<a href=www.sfgate.com>Web Reference MARIANELA JIMENEZ, Associated Press Writer Friday, March 28, 2003
(03-28) 23:29 PST SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) --

Safely in exile, Venezuelan opposition leader Carlos Ortega is urging followers back home to maintain their effort to oust President Hugo Chavez.

At a news conference Friday in Costa Rica, the president of the Venezuelan Labor Confederation denied the criminal charges that forced him to flee his country, where he was one of the leaders of a paralyzing 61-day general strike.

"I have nothing to fear. I'm not corrupt, nor am I a delinquent," Ortega said. "The most corrupt person our country has given birth to is Chavez, and he will pay with prison for that."

Ortega, charged with treason in Venezuela for his role in the strike, arrived late Thursday in Costa Rica, where he was granted asylum.

He urged his followers to "stay united, no matter what personal or political differences ... so that we can soon leave behind the nightmare we are living."

Costa Rican officials gave Ortega diplomatic asylum after the labor leader expressed fears for his life. Chavez's government allowed him to leave the country on Wednesday.

The general strike disrupted the Venezuelan economy and oil industry, costing an estimated $6 billion in losses without achieving its objective of ousting the president.

Facing rebellion and treason charges, Ortega slipped into the Costa Rican Embassy on March 14 and requested political asylum. "I think I'm more useful to my family and country alive," he said.

<a href=www.sfgate.com>From the National Desk Published 3/28/2003 4:03 PM

MIAMI, March 28 (UPI) -- Juan Fernández, a leader of the opposition in Venezuela, is meeting with other opposition figures and Cuban Americans in Miami on the future of the movement -- currently in disarray.

Fernández is pushing for a referendum that he hopes would oust Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in August.

He was one of the leaders of the strike that paralyzed the South American country's economy earlier this year. The strike is over and the opposition is scattered, but Fernández said at a news conference in Miami they haven't given up.

"We are calling for a referendum vote," Fernández said. "The problem with the strike is we don't have a rational person in charge of the country.

"If you see thousands of people are on the street clamoring for a solution what you expect is the head of that could try would do something to alleviate the problem," Fernández said. "Instead, Mr. Chavez did nothing and said, 'I don't care.'"

Fernández, 47, Carlos Ortega and Carlos Fernández led the strike that shut down nearly all of Venezuela's production. Venezuela has the largest deposits of crude oil outside the Middle East, and is one of the United States' major suppliers.

Juan Fernández left his country after a judge struck down an arrest warrant accusing him of damaging the country's fuel supply.

Carlos Fernández has been under house arrest, and Ortega has been granted political asylum in Costa Rica.

Juan Fernández said he would remain in Miami for a few days.

"I know the government is appealing the case and I'm afraid," he said.

Before his arrival in Miami he addressed the Council of Americas in New York, and visited the White House and met the undersecretary of state for the western hemisphere and officials from the Department of Energy.

Throughout the week's trip, he has urged support for the recall referendum.

"We need the international community, especially the United States to ... ensure we have elections and they are held with transparency," Fernández said.

He insists the opposition movement has not lost credibility with the Venezuelan people, although many were damaged financially by the strike.

The said the group headed by the Democratic Coordinator is deeply split, the product of frequent infighting. But he said changes are being considered.

"I don't know if we will have the coordinator as the franchise for the opposition," he said. "What we will have is a strong opposition first, in order to achieve the referendum."

Chavez, a former paratrooper who took part in an unsuccessful coup in 1992, was re-elected primarily on his support from Venezuela's poor. Key support from parts of the middle class has eroded, but he still has the support of the country's poor.

SourceCOSTA RICA Posted Fri, 28 Mar 2003

Charged with treason for leading a crippling two-month strike aimed at ousting President Hugo Chavez, Venezuelan union leader Carlos Ortega went into exile in Costa Rica on Thursday night.

Ortega (56) arrived in San Jose by plane from Caracas, accompanied by Costa Rican ambassador to Venezuela Ricardo Lizano who had been given a safe-conduct for the opposition leader.

Ortega was due to pay a courtesy call at the Costa Rican foreign ministry to express his thanks for having granted him political asylum, the ministry said in a statement earlier on Thursday.

Ortega made no statement before leaving Caracas, but left a message that was read over Globovision television, in which he pledged to continue fighting to oust Chavez, whom he called "a dictator in training."

Members of Disip political police escorted Ortega and the ambassador to the airport north of Caracas after dozens of supporters cheered Ortega as he left the Costa Rican embassy, where he had been holed up since March 13.

"Here we respect the fundamental principle, which is the right to asylum," Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said earlier. "For us, the right to asylum is more important than Ortega."

The Venezuelan government has charged Ortega with rebellion, incitement to crime, treason, association with criminals and destruction of property for leading the 63-day strike.

The strike, which ended on February 2, virtually stopped crude shipments from Venezuela, the world's fifth largest oil exporter, costing the country an estimated $four-billion in lost revenue.

Ortega, president of the Venezuelan Workers Confederation (CTV), went into hiding after authorities issued an arrest warrant for him on February 19, and eventually sought refuge in the Costa Rican Embassy in Caracas.

Another top strike organizer, business leader Carlos Fernandez, was placed under house arrest, after a judge ruled he might flee the country before facing trial over the strike.

The opposition claims Chavez is gradually turning Venezuela into a leftist dictatorship and that his self-styled social revolution has ruined the oil-rich but poverty-stricken South American country.

Chavez first won at the ballot box in 1998 the power he failed to grab in a military coup six years earlier. He was reelected by a landslide to a six-year term in 2000.

He claims the opposition is fomenting another coup, after he was toppled in April but returned to power by loyal troops two days later.

AFP

<a href=www.sun-sentinel.com>REFERENCE By Sandra Hernandez Staff Writer Posted March 28 2003

MIAMI · Only a few weeks ago, Juan Fernández was a wanted man forced to go underground to escape Venezuelan authorities who sought the former oil executive for a slew of alleged crimes, including rebellion.

But on Thursday, Fernández re-emerged in Miami wearing a blue suit and sounding like the familiar voice that helped lead a two-month strike that paralyzed the South American nation's oil industry and crippled its already shaky economy.

"We are calling for a referendum vote," Fernández, 47, said at a news conference at a Miami law office. "The problem with the strike is we don't have a rational person in charge of the country. If you see thousands of people are on the street clamoring for a solution what you expect is the head of that country would do something to alleviate the problem. Instead, Mr. Chávez did nothing and said I don't care."

President Hugo Chávez is a former paratrooper who helped lead a failed 1992 coup attempt. He was elected by an overwhelming majority of the country's poor voters. While his support has waned among the middle class he maintains a significant base of support among the poor.

Fernández, along with Carlos Ortega and Carlos Fernández led the strike that shut down much of the country and nearly all of the country's oil production. Venezuela has the largest oil reserves outside the Middle East and is a key supplier of crude to the United States.

These days, however, Juan Fernández is the only one of the three leaders whose name is tossed around as a possible presidential candidate. He is the only former strike leader not wanted for alleged crimes in Venezuela. Earlier this month a judge struck down the arrest warrant alleging rebellion. Chávez's government accused Fernández of damaging the country's fuel supply.

Carlos Fernández, head of the country's largest business association, is under house arrest pending a hearing for rebellion. Carlos Ortega, a labor leader, was recently granted political asylum in Costa Rica.

Juan Fernández is in South Florida hoping to drum up support for a referendum vote. Opposition members say the vote is a democratic way to remove Chávez.

Fernández acknowledged the opposition team headed by a group called the Cordinadora Democratica, or Democratic Coordinator, had fallen victim to infighting that resulted in deep splits.

Until now the group, which included members of various opposition political parties, was the main body that met with government representatives and the Organization of American States.

But on Thursday, Fernández said changes were in the works. "I don't know if we will still have the coordinator as the franchise for the opposition. What we will have is a strong opposition first, in order to achieve the referendum."

Fernández said he would remain in South Florida for a few days but is afraid of returning to Venezuela.

"I know the government is appealing the case and I'm afraid," he said.

He insists the opposition has not lost credibility with Venezuelans, many of whom are struggling to recuperate from the economic damage caused by the strike.

Fernández called on the United States to take a strong role were both sides to agree on an August date for the referendum vote.

"We need the international community, especially the United States to narrate and ensure we have elections and they are held with transparency," Fernández said.

Fernández is the latest opposition member to appear in South Florida. In January, Carlos Ortega attended a rally at Calle Ocho calling for Chávez's ouster.

Sandra Hernandez can be reached at shernandez@sun-sentinel.com or 954 385 7923.