VHeadline News Editor Patrick J. O'Donoghue reports:Foreign Minister Nicholas Maduro says Venezuela is ready to take part in facilitating the freedom of more hostages in Colombia, should the government of that country request help. Maduro points out that nobody has made any formal request so far and secondly, he clarifies that when the Venezuelan government did take part in freeing hostages, it always had the green light from the Colombian government.
The Foreign Minister has also announced that he will ask international media agencies for the right to reply to a campaign of lies against the Bolivarian government. Deputy Foreign Minister for Europe, Alejandro Fleming is heading the venture through the embassies in an effort to reach editors of three newspapers, Spain's El Mundo, Italy's Stampa and The Washington Post. Maduro accuses the Spanish newspaper of being racist towards Venezuela. It is not certain whether the reply will be through advertising and the letter section, as is customary.
The Spanish newspaper El Mundo has published a piece claiming that members of the Basque ETA movement are training a Venezuelan "terrorist organisation" called the Bolivarian Liberation Force (FBL), which is said to be operating in the border areas of Apure State. According to the newspaper, the Spanish Ministry of Interior has published a report on the matter after the arrest of several top ETA leaders in Spain. The report suggests that ETA members will receive protection and be allowed to promote their organisation in exchange for training. Sources indicate that the Venezuelan government's request for the right to reply, at least in the case of El Mundo, will revolve around this article and allegation, combined with the general drift of the newspaper's editorial stance.
In the lead up to Christmas, people have already started to travel from Caracas to the interior to visit their families. At the La Bandera bus terminal in West Caracas, manager Cristobal Chintemi reports that while the majority of holidaymakers have already left the city, he expects an important surge between Monday and Tuesday. Very few people travel between December 24 and 25th, the manager points out, but buses will be ready on the 26th to pick up people returning to the Capital. Chintemi says officials at the terminal are vigilant, making sure that official prices are adhered to. The manager of the eastern terminal, Giovanny Capanelli reports that around 60,000 people have already passed through the terminal on their way home.
According to Foreign Minister, Nicholas Maduro, more than 50% of Venezuelans living abroad and enrolled in the electoral register at respective embassies have taken part in a signature collection campaign supporting the constitutional amendment. Maduro confirms that 101 embassies, 41 consulates and five diplomatic representations to multilateral organizations took part in the campaign. The effort, the Minister comments, is good news and expresses hope that the amendment will be carried through.
Summing up the United Socialist Party of Venezuela's (PSUV) campaign to collect signatures supporting a constitutional amendment to end term limits for the presidency, Jorge Rodriguez says that in four states alone (Aragua, Carabobo, Miranda and the Capital District) 1,634,561 signatures were collected. As head of the campaign, Rodriguez reveals that in the 24 states 4,457,890 signatures supporting the amendment were collected. In Zulia State which is run by the opposition, the PSUV managed 489,988 signatures. Rodriguez claims that it is the biggest signature collection campaign in Venezuela's history.
According to a report in Maracaibo broadsheet, Panorama, a 26-year-old engineer is the hundred and third (103) victim of kidnapping in Zulia state this year. Enzo David Cavallo Caccamo was taken hostage at his father's pizzeria on Sunday evening.
Cofavic human rights group has welcomed the handing down of a 9-year prison sentence to Sucre municipal police officer, Yohan Duarte for the murder of student, Javier Antonio Pasero on August 1, 2003 in the La Lagunita barrio situated in Fila de Mariches. The organization also welcomes the fact that three other police officers allegedly involved in the fatal incident are to be investigated. Cofavic executive director, Liliana Ortega considers the murder of the young man as a case of summary execution by a police death squad since the officers in question raided the young man's house without a warrant and tried to make out that his death was the result of a shoot-out.
Patrick J. O'Donoghue
patrick.vheadline@gmail.com
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Venezuela is facing the most difficult period of its history with honest reporters crippled by sectarianism on top of rampant corruption within the administration and beyond, aided and abetted by criminal forces in the US and Spanish governments which cannot accept the sovereignty of the Venezuelan people to decide over their own future.
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