March 15, 2004
THE NEXT ILLIBERAL DEMOCRAT TO GO:
US revealed to be secretly funding opponents of Chavez (Andrew Buncombe, 13 March 2004, Independent)
Washington has been channelling hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund the political opponents of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez - including those who briefly overthrew the democratically elected leader in a coup two years ago.Documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that, in 2002, America paid more than a million dollars to those political groups in what it claims is an ongoing effort to build democracy and "strengthen political parties". Mr Chavez has seized on the information, telling Washington to "get its hands off Venezuela".
The revelation about America's funding of Mr Chavez's opponents comes as the president is facing a possible recall referendum and has been rocked by a series of violent street demonstrations in which at least eight people have died. His opponents, who include politicians, some labour leaders, media executives and former managers at the state oil company, are trying to collect sufficient signatures to force a national vote. The documents reveal that one of the group's organising the collection of signatures - Sumate - received $53,400 (£30,000) from the US last September.
Jeremy Bigwood, a Washington-based freelance journalist who obtained the documents, yesterday told The Independent: "This repeats a pattern started in Nicaragua in the election of 1990 when [the US] spent $20 per voter to get rid of [the Sandinista President Daniel] Ortega. It's done in the name of democracy but it's rather hypocritical. Venezuela does have a democratically elected President who won the popular vote which is not the case with the US."
The funding has been made by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) a non-profit agency financed entirely by Congress. It distributes $40m (£22m) a year to various groups in what it says is an effort to strengthen democracy.
The point being that undermining Chavez is a democracy-building effort. Posted by Orrin Judd at March 15, 2004 5:01 PM
Based on the quote from Bigwood, it sounds like Chavez is another example of who Leftists having never met a thug they didn't like. Notice also how he doesn't understand or care that tyranny can come to power by democratic means.
Posted by: Raoul Ortega at March 15, 2004 6:56 PM"Notice also how he doesn't understand or care that tyranny can come to power by democratic means."
Only part of the time. Remember the "HITLER WAS ELECTED!" hue & cry about George W Bush?
Posted by: Ken at March 16, 2004 12:27 PMChavez may have won the popular vote, and of course, Bush did not, but I don't recall any American nationwide work stoppage in an attempt to force Bush out of office.
Posted by: Michael Herdegen at March 17, 2004 2:30 AM