Venezuela?s "national colors"?

[Chris Brady <cdbrady@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Venezuelan Opposition Wants Recall Vote

New York Times, August 20, 2003
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Venezuela-Recall.html
Filed at 2:26 p.m. ET

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Tens of thousands of Venezuelans celebrated
in the streets after opposition leaders turned in 2.7 million signatures
Wednesday to demand a referendum on ending Hugo Chavez?s tumultuous
presidency.

In Argentina, a defiant Chavez vowed to resist any attempt to remove
him. He claimed some of the signatures were fake, including some
belonging to dead people and others stolen from bank databases.

The signatures ``appear in every light to be illegal. They don?t meet
constitutional requirements,?? Chavez said Wednesday in an interview
with The Associated Press in Buenos Aires. ``The opposition must recover
reason and seek a good leader.??

``If they manage to arrange a referendum, we?ll defeat them,?? Chavez
said. ``We?ve beaten them before and we?ll do it again.??

More than 100 boxes containing the signatures were delivered to the
National Elections Council just after dawn, said Enrique Naimi of the
Social Christian Copei party. National Guardsmen in riot gear stood by
as the boxes were unloaded.

Opposition leaders kept their plans for delivering the signatures a
secret, hoping to avoid clashes with Chavez supporters.

The vote is allowed by Venezuela?s constitution after the midpoint in a
president?s term. For Chavez, that was Tuesday.

Chavez opponents celebrated the occasion by setting off thunderous
fireworks that sent bright flashes of red, white and green, the national
colors, across the sky.

Shouting ``Referendum now!,?? people drove through the streets of
Caracas, blowing whistles, waving Venezuelan flags and banging pots and
pans. Tens of thousands jammed a central highway to show their support
for the possible vote.

Chavez foes are counting on international pressure to force the vote. In
May, the government and opposition signed a pact brokered by the
Organization of American States prohibiting any amendments to election
laws while authorities prepare for balloting.

The pact helped bring relative stability after a strike shut down oil
production in the world?s No. 5 exporter, costing more than $7 billion
and sending the economy into a tailspin.

Chavez insists there will not be time to organize a referendum this
year. Voter rolls must be updated, signatures verified and hundreds of
regional election authorities chosen, he said.

Some opposition leaders say they worry the process could run into 2004,
when Venezuela might be too preoccupied with scheduled regional
elections to bother with the referendum.

The United States, Venezuela?s top oil client, has endorsed a
referendum.

Chavez was elected in 1998 to a five-year term and pushed through a new
constitution that led to his 2000 re-election and a six-year term. The
former army paratrooper rose to fame after leading a failed coup in
1992, but critics say he has amassed authoritarian power.

Some recent independent polls suggest Venezuelans would vote 2-1 to oust
Chavez in a referendum. Chavez claims his own polls show he has 70
percent support.