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10
WORLD
Monday, January 13, 2003
THE BATTALION
Venezuela’s opposition marches on
headquarters in demand of support
By Alexandra Olson
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Soldiers lobbed tear gas at tens of thou
sands of Venezuelans marching on a park
near a military base to demand the armed
forces’ support in the ongoing strike
against President Hugo Chavez. Nineteen
people were injured, including one pho
tographer who was hit by rubber bullets.
Opposition protesters regrouped as the
gas clouds lifted, shouting “cowards” at
hundreds of soldiers facing them with
armored personnel carriers. Troops also
kept back dozens of Chavez supporters
protesting nearby.
The first marchers to arrive at Los
Proceres park, which is outside the Fort
Tiuna military base, stomped down barbed
wire blocking the entrance, but they did
not try to break past security lines.
Hector Castillo, a photographer for the
local newspaper El Mundo, was injured by
rubber bullets that some soldiers fired into
the air, Caracas Fire Chief Rodolfo
Briceno said. Eighteen other people were
treated for asphyxiation, he said.
The park is one of eight security zones
in Caracas as decreed by Chavez. Protests
are banned in those areas unless authorized
by the defense ministry.
“All of this show of force is absurd,”
said Henrique Capriles, the opposition
mayor of an eastern Caracas district.
“People are tired of being assaulted
and repressed.”
The military — purged of dissidents
after a brief April coup — has supported
Chavez during the strike, which has para
lyzed the world’s fifth-largest oil exporter
but has not rattled the president's resolve
to stay in power.
Troops have seized oil tankers, com
mandeered gasoline trucks and locked
striking workers out of oil installations.
Top commanders have professed their
loyalty to the government.
Speaking in his weekly radio and tele
vision address on Sunday. Chavez dis
missed opponents as “fascists”
manipulated by the media.
He also dismissed Infrastructure
Minister Eliecer Hurtado, a retired
general, and replaced him with Diosdado
Cabello, the current interior minister.
Chavez did not explain the change or say
who would head the interior ministry,
which commands the federal and secret
police forces.
Venezuela’s main television stations are
not broadcasting any commercials except
opposition advertisements promoting the
strike. Media owners say they have been
pushed into this stance because Chavez
incites followers to attack reporters.
Chavez threatened to revoke the broad
casting licenses of television and radio sta
tions if they “continue with their irration
insistence on destabilizing the country!))
supporting this fascist subversion.”
Venezuela’s largest labor confederate
business chamber and opposition pan;:
began the strike Dec. 2 to demand tit
Chavez resign and call early elections if!;
loses a nonbinding referendum on his ml:
The National Elections Council schei
uled the referendum for Feb. 2 aftf
accepting an opposition petition signed!
2 million people.
Chavez says the vote would be uncoc-
stitutional, and his supporters have chai
lenged it in the Supreme Court. He va
elected in 1Q98 and re-elected in 2000,®:
his term ends in 2007. Venezuela’s cons:
union allows a recall referendum halfw;
through a president’s term — August.
Chavez’s case.
Opponents accuse the president ofmr
ning roughshod over democratic institt
lions and wrecking the economy with left
ist policies. The opposition has stag;
dozens of street marches, called forata
boycott and held a two-day bank strike It
week.
Chavez has threatened to order troor
to seize food production plants that an
participating in the strike and to fireorja
striking teachers and have soldiers tak
over their duties.
The strike is costing the country an esc
mated $70 million a day.
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