Re: <nettime> Benjaming Geer and Chavez's Venezuela [4x]

[Ricardo Bello <aracal {AT} well.com>]

Ben, I agree with you. An elected President should be removed by votes, not 
by bullets.
But let us rewind this tape a few months.
On the first days of April a national strike organized to protest Chavezīs 
political and economical measures paralized the country: business, 
agriculture, oil industries, education, everything shut down. April 11th 
saw hundreds of thousands marching to the Presidential Palace asking for 
the Presidentīs resignation; they were received with bullets. Since then 
the snippers have been identified: they work for government, not for the 
CIA, and none of them are in prison. A few hours after the shooting ended 
General Lucas Rincon, the highest ranking military officer and one of 
Chavezīs closest advisors, gave a press conference announcing Chavezīs 
resignation. An interim government was proclaimed, which inmediately 
started to rule in a disastrous undemocratic way, and soon opposition 
political parties and the workers union withdrew its support. Riots took 
control of major cities and dozens of dead can be counted among the 
casualties. On April 13th Lucas Rincon gave a second press conference where 
he announced Chavez was back.
Lt. Coronel Chavez has done this country a great harm in just three years. 
He destroyed the small economy we had and divided us with populism, 
corruption and senseless -IMHO- class struggle inspired violence. Worse, he 
is closing all channels leading to institutional change, blackmailing the 
country with war if the opposition insists on his democratic removal from 
office, demanding a constitutional amendment for new elections with double 
turn.

At 11:56 a.m. 29/06/2002 +0100, Benjamin Geer wrote:
>Ricardo Bello wrote:
> > But large sectors of Venezuelan society become guilty of fascist
> > behaviour in governmentīs eyes, just because they denounced corruption
> > in high military ranks, or the lack of sound economic policies. Thatīs
> > a political blackmail.
>
>Let's make things clear: are you saying that an attempted military coup
>against an elected President was justified because of corruption in that
>very same military (certainly not Chavez's fault), and because of
>disagreement over economic policies?  Is that your idea of democracy?  If
>I disagree with an elected government's economic policies, my
>responsibility as a citizen is to vote for someone else next time, not to
>support the goverment's overthrow by generals.
>
>Ben

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