Chavez likened to Saddam by some - `Caraqueos' keep eyes on Iraq war

Houston Chronicle ^ | April 20, 2003 | MICHELE SALCEDO

[Cincinatus' Wife]

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Some blame the United States' thirst for oil for the war in Iraq. Others reject war as a way to resolve conflict and empathize with Iraqi civilians. And some of those who have worked for nearly a year to remove President Hugo Chavez from office see similarities between their tenacious leader and Iraq's Saddam Hussein.

The war in the Persian Gulf is front-page news in Venezuela, but it is neither the lead story on the newscasts nor in the daily newspapers.

Caraqueños, as residents of this South American capital are called, are struggling to recover from a two-month strike that closed businesses large and small, including the country's lifeblood oil industry. As many as 200,000 jobs are predicted to disappear as a result of the stoppage, called by the opposition on Dec. 2 to pressure Chavez to resign or call a referendum on whether he should remain in office.

Many storefronts throughout the city stand empty, and few shoppers are buying in the major commercial area of Sabana Grande. Officials are trying to prevent the blackouts that have occurred in the states of Zulia and Lara for the past several days from returning.

Between fares, a taxi driver sat near a newsstand near Sabana Grande last week. He wasn't sure why the United States was at war with Iraq, but he voiced the suspicions of many Venezuelans.

"The United States is looking for a lot of oil," said Angel Guillen, 26, who noted Bush's oil background.

"It seems like his reasons are personal. I don't know if the reasons are strong, but I disagree with the war," he said. "It's unnecessary to resolve problems by invading a country."

Around the corner, Carmen Hacin, 36, said she was concerned for Iraqi civilians, saying the poor are the ones who have the most to lose.

Some Venezuelans protested the war in the streets and in front of the U.S. Embassy recently, but both marches paled compared with the noisy rallies that attracted tens of thousands nightly during the work stoppage.

Hacin, a street vendor, said the war could only make Venezuela's already stumbling economy worse.

"It will affect many countries, including Venezuela," Hacin said. "There is a lot of business between the United States and Venezuela. As it is now, this country has many problems, unemployment and hunger among them."

A former colonel in the National Guard and one of the dissident military officers at the Plaza Francia de Altamira saw similarities between Saddam and Chavez.

"Saddam Hussein and his persecution of his own people is the same as Venezuela's president and his so-called revolution," said Manuel Jesus Carpio Manrique.

By calling for the armed forces and armed civilians to unite, Chavez has created a personal military, not unlike Hussein's Republican Guard, Carpio said. The former colonel accused Chavez of turning his political enemies into common criminals and wanting to bring the country to economic ruin so that he could establish a regime of hunger that he controls, such as Saddam did in Iraq.

Chavez has long enjoyed a friendly relationship with Saddam. In 2000, Chavez became the first Western head of state to visit Saddam since the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Both are members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Venezuela, the world's third-largest oil supplier, provides 13 percent of U.S. oil needs.

Chavez has been a vocal opponent of the U.S. war against Iraq, citing civilian casualties, but has promised to honor oil contracts with the United States.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

December 29, 2000 - Fidel, Saddam and Hugo --An improbable but growing friendship of three military revolutionaries*** Mr. Chávez is the most intriguing new leader to emerge in Latin America since Mr. Castro - and he is the lynchpin between Mr. Castro and Mr. Saddam. Although Cuba had been sending doctors and health workers to Iraq for years, there had not been any major contacts between the two countries until Mr. Chávez appeared on the scene. This fall, Mr. Chávez became the first democratically elected foreign head of state to visit Iraq since the Gulf War, ostensibly to invite Mr. Saddam to a summit of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. But it also was an in-your face gesture toward the United States.***

April 19, 2003 - Venezuelans Protest Cuba Crackdown, Meddling - Show solidarity with repressed Cuban people***CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuelan troops blocked streets around the Cuban embassy in Caracas on Friday to prevent opponents of President Hugo Chavez protesting against Cuba's recent crackdown on dissidents and its meddling in their domestic politics. Scores of opponents of Chavez, a close ally and friend of Cuban President Fidel Castro, lined a street near the embassy where they traded insults with a small group of pro-Castro demonstrators waving Cuban flags.***

Hugo Chavez - Venezuela

Fidel Castro - Cuba

[TigerLikesRooster]

Venezuela used to be known as the oasis of stability in politically turbulent Latin America.
How things change!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Marxists never give up.

[nickcarraway]

"The United States is looking for a lot of oil," said Angel Guillen, 26, who noted Bush's oil background.

Bush also used to be in baseball. How come they never suggest he is ``trying to invade countries for baseball talent?

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Good point. Their argument fails on many levels. But just give rabble a slogan and they'll run with it. No thinking is required.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

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