134 foreign observers to witness Venezuela's local polls (US sending observers)

[Judi Lynn]

Source: El Universal, Venezuelan opposition newspaper

CARACAS, Thursday November 20, 2008
134 foreign observers to witness Venezuela's local polls

The president of Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE), Tibisay Lucena, welcomed on Thursday 134 foreign observers that arrived in the South American country to monitor next November 23rd election of governors and mayors.

Lucena said at a press conference in Caracas that the presence of international observers from America, Europe, Africa and Asia, will help "show before the world (...) the reality of the Venezuelan electoral process," EFE reported.

Representatives of international electoral organizations of the United States and Canada, as well as members of the Latin American Economic System (SELA), the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) and the Organization of American States (OAS) will be among the international observers invited to participate, the CNE said.

The OAS confirmed on Thursday in a statement that two top officials of the OAS, on behalf of Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza, will participate as guests in the activities planned by the Venezuelan electoral institution.


Read more: http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/11/20/en_pol_esp_134-foreign-observer_20A2138403.shtml

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

1. Chimpservers?

:shrug:

[BunkerHill24]

3. Yup....They would sit under the tree shade and eat Bananas

[Cleita]

2. Too bad we can't get those foreign observers to come here.

I don't think Venezuela's polls are corrupt like ours have been. If dedicated and concerned citizens and lawyers hadn't been watching our elections, the neo-cons would have stolen another one.

[clear eye]

21. Jimmy Carter said ours are systematically too corrupt

for his organization to agree to monitor, when he was asked what the verdict of his group would be on U.S. elections.

[Judi Lynn]

22. Horrendous commentary. Not a bit of a surprise, either, unfortunately.

He has given the Venezuelan elections a clean rating, completely favorable.

What a shame there's no outside group which is able to put pressure on our own system at this point. One of the perks of being the world's most powerful country, apparently. No overseers anywhere, ever.

[arcos]

4. Daniel Ortega has quite a bit to learn about Hugo Chavez! nt

[dipsydoodle]

5. Presumably that's what's euphemisticly known

as an attempt at humour.

editto add - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=405&topic_id=9850

[arcos]

9. It is not...

Unlike Chávez, Nicaragua is not allowing international observers.

I despise the Nicaraguan right wing, but many people fail to see that Daniel Ortega and his group (which is not the whole FSLN party) are just as corrupt and undemocratic as the right wingers.

[lib2DaBone]

6. Florida is going to send Katherine Harris and Jeb Bush....

..to assure Democracy.....

[stillcool]

7. I hope they all learn something..

about how to run elections. Open source code, standard audits that actually hand count a substantial amount of the ballots..stuff like that.

[Nambe]

8. It just keeps getting harder and harder to bash President Chavez.

[Judi Lynn]

10. There are a couple who will go down fighting, however! Your point is something to celebrate!

It's absolutely wonderful learning just how many DU'ers have been keeping informed, and getting informed on the astounding movement out of bondage in Latin America.

[mithnanthy]

15. Thanks to you Judi Lynn

...for keeping us well informed! Thank you again for all your research and information about Hugo Chavez. I'm constantly pointing out to friends, his many accomplishments and his vision for the future of his Country.

[Judi Lynn]

18. Sure glad you're part of the readers who have seen behind to lies already!

If you're looking for something to share with your friends, maybe the 2 letters-to-the-editor in the Belfast Telegraph which discuss Hugo Chavez may offer some info. you can use. I just posted it at post #17, having just stumbled across it:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3611548#3613819

You may recall reading Peace Patriot's comments for years after polls revealed some time ago that Hugo Chavez had around 60% approval rating from Venezuelans, and they were only second to Uruguayans in their enthusiasm for their own government. Those points are mentioned by one of the authors of the two LTTE's posted below, as well.

Good to know the news is getting around, despite a ferocious propaganda effort against all leftist leaders, isn't it?

[Judi Lynn]

20. Embarrassed to see I blew that subject line. Shouldn't post when I should be sleeping!

I meant to write "Sure glad you're part of the readers who have seen behind THE lies already!"

Seeing mistakes made in a post, it's too late to get back to correct them is a real low point in the day.

[mithnanthy]

25. Thanks again for the info....

I always look forward to your posts.

[kotk45]

11. Chavez

The only reason Chavez is allowing the foreign observers in, is he saw what stealing would create as it has in Nicaragua.
Chavez was smarter, and has beat the opposition to a pulp before ever going to the polls.
With oil at $49 a barrel, he is hardly in a position to wield that big mouth around at the moment.
Danny boy and the pink tide once again have chose a lame horse to ride them to the promised land.
Losers love misery.

[Judi Lynn]

12. You disagree South American countries have to choose their OWN leaders without interference?

You're going to be overwrought from this point forward, because they aren't going to allow themselves to be compromised, and dominated by foreign powers again.

That's not a shortcoming on their parts, so you may as well forget trying to push that contemptuous attitude here, trying to smear them.

"Danny boy?" Really? Grow up.

[Gabi Hayes]

13. what're the odds our new 'friend' also thinks Obama was swept in on a pink tide?

wasn't the full moon a few days ago?

he probably loves freedom riders like Otto Reich

[AlphaCentauri]

14. Before Chavez 60% of Venezuelans were poor

There is no way to support those antic neo-liberal form of governments anymore

[arcos]

16. Bullshit...

Chávez has always allowed international observers. OAS, Carter Center, etc.

Unlike Ortega.

[Flanker]

23. Actually the last election (the one he lost) lacked the OAS and Carter Center

Frankly the system is rock solid, observers are good for PR but I trust the system more than the observers.

[arcos]

24. Chávez? The referendum last year?

No it didn't. Observers were there.

[ronnie624]

26. Observers were indeed present for the 2007 referendum.

People from all over the world, including representatives from the NAACP and the National Lawyers Guild, watched the election unfold. The process was lauded universally.

[fascisthunter]

28. That's a Lie

straight up lie... there were observers there.

[Judi Lynn]

17. 2 great LTTE's from Ireland on Chavez you may want to consider:

In praise of Hugo Chavez

Saturday, 22 November 2008
Phil Gunson paints a bleak picture of the situation in Venezuela under the Hugo Chavez government ("Tough-talking Chavez faces rising dissent", 20 November). Yet, if this is accurate, why are President Chavez's approval ratings at 58 per cent, as he reports?

No mention is made of how the Chavez government has delivered free healthcare to millions of people for the first time, eradicated illiteracy and used the country's best economic performance for decades to halve poverty levels.

Suggestions of "violent reaction" to the poll results from Chavez also turn reality on its head. It was the Chavez government itself that was briefly the victim of an opposition-led military coup in 2002. In contrast, the Chavez government has showed a consistent commitment to democracy; Sunday's vote will be the 13th national electoral contest held since Chavez became President. Moreover, last week the respected Latinbarametro survey showed that Venezuela is now the country with the greatest support for democracy in Latin America and the region's second-most satisfied with the functioning of its democracy. Venezuela's combination of democracy and social progress under the Chavez government has inspired widespread support. Others can learn from this process, but only if it is portrayed accurately.

Colin Burgon MP
Chair, Labour Friends of Venezuela group of MPs, House of Commons

~~~~~~~~~
Phil Gunson's assertion that Chavez "is threatening to jail a popular opposition leader" cannot go unchallenged, because it suggests serious failings in Vene-zuela's democracy.

He quotes Chavez as saying, "That criminal must go to prison", but this is something altogether different, especially when one considers that the said opposition leader, Manuel Rosales, is under investigation on corruption charges and has been summoned to court to make depositions. But Rosales is totally free and is campaigning vigorously to win his election for Mayor. Electoral rhetoric apart, the President of Venezuela does not have the legal or constitutional authority to arrest anybody.

As Chavez has already demonstrated in the 2007 constitutional referendum which rejected his government's proposals, the democratic wishes of Venezuelans will be duly recognised. It has been solidly established that Venezuela's electoral processes are probably the cleanest in the world; they are certainly the most observed.

Dr Francisco Dominguez
Head of Latin American Studies, Middlesex University, London N14

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/letters/in-praise-of-hugo-chavez-14075215.html

[Judi Lynn]

19. The New Politics of Political Aid in Venezuela (Just found this one article from last year.)

Americas Policy Program Report
The New Politics of Political Aid in Venezuela
Tom Barry | July 24, 2007

Americas Policy Program, Center for International Policy (CIP) americas.irc-online.org


Five years after U.S.-funded groups were associated with a failed coup against Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez, the U.S. government's political aid programs continue to meddle in Venezuelan domestic politics. A new focus of the "democracy builders" in Venezuela and around the world is support for nonviolent resistance by civil society organizations.*

In the name of promoting democracy and freedom, Washington is currently funding scores of U.S. and Venezuelan organizations as part of its global democratization strategy—including at least one that publicly supported the April 2002 coup that briefly removed Chávez from power.

When he first heard the news of the coup, the president of the International Republican Institute (IRI) praised those "who rose up to defend democracy," ignoring the fact that Chávez was the twice-elected president of Venezuela. Despite this declared support for a coup against a democratically elected president and for the opposition's blatant disregard for the rule of law, IRI still runs democratization programs in Venezuela that are underwritten by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The IRI, a supposedly nonpartisan institute established to direct U.S. democratization aid for which Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) is chairman, is one of five U.S. nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that channel funding from USAID to Venezuelan organizations and political programs. USAID also funds the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDIIA) and three U.S. nongovernmental organizations: Freedom House, Development Alternatives Inc., and Pan-American Development Foundation.

The United States has supported democratization and human rights groups in Venezuela since the early 1990s, but funding for "democracy-building" soared after Chávez was elected president in 1998. Both USAID and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which funds IRI and NDIIA, sharply increased their funding to Venezuela's business associations, its official labor confederation, human rights organizations, and political party coalitions.

USAID's Transition Initiative
Several months after the unsuccessful April 2002 coup in Venezuela, the U.S. State Department established an Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) in Caracas, using money from USAID. Operating out of the U.S. Embassy, OTI has two stated objectives, according to the agency: to "strengthen democratic institutions and promote space for democratic dialogue"; and "encourage citizen participation in the democratic process."

USAID established OTI with the all-but-explicit intention of aiding efforts to oust President Chávez. According to USAID, the new office would "provide fast, flexible, short-term assistance targeted at key transition needs."

Although it did not spell out what would be the desired "transition," USAID warned that Chávez "has been slowly hijacking the machinery of government and developing parallel non-democratic governance structures." In its 2001 job description for the new OTI director in Caracas, USAID stated that the director's responsibilities would include "formulating strategy and initiating the new OTI program in close coordination with U.S. political interests" and "developing an exit strategy and operational closeout plan."

Rather than directly funding Venezuelan organizations and political parties, OTI channels USAID funding through U.S. NGOs that in turn fund scores of Venezuelan NGOs and political party projects. In its January-March 2007 report, USAID reported 139 subgrants to Venezuelan entities working in 19 of the country's 23 states.

OTI, which has directed an estimated $30 million in democratization aid to Venezuela, is not the only source of U.S. political aid. The office describes itself as part of a "comprehensive assistance program to shore up the democratic voices and institutions in Venezuela," such as the NED and other State Department initiatives, including "educational" trips to the United States for selected members of the Venezuelan media. As U.S. economic aid decreases, OTI is seeking local funding to complement its own programs, noting in its January-March 2007 report that it succeeded in leveraging $3.5 million in local contributions in the year's first quarter.

More:
http://americas.irc-online.org/am/4420

[fascisthunter]

27. lol...wow

Too bad we didn't have "134 foreign observers" here in 2000 and 2004.

[Judi Lynn]

29. Political Pornography – New Dirty War in Venezuela

Political Pornography – New Dirty War in Venezuela
Monday, 24 November 2008, 10:02 am
Column: Julie Webb-Pullman


Political Pornography – The New Dirty War in Venezuela
It is not stretching a point to call the latest Venezuelan rightwing salvo political pornography. In a last-ditch attempt to resist the tsunami of support for PSUV candidates, a million copies of a video produced by an organisation called SYNERGIA began circulating throughout the country ten days ago, and broadcasting on rightwing television channel, Globovision.

SYNERGIA, the Venezuelan Association of Organizations of Civil Society, is composed of several organisations such as "Radar de los Barrios" ("Radar of the Neighbourhoods"), "Liderazgo y Visión" (Leadership and Vision"), and "Unión Vecinal para la Participación Ciudadana" (Local Union for Civil Participation").

Bush's dirty fingers in the pie
They openly admit to receiving funding from Banco Venezolano de Crédito, the Venezuelan Bank of Credit, but are more coy about their cosy relationship with big business, certain 'religious' groups, but especially their big foreign sponsors, USAID and Development Alternatives Inc. It is no secret that successive Bush administrations have been openly and increasingly funding the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) to channel millions of dollars through USAID to local "NGOs" to destabilise various Latin American governments under the guise of promoting "democracy." (see Eva Golinger´s books The Chavez Code, and Bush versus Chavez - Washington´s War on Venezuela)

SYNERGIA's claim that this latest series of videos and pamphlets are "a tool put in the hands of the citizenship to contribute information and to reflection on topics of significance to the effectiveness of our democratic values and the full exercise of our constitutional law" sits uncomfortably with a "Leadership and Vision" – commissioned impact evaluation report produced by Data C.A. earlier this year on the first phase of their destabilisation campaign, carried out prior to the Referendum vote in December 2007.

As Data C.A. were able to report, the key messages of Leadership and Vision's "ideological education" in that "social pedagogy campaign" were "clearly understood and remembered by the different audiences, being later integrated into their thoughts, beliefs, attitudes and behaviours."

The main components of this 'ideological education' were, also unsurprisingly, "simple easily understood and remembered messages repetitively expressed through cliches or colloquialisms, and which can therefore be later integrated without problems into daily language and values, taking root in the subconscious. They shouldhide the ideological message while taking advantage of fears and atavistic prejudices, particularly about socialism, property, and the family."

Dirty-tricks videos are much less messy than cleaning up all that blood, they don't require political prisons, and they avoid the pesky problem of refugees spilling the beans in other countries.

It worked in NAZI Germany, so why not in Venezuela?
Having succeeded in generating doubt and confusion for last year's referendum, contributing significantly to three million people abstaining from the vote, this year's campaign seeks to convince last year's abstainers to vote for the opposition this time round, stealing Obama's catchphrase "Time for a Change". Resorting to a communication style familiar in Nazi Germany, where commentary about Jews was accompanied by images of rats swarming across the screen, SYNERGIA's first offering shows a school with overflowing rubbish bins next to it, and surprise surprise, a rat features in the first sentence. Flaunting 50 years of slick marketing and psychological warfare techniques, this campaign cynically refines psycho-political manipulation by using the language of the Constitution, and sometimes of Chavez himself, to distort the message and manipulate the less-politically savvy.

More:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0811/S00314.htm

[Blue_in_Mass]

30. They will confirm what is always confirmed:

That Chavez, the boogeyman, is far cleaner in this regard, than his Chimpanzee nemesis is.