Chavez's ouster were helping coup leaders.

The two officers spent two hours at the base April 11 to investigate information about troop movements, the embassy said. They left hours before Chavez was deposed. Two officers returned to the base April 13 for another evaluation of the situation.

Officials in Washington said they told opponents of Chavez they would not support any unconstitutional activity aimed at removing the leftist leader from power.

Chavez, who has irritated Washington by forging ties with Cuban President Fidel Castro, has criticized the United States for being too slow in condemning the coup when it occurred.

In contrast to most Latin American governments, the United States was sluggish to condemn the coup, initially blaming Chavez for his own overthrow. It later joined members of the Organization of American States in condemning the coup as unconstitutional.

Last week, Chavez commemorated the one-year anniversary of his dramatic return to power by inviting anti-globalization activists to a series of forums in Caracas.

Opposition leaders condemned the celebration, saying it was an insult to relatives of the victims who died in the violence that occurred prior to the military uprising.

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Sunday, May 11, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

Political Command of the Revolution (CPR) Supremo, Guillermo Garcia Ponce says that President Hugo Chavez Frias has been promoting different initiatives in favor of the unity of revolutionary forces since 1998. 

Citing the Patriotic Pole, Bolivarian Circles and Political Command of the Revolution as examples, the veteran politician says there have been successive stages in the development of a policy of consolidation and advance of the popular movement. 

"The People (El Pueblo) builds its unity without too many difficulties ... its interests are common and its identification with the Constitution and leadership of President Hugo Chavez Frias is transparent but the same isn't true among some political instances where it's not easy to overcome old models of fragmentation and where one can still find traces of the old party culture and tendencies of personalism and sectarianism." 

Garcia Ponce insists on establishing a single central collective leadership capable of giving greater cohesion and force to the popular and revolutionary movement ... he warns that if the matter isn't resolved, the government will lose elections. 

Summing up, Garcia Ponce says experience has shown him several truths:

• The permanent presence of President Chavez Frias in unitary political leadership is indispensable
• The National Front must have power of decision to be able to effectively to pursue its role of unitary leadership ... no more advisory or coordinating functions.

"The President's initiative to unite Bolivarian social and political forces into a National Front opens the way to a new stage in the consolidation process, provided that we learn from past experiences through criticism and self-criticism."