'BURNED OUR BOATS' "We have burned our boats. There is no turning back. We will carry on consolidating and deepening this Revolution," Chavez said. He brandished a small crucifix and a copy of the constitution that have become trademark props of his speeches. The outspoken president also vowed the authorities would seek out and punish the killers of two of his supporters who were shot Friday during chaotic clashes between pro- and anti-government demonstrators and troops and police.
Both sides blame each other for the deaths but Chavez singled out for accusation police officers serving one of his fiercest enemies, Caracas metropolitan mayor Alfredo Pena. Despite his tough words, he stopped short of declaring a state of emergency, as had been widely expected by opponents. For their part, opposition leaders said they would keep up the pressure against the president, who was elected in 1998 and survived a coup by rebel generals and admirals in April. "The people of Venezuela are out in the streets demanding Chavez's resignation. And they will not leave the streets," anti-Chavez union leader Alfredo Ramos said. Despite the violence surrounding Friday's big anti-Chavez march to armed forces headquarters in Caracas, opposition leaders planned fresh protests in the city, including a possible march to the heavily guarded presidential palace.
The deeply polarized positions, combined with mutual anger over the recent clashes and deaths, have increased fears of fresh violence. "We are on the brink of madness and we need to take a step backwards," Foreign Minister Roy Chaderton told reporters. Opposition spokesmen said they would disobey and defy any emergency measures introduced by the government. Chavez said last week he would call a state of emergency if necessary. ***
Strike leader Alfredo Gomez said Sunday that Chavez fired 251 more striking oil workers but government officials were not immediately available to confirm the claim. Chavez did not mention the dismissals during his television address. Opposition leaders blame Chavez's leftist policies for a deep recession and accuse him of trying to accumulate too much power. They want him to resign or hold a nonbinding referendum on his rule, which he says would be unconstitutional. Two police officers also were wounded Saturday when gunfire broke out during Gomez Aponte's wake. Chavez supporters fired on police after the government blamed the Caracas police for the Friday deaths, police chief Henry Vivas said. Officers returned fire using rubber bullets and tear gas. The state news agency, Venpres, reported Sunday that a woman who the government had earlier claimed died from tear gas asphyxiation in fact survived.
Meanwhile, leaders of the Democratic Coordinator opposition movement called on Venezuelans to donate between $1.80 and $3.50 to hold the referendum on Feb. 2 as planned. The opposition presented a petition with more than 1.5 million signatures to election authorities Nov. 6 to call for the referendum, but the National Elections Council says the Chavez-controlled Parliament hasn't authorized $22 million needed to pay for it. Chavez, a former paratrooper who was elected in 1998 and re-elected two years later, has challenged the legality of the referendum at the Supreme Court.***