Pg. g 7 | Social JJustice
Pg. g 8 | Opinion p
Communal Councils are transforming Fidel Castro on Nato’s dirty war against Venezuela’s neighborhoods nationwide Libya and the threat to humanity
FRIDAY | April 8th, 2011 | No. 59 | Bs 1 | C ARACAS
ENGLISH EDITION The artillery of ideas
Advancing Hydroelectric Power
Venezuela & Colombia strengthen ties
A new hydroelectric power plant in Venezuela will make the Caroni river one of the most productive basins in the world
Peace tour in South America
Venezuelan Minister for Electrical Energy, Ali Rodriguez, announced that no electricity rationing will be required this year, as the nation has recovered from last year’s drought that caused severe restrictions on the current hydroelectric plants serving the country. The operations of the new Manuel Piar power plant will be ready by 2012, generating thousands of new jobs and ensuring more reliable and equitable electricity distribution across the nation.
Top cabinet members from the Venezuelan government detailed the achievements reached during President Hugo Chavez’s visit to Argentina, Uruguay and Bolivia last week. In addition to 46 new accords, regional relations were strengthened and efforts to main South America as a “territory of peace” were reinforced. The new agreements will help Venezuela advance in agricultural development, technology and housing.
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Politics
Chavez top candidate for 2012 The latest GIS XXI survey shows Hugo Chavez well above opposition candidates for the 2012 presidential elections.
Politics
US Congressman seeks overthrow of Chavez Republican Connie Mack has called for actions against the Venezuelan government.
Social Justice
Prison reform A new law will ensure Venezuela reform its penitenciary system and promote human rights in prisons.
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Artisanal fishing develops alternative production model
rtisanal fishermen from Sucre state, eastern Venezuela, expressed that eliminating trawling helped them foster a model different from the capitalist model, in order to increase production, improve their quality of life and reduce the price of fish. The measure to eliminate trawling in Venezuela -stipulated in article 23 of the Law on Fishing and Acquaculture- stopped the damage this kind of activity caused to the marine ecosystem, leading to development and reproduction of fishing resources.
Fisherman Jesus Maria Leon from Cumana, expressed that nowadays different kinds of species are found that were impossible to catch before. “Eliminating trawling has benefited all of us because we catch more fish than before. When trawling was used here, we caught between 300 kg and 500 kg of fishes. Now, we catch between one and two tons”. Alejandro Leon, 79, explained that he devoted 60 years of his life to artisanal fishing. “After trawling was eliminated, many species reappeared. Fishing is very good now”.
Since trawling was eliminated, 16,000 artisanal fishermen from Sucre have organized in Fisherman Councils to promote their production. “Today, fishermen, joined in councils, have raised their awareness, participation and planning with the national government for all productive activities in matters of artisanal fishing”. Chairman of the Socialist Institute for Fishing and Acquaculture (Insopesca), Gilberto Gimenez underscored that the state continues working to improve the quality of life of artisanal fishermen.
olombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos and Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez will meet Saturday in Colombia to review the course of commitments after the re-establishment of bilateral ties last August. This will be the third meeting between both statesmen in less that a year, as part of a process that aims to build an integral relation based on mutual confidence and respect for differences. Social, economic and trade exchange will be on the agenda, as well as the purchase by Colombia of energy from Venezuela’s Pdvsa for three bordering regions. There has also been progress in programs of development and impetus for coffee growers, by common agreement between the two nations, as well as on issues related to security and the fight against drug trafficking, among others. The meeting between presidents Chavez and Santos was postponed from last Friday, after the Venezuelan leader was grounded due to a mechanical error in the presidencial aircraft.
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2 | Impact
NoÊx ÊUÊFriday, April 8th, 2011
The artillery of ideas
A South American tour of peace and development President Chavez concluded a visit to three South American nations last week, reaching 46 new agreements and strengthening regional ties and support for Venezuela’s agricultural and technology industries
chase of 16 cargo barges from Argentine shipyards to further the state oil company’s economic activities in the Parana river. “The accord for the manufacture of 16 barges builds upon a series of moves taken to strengthen our presence in the waterways of the Parana which includes Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina”, he stated.
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eporting on the success of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s visits to three South American nations last week, government cabinet members broadcast a special televised program last Sunday detailing the terms of new agreements signed between their country and Argentina, Uruguay and Bolivia. The program was hosted by Communication Minister Andres Izarra and attended by Minister of Agriculture and Land, Juan Carlos Loyo, Minister of Science, Technology and Intermediary Industry, Ricardo Menendez, Vice President of the state oil company PDVSA, Asdrubal Chavez, Minister of Commerce, Edmee Betancourt, and Food Minister Carlos Osorio. Also on hand was Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro who praised the efforts of the Venezuelan President for advancing the nation’s development goals and strengthening bilateral relations between sister nations. “President Chavez’s primary concern is the happiness of the Venezuelan people and the development of the socialist project, all with the understanding that the country remains independent in all respects”, Maduro said. In this way, Foreign Minister Maduro affirmed that the President’s recent tour has been yet another step in consolidating South America’s integrationist path as the continent moves away from the social and economic policies dominated by United States’ interests. “South America is living an exemplary moment. For the first time since independence 200 years ago, a road towards unification and independence of the continent is truly being built”, he declared. Chavez’s tour began in Argentina last Monday and ended in Bolivia Friday. Forty-six accords covering a variety of areas including industrial,
technological and agricultural development were the result of his trip that saw continued growth in the close ties being forged between Venezuela and other Latin American states. SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INDUSTRY Minister Ricardo Menendez elaborated on new agreements signed with Uruguay and Argentina which intend to advance Venezuela’s technological development and create employment opportunities for residents. One such pact spells out the sharing of Venezuela’s Simon Bolivar satellite in Uruguay’s orbit to democratize telecommunications on the continent. Venezuela’s satellite was launched with Chinese technology in 2008.
Other agreements with Uruguay include collaboration on the development of free software programs to be used for educational programs such as the Canaima project which aims to provide all Venezuelan primary school students with a free mini-laptop computer. “Uruguay is developing applications and programs similar to the Canaimas. They also work on the advancement of technology for pedagogical purposes”, Minister Menendez said. Menendez reported that the nation led by President Jose “Pepe” Mujica will also be providing technical training and assistance to Venezuelans in the manufacture of glass to be used in housing construction. “This accord will allow us to produce glass which we currently don’t produce in Venezuela and
have to import. Right now we are in the process of recovering a factory in [the state of] Trujillo to produce glass that will be used in the new homes that are part of our national housing plan”, the Minister stated. Argentina, another South American nation that, along with Uruguay, displays high levels of technological and industrial development, will also aid Venezuela in a number of areas. Nineteen agreements in total were signed between the government of Hugo Chavez and that of Argentine head of state Christina Fernandez to advance commercial and energy ties between the two countries. As a consequence, Minister Menendez informed on Sunday, twenty-one new factories will be built in Venezuela with Argentine technology including a hydraulics plant and manufacturing facilities for natural gas cylinders and compressors to be used for automobiles. Asdrubal Chavez, Vice President of PDVSA, in review of the accords, reported that the investment in the new industries has the potential to generate some 800 jobs while another three thousand will be created indirectly from spin-off enterprises. In return for the technological transfer, Venezuela has pledged to ship more than 12 million barrels of fuel yearly to Argentina. The Vice President of PDVSA also expounded upon the pur-
AGRICULTURE Stimulating Venezuela’s agricultural production has been a major goal of the Chavez administration and formed an important aspect of the agreements the socialist leader solidified during his recent tour. Juan Carlos Loyo, Agriculture and Land Minister, explained some of the features of the new accords on Sunday, outlining the significance that the pacts will have for animal husbandry and Venezuela’s dairy industry. Specifically, Venezuela will benefit from cooperation with the National Agricultural Institute of Uruguay (INTA) to improve the meat and milk production of its livestock by cross-breeding with the highly productive Uruguayan cattle. 3,400 agricultural machines such as tractors and harvesters will also be arriving in Venezuela as the product of further agreements signed with Argentina. “This machinery was absent from the Venezuelan countryside and with it, we’ll be able to increase the production of food and the amount of land being cultivated which is now at 48 percent”, Loyo informed. Many of the 18 agreements signed with Bolivia are also linked to agricultural development and include the creation of a joint company to improve corn, rice, potato, and soy yields. Other accords reached with Bolivia include cooperation on the production of cement for housing construction, the establishment of a textile factory, and proposed collaboration on the manufacture of lithium batteries. The collaborative ventures with Bolivia fall under the mark of the 8-member Bolivarian Alliance of the Americas (ALBA) – a regional trade block spearheaded by Venezuela to counter US hegemony in Latin America. T/ COI P/ Presidential Press
NoÊx ÊUÊFriday, April 8th, 2011
The artillery of ideas
Analysis
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Venezuela accused of “drug state” by narco-dealer Makled More accusations by accused drug trafficker, Walid Makled, have led to mainstream media calling Venezuela a “drug state”, amidst a political struggle between the US and Venezuela over Makled’s extradition
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akled, a Venezuelan businessman who was arrested in Colombia last August, is accused of drug trafficking by the US and of the same – as well as money laundering and involvement in three separate murders including two Venezuelan journalists who were investigating his economic assets and possible ties to the drug trade – by Venezuela. Hence, both countries are seeking his extradition, though so far, Colombia has promised to extradite him to Venezuela. After his arrest, Makled accused a number of high-ranking members of the Venezuelan government of participating in his illegal networks, including the director of Venezuela’s National Anti-Drug Office (ONA), Nestor Reverol, as well as Army General Henry Rangel Silva. Makled has also declared he helped finance the 2007 constitutional reform campaign of the Chavez government. Speaking from prison last week on the Spanish-language Univision television network, Makled further elaborated on some of his original accusations, fuelling a new media spree on the issue. Makled alleged he had contracts with Petroquimica de Venezuela (Pequiven, a state owned petrochemical company) and that there were five legislators on his payroll. In response to a question about what type of favors they did for him, Makled responded, “anything that was needed”. He also claimed he had 40 generals from the Venezuelan Armed Forces on his payroll. “They were all my friends”, he explained. He said that Venezuela is a “narco-state” because, “5 or 6 planes loaded with cocaine would
fly from Apure [state in Venezuela] to Honduras, then to Mexico, and from there to the US”. During the interview, no mention was made of the fact that in 2005 the president of Pequiven, Saul Ameliach, denounced Makled for diverting chemical substances to Colombia, nor that the Venezuelan National Anti-drug Office (ONA), together with the District Attorney, had launched an investigation into Makled’s illegal affairs. In response to the question, “And was there official participation in this [drug trafficking?” Makled said, “100%, of course, because it’s Venezuelan territory”, and later said he had access to an international port and the “most important port in Venezuela” because he had permissions granted to him by the national government. The interview concluded with the question, “You have said you have enough proof to achieve the fall of the Chavez government, what you are referring to?” “Too many things. Many. And it’s strong proof”, he remarked, presenting no evidence. US INTEREST On November 4th last year a federal court in New York charged Makled with one count of conspiracy to import cocaine to the US after Washington classified Makled one of the world’s most significant drug kingpins under the US Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, citing his participation three years earlier in the transporting of five tons of cocaine from Venezuela to Mexico. Speaking to the charge against Makled, outspoken anti-Chavez US congressman Connie Mack told the Miami Herald, “If we could get Makled here, I think he could provide a lot of evidence about the Venezuelan government’s involvement in narco-trafficking”. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has said US attempts to extradite Makled are politically motivated, “The empire’s game here is to offer who knows how many opportunities to this man, including protection, so that he may begin to spill out all he wants against Venezuela and the [Venezuelan] president”. Chavez accused the US of seek-
Who is Walid Makled? Interpol ranks Makled as one of the most wanted drug traffickers internationally, and as “extremely dangerous”. Makled owned and operated the commercial airliner, Aeropostal Airlines, until the Venezuelan government seized the firm last year as part of its anti-drug trafficking efforts. ing to “use” the Makled case to take Venezuela “to an international criminal court”. Last week, US Republican Senator Richard Lugar asked Colombian president Juan Santos to reconsider to where Makled will be extradited. “Should [Makled] be extradited to Venezuela, the Department of Justice and the DEA [Drug Enforcement Agency] would be unable to use the information he has already provided to them to legally dismantle some of the most important drug networks in the world today”, Lugar said in a press release. Venezuela severed ties with the DEA in 2005 on suspicion that the agency was spying. Since then, Venezuela’s National Drug Office (ONA) has reported an increase of both drug-related detentions and illegal drugs confiscated. According to the ONA, Venezuelan authorities have decommissioned 12.59 tons of drugs so far this year – between January and March.
In the interview last week, Makled admitted to a fortune of over 1.2 billion US dollars, which includes the airline, a transport company, publications, farms, property, yachts, luxury vehicles, and warehouses in Venezuelan ports and airports. Makled did not respond as to the location of his large fortune. MEDIA MANIPULATION Internationally, over the last week, hundreds of articles in English and Spanish have been published on the Makled case, including pieces in the Washington Post, Miami Herald, Fox News, and by Associated Press. Most articles have focused on the alleged association between the Venezuelan government and drug smuggling, and the supposed importance that Makled be extradited to the US rather than Venezuela. Fox News headlined with, “Opinion: Makled must be tried in the United States, not in Venezuela”, while the Associated Press opened with, “Jailed ‘kingpin’ implicated Chavez government”. In Venezuela, private media has focused more on the investigations of Makled and the details of the case, though Globovision, the main opposition news channel, headlined with “Walid Makled: the stone
in the shoe of president Chavez”, and opposition legislator, Alfonso Marquina said yesterday that the national government’s “obsession” with extraditing Makled to Venezuela had to do with its desire to “shut up [or kill] the mockingbird” and he urged Santos to reconsider the decision to send Makled here. Legislator Cilia Flores, of the governing United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), accused the opposition of using Makled as a “political banner”. “It seems that they are basically defending a drug trafficker”, she added. “It’s the [Venezuelan] government who has denounced Makled and who is interested in knowing what connections he has, that’s why we’re seeking his extradition”, Flores said. COLOMBIA & VENEZUELA Carlos Escarra, national coordinator of legal issues in the PSUV said yesterday that right wing sectors in Venezuela and internationally wanted to use Makled to make relations between Colombia and Venezuela “bitter”. In November of last year Santos said it was his intention to extradite Makled to Venezuela as part of a promise made during bi-lateral talks. “I gave my word to Chavez, and as soon as all the judicial proceedings are completed the extradition to Venezuela will take place. I am a man of my word”, Santos said, adding that “when we captured [Makled], Venezuela’s request for extradition came long before the US request”. On Monday, however, former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe suggested the extradition decision is not set in stone. “The government of Colombia still hasn’t made a decision”, Uribe told the Miami Herald. “The Supreme Court has authorized his extradition to wherever the Colombian government decides”. Santos and Chavez will meet this Saturday in Colombia, and Makled’s extradition is expected to be one of the topics discussed. T/ Tamara Pearson www.venezuelanalysis.com
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4 | Politics
NoÊx ÊUÊFriday, April 8th, 2011
The artillery of ideas
Chavez: We can work together with private companies for the public good I
n the next few days the Venezuelan government will begin the process of recovering 300,000 hectares of land that were in the hands of an English company, President Hugo Chavez announced last week during an interview from Uruguay. In the interview, the Venezuelan head of state did not specify the name of the British company. Chavez informed that during his time in government, the process of taking back or recovering land has been fundamental, especially so that “worker control” could “prevent companies from exploiting the land and workers, and from getting rich and taking the earnings overseas”. According to Chavez, the new land is in addition to almost four million hectares of land nationalized by the Venezuelan government over the last twelve years. The Venezuelan leader said it was part of a general nationalization approach that involved first retaking the most strategic companies in the country, such as the state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), which in turn has “allowed us to advance in the construction of socialism of the 21st Century”. When Chavez
He additionally said that the state was “applying worker control” hand in hand with the nationalizations but “with many difficulties, sometimes resounding and hurricane-force difficulties, but the control of the organized working class is advancing in public industries”.
won office in 1998, Pdvsa, nationalized in 1976, was on the verge of being privatized. His government ceased such actions and recovered the state industry, which has proven to be the major source of funding for the administration’s popular social programs. After assuring PDVSA was in state hands, the government re-
covered basic industry companies that had been privatized, including those in the region of Bolivar, where steel and aluminium are processed. Chavez said the “rhythm of recovery” of land and companies that are fundamental for production will continue and will “strengthen the creation of social property”. However, he also talked about
“coexisting and even allying ourselves with some sectors of the private industry”. “Private companies... can continue existing without a problem and we are even happy to support them, as we have done, but only when it’s in the framework of the constitution and of social interest”, Chavez said in the interview.
LAND FOR THE PEOPLE In June last year, the National Assembly passed a reform to the Land Law, increasing the ability of landless tenant farmers to obtain land and also strengthening the state’s power to convert large, idle estates into land farmed for the public good. Lately the government has been prioritizing an area of Venezuela called South of Lake Maracaibo, in Zulia state, one of the most unequally distributed areas in the country, which was also severely affected by the intense rains and flooding at the end of last year. In December the government announced its intention to take over 16 large unproductive private land estates to help with the reconstruction of the area. T/ Tamara Pearson www.venezuelanalysis.com
Electrical energy improved in Venezuela, no rationing O
n October 2012, operations of the hydroelectric power plant Manuel Piar will begin at the Tocoma dam, in the state of Bolivar in southeastern Venezuela. According to Venezuelan Minister for Electrical Energy, Ali Rodriguez, these operations will make the Caroni river one of the most productive basins in the world. Rodriguez said the information during an interview with a local newspaper, where he also informed that the power plant, which has advanced 50%, will have a capacity of 2,160 megawatts. This coming Tuesday, the second deviation of the Caroni river will be initiated, which will allow for the construction of a system to close the dam in order to conclude public works in that area. The engineering of the overall construction has progressed significantly to date, with 80 % completed, while other public works
have advanced by more than 70%. The dam has a total cost of about $5.8 billion and it will generate 4,000 direct jobs and 12,000 indirect employment opportunities. After it is built, it will become a crucial point of electricity distribution, according to Rodriguez, and as such, the national government is undertaking one of the most ambitious transmission projects by interconnecting lines of the southern part of the nation with the western area of the country. NO ELECTRICITY RATIONING Ali Rodriguez also denied this week that Venezuela is implementing rationing of electricity this year. While attending a ceremony to inaugurate the infrastructure project on the Caroni River, which forms part of the construction of the central hydroelectric dam Manuel Piar, Rodriguez responded to claims
predicting an electrical collapse in the country. “They (the opposition) say that the lack of electricity and numerous flaws will prevent Venezuela from having a recovery of the economy”, he said. Rodriguez explained that the national demand, estimated at 15,000 megawatts (MW), suddenly rose to 16,200 MW.
“Today we consume 16,400 MW, a jump that involves a large demand of electricity, which coincided with the fact that a generating unit at the Josefa Joaquina Sanchez Unit was taken offline while maintenance was done”, he added. Rodriguez explained that this situation led to a destabilization of the system and, at the same time, the fall of a unit that provides
roughly 1,000 MW of energy to Caracas and Planta centro, located in Morón, Carabobo State. This situation resulted in a plan of electricity rationing in some areas to avoid having a large-scale blackout. Rodriguez stressed that this rationing was gradually diminishing to the extent that more generation capacity was being added, so today, the measure is not longer in effect . He recalled how in 2010 the nation was hit by the longest dry period in its history, which resulted in significantly lower levels than usual at the Guri Dam, which generates over 70 percent of Venezuela’s electricity. At that time headlines proliferated in the private media announcing on April 6th a collapse at the Guri Dam, a situation that did not happen, recalled Rodriguez. T/ AVN P/ Agencies
NoÊx ÊUÊFriday, April 8th, 2011
The artillery of ideas
Politics
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US congressman Connie Mack requested his government overthrow venezuelan president Hugo Chavez L
ast Thursday US Congressman Connie Mack requested the Executive branch of his country “put an end” to the government of the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez. According to AP, Mack said US President Barack Obama “should be asking for the end of Chavez’s regime”, for supposed violations of human rights, instead of buying oil from Venezuela, which supplies close to 10% of US oil consumption. Mack said buying oil from Venezuela, “keeps the US State Department hostage”, and for that reason, he requested the replacement of the South American country for another supplier. “We need to focus right away on replacing foreign oil coming from tyrants like Chavez, for reliable and stable allies like Canada,” the Republican congressman stated. Mack has been characterized by his frequent attacks against Venezuela and he has requested several times to include the South American country in the US list of governments supporting “terrorism”. He has reiterated that request this
year, though the Obama administration has yet to release the 2011 “state sponsors of terrorism” list it publishes annually. Countries on the list include Cuba, North Korea, Sudan and Syria. Ironically, Libya was removed from the list several
years ago after dismantling its nuclear weapons program. PUBLIC CALLS FOR ASSASSINATION The congressman was accused in November 2010 by Bolivian
President Evo Morales of making a public call for the assassination of President Chavez, during a meeting of anti-Chavez figures and other representatives from the ultra-rightwing in Latin America and the US.
The encounter, titled “Danger in the Andes”, was held in the US Capitol. Andean nations mentioned as “threats” during the event included Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador. All three have been subject to coup attempts in recent years backed by US agencies and ongoing campaigns of aggression and media demonization against their governments, primarily from US supported sources. Mack’s statements were made in the midst of a US-led military intervention in Libya, where over 40% of African oil reserves sit. The pretext used for the invasion was an alleged violation of human rights committed by the Libyan leader Muammar Al Gaddafi. On Tuesday, US Southern Command Commander, Douglas Fraser, reiterated the Pentagon’s “concern” about Venezuelan arms deals with Russia and indicated that the US was watching Venezuela’s military development very closely. T/ AVN P/ Agencies
Venezuela’s president Chavez would win 2012 elections, says poll A
ccording to the latest GIS XXI survey, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has a support level of 51%, and there are low levels of support for the performance of both opposition, and pro-government legislators. The survey, conducted by the progovernment leaning company with 2,500 people from March 11-17, also found that 62% of those polled had a negative assessment of the opposition in the National Assembly. After a boycott of elections in 2005, the opposition participated in last year’s elections, and since January has a sizable, but not a majority, share of seats in the parliament. According to the survey’s report, those who “don’t support the Bolivarian Revolution had large expectations for the opposition entering the National Assembly, but three months since the start of the legislative year, the right doesn’t have complete support in the parliament, nor in national political life”, concluded the poll. The 62%, however, broken down into the various answers, had 35% of those polled
Chávez has ggenerated very positive changes for the country Class distribution
20,5% 20,5% 63,8%
13,8%
responding “very bad or bad” and 27% responding “regular”. Responding to the question, “How would you classify the general performance of the opposition over the last year?” 72% responded “regular, bad, or very bad”, with the middle class and youth (aged 18 to 29) being the most critical. CRITICAL VOICES Results for the performance of the PSUV in parliament were close to that of the opposition, with 52% critical of the pro-government party; 31% rating it as “very bad or
AB
C
D
E
Agree
42,3%
54,0%
66,1%
67,4%
Neither agree nor disagree
14,2%
13,6%
14,1%
13,4%
Disagree
43,6%
31,5%
17,2%
17,3%
DA/DK
0,0%
0,9%
2,5%
1,8%
bad” and 21% rating the party’s actions as “regular”. Highest approval levels were among the youth and among the poorer classes. 37% of respondents rated the PSUV’s performance as “very good or good” compared to 25% for the opposition. 68% of respondents supported a new initiative promoted by President Chavez, which obligated all cabinet members to present reports and debate with the National Assembly about their administrations’ accomplishments and deficiencies during the previous year and a similar number, 76%, felt that “no matter
what side they are on, all legislators are more interested in winning elections than in solving problems”. 46% also said the left talk about achievements that aren’t real, and 40% said the behaviour of the opposition shows that it doesn’t have anything to offer the country. CHAVEZ SUPPORT SOLID Director of GIS XXI, Jesse Chacon, commenting on the support for President Chavez, said it rose to 54% in December, possibly due to his attention to those affected by the torrential rains at the time.
“I think if Chavez maintains the growth [of support] that he has registered since the first part of last year, he’ll end the year with over 55%, which would be a good achievement for any president anywhere in the world who has been governing for over twelve years”, Chacon said. However, according to Chacon, such an increase in support would also depend on social achievements, such as housing construction, road repair, electricity service, the cost of living, and food supply. If Venezuelans were to vote now, 42% would vote for Chavez, and 23% for the opposition. 35% would abstain, or declined to answer the survey question. This would then translate to 65% participationroughly what participation levels have been in recent Venezuelan elections, during which 64.6% have voted for Chavez while 35.4% have opted for the opposition. T/ Tamara Pearson www.venezuelanalysis.com
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6 | Social Justice
NoÊx ÊUÊFriday, April 8th, 2011
The artillery of ideas
Venezuela creates new treatment and prevention system to tackle drug abuse T
he Venezuelan government has stepped up its fight against drug addiction this week, announcing the creation of a new National Addiction Treatment and Prevention System slated to combine the efforts of various public offices to root out the underpinning causes of drug abuse in the country. The measure, which will be passed by presidential decree, will incorporate the work currently being carried out by different social programs and government agencies including the Mission Negra Hipolita, the National Anti-Narcotics Office, and the National Autonomous Institute for the Rights of Children and Adolescents (IDENA). Rafael Sanchez, the President of the treatment and rehabilitation organization, Foundation Jose Felix Ribas, made the new initiative known to the public last Monday. According to Sanchez, the government’s effort to treat addiction is part of a larger plan to combat narco-trafficking and other crimes linked to the proliferation of illicit substances in the country. “We need the participation of many institutions to confront this plague because the crime indexes of the country are closely linked to the consumption of drugs”, he stated. The new treatment and prevention system, in accordance
with Venezuela’s constitutional Anti-Drug Law, will deal with dependencies in a holistic manner, taking into account the various social elements that encourage drug use. “There are three levels of attention that are being formulated. Among them is the family orientation program and specialized centers in which there will be a multidisciplinary team of professionals in areas of psy-
chology, psychiatry and medicine. There will also be a toxicology and laboratory team which will guarantee detoxification of the substance that is compromising the patient’s health”, Sanchez informed. In addition to providing holistic attention to problems related to illegal drugs, the new system is also planning to deal with dependencies related to alcohol and tobacco as well as other
behaviors such as addiction to telephones and sex. All treatment for individuals will be free of charge, something that will increase accessibility exponentially. “In Venezuela, treatment in a private clinic to resolve addiction, which lasts 28 days, costs 70 thousand bolivars ($15,500). A person that does not have this money will not be able to be cured”, Sanchez highlighted.
CUBA In its efforts to provide free and quality treatment to those suffering from drug addiction, Venezuela is following the example of Cuba and will be only the second country in Latin America to offer such a national system to its residents. In preparation for the new system, Venezuelan specialists and Cuban experts organized a conference on addictions earlier this week where professionals from various disciplines had the opportunity to learn about treatment options and methods. Many Venezuelans who battle with dependencies are currently sent to Cuba for treatment but, according to Sanchez, return to the South American country only to confront the same problems emanating from their social setting. “These people come back to Venezuela and return to the same environment or area which affects them. That’s why the relapse rate for the people who receive treatment [in Cuba] reaches 75 percent. In Cuba, there are no drugs and in our country there exists drugs from other countries”, Sanchez pointed out. Venezuela, although being declared free of the cultivation of illicit substances, has been victimized by its geographical proximity to Colombia, the largest producer of cocaine in the world. T/ COI P/ Agencies
Improving prison conditions W
orking to improve conditions in the nation’s prison system by implementing a policy based on respect for human rights, the Venezuelan National Assembly unanimously passed a new Penitentiary Code bill last Tuesday. The bill, comprised of 378 articles, seeks to reduce violence currently affecting incarcerated populations, improve rehabilitation programs and guarantee prison conditions in line with the humanistic values of the country’s constitution. At its core are four main principles including the respect for human rights, the classification
of inmates, the establishment of sanctions for those who violate accepted norms in the treatment of those serving time, and the development of alternative sentences related to conditional freedom, study and work. According to Yelite Santaella, chair of the National Assembly’s Penitentiary Commission, after passing the nation’s congress the bill will be discussed in grassroots assemblies known as the Pueblo Legislador, or the People’s Legislature. “In the coming days, this bill will be in the street with the mothers, fathers and family members of those incarcerated.
It will be with the People’s Legislature, so that this wisdom, which our people have, can provide feedback and perfect the legal instrument”, she said. Venezuela’s prisons have been known for their overcrowding and poor conditions, facts echoed by the exposition of motives of the bill which calls the current penitentiary structure a “chaotic and violent” system which “continues to display an inhumane and lethal face”. Ignored and left to decay by previous governments, the nation’s penitentiaries first took on renewed importance in 1999 when certain prisoners’ rights
were written into article 272 of the country’s constitution. Since then, the government has brought a series of social programs to inmate populations focused on education, the arts, sports and practical training in fields such as agriculture. The bill that passed the Assembly last Tuesday attempts to follow-up on these initiatives by reconciling the current gap between the prison situation and the progressive values enshrined in Venezuela’s constitution. There are currently more than 40,000 people in Venezuela’s prison system and according to Edwin Rojas, Vice Minister of the
Ministry of Justice and Internal Affairs, the number of residents behind bars has been growing due to the country’s strengthening of public safety initiatives. “Currently, we have a penitentiary population of approximately 145 inmates per every 100 thousand inhabitants, displaying a growth in the prison population of 100 percent in only two years”, explained Rojas. The Vice Minister estimates that the overall cost to adequately reorient the nation’s prison system will be around $300 million and take between 2 and 3 years. T/ COI
NoÊx UÊFriday, April 8th, 2011
The artillery of ideas
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Social Justice | 7 |
Communal Councils: like a family
or-life associations: That is how spokespeople of the communal councils refer to former neighbors’ associations. These organizations supposedly represented the community but provided no room for diversity. But in the end, the will of the people prevailed. This is how Commune Antonio Jose de Sucre in the lively Petare barrio began; After a 20-year battle to have their voices heard, and the need to find answers for the communities, especially the children, a group of neighbours from the Antonio José de Sucre sector created the Tía Elena Communal Council. Targeting the improvement of the council, the members got involved with professional subjects such as social management and children’s rights. Six of the founding members studied social management, and five went to law school. In 2005 the group started cultural, educational, and entertainment activities especially designed for children, who, according to the commune’s spokesperson Mariela Castillo, “are the source of values, of a new life, and a new vision”. THE BEGINNING Before the community recovered the spaces surrounding the boulevard, the place was controlled by drug dealers and other criminals who did not have anything to do with the community. As the first projects materialized, also new forms of participation took shape and by 2007, the group was registered as the Communal Council Antonio José de Sucre. The communal council was granted BsF 2 million (US$ 400,000 approx.) by the special Plan for the Comprehensive Transformation of Habitat in 2009. The resources were used in the restoration of 120 houses, in which according to Castillo: “there were many families sharing one room for all its members. But now each one of them enjoys far better living conditions”. One of those families is Judith Farray’s. She tells her story from her newly restored kitchen. Seventeen years ago she moved to a makeshift “house” consisting of a roof supported by a couple of planks made of zinc. But the house she shares today with other nine members of her family doesn’t look like it used to.
“I worked for a long time for the community but I never achieved anything, never got a brick, nothing. Not for me, not for anyone. But after joining the communal council I was approached by those who coordinated the activities in the community before and I told them: Working with you for 30 years was useless, nothing was done. But now, with this government I can finally do things for my family and my community. We’ve built contention walls, stairways, markets. What haven’t we achieved?” Her experience is ratified by Fatima Tous Arteaga, who coordinated the Commune’s Battle Room. She highlights some other works such as the dentristry center and a computer room with top technology. The communitarian work continued and more neighbors joined it as more actions were taken up, in response to the neighbors’ activism. When the communal council legalization process was finished in 2010 the council gave the first steps for the creation of the Commune Antonio Jose de Sucre. To do that, the council joined with other six communal councils, and the resulting commune was then comprised of 7 health committees, 6 urban lands committees, 7 housing committees, 1 tenants’ network,
7 sports committees, 1 transport committee, 1 students’ committee, 1 telecommunications committee and 1 energy committee. Each one of them has spokespeople trained by the School for the Strengthening of People’s Power. BEATING INFLATION “In 2009 we received BsF 400,000 for the purchase of a day-care house for 0-12 year-old children, a grandparents club, and a bakery. There was a surplus that was used for other projects proposed by the different communal councils. It was done after being voted by the assembly”, Mariela Castillo says.
The surplus was given different uses: house fronts were painted, social aid has been provided, and outdoor activities by the group Semilleros de la Patria were financed (a program aiming at the development of values, joined by 200 children). “There’s still a surplus of BsF 100,000 which will be used in the restoration of houses”, Castillo says. The works have also become a source of employment as 87 men and women have received training in different areas like construction and plumbing at the INCE (National Institute of Socialist Training and Education).
JUST LIKE A FAMILY After the heavy rains that scourged the country in the last months of 2010, the humanitarian sense and levels of organization of the developing Commune Antonio Jose de Sucre became even clearer. Mariela Castillo says the communal council members provided assistance during the first eight days of the emergency until late at night. They took part actively in the rescue efforts, evacuation, and primary assistance to those who lost their homes. Since then, the council takes care of the “William Lara” shelter also known as El Fortin. The council also made use of the daycare center for children as a temporary safe shelter to the children of the area. But their best support was the human warmth and hope given to the family. It was in this shelter where Cintia Lara gave birth to her first child right after losing the house she shared with 15 members of her family. But not everything is lost for her, as her neighbors have been helpful and attentive, like a big family. T/ Degnis Merlo– Venezuela de Verdad P/ Agencies
FRIDAY | April 8th, 2011 | No. 58 | Bs 1 | C ARACAS
ENGLISH EDITION The artillery of ideas
A publication of the Fundacion Correo del Orinoco • Editor-in-Chief | Eva Golinger • Graphic Design | Alexander Uzcátegui, Jameson Jiménez • Press | Fundación Imprenta de la Cultura
OPINION
Y
ou didn’t have to be clairvoyant to foresee what I wrote with great detail in three Reflection Articles I published on the CubaDebate website between February 21 and March 3: “The NATO Plan Is to Occupy Libya,” “The Cynical Danse Macabre,” and “NATO’s Inevitable War”. Not even the fascist leaders of Germany and Italy were so blatantly shameless regarding the Spanish Civil War unleashed in 1936, an event that maybe a lot of people have been recalling over these past days. Almost 75 years to the day have passed since then, but nothing that has happened over the last 75 centuries, or even 75 millenniums of human life on our planet can compare. Sometimes it seems that those of us who serenely voice our opinions on these issues are exaggerating. I dare say that we have actually been naive to assume that we all should be aware of the deception or colossal ignorance that humanity has been dragged into. In 1936 there was an intense clash between two systems and ideologies of more or less equal military power. The arms back then seemed more like toys compared with today’s weapons. Humanity’s survival was not threatened despite the destructive power and the locally lethal force deployed. Entire cities and even nations could have been virtually destroyed. But never was the human race, in its totality, at risk of being exterminated several times over for the stupid and suicidal power developed by modern science and technology. With these current realities in mind, it is embarrassing to read the continuous news reports on the use of powerful laser-guided rockets with 100% accuracy, fighter-bombers that go twice the speed of light, potent explosives that blow apart uranium-hardened metals that have an everlasting effect on the inhabitants and their descendants. Cuba stated its position regarding the internal situation in Libya at the meeting in Geneva. Without hesitating, Cuba defended the idea of a political solution to the conflict in Libya and was categorically opposed to any foreign military intervention. In a world where the alliance between the United States and the developed capitalist powers of Europe increasingly take hold of the people’s resources and fruits of their labor, any honest citizen, whatever their standpoint to the government, would be opposed to a foreign military intervention in their country. But most absurd about the current situation is the fact that before the brutal war broke out in Northern Africa, in another region of the world, nearly 10,000 kilome-
NATO’s fascist war
ters away, a nuclear accident had occurred in one of the most populated areas of the world following a tsunami caused by a 9.0 earthquake, which has already cost a hardworking nation like Japan nearly 30 000 lives. Such accident would have not occurred 75 years before. In Haiti, a poor and underdeveloped country, a nearly 7.0 quake according to the Richter scale, caused over 300 000 deaths, countless people wounded and hundreds of thousands harmed. However, what was terribly tragic in Japan was the accident at the Fukushima nuclear plant, whose consequences are still to be assessed. I will only recall some of the main stories published by the news agencies: ANSA.- Fukushima 1 nuclear plant is releasing “extremely high and potentially lethal radiations”, said Gregory Jaczko,
chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the US nuclear entity. EFE.- The nuclear threat stemming from the serious situation at a Japanese plant, following the earthquake, has triggered security revisions in atomic plants around the world and has made some countries paralyze their plans. Reuters.- Japan’s devastating earthquake and deepening nuclear crisis could result in losses of up to $200 billion for Japanese economy, but the global impact remains hard to gauge. EFE.- The deterioration of one reactor after another at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear center continued to feed fears of a pending nuclear disaster as desperate attempts to control a radioactive leak did nothing to provide even a glimmer of hope. AFP.- Japan´s Emperor Akihito expressed concern about the unpredictable character
of the nuclear crisis hitting Japan following the quake and tsunami that killed thousands of people and left 500,000 homeless. New quake reported in the Tokyo area. There are reports talking about even more concerning issues. Some refer to the presence of toxic radioactive iodine in Tokyo’s drinking water, which doubles the tolerable amount that can be consumed by the smallest children in the Japanese capital. One of these reports says that the stocks of bottled water are shrinking in Tokyo, a city located in a prefecture at more than 200 kilometers from Fukushima. This series of circumstances poses a dramatic situation on our world. I can express freely my views on the war in Libya. I do not share political or religious views with the leader of that country. I am a Marxist-Leninist and a follower of Marti, as I have already said. I see Libya as a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and a sovereign State of the nearly 200 members of the United Nations. Never, a large or small country, in this case with only 5 million inhabitants, was the victim of such a brutal attack by the air force of a militaristic organization with thousands of fighter-bombers, more than 100 submarines, nuclear aircraft carriers, and sufficient arsenal to destroy the planet many times over. Our species had never encountered this situation and there had been nothing similar 75 years ago, when the Nazi bombers attacked targets in Spain. Now, however, the criminal and discredited NATO will write a “beautiful” little story about its “humanitarian” bombing. If Gaddafi honors the traditions of his people and decides to fight to the last breath, as he has promised, together with the Libyans who are facing the worst bombing a country has ever suffered, NATO and its criminal projects will sink into the mire of shame. The people respect and believe in men who fulfill their duty. More than 50 years ago, when the United States killed more than a hundred Cubans with the explosion of merchant ship “La Coubre” our people proclaimed “Patria o Muerte”. (Homeland or Death). They have fulfilled this, and have always been determined to keep their word. “Anyone who tries to seize Cuba”, said the most glorious fighter in our history-”will only gather the dust of her soil soaked in blood.” I beg you to excuse the frankness with which I address the issue. Fidel Castro Ruz 28 March 2011 8:14 p.m.