http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/venezuela/ en-us Sun, 6 Jul 2008 23:04:44 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2041599/posts MIAMI (Reuters) - A lawyer for a defendant in the Argentine "suitcase scandal" said a U.S. government witness has sworn that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was personally involved in the affair, according to a U.S. court filing. The government witness, Carlos Kauffmann, pled guilty in March to U.S. charges arising from the seizure of $800,000 in a suitcase in Buenos Aires and agreed to testify against former associate Franklin Duran in exchange for lighter punishment. U.S. prosecutors have indicated that they had been told the $800,000 was intended for the election campaign of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, the former first... Reuters on Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2041599/posts#comment Sun, 6 Jul 2008 23:04:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2041447/posts Iran-Venezuela-Chavez Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez stressed on Sunday that his people support their Iranian brothers. President Chavez made the remark in a meeting with Iranian Deputy Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance for Press Affairs, Ali-Reza Malekian held on the sidelines of a ministerial meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). Conveying his warm greetings for his Iranian counterpart, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Venezuelan president expressed hope that he would visit the Islamic Republic in the near future. For his part, the Iranian envoy said Tehran supports Venezuela's constructive proposals regarding establishment of NAM TV network and efforts for free exchange... IRNA http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2041447/posts#comment Sun, 6 Jul 2008 14:42:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039508/posts Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Tuesday stated that the reactivation of the US Navy Fourth Fleet to patrol Latin American seas is a threat. The ruler claimed he was certain the move was a threat, and underscored that one of the reasons behind this action was Venezuela's huge oil reserve. "I do not have any doubt about it. It is a threat. There is no need to make any questions. I am sure you feel it that way too," he told reporters. Chávez urged the member countries of the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) to ask the US administration for... ElUniversal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039508/posts#comment Wed, 2 Jul 2008 01:18:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2038258/posts Hugo Chavez faces political crisis as allies desert him By David Blair in Caracas Last Updated: 9:24PM BST 29/06/2008 President Hugo Chavez, the "socialist revolutionary" leading a global campaign against America's "empire", is facing a political crisis in Venezuela where crucial elections are approaching and old allies have turned against him. Mr Chavez has given Caracas's slum-dwellers free health care for the first time Mr Chavez, a devoted admirer of Fidel Castro, has forged an anti-American front with leaders ranging from President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran. At home, however, Mr Chavez is in trouble.... The Telegraph (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2038258/posts#comment Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:56:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037277/posts President Hugo Chavez's Venezuela has become the key trafficking route for most of the cocaine sold on Britain's streets, anti-drugs officials believe. Last year, about 250 tons of cocaine are thought to have passed through Venezuela - up to a five-fold increase on 2004. Much of this ended up in Britain. Anti-drugs officials estimate that more than 50 per cent of all the cocaine consumed in Britain has been trafficked through Venezuela - under the "revolutionary" regime of Mr Chavez. The figure could be as high as two thirds. Senior commanders in Venezuela's security forces are thought to be profiting... Telegraph http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037277/posts#comment Fri, 27 Jun 2008 15:16:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036551/posts <p>CARACAS - Grimacing from contractions, expectant mother Castuca Marino had more on her mind than birth pangs.</p> <p>She was nervous about whether she and her newborn child would make it out of the hospital alive. Interviewed as she stood in the emergency room of Concepción Palacios Maternity Hospital here last week, Marino had heard news reports of six infant deaths there over the course of a 24-hour period late in March.</p> boston.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036551/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 03:45:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035540/posts ...Governments from Los Angeles to Scotland may not much like President Hugo Chavez's brand of Cuba-inspired socialism but they will soon try to replicate Venezuela's achievements on their own streets... ...About 200 children gather for four hours of music and choral practice six days a week in what Venezuelans simply call "The System." "The orchestra is my family, nothing has ever grabbed me like this before," said Francisco Henriques, 14, practicing trombone on the roof of his hillside home, accompanied by his cat, Trumpet. "Music is everything I have ever wished for." As well as instilling discipline and self-esteem, the... Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035540/posts#comment Tue, 24 Jun 2008 11:46:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035053/posts That Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez’ regime is enabling Islamic terrorist organizations to take root in South America is no longer in question. What will the US do? In December 2002 freelance journalist Martin Arostegui published an article in Insight Magazine (“Chavez plans for a terrorist regime”) in which he reported the arrival in Venezuela of Hakim Mamad Ali Diab Fattah, a member of Hizballah. Venezuelan officials received him at the airport. In connection with his presence in the country Arostegui interviewed the former Venezuelan Intelligence Director, General Marcos Ferreira, who said Fattah represented only the tip of the iceberg in... Human Events http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035053/posts#comment Mon, 23 Jun 2008 13:56:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034810/posts June 22, 2008: A new battlefield for the war on terror has developed in Venezuela. There, leftist president Hugo Chavez has not only established close diplomatic relations with Iran (and Cuba, North Korea and radical groups throughout the region), but has allowed Iran to set up operations in South America. Regular commercial flights from Iran to Venezuela (via Syria, to accommodate Hizbollah) carry people, cash and whatever else Iran wants to move. No questions asked, no visas required. Several U.S. counter-terrorism operations have gone to work, trying to find out what Iran is up to, and how to block any... Strategy Page http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034810/posts#comment Sun, 22 Jun 2008 20:03:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034383/posts Terrorism: A Venezuelan diplomat is found to be supporting Hezbollah, and his placement on a Treasury no-go list is laughed at in Caracas. Obviously, something's going on here. For the second time in three months, Venezuela has been implicated in foreign terrorism. The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control named two well-connected Venezuelans as facilitators of Hezbollah Wednesday. Ghazi Nasr al Din and Fawzi Kan'an, along with two Caracas travel agencies, were put on the list this past week, their assets frozen and businesses prohibited. IBD Editorials http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034383/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:36:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034281/posts High court endorses nationalization of cement makers The constitutional court of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), heard by its president, justice Luisa Estella Morales, declared the constitutional nature of the statutory decree on the organization of cement makers; therefore, they will become the state property. A press bulletin from the TSJ, quoted by state-run news agency ABN, noted the relevance of this regulation that reserves the Venezuelan state a business in the public interest. The decree was in reply to a communication forwarded last June 2nd by President Hugo Chávez. From now on, companies Cemex Venezuela, S.A.C.A., Holcim Venezuela,... El Universal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034281/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 12:12:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033569/posts ARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez threatened on Thursday to stop selling oil to European countries if they apply a new ruling on illegal immigrants that has been condemned by human rights groups. reuteurs http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033569/posts#comment Thu, 19 Jun 2008 22:29:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033159/posts The Bush administration took action Wednesday against a Venezuelan official and others accused of providing financial support to the Hizbullah terror group. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. [file] Photo: AP , AP Slideshow: Pictures of the week The Treasury Department's action covers Ghazi Nasr al Din, whom the United States identified as a Venezuelan diplomat. The order also targets Fawzi Kan'an and two Venezuelan-based travel agencies - Biblos and Hilal - that he allegedly owns or controls. Kan'an denied the Treasury Department's accusations. "That's pure lies," he told The Associated Press. "What do I have... Jerusalem Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033159/posts#comment Thu, 19 Jun 2008 03:18:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031491/posts Venezuela: Help wanted Output: 2.5 million barrels a day. Reserves: 80 billion barrels of oil,.... The plan: To increase its production ....... The challenge: Venezuela used to produce well over three million barrels a day, but output has fallen since workers at Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA), the national oil company, called a strike in 2002. More than 18,000 workers left PDVSA after the strike, leaving Venezuela without the expertise necessary to keep production rates level. After years of exploitation, the crude in conventional oil basins is becoming depleted. The challenge in the Orinoco belt is similar to Alberta's oil... ReportOnBuisness.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031491/posts#comment Sun, 15 Jun 2008 18:31:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031354/posts CARACAS — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's estranged ex-wife will seek the mayorship of her hometown in November regional elections. Opposition party Podemos says it will officially support Marisabel Rodriguez's candidacy for the top municipal post in Barquisimeto in western Lara state. The 43-year-old Rodriguez has been an outspoken critic of the president since their 2004 divorce. She told reporters Saturday that under Chavez, democracy in Venezuela has been replaced with "nepotism, inefficiency and intolerance." Chavez sued her in May in a case involving their 10-year-old daughter. But he withdrew the suit after Rodriguez publicly denounced it. Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031354/posts#comment Sun, 15 Jun 2008 10:09:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031287/posts It turns out that Hugo Chávez is an adaptable man. The Venezuelan president, who has championed — and almost certainly helped arm — Colombia’s FARC rebels, called last week for the rebels to lay down their weapons and unconditionally surrender their hostages. We suspect this change of heart has been driven more by self-interest than conviction. Mr. Chávez is increasingly unpopular at home and increasingly isolated abroad, especially as evidence has mounted of his meddling in Colombia. The change nevertheless is welcome and well timed. The FARC, which long ago chose drug trafficking over liberation, has been under assault from... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031287/posts#comment Sun, 15 Jun 2008 02:47:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029651/posts A Venezuelan journalist is reporting that Hugo Chavez’s government is recruiting young men to train with Hezbollah for the purpose of asymmetrical warfare against the US. Fausta has the translation. Hugo Chavez pretends to cut back on his support of the FARC, when his “dangerous” associations go well beyond the Colombian guerrilla. See the original article and read the whole translation. InfidelsAerCool.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029651/posts#comment Wed, 11 Jun 2008 21:18:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029615/posts As I was 'channel surfing' at my grandmother's house in San Juan this past weekend, I came upon TeleSUR, the new Hugo Chavez T.V. venture, live from Caracas. The programming I saw -- after enduring a cooking show featuring how to make 'arepas', the equivalent in Venezuela of 'pancakes' -- started with anti-U.S., anti-'Imperialists', anti-Bush, et.al. from their news proogramming dept. and then, in the entertainment dept., a segment featuring a musician named Rene Calle 13, who basically told the audience: "F*ck George Bush, he's the worse president ever". Here in the U.S. we have Al Jazeera and other international... TeleSUR TV - Venezuela http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029615/posts#comment Wed, 11 Jun 2008 20:04:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029501/posts CARACAS, Venezuela -- President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday denied that he's the father of a man claiming to be his illegitimate son. It was the first time Chavez responded publicly to the claims of 31-year-old Salomon Fernandez, who says his mother became pregnant after an encounter with Chavez in the city of Maracay. The president said he has investigated the matter, including obtaining a birth certificate, but is sure he never knew Fernandez's mother. He accused Fernandez of seeking publicity and said he has nothing to hide. "She says we had relations," Chavez said in a televised speech. "But when... Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029501/posts#comment Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:41:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029047/posts Chavez angered many Venezuelans by openly supporting Colombia's leftist rebels, and then frightened many citizens by decreeing a tough new intelligence law. ...Facing a chorus of outrage with only months to go before crucial state and local elections, he now says the guerrillas should give up their fight, and insists he never wanted to force people to spy on their neighbors. Chavez had decreed that anyone refusing to work as informants for intelligence agencies would face four-year prison terms. Protesters denounced it as an attempt to impose a police state and held up signs depicting toads — Venezuelan vernacular for... Associated Press http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2029047/posts#comment Tue, 10 Jun 2008 21:15:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028642/posts Terror: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez won plaudits Sunday for urging Colombia's FARC to disarm. Sounds good, but not so fast. He was caught a day earlier aiding FARC and has explaining to do. Judge him by his deeds.Sure, the Venezuelan dictator appeared to have had a change of heart over the weekend by calling on FARC to lay down its arms, release its 700 hostages and come out of the jungle. "Guerrilla wars have become history in Latin America," he said on his Alo Presidente weekly variety show. It caught many by surprise. After all, in the past year, the Venezuelan... IBD http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028642/posts#comment Tue, 10 Jun 2008 01:57:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028604/posts Chavez ends support of Farc rebels By Jeremy McDermott in Medellin Last Updated: 10:29PM BST 09/06/2008 Hugo Chavez said he was ending his support for Colombia's Marxist guerillas, robbing them of their most public and powerful ally. Farc rebels on patrol. Such displays of strength may be a thing of the past after their main ally, Hugo Chavez, withdrew his support The Venezuelan president said the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia were "history", and called on them to release their hostages and end a decades-long war with the government. "Enough of so much war, it is time to sit down... The Telegraph (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028604/posts#comment Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:55:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028148/posts On the same day Colombia said it had captured a Venezuelan national guard officer carrying 40,000 AK-47 assault rifle cartridges believed to be intended for leftist guerrillas, President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela said Saturday he would withdraw a decree overhauling intelligence policies that he had made earlier that week. The rare reversal by Mr. Chávez came amid intensifying criticism in Venezuela from human rights groups. The capture of the Venezuelan officer in eastern Colombia could reignite tensions between the neighboring countries over Venezuela’s support for the rebel group FARC. Colombia’s attorney general, Mario Iguarán, said Saturday that security forces had... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028148/posts#comment Mon, 9 Jun 2008 02:29:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028116/posts CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez urged Colombian rebels on Sunday to lay down their weapons, unilaterally free dozens of hostages and put an end to a decades-long armed struggle against Colombia's government. Chavez sent the uncharacteristically strong message to the leaders of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, saying their ongoing efforts to overthrow Colombia's democratically elected government were unjustified. "The guerrilla war is history," said Chavez, speaking during his weekly television and radio program, "Hello President." "At this moment in Latin America, an armed guerrilla movement is out of place." Such declarations were unexpected from... AP on Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028116/posts#comment Mon, 9 Jun 2008 01:24:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028036/posts Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is urging Colombian rebels to lay down their weapons, free all their hostages and put an end to a decades-long armed struggle against Colombia's government. Chavez says ongoing efforts by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, to overthrow Colombia's democratically elected government are unjustified. "The guerrilla war is history," he said during his Sunday television and radio program. The Venezuelan leader's statements could help to warm relations between Venezuela and Colombia that have been strained due to Colombia's allegations that Chavez might be aiding the FARC. Chavez denies supporting the FARC. He says his... MSNBC http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2028036/posts#comment Sun, 8 Jun 2008 21:51:02 GMT