Pressure Mounts for Entire Chavez Clan

This is true....... We are tired of Chavez and his family, he won in the last election because he committed fraud.......

vdebate reportef

VENEZUELAN STATE ELECTIONS
Pressure Mounts for Entire Chavez Clan
By Jens Glüsing

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is facing yet another battle for power in gubernatorial elections. Even in his home state, a growing number of people are getting tired of the president and the Chavez clan.

ANZEIGE
When Doña Elena Frías de Chavez goes to church, she is accompanied by seven bodyguards and driven in a small convoy of three armored Ford SUVs. It is shortly after seven, and the mass has just begun in the church of Cristo Rey in Barinas, a city of 270,000 people on the hot plains of western Venezuela. The mother of the Venezuelan president takes a seat in the second row. She is wearing a turquoise blouse and sunglasses, and her hair is dyed blonde.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez comes from a devout family. Doña Elena used to walk to mass at her church, which was only two blocks from her old house. But now she and her husband live in an enormous mansion in a well-to-do section of Barinas.

AP
The party of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez faces real challenges by the opposition in six states on Sunday.
The old house is empty. Nothing about the unadorned, yellow single-story building suggests that the president spent part of his childhood there. Hugo de los Reyes Chavez, the president's father, has been the governor of the state of Barinas for the past decade. He ran for re-election four years ago under the slogan: "Vote for the father, because the son cannot deny him any request."
This is apparently true of the entire family. Since Hugo Chavez, a former paratrooper who later staged a military coup and is now the leader of the Latin American Left, was elected president in 1998, his once-humble mestizo family has become a wealthy clan. The Chavez family is believed to own 17 farms, several of them, as the opposition claims, acquired through straw men. "The Chavezes are the new oligarchs of Barinas," says Antonio Bastidas, a former neighbor and member of the opposition today.
FROM THE MAGAZINE
Find out how you can reprint this DER SPIEGEL article in your publication. Hugo de los Reyes Chavez, a former village teacher who is now called "El Maestro" in Barinas, has six sons, and all of them are extremely well provided for. Adelis is a vice president at Banco Sofitasa, which handles the business dealings of the Barinas government. Anibal is the mayor of Chavez's hometown of Sabaneta, Narciso heads the government's office of Venezuela-Cuban cooperation and Argenis is the head of his father's cabinet. Argenis became the de facto head of the family when "El Maestro" suffered a stroke a few years ago. Chavez's cousin Asdrubal is vice-president of the refinery business of the state-owned oil company, PDVSA.
Adan, the eldest of the Chavez brothers, has the reputation of being the family intellectual, and he has held posts as Venezuela's ambassador to Cuba and its education minister. Of all his brothers, Chavez trusts Adan the most, which is why he has now entrusted him with a delicate mission: Adan is running as a candidate to succeed his father in the gubernatorial election on Sunday. His task is to protect the president against the possibility of an ignominious defeat in the "Cradle of the Revolution," the term Chavez likes to use to describe his native state.
The regional elections will be the first trial of strength for the president since last year's failed constitutional referendum, with which autocratic leader Chavez had sought to secure for himself the possibility of unlimited re-election. According to opinion polls, six key states could go to the opposition in Sunday's vote.
Ironically, an effective opposition to the Comandante has developed among his own supporters, the "Chavistas," and some of the renegades are now running as independent candidates. In Barinas, for example, Adan Chavez is running neck-and-neck with the city's mayor, a former Chavez supporter. "We are tired of the nepotism in the president's family," says opposition candidate Simon Jimenez. "Chavez has established a new monarchy."
Barinas, as a microcosm of Venezuelan society, is the perfect place in which to study the rise and fall of the Caudillo. A four-lane highway leads to Sabaneta, his hometown, 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the provincial capital. There is no guardrail in the middle of the highway, because it doubles as a runway for Chavez's jet when he comes to visit Sabaneta.


AFP
Adan Chavez is Hugo's most trusted brother. He is now running to succeed his father as the governor of the state of Barinas on Sunday. Mayor Aníbal Chavez has had the street signs painted red, and the house where the president was born, now home to party offices, is painted pink. Many streets in this small, dusty city are unpaved, dotted with knee-deep puddles during heavy rains.
Hugo de los Reyes Chavez and his wife lived here with their two eldest sons until they moved to Barinas in the late 1960s. "Hugo, the second-born, was the most personable of the sons," says former neighbor Bastidas. "He was fascinated by weapons and interested in history."
Hugo Senior was a member of the Social Christian Party of Venezuela (COPEI), but his sons rebelled against what they dubbed "Venezuela's rotten elite" and the "party dictatorship," which they believed had dominated the country until Chavez's election victory in 1998. Doña Elena held the family together with an iron hand.
The village teacher and his wife were people of modest means. Today the governor's salary is a state secret, and Doña Elena makes no effort to hide her expensive taste in jewelry. Barinas is filled with rumors about how the clan came into its money. Two investigations into allegations of illegal enrichment are on hold with the district attorney's office.
Local residents are especially indignant over the story behind the La Carolina football stadium. It was supposed to be inaugurated during the Copa America South American football competition last year, but the structure is still under construction today. Only one match -- between the United States and Paraguay -- took place there, on the construction site and during the day, because the floodlights were missing. Adelis Chavez was in charge of financing for the mammoth project.
There are other tales of Chavez family corruption. The president has already dedicated the state-owned CAAEZ sugar refinery, a $100 million (€78 million) project near Sabaneta, three times, and yet construction is still only half-finished. Another story strikes a particularly sensitive note among the region's farmers, who used to grow corn and rice. Chavez convinced them to plant sugar cane instead, but now they are forced to burn half of their harvest because there is no plant to process the cane. "The president cheated the people," says David Hernandez, another former Chavez supporter.
The president and his family are not even popular among the residents of Sabaneta. Eight demonstrators and three police officers were injured there three weeks ago, when student protests turned violent. Hernandez, a dissident, was summoned by the secret police twice. He receives occasional death threats, and he is afraid to go out at night without bodyguards.
Chavez has never commented publicly on his clan's machinations, but he is believed to have complained at a family event about his relatives' undue enrichment. There are rumors in Barinas that he destroyed his brother Argenis's flashy Hummer with a baseball bat, and that their mother had to intervene.
Argenis was initially supposed to succeed his father as governor, but because he was involved in too many scandals, the president removed him from the line of fire. "Chavez doesn't want to risk his family's safety," says opposition candidate Jimenez.
Adan, the eldest, who is now running for governor, has been generous with his campaign gifts, hoping to bolster his prospects with voters despite everything. In a poor neighborhood in Barinas, Chavez supporters sell pork knuckles, refrigerators and other articles at artificially low prices. Venezuelan coffee -- "100 percent nacional" -- is especially popular at five Bolivar a pound. Coffee is scarce in supermarkets, a consequence of socialist mismanagement of the economy.
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Meanwhile Cuban doctors, sent to Venezuela by Fidel Castro in return for low-priced oil shipments, are writing prescriptions for free glasses and medications. "We are all voting for Adan," says Alberto Bueno, a carpenter standing in line for new glasses in the Mi Jardin II neighborhood.
The president's United Socialist Party of Venezuela has organized a "youth concert," to be held on playing fields on the city's outskirts. The audience is taken to the site in buses, but the venue is much too big.
Chavez's brother Adan waves to the audience, but refrains from giving a speech. The VIP stand where his parents are sitting is as red as the T-shirt his mother is wearing. Doña Elena looks determined, raising her fist in a gesture of defiance.
She plans to attend mass, as always, before the elections on Sunday. And she intends to pray for her sons.
Translated from the German by Christopher Sultan.

How should Obama approach relations with Venezuela?

"Chavez is an extremely active enemy of the US and its democratic values and principles, which for many years he has managed to disguise using the unpopular President Bush as his cover"

Diego Arria

How Should Obama Approach Relations With Venezuela ?

Q: Barack Obama received warm wishes from Latin American leaders after his election as US president on November 4. Venezuela was among the countries sending congratulatory messages, expressing a desire for "new relations between our countries." Should Obama work for rapprochement with Venezuela ? What hazards should Obama avoid in his approach to Venezuela ? What would be the effects of more cordial relations between the two countries?

A: Board Comment: Diego Arria: "When the price of oil was above $130 a barrel, Chavez proclaimed that 'Obama represented the empire that had to be terminated.' Since prices dipped below $60 he has toned down his language, expressing the need for 'a normalization of relations.' What would normalization mean for Chavez? To have free rein to continue to promote subversive activities throughout the region, and to trample the rights of the Venezuelan people suffering the actions of a militarized, authoritarian regime. President Obama should not make the mistake of continuing to believe that it is possible to 'bridge the gap that divide us.'

Chavez is an extremely active enemy of the US and its democratic values and principles, which for many years he has managed to disguise using the unpopular President Bush as his cover. The US authorities know that Chavez has been the most important ally of the narcoterrorist forces of Colombia , which for years kept American citizens as hostages, and that he has turned Venezuela into a sanctuary of all kinds of unsavory and dangerous characters from around the globe. For Chavez to have the US as an enemy is fundamental to his political grandstanding both nationally and internationally. Without it he would be fighting his own shadow and forced to face the reality that after bringing in $800 billion during his mandate he has managed to bring Venezuela close to a collapse. He needs to blame 'the empire' to hide the incompetence and corruption of his regime."

Diego Arria is a member of the Advisor board, Director of the Columbus Group and former Permanent Representative of Venezuela at the United Nations.

Chavez suffered a major setback

Agree with this statement: "Arria points to the fact that "now wounded and resentful Chávez is more dangerous than before, and will not give up trying to turn the country into a totalitarian state."

EL UNIVERSAL
CARACAS, Friday November 28, 2008

Diego Arria: "Chávez suffered a major setback"
"The election results represent the end of Chávez's attempt to turn the country into a socialist state under the banner of the Bolivarian Revolution"
Politics
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in last November 23rd local polls "suffered a major setback when the democratic opposition won the governorships of the five most populous states plus the Caracas Mayor's office, which altogether represent more than half of the electorate and four fifths of the national economy," said Diego Arria, a former Venezuelan Ambassador to the United Nations.
When asked what the election results meant for Chávez, Arria replied that the local polls were prefaced by "an abusive campaign" that turned the election into a plebiscite about Chávez.
According to Arria, a member of the advisory board of publication The Latin American Advisor, Inter-American Dialogue, "The election results (47 percent of the votes were against Chávez's official candidates) represent the end of Chávez's attempt to turn the country into a socialist state under the banner of the Bolivarian Revolution."
Regarding the outcome of the recent polls for the political organizations opposing the Venezuelan ruler, Arria stressed that "the success of the opposition forces is even more admirable when you consider that they not only had to vote for their candidates, but had to defend them from an untrustworthy electoral arbiter totally subordinated to the regime."
Further, Arria highlights the fact that President Chávez's "three closest lieutenants" were defeated in the election. In his view, such outcome "places the opposition on the way to win the 2009 elections for the National Assembly that today is fully controlled by Chávez, provided that they continue to work hard to preserve their unity."
Arria points to the fact that "now wounded and resentful Chávez is more dangerous than before, and will not give up trying to turn the country into a totalitarian state."

Barack Obama taps Joe Biden for VP

I am happy to see that Obama's administration knows who is Chavez.

vdebate reporter

http://ourlatinamerica.blogspot.com
/2008/08/reports-obama-taps-joe-biden-for-vp.html

What effect does Joe Biden’s supposed vice presidential candidacy have for Latin America and the Caribbean? A search through Biden’s official website provides some clues:
Biden claims to have “the bully pulpit of the Drug Caucus” to fight against illegal drug use and illegal trafficking. He said that he was “a strong advocate” for the comprehensive aid package known as Plan Colombia and has “exerted pressure” on the Mexican government to combat trafficking.
In a June 2007 statement, Biden backed debate on a bipartisan immigration reform bill since the “immigration system is broken and we have an obligation to work on it until we fix it.” (That bill would eventually be defeated).
Took to the floor in 2006 to recognize “ten extraordinary women” as part of International Women’s Day; one of them was Mexican actress/producer Salma Hayek.
Pointed out “China’s growing soft power in Asia, Africa, and Latin America” during a May hearing on the growing global role of China.
After Raul Castro took over the Cuban presidency, Biden issued a statement calling for the trade embargo against the island to stay while also advocating the loosening of travel restrictions.
In a 2006 speech, Biden warned about the “Axis of Oil” which includes several countries he believed were a “grave danger” to the U.S. including Venezuela.
In addition, the very resourceful ontheissues.org lists several of Biden’s viewpoints on foreign policy including his 1995 vote to strengthen the trade embargo against Cuba and his resolution condemning Venezuela for pulling RCTV’s broadcast license.
Assuming that the reports are true over an Obama/Biden ticket, what do you think about it?

An axis in need of oiling

Plunging oil price is not helping Chavez, we are so happy!!!

"As Mr Chávez scales back spending he will have to choose between losing influence abroad or losing popularity at home. Already he has quietly cancelled a promise to build an oil refinery in Nicaragua"

vdebate reporter.

The anti-West
An axis in need of oiling
Oct 23rd 2008

From The Economist print edition
Russia, Iran and Venezuela have been making common cause. A plunging oil price may stay their hand, but the West should still watch out

Illustration by Claudio Munoz
IT WAS one of George Bush’s catchier turns of phrase—the “axis of evil” consisting of North Korea, Iran and Iraq. How evil, or even menacing, they really were is debatable. And it was not much of an axis: Iran and Iraq hated each other. North Korea exported nuclear know-how, but probably no more than other countries such as Pakistan, a supposed American ally.
Of late another trio, bound together by dislike for America, and confidence based on surging energy revenues, has appeared: an “axis of diesel”, as some have named it, comprising Russia, Iran and Venezuela. At least before the present financial crisis, the trio had been hobnobbing happily. Russia has sold billions of dollars’ worth of arms to Venezuela and blocked Western attempts to slap tougher sanctions on Iran. The Kremlin is also selling air-defence systems to the Iranians.
Yet in this case, too, the idea of an “axis” is exaggerated. Each of the trio has different aims. Venezuela wants to create an anti-American block in Latin America. Russia likes the idea of challenging the United States in its backyard: a suitable response to what it sees as American meddling in Russia’s own neighbourhood, where its president, Dmitry Medvedev, claims “privileged interests”. But Russia’s backing for Venezuela is constrained by its ties to other countries in the region, such as Brazil.
Similarly, Russia likes to play the “Iran card”, signalling to Mr Bush that he may have to give ground in, say, Georgia if he wants help in the Middle East. But as far as any outsider can say, the Kremlin does not want Iran to have a bomb.
So the common interests of the three countries are mostly tactical, not strategic. The same applies to China, which is a co-founder, along with Russia, of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation, a loose security club. Having snubbed Russia over Georgia, China’s top priority is not gloating or spoiling, but salvaging the world economy, including that of America, which is a crucial outlet for its goods.
The “diesel” trio did gloat at first over the West’s meltdown. But they overlooked one of its effects: a plunge in oil prices, and hence their own revenues. This unwelcome news is likely to sharpen distinctions between them. Fyodor Lukyanov, a Russian foreign-policy pundit, says his country will have to prioritise. “Trying to achieve everything won’t fly any more.” The focus, he thinks, will be more on nearby countries and less on Latin America, not least because Venezuela will have less cash to buy Russian weaponry.
Indeed, the end of the oil boom may spell doom for that country’s populist leader, Hugo Chávez. Oil has been his political oxygen. When he took office in 1998 the price was $11 a barrel. It peaked in July at $147. Since then it has halved. Oil accounts for 90% of exports and more than half of government revenues. At home it has paid for what he calls “21st century socialism”: chiefly a torrent of central government spending, up from 22% of GDP in 2001 to 32% now. Mr Chávez also spends freely from the off-budget National Development Fund (Fonden), while Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), the state oil company, has been required to divert part of its investment budget to social spending.
Oil has also financed an anti-American alliance. More than a dozen countries in Central America and the Caribbean receive a total of some 300,000 barrels per day (b/d) of Venezuelan oil on easy terms (of which 93,000 b/d go to Cuba). Venezuela has spent heavily to support Bolivia’s Evo Morales, Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega and the opposition FMLN in El Salvador.
The price of cold turkey
For each $10 drop in the oil price, the government gets $5 billion (1.4% of GDP) less in revenue, according to LatinSource, a consultancy. Mr Chávez said this month that an oil price no lower than $80 was “sufficient”. But the economy is already deteriorating. Oil-dependency has risen; nationalisation, bullying and meddling have deterred private investment; a fixed and overvalued exchange rate has stoked imports. In 2006 growth was 10.3% and inflation 17%; the latest growth figure is a 7.1%; inflation is 36%. Foreign debt is up from $30 billion to $44 billion. The cost of credit has risen. Opaque statistics make it hard to gauge Mr Chávez’s room for manoeuvre. Fonden may contain some $15 billion; central bank reserves are about $27 billion. But the underlying trend is clear.
A devaluation risks setting off a downward spiral of inflation and rising poverty. As Mr Chávez scales back spending he will have to choose between losing influence abroad or losing popularity at home. Already he has quietly cancelled a promise to build an oil refinery in Nicaragua.
On the face of things, Russia looks better placed than its two friends to resist shocks; before the turmoil, it had built up the world’s third-biggest stash of currency, at more than $500 billion. However, the Kremlin has been spending heavily to prop up the rouble, bail out banks and plug holes in its budget. Apart from falling oil prices, a big cloud on the Russian horizon is falling oil output, a trend that looks hard to reverse without massive investment—and there are many other things Russia has pledged to invest in, from an expanding military to its own creaky infrastructure.
Compared with Mr Putin, Mr Chávez is less involved in the global financial markets and even more prone to blame everything on an American-driven fiasco. “There’s a spectre going round the developed world that was of its own making,” he said this month. “Like Frankenstein [sic]…it went around the world and then went back to his maker.” The first test of whom Venezuelans blame will come in local and state elections on November 23rd.
Thanks to sanctions, Iran is the axis member least exposed to the world economy. But the oil price fall will hit it hard. Some 80% of Iran’s government revenues come from energy. A drop in income is unlikely to make Iran slow down its nuclear programme, or end support for Israel’s armed foes. The nuclear efforts date back 20 years, predating the oil-price rise. But a sagging oil price will hurt the domestic economy and compound the woes of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Unlike Russia, which had prepared for a rainy day, Mr Ahmadinejad has been investing Iran’s oil money in a different future: his own. Energy subsidies alone are about 12% of Iran’s GDP; and energy revenues prop up the government budget. Inflation is at least 30%, up from an official 20% in February. The former central bank chief, sacked for resisting populist spending policies, has accused Mr Ahmadinejad of “looting” the bank’s assets. Merchants recently went on strike in several cities, including Tehran, over higher sales taxes.
Even before the oil price fell, some senior Iranians had criticised Mr Ahmadinejad for stoking confrontation with the West and making it easier for the United Nations to impose sanctions. Yet a falling oil price puts more pressure on Iran’s economy at a stroke than have several years of international sanctions.
The main aim of the “diesel” countries will now be to try to prop up falling prices. Iran and Venezuela, both members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), have called for it to cut output. Iran’s energy minister insisted defiantly this week that “the era of cheap oil is finished.” The cartel’s members are sufficiently worried about the falling price to have brought forward their next meeting by three weeks, to October 24th.
But Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s biggest producer, which would be responsible for the biggest share of any reduction in output, has not yet endorsed the idea of a cut and will not want to do all the cutting itself. It can withstand lower prices better than most, since it can balance its budget at an oil price of just $49 a barrel, according to the IMF. Iran and Venezuela, by contrast, need about $95 to make ends meet, according to Deutsche Bank.
Those fiscal straits will make Iran and Venezuela reluctant to forgo revenue by making cuts of their own, setting the stage for a row over quotas with Saudi Arabia. Yet the Saudis will not be unhappy to see Iran, a regional rival, squirm. What is more, says Leo Drollas of the Centre for Global Energy Studies, a consultancy, they are unlikely to agree to big cuts for fear of further blighting the world economy. There is also the question of whether the cartel will stick to whatever agreement it reaches. In the past, cash-strapped members have frequently cheated.
In sum, Iran, Russia and Venezuela are all likely to be left short of cash—and facing a diminution in their international clout. “Never confuse brilliance with a bull market,” goes a Wall Street saying. The leaders of the oily trio may have thought high oil prices were an adequate substitute for good governance. In many quarters, the difference is now painfully clear.

US Congressmen that have supported Chavez

Democrats Congressmen supporting Chavez:

John Conyers of Michigan

William Delahunt of Massachusetts

Edward Markey of Massachusetts

Joseph Kennedy of Massachusetts

Jose Serrano of New York

Senador Harkin of Iowa

Ex-president Carter

Have they ever read about Chavez constants violation of Venezuelans' Human Rights?

Vdebate reporter

September 29, 2006
Democrats and the anti-Semitism of Hugo Chavez

By Ed Lasky
Various Democrats have looked with favor upon the anti—American Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez over the years, his record of deepening anti—Semitism notwithstanding. Ex—president Carter helped him secure his position by certifying election results that others have cast doubt upon.
In 2002, 16 Democratic Congressmen, including senior Judiciary Committee member John Conyers of Michigan, voiced their support for Chavez when they sent a letter to President Bush complaining that America was not protecting Chavez from internal opposition to his authoritarian and increasingly erratic rule.
In that same year, Representative William Delahunt of Massachusetts established a 'Venezuelan Caucus' to show 'friendship to President Chavez'.
More recently, Congressman Edward Markey (also of Massachusetts) joined with Delahunt to accept cheap heating oil for their constituents from Chavez under a program Chavez rolled out to curry favor with certain Congressmen in America. The program, awkwardly called 'From the Venezuelan Hearts to the US hearths', has several political aims. It is geared towards minority communities in America as a way to garner support for Chavez among these groups. By doling out oil at a 40% discount in liberal congressional districts and allowing the incumbent representatives to take credit for it, Chavez is hoping to influence the makeup and policies of Congress and place these Congressmen in his debt.
This same discount oil has lured a Kennedy, ex—Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy III (also of Massachusetts), to hook up with Hugo. Chavez supplies discount oil for Kennedy to run through his Citizens Energy Corporation. Jose Serrano (D—NY) is also a Representative who will benefit as his constituents receive this discount oil. While Chavez's most recent rantings and ravings at the United Nations brought forth some expressions of disapproval from some Democrats (Congresswoman Pelosi and Congressman Rangel), others like Delahunt downplayed it, and Iowa's Senator Harkin actually supported Chavez.
The discount oil program appears to be an end—run around the federal law prohibiting foreigners from financially contributing to political candidates. Chavez is clearly accepting these losses (in effect donating the 'lost profits' to these districts) in order to help elect Congressmen who will support him.* It is reminiscent of the big city political machines which used to hand out turkeys to voters at Christmas.
But these Democrat Congressmen are members of a party which derives a great deal of support from America's Jewish community. They seem to have no problem cavorting with one of the most anti—Semitic leaders on the world stage, and Jewish Democrats have remained stragely silent of this betrayal. The very same Hugo Chavez who seems to have a soft spot for some minorities has a very harsh approach towards another — the Jewish people.
Late last year, Chavez took the occasion of his Christmas Eve speech to invoke an old anti—Semitic slur. Chavez declared,
'the world has wealth for all, but some minorities, the descendants of the same people that crucified Christ... have taken over all the wealth of the world'.
While well—informed people know that Romans crucified Christ, there are many millions of ill—informed people (including, apparently Chavez) who believe that Jews killed Christ. Clearly, when Chavez spoke of the people responsible for the death of Christ taking the wealth of the world, he was not referring to any ancient centurions living in plutocratic splendor these days, he was employing an anti—Semitic canard.
However, his insults go far beyond this. In 2004, a state prosecutor and Chavez ally was killed in car bombing. The Chavez—controlled state—run television referred to the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad as being behind the killing. (The Mossad is routinely dredged up by Arab anti—Semites as being responsible for all sorts of calamitous events in the world, including 9/11).
Chavez sent Venezuelan security forces to raid a Jewish private school in Caracas as the school day was beginning, in an incident widely regarded by Jews there as a warning to support him or else. His forces terrorized young children, holding sub—machine guns as the school was searched. Of course, no evidence was found implicating anyone in the killing of the prosecutor. But the event can also be seen as a present to Iran, since Chavez was visiting Iran at the time of the raid on the school.
Of course, his alliance and friendship with the Iranian regime should be enough to disconcert American Jews. Iranian—supported Hezb'allah has blown up a Jewish Community center and an Israeli Embassy in Argentina. Hezb'allah routinely attacks Israel, and the latest sneak attack resulted in a mini—war with Israel a few months ago. Of course, Iran has called for Israel to be 'wiped off the face of the map', has denied the Holocaust has occurred, is the foremost promoter of anti—Semitism around the world, and is developing a nuclear and ballistic missile program that directly threatens Israel.
Venezuelan Jews are feeling endangered. They have reported a noticeable up tick in anti—Semitism in government media, whereas before Chavez took power it was almost non—existent. Just this week, Caracas news paper El Diario published an article on 'The Zionist Jews' whose tone rapidly becomes apparent with the first paragraph, translated by bloggers Daniel of Venezuela News & Views and Alexandra Beech (hat tip: Larwyn).
Zionists, the destructive sect of radical Jews, are again impregnating the Jewish community with its animosity towards humanity. The genocide they executed in Palestine and Lebanon is similar to the Holocaust which the Nazis executed against them, and they will undergo another Holocaust because of the global hatred they are accumulating. If the Jews have charged the Nazis for their victims, they will have to pay Lebanon for their killings. The Jewish race is condemned to disappear, because if they continue marrying among themselves they will continue to degenerate; if they open their marriages they will racially dilute themselves, so they only recourse is to stay united, to provoke wars,and auto—genocides.
The article continues even more ominously:
Possibly, we'll have to expel them from the country, as other nations have done, which is the reason that Jews remain in a continuous state of stateless exodus, and it is why in 1948 they invaded Palestine, guided by Albion. Will global justice allow the United States, England, and Israel to destroy the Middle East to take over its oil? Only the union of its people will save them.
Anti—Semitic graffiti is appearing much more frequently in Caracas. Some Venezuelans believe Chavez was imbued with anti—Semitism by his mentor, Norbeto Ceresole, an Argentine known for his extreme neo—Nazi views. A local columnist, Sammy Eppel, bravely states, 'the government has adopted an anti—Semitic policy'. This problem will probably worsen, and Chavez intends to set up his version of Al Jazeera throughout the Spanish—speaking world, providing another outlet for his anti—Semitism.
Do the Democrat Congressmen who offer support for Hugo Chavez have a problem with his anti—Semitism? After all, they are one—degree of separation away from one of the more anti—Semitic leaders on the world stage.
Do the Democrat officials have a problem with his sending of thugs to terrorize children in a Jewish school? With speeches that are laced with anti—Semitic canards? With state—controlled media writing of expelling the Jews from Venezuela? With his alliance with a man who threatens another genocide?
According to the public record, the answer seems to be no.
That same public record also indicates that Jewish Democrats are willing to tolerate this behavior in their own party.
The silence is deafening.
Ed Lasky is news editor of American Thinker.
on "Democrats and the anti-Semitism of Hugo Chavez"

Walesa critical of Chavez's leadership in Venezuela

WARSAW, Poland (AP) -- Nobel Peace Prize laureate Lech Walesa has criticized Hugo Chavez's left-wing brand of leadership, saying the Venezuelan president should learn from Poland's experience how damaging communism can be.Ex-Polish leader Lech Walesa says bringing communism to Venezuela is "the biggest mistake of the region.""The ideas of the ruling team [in Venezuela] are very bad ideas," said Walesa, a former president of Poland."I am the best proof that communism fell because it was a bad system," said Walesa."And introducing it there [in Venezuela] is the biggest mistake of the region," he said in a television interview.Walesa, 65, dropped plans to attend a pro-democracy forum in Venezuela this week organized by anti-Chavez university students after the country's authorities said they could not guarantee his security.Walesa took it as a sign that he was not welcome.

Read the full story at:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/
americas/11/03/walesa.chavez.venezuela.ap/index.html

Chavez tension with U.S. to remain despiste Obama win

Chavez tension with U.S. to remain despite Obama win
Fri Nov 7, 2008 1:24pm EST
By Frank Jack Daniel - Analysis
CARACAS (Reuters) - With the passing of the Bush era, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will lose his favorite enemy and sparring partner. But clashes with the United States will persist even with Barack Obama in the White House.
Ties between the superpower and one of its biggest oil suppliers have deteriorated for years and are at a low after Chavez -- in an expletive-laced speech -- expelled the U.S. ambassador in September and Washington followed suit.
In the short term, tensions should ease as Chavez has pledged to return an ambassador once Obama assumes the U.S. presidency in January and George W. Bush, in the Venezuelan's words, "creeps out the back door" of the White House.
But the thaw may not last long.
With strong ties to Cuba, Iran and Russia, Venezuela's socialist leader bases much of his political message on countering U.S. hegemony.
U.S. officials initially hailed a short 2002 coup against Chavez and he says the CIA was involved in the putsch.
Since then, he has inflated the threat of U.S. plots against him to shore up popularity at home, and he never tired of lambasting Bush for his "imperial" wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, or calling him the devil, a donkey and a drunkard.
Regardless of who governs in Washington, the deterioration in relations could persist as potential flashpoints over oil, drugs, nuclear power and terrorism remain.
"We hope he tunes into the frequency of the world and convinces the U.S. hawks it is impossible to dominate the planet," Chavez said of Obama this week.
But the man who calls ex-Cuban leader Fidel Castro his mentor warned supporters: "Let's not kid ourselves too much."
After Obama takes office, ties can be expected to improve as the influence fades of Washington hardliners who lobbied for sanctions against Venezuela in clashes with Chavez over everything from oil prices to democracy.
TALKS WITH OBAMA?
Chavez, himself of mixed African and indigenous descent, says he wants better ties and would accept an offer of "respectful" talks from Obama, who he calls "the black man."
But his friendship with U.S. adversaries and his professed aim to develop nuclear energy for civilian use will be hard for American officials to ignore.
Chavez is a keen ally of a resurgent Moscow looking to expand its influence in the Western Hemisphere. In a few weeks, Russian warships will evoke the Cold War by powering into the Caribbean for joint exercises with Venezuela.
Chavez also lobbies hard for OPEC to push up oil prices, highlighting his clash of interests with Americans. Democrats and Republicans alike say he does too little to stop drug-trafficking and question his ties to Colombian rebels.
Obama, welcomed by many Latin Americans, may try to use the goodwill he has with leaders in the region to counter anti-American feelings that Chavez has successfully channeled.
"The U.S. will gain credibility with other countries who are worried about the confrontational antics of leaders such as Chavez," said Arturo Valenzuela, an external adviser to the Obama campaign and a former aide to President Bill Clinton.
"There will be a far greater ability for the U.S. to say 'Let's work together' to push back Chavez's interventionism and bullying tactics. Knee-jerk anti-Americanism will lose ground."
Such attempts would create new tensions with Chavez. They are also unlikely to prosper because, although many leaders disagree with Chavez's style, the spirit of Latin American cooperation free from U.S. pressure is valued in the region.
The Bush administration labeled him an autocrat.
Chavez even rewrote Venezuela's military doctrine to focus on an "asymmetric" war with America. With Obama, it will be harder to convince supporters a U.S. attack is imminent.
"Bush was Chavez's best campaign manager," said retired Gen. Alberto Muller Rojas, a Chavez political party leader.
(Additional reporting by Enrique Andres Pretel in Caracas and Anthony Boadle in Washington, Editing by Saul Hudson and David Storey)

Statement by John McCain on Venezuela

I like John McCain' Statement :
"Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's authoritarian regime represses its people and is attempting to buy support in Bolivia and elsewhere. The threat posed by Chavez extends beyond his borders. He stands credibly accused of aiding terrorists trying to subvert a democratic neighbor in Colombia.
I am afraid that if Obama win he will forget about Chavez, like the actual OAS - Organization of American States.
Venezuelan that will vote in this American Elections

vdebatereporter

STATEMENT BY JOHN MCCAIN ON VENEZUELA
For Immediate Release
Contact: Press Office
Friday, September 12, 2008
703-650-5550
ARLINGTON, VA -- Today, U.S. Senator John McCain delivered the following statement on Venezuela and Ambassador Duddy's expulsion by the Venezuelan government:

"I am deeply disappointed by the decision of Venezuela 's government to expel U.S. Ambassador Duddy. This diplomatic escalation, which follows Bolivia 's expulsion of the American ambassador there, reminds us anew of the dangerous trends in our own hemisphere.

"Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's authoritarian regime represses its people and is attempting to buy support in Bolivia and elsewhere. The threat posed by Chavez extends beyond his borders. He stands credibly accused of aiding terrorists trying to subvert a democratic neighbor in Colombia . Senior Venezuelan military and intelligence officials have been named as supporters of narco-terrorist activities. Russian strategic bombers recently landed in Venezuela . Joint Russian-Venezuelan naval exercises in the Caribbean have been announced. Russia has provided Chavez with over 100,000 AK-47 assault rifles with a factory to build more. Venezuela 's arms build-up -- which reportedly includes Russian-supplied combat helicopters, advanced SU-30 fighter-bombers, and other weapons systems, is unjustified by any realistic external threat.

" America 's continued dependence on imports of foreign oil from countries like Venezuela demonstrates the need to expand drilling for our own domestic sources of energy. Senator Obama opposes this critical step to lessen our dependence on imported oil from dictators like Hugo Chavez -- at a time when Chavez is threatening to cut off oil exports to the U.S.
"I have worked with America 's allies in order to strengthen our relationships in this crucial region, one to which so many American citizens have deep economic, family and cultural ties. And I have worked to isolate and weaken the forces that threaten freedom and prosperity in Latin America .

"In contrast, Senator Obama calls for meeting directly and unconditionally with the region's worst tyrants. Though Senator Obama has never been to Latin America, rather than focus on strengthening America 's ties with friends and allies, he has pledged to sit down with dictators in Venezuela and Cuba in the first year of his presidency. Such a course of action would undermine our democratic allies and embolden anti-American dictators. The United States , and our partners throughout Latin America , cannot afford Senator Obama's brand of unilateralism that rewards Hugo Chavez and his dangerous despotism."

For Immediate Release
September 12, 2008 Contact: Oficina de Prensa
703-650-5550
DECLARACIONES DE JOHN MCCAIN SOBRE VENEZUELA
ARLINGTON, VA -- El senador John McCain hizo hoy las siguientes declaraciones sobre Venezuela y la expulsión del embajador Duddy por el gobierno venezolano:

“Estoy sumamente decepcionado por la decisión del gobierno venezolano de expulsar al embajador estadounidense Duddy. Esta escalada en conflictos diplomáticos, precedida por la expulsión del embajador estadounidense de Bolivia, nuevamente nos recuerda que existen peligrosas tendencias en nuestro propio hemisferio.

“El régimen autoritario del Presidente de Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, reprime a su pueblo y está intentando comprar apoyo en Bolivia y en otros países. La amenaza que representa Chávez se extiende más allá de sus fronteras. Se le acusa, con argumentos convincentes, de ayudar a terroristas que procuran desestabilizar a Colombia, un país democrático vecino. Oficiales de alto rango del Ejército y de los servicios de inteligencia de Venezuela han sido acusados de apoyar actividades narcoterroristas. Bombarderos estratégicos rusos han aterrizado recientemente en Venezuela. Se han anunciado ejercicios navales conjuntos entre Rusia y Venezuela. Rusia le ha proporcionado a Chávez más de 100,000 rifles de asalto AK-47, con una planta para fabricar más. La escalada armamentista de Venezuela, que según informes incluye helicópteros de combate proporcionados por los rusos, aviones bombarderos avanzados SU-30 y otros sistemas de armamento, no se justifica con ninguna amenaza externa realista.

“La continua dependencia de Estados Unidos de las importaciones de petróleo extranjero proveniente de países como Venezuela demuestra la necesidad de expandir nuestras propias fuentes internas de energía. El senador Obama se opone a este paso crucial para disminuir nuestra dependencia de petróleo importado de dictadores como Hugo Chávez, en momentos en que Chávez está amenazando con cancelar todas las exportaciones de petróleo a Estados Unidos.

“He trabajado con los aliados de Estados Unidos a fin de fortalecer nuestras relaciones en esta importante región, con la cual tantos ciudadanos estadounidenses tienen vínculos económicos, familiares y culturales. Y he procurado aislar y debilitar las fuerzas que amenazan la libertad y prosperidad en América Latina.

Por el contrario, el senador Obama hace un llamado a reunirse directa e incondicionalmente con uno de los peores tiranos de la región. Como el senador Obama nunca ha visitado América Latina, en lugar de enfocarse en fortalecer los vínculos con los amigos y aliados de Estados Unidos, ha prometido que se sentará con los dictadores de Venezuela y Cuba durante el primer año de su presidencia. Una acción así afectaría a nuestros aliados democráticos y envalentonaría a los dictadores anti-estadounidenses. Estados Unidos y nuestros aliados en toda América Latina, no pueden darse el lujo del unilateralismo propuesto por el senador Obama, que premia a Hugo Chávez y su peligroso despotismo”.

The FARC's foreign friends - Mary O'grady

FARC & Chavez did everything possible to make look bad president Uribe, as the computer is showing now......
vdebate reporter

In other words, there is no peace agenda. Only plans for a circus designed to undermine Colombia's democracy. The rest of the region's governments ought to worry about who is next.

Mary O'grady

The FARC's Foreign Friends
by Mary O'grady

Some 11,000 text documents have been retrieved from the computers seized by the Colombian government after a bombing raid on a guerrilla camp in March. That raid killed rebel leader Raúl Reyes.Yet combing through only a portion of the material, which I did recently, is enough to see that the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – the FARC – is held together by two common threads.

First is the globalization of the armed struggle.

The FARC's allies and suppliers come from places as far flung as Australia, China, Russia, the Middle East and all parts of Latin America. Some are ideological comrades – both inside governments and operating as illegal cells; others are members of organized crime networks. All are crucial actors in the FARC's bloodthirsty search for power.

The second common thread is the propaganda war.

FARC rebels not only assume that they can manipulate international opinion by claiming a "humanitarian" agenda. They count on it. All this is facilitated by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. The Colombian military has been running up the score against the FARC of late and rebel operations are close to falling apart, as Journal reporter José de Cordoba wrote last week. But the documents show that aid from Mr. Chávez is prolonging the war by keeping FARC hopes alive.

The Venezuelan president has been creative in thinking about how he can help the rebels. The documents show that he has offered $250 million to $300 million but that's not all. In a February memo to the FARC high command, two rebel leaders who had recently met with Mr. Chávez describe proposed money-making schemes. "He offered us the possibility of a business in which we would receive a quota of oil to sell outside the country, which would leave us with a juicy profit."

There was also an offer of Venezuelan state contracts. In January 2007, the rebels penned a memo explaining that a Venezuelan general told them that arms shipments from abroad could be brought in through the Venezuelan port of Maracaibo.

By September, the shipments were being lined up. "Yesterday I received two Australian arms suppliers," one rebel wrote to the high command, "thanks to a contact made through Ramiro [a Salvadoran.]" The Aussies "offer very good prices on all we need."

The list includes 50-caliber machine guns, sniper rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and missiles. "All of these materials are made in Russia and China," he wrote, and the shipment would take a month or so "to arrive in Venezuela."

Just in case all this military hardware doesn't maim and murder enough civilians to produce a surrender by the Colombian government, Mr. Chávez and the FARC also have been collaborating on Plan B: an effort to acquire legitimacy in the eyes of the international community by branding Colombian President Álvaro Uribe as heartless and unreasonable.

That was supposed to be a slam dunk after Mr. Chávez last year won the role of "mediator" in the effort to free some FARC hostages, including the French-Colombian Ingrid Betancourt. But a series of PR faux-pas, culminating in a fruitless trip to see French President Nicolas Sarkozy, destroyed any credibility he may briefly have enjoyed as a peacemaker.

Shortly thereafter, rebel leaders wrote a memo outlining how they planned to position themselves as humanitarians ready to swap hostages for rebel prisoners "in contrast to the stubborn intransigence of Mr. Uribe."

Among their demands would be exclusion from the international terrorist list and access to diplomatic missions. "If [Mr. Uribe] rejects it, as he surely will," they wrote, "we lose nothing and instead he will remain isolated and under international pressure." That plan, too, went nowhere.

On Feb. 8 of this year, the rebels wrote that Mr. Chávez had a new idea: to create an international group – consisting of Cuba, Argentina, Ecuador, Brazil, Mexico and Nicaragua – similar to the Contadora Group. Contadora, which was formed in the 1980s allegedly to find a peaceful solution to the Central American wars, in fact provided political cover to the region's Marxists.

According to the rebels, Mr. Chávez said that if Mr. Uribe wants to improve bilateral relations, he would have to accept it and "asks that we bring Ingrid to the inaugural." In preparation for the swap, the group would set up a "humanitarian camp" with "the presence of the press, international delegates and the FARC." In other words, there is no peace agenda.

Only plans for a circus designed to undermine Colombia's democracy. The rest of the region's governments ought to worry about who is next.
http://www.hacer.org/report/2008/06/farcs-foreign-friends-by-mary-ogrady.html
Source/Fuente: http://www.wsj.com/

Chavez revolution at risk

Corruption will end with "Chavez Roboilusion"

Chávez revolution at risk
By Benedict Mander in Barinas

Financial Times, 06 de junio de 2008

“There are three things you can’t hide: a cough, a pregnancy and money,” says Wilmer Azuaje, an ambitious 31-year-old politician running to be mayor of Barinas, the capital of a sprawling cattle-ranching state of the same name in Venezuela’s far west.

The issue of money in Barinas may prove crucial come November’s nationwide state and municipal elections. In running for office, Mr Azuaje is not only going against his political peers – President Hugo Chávez’s United Socialist party (PSUV), from which he was expelled last month after announcing his candidacy – but against the Chávez family, which has been the unofficial ruling clan of Barinas for a decade. The opposition has long accused the Chávez family in the state of malfeasance, and there is a current parliamentary investigation into whether members of the family used public money to accumulate a series of farms.
“Is this what they call socialism?” says Mr Azuaje. “President Chávez has to keep his family under control. They are making him look bad before the eyes of the world.”

Hugo Chávez was born in Barinas, and many of his relatives have influential positions here. His father, Hugo de Los Reyes Chávez, won the state governorship in 1998 a few months before President Chávez came to power in Caracas. Most locals believe that the president’s brother, Argenis Chávez, Barinas’s secretary of state, is also managing day-to-day affairs after the governor suffered a recent stroke. The governor’s wife, Elena, runs a state charity. Of their other sons, Aníbal Chávez is mayor of a town, Sabaneta, where the president was born; Adelis Chávez is a manager of Banco Sofitasa, which services many of the banking needs of the state government; and Narciso Chávez was once tipped to run for mayor of the state’s Bolivar municipality. The only one of the president’s brothers hitherto rarely linked to local politics is the eldest, Adán Chávez, but on Sunday he too joined the state’s political dynasty when a PSUV primary election chose him as the party’s candidate to replace his father as governor of Barinas state.
Accusations of official corruption in the state are numerous and not always directed at the Chávez family. Venezuela’s national assembly opened an investigation in March into claims that Argenis and Narciso channelled at least $3m of state funds to accumulate 17 farms through front men. The brothers have publicly denounced the accusation. Opposition parties have also launched a civil suit alleging embezzlement and kickbacks connected to a million-dollar project to build a sugar refinery in Sabaneta, although no member of the Chávez family is named in the case.

Sitting outside the radio station where he conducts a weekly programme, Argenis Chávez says the attacks against his family are politically motivated and groundless. “These accusations are doing a great deal of damage to our revolution,” he says. “They say I am the owner of shopping centres, that I have a fleet of Hummers, that I own lots of land – they want to kill me politically. But behind [Mr Azuaje’s campaign] is the opposition: it’s not my head they want but the president’s.”
There are few direct indicators of public opinion in Barinas. A recent rally against corruption and nepotism organised in Barinas city by Mr Azuaje drew about 5,000 people, although government supporters argue that many will have been drawn by the presence of famous musicians.

David Hernández, a PSUV member who is running against Aníbal Chávez to be mayor of Sabaneta, says people have lost faith with the president’s family “although we still support the president himself – for now”.

On the national level, local pollsters Datanalisis argue that corruption has become an issue of increasing concern. They suggest that in November the government could lose at least half a dozen of the 24 state and district governorships, 20 of which it currently controls. Hugo Chávez was swept to power on a wave of anti-corruption sentiment, promising to clean up the crooked practices of the past. A decade on, Mr Chávez himself admitted this year that corruption remains one of the biggest problems facing his “Bolivarian revolution”. Confronting it, however, may prove difficult. “The president says we must denounce corruption, inefficiency and bureaucracy,” says Mr Azuaje. “But if you actually go ahead and do so, they accuse you of being a traitor and a CIA agent.”

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/790d0664-337a-11dd-8a25-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1

Venezuela 'spy' law draws protest

A new intelligence law brought in by Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has caused concern among rights groups who say it threatens civil liberties.

Mr Chavez argues the law will help Venezuela guarantee its national security and prevent assassination plots and military rebellions.

The new law requires Venezuelans to cooperate with intelligence agencies and secret police if requested.

Refusal can result in up to four years in prison.

The law allows security forces to gather evidence through surveillance methods such as wiretapping without obtaining a court order, and authorities can withhold evidence from defence lawyers if it is considered to be in the interest of national security.

One part of the law, which explicitly requires judges and prosecutors to cooperate with the intelligence services, has caused concern among legal experts.

"Here you have the president legislating by decree that the country's judges must serve as spies for the government," Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas Director for Human Rights Watch, said.

US 'interference'

"The president is constantly calling opposition leaders coup-plotters and pro-imperialists, and that makes me suspect this law may be used as a weapon to silence and intimidate the opposition," said Alberto Arteaga Sanchez, a specialist in constitutional law.

"Among other problems with this law, any suspect's right to defence can be violated, and that's unacceptable," Carlos Correa, a leader of the Venezuelan human rights group Provea, said.

Mr Correa compared the law to the Patriot Act in the United States, which gave US law enforcement agencies greater powers to intercept communications and investigate suspected terrorists on American soil in the wake of the attacks on 11 September 2001.

Mr Chavez - who called the US Patriot Act a "dictatorial law" - denied the Venezuelan law would threaten freedoms, saying it falls into "a framework of great respect for human rights".

Mr Chavez used his decree powers to overhaul Venezuela's intelligence agencies, replacing the Disip secret police and the DIM military intelligence agency with the General Intelligence Office and General Counterintelligence Office, both under his control.

Interior Minister Ramon Rodriguez Chacin said the revamp was needed to combat "interference from the United States".

In December, Venezuelans rejected a package of constitutional changes aimed at cementing socialism into Venezuelan law which would have given the president the chance to stand for re-election as many times as he wished.

Chávez Decree Tightens Hold on Intelligence

Chávez Decree Tightens Hold on Intelligence
By SIMON ROMERO
Published: June 3, 2008

CARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chávez has used his decree powers to carry out a major overhaul of this country’s intelligence agencies, provoking a fierce backlash here from human rights groups and legal scholars who say the measures will force citizens to inform on one another to avoid prison terms....

More on: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/03/world/americas/03venez.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=a87db9acdf2722c3&ex=1212638400
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/03/world/americas/03venez.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=a87db9acdf2722c3&ex=1212638400

President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela has been caught

The New York Times, 25 de mayo de 2008
President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela has been caught.

Despite his protestations of innocence, Interpol has corroborated the authenticity of thousands of computer files captured during a Colombian Army raid on a FARC rebel camp in Venezuela. Only a small share of this trove has been released, but it leaves little doubt that Venezuela has been aiding the guerrillas’ effort to overthrow Colombia’s democratically elected government. The Colombian government released documents from the computers that suggest Venezuelan intelligence officials tried to secure weapons for the FARC and that Mr. Chávez’s government offered the rebels oil and a $250 million loan. Information in the files has already led to the seizure of FARC funds in Costa Rica.
Colombia can now take the issue to the Organization of American States, the United Nations Security Council or the International Court of Justice. But it might need further corroborating evidence, as Interpol only certified that the Colombian government did not tamper with the files but said nothing about the veracity of their content. Mr. Chávez has a more important choice to make: he can sink once and for all into the role of regional pariah, to be contained or isolated in the name of regional stability, or he can commit to becoming a responsible neighbor. All of his neighbors, and all Venezuelans, should urge him to choose the latter course.
Responsibility means that Mr. Chávez must halt all aid to the FARC — which long ago chose drug trafficking over political liberation — and use his influence to get the rebels to lay down their arms and join the demobilization process that is under way for Colombia’s right-wing paramilitary groups.

Mr. Chávez’s posturing as a populist liberator is wearing thin at home, where voters defeated his proposal to overhaul the Constitution so he could stay in power indefinitely. It is also wearing thin abroad, where Mr. Chávez has used Venezuela’s oil riches to meddle in Argentina, Bolivia and Nicaragua, among others. Latin America’s leaders need to realize that his actions threaten the stability of the entire region and that cheap oil does not lessen that threat. They need to remind Mr. Chávez of the commitment to nonintervention and democratic rule in the Organization of American States charter. And they need to make clear that he has only two possible moves from here: he can become a responsible neighbor or be ostracized in the hemisphere.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/25/opinion/25sun2.html?_r=1&scp=3&sq=venezuela&st=cse&oref=slogin

Chavez aided Colombia Rebels, Captured Computer Files Show

Chavez Aided Colombia Rebels, Captured Computer Files Show
English
(Copyright (c) 2008, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
BOGOTA, Colombia -- A cache of controversial computer files closely tying Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez to communist rebels seeking to topple Colombia's government appear to be authentic, U.S. intelligence officials say.
The trove -- found on a dead guerrilla leader's laptops during a military raid in March -- is likely to ratchet up pressure for the U.S. to impose sanctions on one of its most important oil suppliers.
The files that have been made public so far have largely confirmed Mr. Chavez's well-known sympathy for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. But a review by The Wall Street Journal of more than 100 new files from the computers suggests that Venezuela has broader and deeper ties to the FARC than previously known.
These documents indicate Venezuela appears to be making concrete offers to help arm the rebels, possibly with rocket-propelled grenades and ground-to-air missiles. The files suggest that Venezuela offered the FARC the use of one of its ports to receive arms shipments, and that Venezuela raised the prospect of drawing up a joint security plan with the FARC and sought basic training in guerrilla-warfare techniques.
"There is complete agreement in the intelligence community that these documents are what they purport to be," a senior U.S. official said. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has been sharing its assessments with the White House, this official said.
Washington's stance is likely to hurt Venezuela's already deeply strained relationship with the U.S., its biggest trade partner. It could also add pressure for the U.S. to declare Venezuela a state sponsor of terrorism, alongside Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria, and impose sanctions.
Mr. Chavez has repeatedly said the files were faked by Colombia. "We don't recognize the validity of any of these documents," Bernardo Alvarez, Venezuela's ambassador to the U.S., said in a Wednesday interview. "They are false, and an attempt to discredit the Venezuelan government."
Interpol, the international police organization, has yet to give its view on the files' legitimacy. Colombia asked Interpol to perform an independent forensic analysis, and next week, Interpol Secretary General Ronald Noble is scheduled to travel to Colombia to present the findings.
Mr. Noble declined to comment on Interpol's conclusions. He said Interpol hasn't yet briefed foreign governments on its findings. "Anyone who has told you that Interpol has informed him about our findings has given you false information," he said.
The computer files hint at the depth of Mr. Chavez's antipathy towards the U.S., which he often describes as an "empire" oppressing Latin America. According to one document, Venezuela's interior minister, Ramon Rodriguez Chacin, last November asked the FARC to train Venezuela's military in nuts-and-bolts guerrilla tactics -- including "operational tactics, explosives, . . . jungle camps, ambushes, logistics, mobility" -- so that soldiers would be prepared to fight a guerrilla war if the U.S. were to invade Venezuela.
The documents are among more than 10,000 files that Colombian intelligence services say came from three computers belonging to Raul Reyes, the FARC's former second-in-command. Mr. Reyes was killed in March when Colombia's military staged a contentious cross-border raid into Ecuador, where he was camped.
The FARC itself has suggested the files are fake. A FARC statement published on the Web site of Venezuela's Information Ministry ridiculed Colombia's claims about the computer files, saying computers couldn't have survived the Colombian army attack "even if they had been bullet-proof."
A senior staffer in the U.S. Senate, who had been briefed on the contents of the files, cautioned that Mr. Chavez is known for his bombast, and that while tantalizing, the information in the files would need careful corroboration before action is taken against Venezuela. "We need to see proof of what is mentioned in the reports," the staffer said.
There have been some recent indications that the computers contain accurate information. Police in Costa Rica staged a successful raid on a home belonging to alleged FARC sympathizers, and recovered $480,000 in cash, guided by information from the documents suggesting the money would be located there.
In addition, Ecuador's interior minister confirmed that he had met with Mr. Reyes, after an email describing the previously secret meeting was found on the laptops and made public by Colombia.
The FARC, which has been fighting for control of Colombia for nearly a half-century, funds itself mostly through drug trafficking and kidnapping for ransom. The U.S. considers it to be one of the world's main cocaine suppliers.
The FARC is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., Canada, Colombia and the European Union. For the U.S., any group that deliberately attacks civilians for political reasons merits such a designation. With troop strength estimated at around 9,000 fighters, that would make the FARC Latin America's oldest and largest such group.
However, Colombia's neighbors, including Venezuela, Ecuador and Brazil, don't consider the FARC to be a terrorist organization. Indeed, Mr. Chavez has hailed the group as brother revolutionaries. He has thrown Venezuela's weight behind an effort to remove the FARC from terrorist lists and instead grant the group diplomatic recognition as a "belligerent army."
According to the senior U.S. intelligence official, the Colombian government delivered "thousands" of the controversial documents to Washington in March. Since then, American technical experts have studied them for signs of forgery and to assess whether they correspond to the methods the FARC typically uses to communicate.
"There are no indications whatsoever that they've been fabricated by the Colombians," the official said.
The official said that the most troubling information in the files suggested the FARC's willingness to purchase virtually any type of weapon from any source. The official said Mr. Chavez's government has increasingly been willing to help the FARC reach international buyers. The official cited the FARC's particular desire to acquire surface-to-air missiles, although he said there weren't any signs of the guerrilla movement succeeding.
During a speech Wednesday on Latin American relations, President Bush brought up the FARC situation. "Colombia faces a hostile and anti-American neighbor in Venezuela, where the regime has forged an alliance with Cuba, collaborated with FARC terrorists, and provided sanctuary to FARC units."
According to a study last week from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, sanctions against Venezuela could backfire if done poorly. The U.S. would need to rally significant regional support or risk that sanctions become "counterproductive" by stirring nationalist or anti-U.S. sentiments.
Venezuela has mounted a vigorous diplomatic offensive to block any move by the U.S. to declare the nation a terrorism sponsor. Such a declaration would prompt U.S. economic sanctions, disrupt $50 billion in annual bilateral trade and jolt the already jittery global oil market, since Venezuela is a major oil producer.
In a speech last month in New York, Mr. Alvarez, Venezuela's ambassador, warned the U.S. would pay a heavy economic price if it made any such move. "There will be very grave economic consequences," Mr. Alvarez said, adding that some 230,000 U.S. manufacturing jobs depend on U.S. exports to Venezuela, which in turn sends some 1.58 million barrels of oil daily to the U.S.
The documents suggest Mr. Chavez is personally involved in helping the guerrillas. In a September 2007 message to the FARC's ruling body, a commander wrote: "Chavez is studying our documents and has said that just like Fidel [Castro] has decided to delegate his other responsibilities to concentrate on the Venezuelan situation, he [Chavez] is ready to do the same to dedicate more time to Colombia."
Colombia has long accused Venezuela of letting the FARC operate on its side of the border, allegations the Venezuelans have denied. But according to one 2005 email, from Jorge Briceno (known as Mono Jojoy, a top FARC military commander), the rebels at that time had some 370 guerrillas and urban sympathizers operating inside Venezuela.
One email, apparently sent by a FARC commander known as "Timochenko" to the guerrillas' ruling body in March 2007, describes meetings with Venezuelan naval-intelligence officers who offer the FARC assistance in getting "rockets." The Venezuelans also offer to help a FARC guerrilla travel to the Middle East to learn how to use the rockets.
Colombian military analysts believe the reference is to shoulder-fired antiaircraft missiles, a weapon that the guerrillas desperately need if they hope to blunt Colombia's recent gains. "The FARC realizes that its military problem is air power," says Gen. Oscar Naranjo, who heads the country's national police.
In another email dated early 2007, FARC commander Ivan Marquez describes meetings with the Venezuelan military's intelligence chief, Gen. Hugo Carvajal, and another Venezuelan officer to talk about "finances, arms and border policy." Mr. Marquez relates that the Venezuelans will provide the guerrillas some 20 "very powerful bazookas," which Colombian military officials believe is a reference to rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
An officer reached at Gen. Carvajal's office said the general was the only person authorized to comment and he couldn't be reached because he was traveling.
At the meeting with Gen. Carvajal, another Venezuelan general is described as offering the port of Maracaibo to facilitate arms shipments to the guerrillas. The general suggests piggybacking on shipments from Russia -- from which Venezuela itself is buying everything from Kalashnikovs to jet fighters -- to "include some containers destined to the FARC" with various arms for the guerrillas' own use.
A spokesman at the Russian embassy in Washington declined to comment.
The proposals to obtain weaponry are part of a broad program of economic and political support for the FARC from Mr. Chavez's government, some of which was detailed in emails that were made public in the days just after the cross-border military raid that yielded the computer files.
Another email describes a November meeting between two FARC commanders and Mr. Chavez. The commanders, Ricardo Granda and Ivan Marquez, report back in the email that Mr. Chavez gave orders to create "rest areas" and hospital zones for the guerrillas to use on the Venezuelan side of the border.
Many documents talk about how to fit generous offers of Venezuelan aid to the FARC's long-term "strategic plan" of taking power in Colombia. In one document dated January 2007, one top FARC commander speaks of a "loan" for $250 million to buy arms which the FARC will pay back once it has reached power. "Don't think of it as a loan, think of it as solidarity," says Mr. Rodriguez Chacin, the interior minister, in another document.
Mr. Rodriguez Chacin's press office didn't respond to a request for comment. Earlier this week, he dismissed Colombian newspaper reports that Interpol had confirmed that the computer documents were authentic, according to an Interior Ministry press release. "Imagine somebody taking [evidence] home and manipulating it as he wants, and afterwards presenting it," he said. "What court in the world will accept that evidence?"
While the documents indicate that the FARC is appreciative of Venezuela's efforts, privately the guerrillas occasionally make fun of the Venezuelans' work habits. "It hasn't been easy for us to adapt to the way of being of the Venezuelans," complains Mr. Reyes in one document. "It doesn't seem as if they are conscious of their boring lack of formality." Mr. Chavez "always leaves things until the last moment."


David Gauthier-Villars in Paris and David Crawford in Berlin contributed to this article.

Venezuelan President Chavez' family accused of corruption

Power+Money=Corruption=Hugo Chavez+Hugo's Family
vdebate reporter

Venezuelan President Chavez' family accused of corruption
Posted on Mon, Apr. 28, 2008
By TYLER BRIDGES
tbridges@MiamiHerald.com

RAUL ROMERO/FOR THE MIAMI HERALD
Hugo de los Reyes Chavez, the governor of Barinas state and father of President Hugo Chavez, at a ceremony honoring him in the city of Barinas. His wife Elena Frias de Chavez is to the left.
BARINAS, Venezuela -- Group after group -- seven in all -- climbed onto the modest stage, each one bearing a plaque honoring a man known throughout this western plains state as ``El Maestro.'' Hugo de los Reyes Chávez, father of Venezuela's president, is winding down a 10-year tenure as Barinas' governor.
But by the time the two-hour ceremony had ended in a sweaty gymnasium here, half of the party loyalists in red T-shirts had departed.
It was a symbol of the trouble the Chávez family is facing outside the gymnasium. One of President Hugo Chávez's brothers is no longer assured of winning the election in November to succeed their father, a hometurf defeat that would badly wound the president and his socialist ``revolution.''
Besides the governor, four of President Chávez's five other brothers play a key role in the state.
Argenis is secretary of state and the real power in Barinas since a stroke enfeebled El Maestro, analysts say.
Aníbal Chávez is the mayor of Sabaneta, the town where the president and his brothers were born.
Adelis Chávez works for Banco Sofitasa, which handles the banking needs of the state government, and he was responsible for building a soccer stadium.
Narciso Chávez is politically active behind the scenes in Barinas.
Adán is the one brother who doesn't live in Barinas, but he is the president's minister of education and is seen as the one most likely to run for governor, given the corruption accusations tainting the other brothers.
Barinas residents have become fed up with what they see as the heavy-handed and arrogant ways of the Chávez family, analysts and average citizens alike say. One example that rankles widely: The governor and his wife travel in a caravan of SUVs with a police escort that halts all traffic to let them pass.
Governor Chávez spent millions of dollars to build a sugar refinery that has yet to open, and millions more for a new soccer stadium that remains unfinished, a year after it was inaugurated for the America's Cup tournament, analysts said.
Gehard Cartay, who was Barinas' governor 199