Tag Archives: government

Aug
3
2010
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Connie Mack Asks Obama, Clinton, Pelosi and Reid to List Hugo Chavez’s Venezuela as Sponsor of Terrorism

This article was originally posted by Sunshine State News

A day after writing to Hugo Chavez that he intended to continue the fight for the American government to list Venezuela as a state sponsor of terrorism, Republican U.S. Rep. Connie Mack of Florida did just that, sending a letter to President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. 

“I write to you today to urge you to immediately finalize the steps required to designate Venezuela  as a state sponsor of terrorism,” wrote Mack. “Hugo Chavez has politically, materially and diplomatically supported international terrorist groups, threatening the freedom, security and prosperity of the United States and our allies. We must stop all interaction with the tyrannical regime of Mr. Hugo Chavez.

“As a beacon of freedom, the United States must stand firm against those who harbor terrorists, threaten our allies, and rebuke the freedoms we are committed to protect,” continued Mack. “Hugo Chavez’s solidarity with internationally recognized terrorist groups, such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), endangers stability in the region and prompts national security concerns for our nation.

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Jul
26
2010
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Chavez threatens U.S. oil cut in Colombia dispute

 ch1 300x197 Chavez threatens U.S. oil cut in Colombia dispute

This article was originally posted by Reuters

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez threatened on Sunday to cut oil supplies to the United States in case of a military attack from Colombia as a dispute escalated over charges his country harbors Colombian rebels.

A vocal and frequent critic of the United States, Chavez broke off diplomatic relations with Colombia last week over the claims by the outgoing government of President Alvaro Uribe, a close U.S. ally.

Chavez, a leftist who says Washington is behind the charges, has never carried out previous threats to cut oil supplies to the United States, Venezuela’s main customer.

“If there was any armed aggression against Venezuela from Colombian territory or from anywhere else, promoted by the Yankee empire, we would suspend oil shipments to the United States, even if we have to eat stones here,” he said.

“We would not send a drop more to U.S. refineries,” he said to a roar of approval from thousands of supporters at a rally for his Socialist party.

Chavez, a former soldier and close ally of Cuba’s Fidel Castro, is also angry with Bogota over a deal to allow U.S. troops access to a series of military bases.

Venezuela, a member of OPEC, gets more than 90 percent of its export income from oil sales, mostly to the United States, and the South American country’s economy would collapse quickly if it stopped shipments.

Speaking from Cuba, Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said the oil industry was on “yellow alert” and prepared to follow Chavez’s orders.

“That’s the first step,” Ramirez said. “We are ready to suspend the shipment of oil and products to the United States if we suffer some type of military aggression.”

Oil workers assembled in the port of Puerto La Cruz were told to prepare themselves and their families for a possible “bellicose imperial” action, state oil company PDVSA said.

 

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Jul
23
2010
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VenEconomy: There is Cause for Concern

This article was originally posted by Herald Tribune

Venezuela is now in the countdown to its parliamentary elections. But a stream of incidents, also of national importance, has relegated this event in the media and in the minds of the general public.

But then, a few days ago, the parliamentary elections hit the headlines again when the Chilean Senate issued a communiqué requesting authorization from Venezuela’s electoral authorities to attend those elections as international observers. In any country where democracy prevails, this request would have met with the acceptance of the electoral authorities. But in Chávez’s Venezuela it was rejected by the National Electoral Council (CNE) and the Chavista benches in the National Assembly.

The president of the CNE, Tibisay Lucena, barred the Chilean parliamentarians as observers on the grounds of “the political positions contained in the agreement of the Chilean Senate,” and claimed that their presence as observers at these elections would be a threat to Venezuela’s sovereignty. Then, the president of the National Assembly, Cilia Flores, backing Lucena, called the Chilean senators “stupid” and “ridiculous.”

This irate refusal to accredit the Chilean observers makes no sense if account is taken of the fact that a sizeable group of representatives from the CNE and Venezuela’s National Assembly attended the Colombian parliamentary elections just a few months ago.

This should serve as a wake-up call for everyone. This is the last straw in terms of the repercussions resulting from the lack of independence of the branches of government in Venezuela, the only guarantee that people have that the parliamentary elections will be held in conditions of transparency and objectivity.

But unfortunately it seems that Venezuelans were not surprised by the CNE’s refusal, nor have they reacted to it. Even more unfortunate is the fact that it is just one more of the many violations of Venezuelans’ electoral rights that have been committed by the Chávez administration.

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