<a href=www.voanews.com>VOA News 29 May 2003, 12:52 UTC

Cesar GaviriaThe head of the Organization of American States (OAS) says there is a good chance a referendum on Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's rule could be held later this year if all parties honor a recent accord.

OAS Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria told reporters in the capital, Caracas, late Wednesday that he believed a referendum could be held as soon as November. Mr. Gaviria mediated at least six months of talks between the government and Venezuelan opposition parties.

Mr. Gaviria said he believed the resulting agreement, to be signed Thursday - will not solve all of Venezuela's problems. But he says it does offer a peaceful, democratic and constitutional solution to the political standoff that has crippled the nation's economy.

Opposition parties staged a two-month workers strike that ended earlier this year in an effort to force a vote on Mr. Chavez's term in office.

The president had been elected to a second six-year term in 2000. Venezuela's constitution does not allow for a referendum before a president has served half his term,which would be on August 19 for Mr. Chavez

Venezuela's Central Bank says the country's economy fell 29 percent in the first quarter of 2003.

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Wednesday, May 28, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

The Catholic Education Association (AVEC) has issued a communique, pointing out that the government owes 46.5 million bolivares, the total of March, April and May. The delay could affect the education of 400,000 children in 760 institutions.

AVEC admits that the government has cleared up a backlog of payments but complains that payments have become irregular causing problems among teachers and parents. The organization also recognizes the State's difficult financial situation, warning that some schools are barely surviving because of delayed government subsidies but also because many parents cannot pay the small monthly quota ... "many are unemployed or earn very little."

The press release also accuses the government of harassing and closing in on many schools, which AVEC says is unjust and causes more stress to families.

Meanwhile, State school teachers are threatening another march to demand salary increases and the setting up of a collective bargaining process, which expired in May 2002. Fetramagisterio president, Nelson Gonzalez has fixed a national march for June 12 ... "we have exhausted all other means and will not allow the Education Minister to continue delaying wage talks." 

<a href=famulus.msnbc.com>MSNBC News, By Pascal Fletcher

CARACAS, Venezuela, May 28 — A peace accord reached between Venezuela's feuding government and opposition could lead to a referendum on President Hugo Chavez's controversial rule around November, the chief international mediator said on Wednesday.

       Cesar Gaviria, a former Colombian president and secretary general of the Organization of American States, told foreign correspondents in Caracas the agreement, to be signed Thursday, would not magically resolve the political conflict and economic problems that have shaken the world's No. 5 oil exporter since late 2001.

       ''I believe there will be a recall referendum (on Chavez's presidency) around November, if the constitutional conditions are met,'' the OAS chief said.

       Gaviria was the main architect of a pact reached last week between Chavez's government and its critics. The agreement recommends a constitutional referendum as the solution to the political confrontation between the two sides.

       Under Venezuela's constitution, the opposition can force a referendum on Chavez's mandate after Aug. 19 -- halfway through his term -- if they collect the signatures of at least 20 percent of voters.

       The agreement followed more than six months of talks, accompanied by sometimes deadly street clashes between followers and foes of the left-wing president, who survived a short-lived coup last year. Both sides agree in the accord to shun violence.

       Opposition leaders say they still fear that Chavez, a former paratrooper who led a failed 1992 coup six years before winning elections, will still try to avoid a referendum. They accuse him of dragging the country toward Cuba-style communism.

       But Gaviria was optimistic. ''We sat down to these negotiations with one objective, to achieve a peaceful, democratic and constitutional solution through elections. This agreement guarantees that solution,'' he said.

But he added: ''It doesn't resolve Venezuela's problems.''

       He predicted the run-up to the referendum would be very difficult. ''There are going to be a lot of tensions,'' he said.

       Venezuela faces a deep recession, high inflation and unemployment following a two-month opposition strike in December and January that disrupted oil exports and slashed government revenues.

Posted on Tue, May. 27, 2003 ALEXANDRA OLSON Associated Press

CARACAS, Venezuela - President Hugo Chavez applauded an agreement on plan for a referendum on his rule, saying he hoped his foes had shed what he called their "coup-plotting" tendencies.

The deal, due to be signed Thursday, was brokered by the Organization of American States in a bid to bring stability to the oil-rich nation, which in the past 13 months has seen a brief coup and a strike that devastated the economy amid the dispute between Chavez and the opposition trying to remove him.

"I feel very satisfied," Chavez said during a speech to indigenous supporters in southern Amazonas state.

The agreement between his government and the opposition does not immediately provide for a referendum - instead, it binds both sides to follow the constitution's procedures for calling such a vote.

The constitution would allow a referendum by August, the midpoint of Chavez's six-year term, if the opposition can gather 2.5 million signatures. The next scheduled elections are in 2006.

The pact prohibits any amendments to election laws while authorities prepare for balloting, and it urges Congress to swiftly name election authorities, who must validate the signatures.

The accord also addresses possible referendums on other elected officials - something Chavez supporters have sought against several anti-Chavez legislators.

"I hope the agreement will create a better climate than the one we have in the country today," said OAS Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria.

Venezuela's opposition has been left leaderless and demoralized since it led a two-month strike aimed at forcing Chavez's resignation. The strike collapsed in February, succeeding only in devastating the economy and costing Venezuela $6 billion. The economy shrank 29 percent in the first three months of 2003.

The strike followed an April coup that briefly toppled Chavez and exposed Venezuela's deep divisions over the former paratrooper's leftist economic policies and irreverent rhetoric.

Wearing an indigenous necklace and red wreath on this head, the president said Tuesday the agreement was reached thanks "to the patience that we have had with this opposition, many times irresponsible, coup-plotting and fascist."

"The important thing is that they accept, as they seem to have accepted, that if they want me to go ... they will have to follow the constitution instead of going crazy and desperate seeking coups," Chavez said.

Diplomats from the United States, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Spain and Portugal, the countries that helped mediate the deal, will attend the signing ceremony Thursday.

Chavez's first election in 1998 ended the 40-year hold on power by two traditional parties accused of squandering Venezuela's vast oil wealth and leaving 80 percent of the population in poverty.

He pushed through a new constitution that paved the way for his own re-election in 2000 and elections that gave his allies control of Congress.

Chavez says he is leading "social revolution" against corruption and inequality. Adversaries - business leaders, labor unions and the two traditional parties - accuse him of grabbing power and ruining the economy with leftist policies.

The opposition says it has already gathered the required signatures, but the government argues that the signatures are invalid because its opponents should have waited until August to begin collecting them. The Supreme Court is to decide on the issue.

To remove Chavez if a referendum is held, the opposition must garner more votes than Chavez did in the last election: more than 3.7 million, or almost 60 percent. Recent polls suggest Chavez's approval ratings range from 30 to 40 percent.

ALEXANDRA OLSON, Associated Press Writer Tuesday, May 27, 2003
(05-27) 15:46 PDT CARACAS, Venezuela (<a href=www.sfgate.com>AP) --

President Hugo Chavez applauded an agreement on plan for a referendum on his rule, saying he hoped his foes had shed what he called their "coup-plotting" tendencies.

The deal, due to be signed Thursday, was brokered by the Organization of American States in a bid to bring stability to the oil-rich nation, which in the past 13 months has seen a brief coup and a strike that devastated the economy amid the dispute between Chavez and the opposition trying to remove him.

"I feel very satisfied," Chavez said during a speech to indigenous supporters in southern Amazonas state.

The agreement between his government and the opposition does not immediately provide for a referendum -- instead, it binds both sides to follow the constitution's procedures for calling such a vote.

The constitution would allow a referendum by August, the midpoint of Chavez's six-year term, if the opposition can gather 2.5 million signatures. The next scheduled elections are in 2006.

The pact prohibits any amendments to election laws while authorities prepare for balloting, and it urges Congress to swiftly name election authorities, who must validate the signatures.

The accord also addresses possible referendums on other elected officials -- something Chavez supporters have sought against several anti-Chavez legislators.

"I hope the agreement will create a better climate than the one we have in the country today," said OAS Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria.

Venezuela's opposition has been left leaderless and demoralized since it led a two-month strike aimed at forcing Chavez's resignation. The strike collapsed in February, succeeding only in devastating the economy and costing Venezuela $6 billion. The economy shrank 29 percent in the first three months of 2003.

The strike followed an April coup that briefly toppled Chavez and exposed Venezuela's deep divisions over the former paratrooper's leftist economic policies and irreverent rhetoric.

Wearing an indigenous necklace and red wreath on this head, the president said Tuesday the agreement was reached thanks "to the patience that we have had with this opposition, many times irresponsible, coup-plotting and fascist."

"The important thing is that they accept, as they seem to have accepted, that if they want me to go ... they will have to follow the constitution instead of going crazy and desperate seeking coups," Chavez said.

Diplomats from the United States, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Spain and Portugal, the countries that helped mediate the deal, will attend the signing ceremony Thursday.

Chavez's first election in 1998 ended the 40-year hold on power by two traditional parties accused of squandering Venezuela's vast oil wealth and leaving 80 percent of the population in poverty.

He pushed through a new constitution that paved the way for his own re-election in 2000 and elections that gave his allies control of Congress.

Chavez says he is leading "social revolution" against corruption and inequality. Adversaries -- business leaders, labor unions and the two traditional parties -- accuse him of grabbing power and ruining the economy with leftist policies.

The opposition says it has already gathered the required signatures, but the government argues that the signatures are invalid because its opponents should have waited until August to begin collecting them. The Supreme Court is to decide on the issue.

To remove Chavez if a referendum is held, the opposition must garner more votes than Chavez did in the last election: more than 3.7 million, or almost 60 percent. Recent polls suggest Chavez's approval ratings range from 30 to 40 percent.