Posted on 04/08/2002 4:14:23 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
CARACAS, Venezuela -- President Hugo Chavez announced the dismissal Sunday of seven executives who have led monthlong strikes and protests against government-appointed leadership at the state-owned oil monopoly.
Twelve other executives have been sent into early retirement, Chavez added. He warned that any other workers who lead protests will be fired.
The decision is likely to exacerbate a conflict that has affected production at South America's largest oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA. The country's largest workers' union warned that it might prolong a one-day nationwide, general strike set for Tuesday in protest of the firings.
Fedecamaras, the country's largest business association, said its members would join the strike. It will be the second time in Chavez's 3-year-old presidency that union workers and business leaders joined to paralyze the country.
Undeterred by the firings,PDVSA employees staged a noisy protest outside the corporation's Caracas headquarters, chanting "not one step back" and banging pots and pans.
"Our patience in this conflict has been obvious," Chavez said in his weekly radio show. "We have been soft. That has been our error. They have crossed the line."
"Tomorrow there may be more" firings, he added.
Executives Horacio Medina, Juan Fernandez, Eddy Ramirez, Gonzalo Feijoo, Alfredo Gomez, Carmen Elisa Hernandez and Edgar Quijano were fired. Chavez accused the protesters of trying to "sabotage" Venezuela's oil industry and vowed that his efforts to reform PDVSA would continue.
Last week, managers at Petroleos de Venezuela walked off the job to protest Chavez's attempts to assert control over the company.
The strike continued Sunday with a march in Caracas. Blue-collar workers have not joined the strike, but the protesting workers managed to close two of Venezuela's five major loading terminals Friday, stranding a dozen ships waiting to load cargo.
Spoken like a true idiot ! Operating oil wells today is a highly technical, sophisticated business. In this situation the military will have little more value than a herd of chimpanzees from the nearest zoo. Improper operation could result in permanent production cuts, both in rates and reserves.
Somebody needs to give Chavez a little less Marxist fervor and a little more horse sense.
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