AFP. 13 April 2002. Control of Venezuela's government in doubt. CARACAS -- With supporters of ousted president Hugo Chavez in control of the presidential palace and the interim leader who replaced him under military protection, it was unclear who was running Venezuela late Saturday even as three people died in violent protests.
Interim leader Pedro Carmona sought refuge in a military fort as tens of thousands of angry Chavez supporters marched on the Miraflores palace. Carmona then reinstated the National Assembly, just a day after dissolving it, as military leaders made that a condition of their continued support and the Organization of American States threatened sanctions to punish what most hemispheric leaders called a coup. The assembly's president, William Lara, then announced that Chavez supporters were negotiating his return to office. "We are waiting for Vice President Diosdado Cabello to come to the Miraflores presidential palace, which should happen as soon as possible, so that he can assume the functions of president temporarily. This interval of time will be used for negotiations with the group of military officers who are holding Chavez prisoner, to gain his liberty," Lara said on YVKE World radio. Lara, speaking from the presidential palace where he was with ministers from Chavez's cabinet, said Chavez was being held prisoner at Turiamo naval base outside Caracas. Carmona, for his part, said Chavez would be free to leave the country for the destination of his choice, another of the 12 conditions set by military leaders in exchange for their continued support. As Chavez supporters across Venezuela voiced their outrage at his ouster, near-anarchy reigned in some sectors, eyewitnesses said. At least three people were shot dead in Caracas, and at least eighteen people were wounded, doctors and humanitarian workers said. Among the wounded were Chavez supporters who said they were shot at while demonstrating near the Miraflores presidential palace. "At least 200,000 people have come spontaneously to demand Chavez's liberation," Lara said of the gathering outside the palace. "The legitimacy of the national institutions usurped by Pedro Carmona has been re-established." Continued disturbances were feared as armed Chavez supporters roamed the streets of Caracas and other cities, especially Maracay, 80 kilometers (50 miles) to the west, and Guarenas, 30 kilometers (20 miles) to the east. Army Commander General Efrain Vasquez, claiming to speak for other military leaders, read reporters a 12-point list of conditions the Carmona government would have to meet if it desired the military's continued backing. Restoration of democratic institutions and constitutional civil guarantees topped the list, followed by security for Chavez and his family and permission for them to leave Venezuela as soon as possible. ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/web/. _______________________________________________ Marxism-Thaxis mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism-thaxis
