[NYTr] Agents of Destabilization Will Be Expelled from Venezuela

[nytr at olm.blythe-systems.com]

[Of course, the hostile mainstream press is playing this up to the hilt,
with headlines like "critical foreigners will get the boot," etc. 
The two items below come from the Venezuela Information Office, which
comments as follows:

"Sources report today that a senior Mexican politician criticized
President Chavez while in Caracas over the weekend, which led Chavez to
express distaste for verbal attacks by foreigners visiting Venezuela.
Despite the seriousness lent to such comments by the Associated Press
and the BBC, they in no way affect laws protecting freedom of speech.
This and other democratic guarantees remain very much in force in
Venezuela, according to statements made by OAS Secretary General
Insulza last week." -VIO]


AP via The Washington Post - July 22, 2007
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/22/AR2007072200819.html

Chavez: Critical Foreigners to Get Boot

By Christopher Toothaker

CARACAS, Venezuela -- President Hugo Chavez said Sunday that foreigners
who publicly criticize him or his government while visiting Venezuela
will be expelled from the country.

Chavez ordered officials to closely monitor statements made by
international figures during their visits to Venezuela _ and deport any
outspoken critics.

"How long are we going to allow a person _ from any country in the
world _ to come to our own house to say there's a dictatorship here,
that the president is a tyrant, and nobody does anything about it?"
Chavez asked during his weekly television and radio program.

The Venezuelan leader's statements came after Manuel Espino, the
president of Mexico's conservative ruling party, criticized Chavez
during a recent pro-democracy forum in Caracas.

Government opponents argue Chavez _ a close ally of Cuban leader Fidel
Castro _ is becoming increasingly authoritarian and cracking down on
dissent as he steers oil-rich Venezuela toward what he calls
"21st-century socialism."

Chavez rejects such allegations, countering that democratic freedoms
have been extended since he was first elected in 1998. The former
paratroop commander says his government has empowered the poor by
giving them increased decision-making authority in politics.

During Sunday's six-hour program, Chavez assured private property
owners their rights will be guaranteed under a pending constitutional
reform.

"Private property will respected," he said.

Many wealthy Venezuelans fear second homes, yachts or other assets
could be seized as Chavez advances his Bolivarian Revolution, a
movement named after South American independence hero Simon Bolivar.
Chavez denies any such plans.

Chavez is expected to present his reform proposal to the National
Assembly, which is completely controlled by his allies, in the coming
weeks. Few details have emerged from a special executive committee that
he appointed to draft a proposal for overhauling the country's charter.

Also Sunday, Chavez announced an initiative to slash the salaries of
Venezuela's top public servants. He said no public servant should make
more than $7,000 a month. Most Venezuelans make minimum wage _ roughly
$250 a month.

Reducing the pay of top officials has become a popular move in Latin
America. The presidents Nicaragua, Bolivia, Peru and Costa Rica
recently cut salaries, including their own, in response to widespread
criticism.

In his typically wide-ranging television program, Chavez also said
Castro recently warned him to take precautions against possible
U.S.-backed assassination attempts.

He said Cuba's 80-year-old "Maximum Leader" gave him a copy of former
CIA Director George Tenet's recently published memoir and told him:
"'Read it, Chavez, because that is the most perfect killing machine
ever invented and I'm a survivor ... I survived more than 600
(assassination) attempts.'"

"The CIA is everywhere," said Chavez, who has repeatedly warned that
U.S. President George W. Bush could order him killed.

U.S. law has forbidden assassination attempts since the 1970s, and
Washington denies the U.S. government has attempted to kill Castro
since then.

                                    ***

BBC News - Jul 23, 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6911246.stm

Chavez to expel foreign critics

BBC News

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has vowed to expel foreigners who
publicly criticise him or his government.

"No foreigner can come here to attack us. Anyone who does must be
removed from this country," he said during his weekly TV and radio
programme.

Mr Chavez also ordered officials to monitor statements made by
international figures in Venezuela.

His comments came shortly after a senior Mexican politician publicly
criticised the Venezuelan government.

"How long are we going to allow a person - from any country in the
world - to come to our own house to say there's a dictatorship here,
that the president is a tyrant, and nobody does anything about it?" Mr
Chavez said during his "Hello, President" broadcast on Sunday.

"It cannot be allowed - it is a question of national dignity," he said.

He did not mention any names, but his comments came on the same weekend
that Manuel Espino, president of Mexico's ruling National Action Party,
criticised Mr Chavez at a pro-democracy conference in Caracas.

Mr Espino told the conference a plan by Mr Chavez to end term limits on
Venezuela's presidency were a threat to democracy.

He accused Mr Chavez of trying to extend his rule indefinitely with the
proposed constitutional reform, which would let Mr Chavez run for the
presidency again in 2012.

Mr Chavez said the reform package would increase the influence of local
community councils and student groups as part of his "21st-Century
socialism" revolution.

He is due to present the proposal to Venezuela's National Assembly next
month. The assembly consists solely of politicians who back the
president.

Mr Chavez was re-elected to a third term last year with support from
the millions of impoverished Venezuelans who back his social
development policies.