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<h1 class="title"> <a style="visibility: visible;"
href="http://www.handsoffvenezuela.org/venezuela_attempted_coup.htm"><span>
Venezuela:</span> a developing coup attempt – URGENT ACTION NEEDED</a> </h1>
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<div class="rt-date-posted"> 16 April 2013 </div>
<div class="rt-author"> Hands Off Venezuela<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.handsoffvenezuela.org/venezuela_attempted_coup.htm">http://www.handsoffvenezuela.org/venezuela_attempted_coup.htm</a><br>
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<p>On Sunday April 14, Bolivarian candidate Nicolas Maduro won the
Venezuelan presidential election by a narrow margin. With 99.12% of the
votes counted, there was a 78.71% turn out, with Maduro receiving
7,505,378 votes (50.66%), and Capriles 7,270,403 votes (49.07%).
Opposition candidate Capriles declared that he does not recognise the
result and demanded an audit of 100% of the vote.</p>
<p><span>On Monday April 15 Capriles made a speech, which was broadcast
live by all private TV stations as well as CNN Spanish. In it he
refused to recognise the election results and called for mobilisations
to demand a full manual recount of the vote. These included a national
pots and pans banging protest on Monday at 8 pm, marches on the
regional offices of the National Electoral Council (CNE) on Tuesday 16,
as well as a march on the CNE in Caracas on Wednesday 17.</span></p>
<p><span>At the same time both the Organisation of American States
president Insulza and the United States declared that they were also in
favour of a full recount. The Spanish government added its voice to the
chorus and said they did not recognise the results of the elections. </span></p>
<p><span>This was followed by riots in the streets, road blockades and
burning barricades organised by opposition supporters. Prominent
opposition leaders spread rumours that ballot boxes and ballot papers
were being burnt to prevent a recount, using pictures of the
destruction of electoral material from previous election contests
(these were taken from the <a
href="http://aporrea.org/actualidad/n226929.html" target="_blank">CNE
website as can be seen here</a>). </span></p>
<p><span>Following the allegation by prominent opposition journalist, <a
href="http://aporrea.org/oposicion/n226966.html" target="_blank">Nelson
Bocaranda, that Cuban doctors were participating in the burning of
ballot papers</a>, dozens of CDI (Integral Diagnosis health Centres)
were attacked throughout the country.</span></p>
<p>Gangs of armed opposition thugs were roaming the streets of the main
cities last night. Four Bolivarian supporters were killed as a result
of the violence, some of them in drive by shootings, repeating a
pattern we saw last week and on election day. PSUV offices were
attacked in several states as well as the buildings housing Simoncito
pre-school nurseries, Mercal and PDVAL state-run supermarkets and the
Petrocasa housing program in Carabobo. The private homes of a number
of state officials were also attacked. In the capital Caracas there
were attacks against Telesur, La Radio del Sur and VTV state media
buildings. (See <a
href="http://www.avn.info.ve/contenido/grupos-ultraderechistas-asediaron-cdi-viviendas-sedes-del-psuv-y-del-cne"
target="_blank">some PICTURES here</a> and <a
href="http://www.laiguana.tv/noticias/2013/04/15/5072/VEA-COMO-SEGUIDORES-DE-CAPRILES-DESATARON-UNA-VEZ-MAS-GUARIMBAS-EN-ALTAMIRA-.html"
target="_blank">HERE</a>)</p>
<p>This is the real face of the so-called “democratic” opposition in
Venezuela. They are attacking all the symbols of the social programs of
the Bolivarian government, all the conquests of the revolution.</p>
<p>PSUV campaign coordinator Jorge Rodriguez as well as the new
Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro described these actions as a
“developing coup d’Etat.” CNE president Tibisay Lucena rejected the
blatant imperialist interference on the part of the OAS, the US and
Spain. She added that an audit of 54% of the ballot boxes had been
conducted, and that the final count of 100% of the vote slightly
increased Maduro’s lead.</p>
<p>The Venezuelan elections have been free and fair and the voting
system is fool proof. This has been ratified in several elections by
institutions which are not suspicious of revolutionary leanings like
the Carter Centre. The elections were observed by a range of
international bodies, including UNASUR and the OAS, all of which have
certified their clean and democratic nature. Even right wing
governments like those of Mexico, Colombia and Chile, not known for
their sympathies towards the Bolivarian revolution have recognized the
result. Capriles himself accepted the results of the October 7
presidential elections, which were organized by the same CNE, with the
same voting machines and with the same electoral register.</p>
<p>The bottom line is that the opposition lost the election and refuses
to accept the result. The result was close, yes, but there have been
other election results international with results which were even
closer and these were not challenged. Capriles himself only won the
governorship of Miranda in December last year by 40,000 votes and the
PSUV accepted the results. Chávez lost the constitutional reform
referendum in 2007 by a narrower margin, 1.4% and accepted the result.</p>
<p>As CNE head Tibisay Lucena pointed out, if the opposition wants to
challenge the results, there are legal mechanisms to do so, instead of
resorting to violence and not recognizing the official institutions.</p>
<p>What we see in Venezuela is an attempt to violate the democratically
expressed will of the people. Venezuela has elected a president, albeit
by a small margin.</p>
<p>We call on all progressive and democratic forces around the world to
remain vigilant, to express their solidarity with the Bolivarian
revolution, to denounce the undemocratic maneuvering of the opposition
and imperialism, to counter the lies and manipulation of the mass media
and to demand respect for the democratic will of the Venezuelan people.</p>
<p>London, April 16, 2013</p>
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<div class="moz-signature">-- <br>
Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street
San Francisco, CA 94110
415 863.9977
<a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.freedomarchives.org">www.freedomarchives.org</a>
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