The Devil's Excrement

Everybody had something to say about the terrorist attacks on the Colombian and Spanish Embassies last night, but I truly never expected that this morning the Government would irresponsibly blame the opposition for the attacks.

The first irresponsible declaration was that of the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs saying that “Given the appearance  of pamphlets one has to get suspicious. There are logic that work backwards and one may think that they are trying to discredit the investigations as part of the same plot”

Then, it was the Vice-President who accused the opposition of making irresponsible statements, which he considered deplorable. Then, it was the “Big Liar,” the Minister of the Interior and Justice Lucas Rincon (the one who announced Chavez resignation on April 11th., 2002) said that there was no connection between the attacks and the President’s words.

Finally, it was the former President of the National Assembly, who directly accused the “coupsters” in the opposition for the attacks, “who are trying to manipulate the news”

Now, I am not saying that the opposition did or did not do it and I am not saying the Government and the President’s sympathizers did or did not do it. However, note the following facts:

-The attacks required, according to some reports which I can’t find, between eight and ten pounds of C4 explosives, but I can’t imagine that is so easy to find, but I know it is readily available at least to the military. Furthermore, it is traceable.

-The two countries bombed were, coincidentally, two of the three countries attacked sharply by President Hugo Chavez on his Sunday radio program (The other was the USA). Thus, there is obviously a link, which is the only charge (1,2 and 3) that I have heard the opposition make. Simply stated, Hugo Chavez makes inflammatory statements every single Sunday that have generated an incredible level of confrontation and violence.

-Throughout the violence of the last year, those in jail are there, either because they were caught live on camera doing their deeds, as in the case of the shooters of Puente El Llaguno, or  detained in the act, as was the self-confessed assassin of Altamira, who was caught by the local police.  Note that in both cases, those charged had relations to the Libertador Mayor, a pro-Chavez supporter. Moreover, the men of El Llaguno were actually freed by a Judge, then again ordered arrested by the Supreme Court, who removed the Judge from her position. A week later, the judge was hired by the same Mayor of Libertador District as its legal counsel. The Altamira assassin was defended by President Chávez on TV, who even called him a Gentleman.

-The Government is quick to accuse the opposition leaders and the opposition for everything that happens, but when events like the disappearance of the three military officers that later were found dead and tortured or the dead and injured cops of last Saturday, it is quick to exonerate its own people, either defending them or saying is not a political assassination.

In the end, violence escalates, it is definitely one-sided and Chavez and his band of cynics appear daily on TV accusing the opposition for all the violence. But if you go by PDVSA’s headquarters, you see a band of Chavez supporters, agrressive, and I am sure they are armed, which the Government wants me to belive are just protesting, but they don’t even have a permit. And when we march, we have to cancel or delay our march because these same “Bolivarian Circles” arrive at some point of the march to boycott and incite violence. But nevertheless, we get gassed regularly, but they only get gassed when they start using guns.

Note added: As I finished writing this, the US Government said the same thing as the opposition (God forbid!): We note that the attacks follow the strong verbal attacks by President Chavez”

This entry was posted on February 25, 2003 at 7:56 pm and is filed under Venezuela.