A PEEK BENEATH LARA STATE'S REVOLUTIONARY FACADE

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 001031 SIPDIS USCINCSO ALSO FOR POLAD NSC FOR CBARTON E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2014 TAGS: ECON KDEM KPAO PGOV PHUM PREL VE SUBJECT: A PEEK BENEATH LARA STATE'S REVOLUTIONARY FACADE Classified By: Ambassador Charles S. Shapiro; reasons 1.4 (B) and (C) -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) Information Officer traveled March 10-14 to Barquisimeto, Lara state to seek private media views on freedom of expression and on the state's economic and political landscape. Most private media owners and managers maintain a low profile and present both pro- Venezuelan government (GOV) and opposition views in this nominally pro-Chavez state. Many media outlets avoid confrontation because they rely on government advertising to keep afloat, and attacks on journalists and media installations are less frequent than in Caracas. In spite of Barquisimeto's relatively tranquil facade, its residents are not immune to political confrontations, high unemployment from business failures, and threats that they will lose their jobs if they do not toe the Bolivarian revolutionary line. End Summary. -------------- The Who's Who of Lara Media -------------- ¶2. (C) Information Officer (IO) traveled March 10-14 to Barquisimeto, the capital of Lara state, to meet with private print and broadcast media and solicit their views on freedom of expression and on the economic and political landscape. Most private media owners and managers told IO that, because both Governor Luis Reyes Reyes and Barquisimeto Mayor Henri Falcon are MVR activists and Chavez confidants, they maintain a low profile and present both pro-GOV and opposition views on their pages and in their programs. While some media owners and editors asserted they provide balanced coverage based on sound journalistic principles, others admitted that economic interests drive their decision. They noted that private advertising had plummeted following the failure of hundreds of local businesses and industries and many media outlets relied on city, state and central government advertising to keep afloat. ¶3. (C) Of Barquisimeto's three leading dailies, the largest and oldest is hundred-year-old "El Impulso," with a declared circulation around 60,000. Its owners are the Carmona family. Juan Manuel Carmona senior is President and his son Juan Manuel Carmona, with whom IO met, is Executive Vice President and an architecture professor at the Universidad Central (UCV) branch in Barquisimeto. The family is related to Pedro Carmona, who proclaimed himself President in April 2002. In part because "El Impulso" has other business ventures that subsidize lost advertising revenues, the paper regularly challenges the Chavez government in its editorials and general coverage. However, the paper takes a softer approach towards the governor and mayor, courting them to obtain state and city advertising, he explained. ¶4. (C) The opposition-leaning Sigala and Gomez Tamayo families own the second oldest paper, "El Informador." Founded in 1967, its declared circulation is 35,000. The paper prides itself in remaining out of the political fray, likely helped in part by Information Director Altidoro Gimenez, who is pro-Chavez, and according to one interlocutor, the leader of one of the city's Bolivarian Circles. Gimenez said the paper focuses on local news of social and economic interest. In response to IO's provision of information on Embassy Caracas and Department web sites and other USG materials, he expressed particular interest in receiving material on health, education, economic, and sports topics, as well as anything on visa application procedures. ¶5. (C) Nine-year-old tabloid daily "Diario Hoy's" owners are the Montes de Oca (father of President Rafael Montes de Oca is Pepe Monte de Oca, a former interior minister during the Luis Herrera Campins presidency) and Gimenez families. Its declared circulation is 35,000. The families also own regional television channel Telecentro (para 7). The paper, which targets C, D, and E socio-economic classes (working class, poor, and extreme poor),prides itself for its objective, balanced reporting, as evidenced, Rafael Montes de Oca asserted, by one page each dedicated to pro- GOV and opposition views. There are no "Talibanes" (radicals) in our paper or television station, he asserted. Largely steering clear of contentious political debate, the paper features sports, lottery results, and criminal incidents. National, state, and local ads were commonplace, the bread and butter of the paper, explained Montes de Oca. -------------- Regional TV Seeks a Local Niche -------------- ¶6. (C) Of Lara's two prominent regional television stations, Promar, which maintains a close news-sharing affiliation with national 24-hour news station Globovision, has suffered the most from attacks by GOV sympathizers, according to Promar President Jorge Kossowsky. In December 2002, armed Chavez sympathizers attacked Promar facilities with three explosive devices and several volleys of ammunition (IO observed a number of bullet holes in Promar's the front windows). Since then, Promar had constructed a bunker-like steel-plated facility in front of its installations to buffer any future attacks. According to Kossowsky, Promar had determined a "fifteen-minute rule," whereby the television station needed to defend itself from an attack for fifteen minutes before security forces could arrive on the scene. Despite the occasional run-ins with the government, Promar gets some government advertising; Governor Reyes and Mayor Falcon appear on Promar programs and the channel covers their events. Kossowski expressed interest in increasing the Promar's use of USG programming and suggested that a 24-hour USG channel would be beneficial for Promar and other regional stations. ¶7. (C) Lara's second largest television station, Telecentro, which is owned by "Diario Hoy's" Montes de Oca and Gimenez families, covers Lara, Yaracuy, Portuguesa, Cojedes states and parts of Falcon and Trujillo. The owners pride themselves in the station's balanced reporting. Governor Reyes Reyes, pro-opposition Yaracuy Governor Lapi, and Mayor Falcon have weekly programs on Telecentro. Daily program, "Contrapunto" (counterpoint), includes the views of pro-GOV and opposition participants. State and local government ads are ample. UNICEF recently awarded a prize to the station for its excellent children's programs, said Montes de Oca. The worst enemy of the opposition had been the biased national private media, whose extreme stance against Chavez had served to fuel his regime rather than discredit it, opined Montes de Oca senior. The media should focus on the facts and restrict its opinion to its editorial columns, he added. Telecentro's biggest challenge was monetary; the channel found the cost of access to international news feeds, such as CNN, Reuters, or BBC too expensive for its budget. IO gave the station details on access to Worldnet and AETN channels. -------------- The Challenges of Cable TV -------------- ¶8. (C) Media firm Intercable, with 70 percent U.S. investment (Hicks News) and the remaining investment primarily Argentine and Israeli, is struggling to survive in the state as it expands its operations in Caracas and other parts of Venezuela. Intercable President Mario Seijas (who is also president of the National Radio and Television Chamber and former Vice Minister of Agriculture during the Ramon Velasquez government) noted that Intercable's primary challenges are to obtain dollars from the GOV exchange control agency, CADIVI, to pay its debt and to compete with local and foreign cable firms, about 220 who operate illegally and who are not subject to stringent U.S. IPR and other laws. (Note: Seijas claimed that Colombian narco-dollars funded many of these illegal firms. End Note.) -------------- Frank Discussion with Radio Chamber -------------- ¶9. (C) In IO's meeting with thirteen members of the Lara- Yaracuy Radio Chamber, including President Victor Ferrer (O.K. FM 101.5),the members explained that representatives from 33 of 36 licensed radio stations in the two states belong to the Chamber. The 17 illegal stations and three licensed pro-Chavez stations members did not participate, explained Ferrer. An ironic touch was that, while licensed stations were forced to broadcast President Chavez's and other GOV nationally televised "cadenas," the illegal stations, most of which were pro-Chavez were not. Illegal stations were also exempt from paying taxes and licensing fees, he added. Typical programming on some of the illegal "community" stations, many which Ferrer alleged received support from telecom regulatory agency CONATEL, included instructions on how to make Molotov cocktails and to seize a company's installations. ¶10. (C) Chamber members highlighted their frustration in maintaining good relations with Governor Reyes Reyes. Ferrer noted that during the only meeting the Chamber had held with the Governor, Reyes Reyes had taken the opportunity to blame the media for the rise in crime and kidnappings and for provoking political violence. (Comment: Intercable President Seijas told IO that the rash of kidnappings in Lara had abated late last year after five kidnappers were killed during the rescue of the daughter of a wealthy rancher. Among the dead were two policemen, who were reportedly the ringleaders and had a list of targeted ranchers and their families, alleged Seijas. End Comment.) Though attacks on radio stations were rare, two incidents occurred in December 2002, one on FM 106 and the other on a station in Lara's second largest city, El Tocuyo. To date, the authorities had not investigated these cases. Ferrer added that the lack of access to dollars through CADIVI posed another challenge, but despite these threats and limitations, the radio stations were determined to operate. -------------- The CNP Keeps an Eye on Freedom of Expression -------------- ¶11. (C) According to Colegio Nacional de Periodistas (CNP) Lara branch President Nolberto Herrera, a confessed ex- Chavez militant, most Lara media outlets avoid direct confrontation with the state and city governments, largely out of monetary interests, as state and local governments are the primary advertisers. Even so, occasionally the state and local government would accuse private media of waging a disinformation campaign against the Chavez regime and his state and local government supporters in Lara. That said, journalists usually had regular access to the governor's and mayor's events, which enabled the media to provide more balanced reporting. Threats against journalists were more sporadic and less aggressive, e.g., graffiti against journalists or brief detentions and inspections at police and military checkpoints, than those occurring in Caracas, with a few exceptions (paras 6 and 8). In response to the state and local government's passive-aggressive approach to local media, many journalists wore bulletproof vests and practiced self- censorship to avoid outright confrontation with the government, explained Herrera. ¶12. (C) According to Herrera, government administrative actions against the media were also less common in Lara than in Caracas. The one prominent legal case was Lara former state security chief (Ret.) Major Arnaldo Certain's 2002 defamation suit against "El Impulso's" managing editor, Jose Angel Ocanto. During the March 11 meeting with the CNP, news arrived of the local court's ruling in favor of Ocanto for lack of evidence. "El Impulso's" Carmona told IO that Ocanto had not accused Certain of corruption and that he had merely compiled information from a number of sources that linked Certain with acts of corruption when Certain was director of Maiquetia International Airport. -------------- A Bit on Lara -------------- ¶13. (C) Located in central-northwest Venezuela and with a population of around 800,000, Barquisimeto is the fourth largest city in Venezuela. With a total population of over 1.5 million (according to 2001 census; current estimates range from 1.8 million to over 2 million),Lara is the fifth most populated state in the country. Lara serves as a commercial, communications, transportation, and migration crossroads for central and western Venezuela. Its economic activities include small and medium manufacturing industries, agriculture, and meat and dairy production. -------------- Commercial, Industrial and Unemployment Woes -------------- ¶14. (C) Barquisimeto's wholesale foodstuffs center, MERCABAR, serves as a distribution hub for western and central Venezuela. Its industrial base has not been so fortunate, however. Once a thriving center for small and medium industries, the city's three industrial zones were now on the verge of collapse, according to Chamber of Commerce president Lino Palencia. He said that Lara's unemployment was over 20 percent, and 40 percent of the employed work in the informal sector. With the closing of over 65 percent of the companies, many laborers had moved to the informal sector to eke out a living. Others were still working in the formal sector but only part time, he explained. According to Radio Chamber members, high unemployment and underemployment levels were exacerbated by the government's hiring of thousands of temporary laborers and teachers, who received no benefits and whose employment continuity depended on their loyalty to the national, state, and municipal governments. Workers were told that if they signed the presidential recall petition, they would lose their jobs, alleged Ferrer. ¶15. (C) The owner of a once-thriving foundry told IO that he had reduced his employee pool from 45 workers to 10 in the past two years. Yet he was fortunate to have an industry that had survived; about two thirds of the firms in his industrial park (Industrial Zone 1) had shut down, he said. He described the zone as a ghost town, roads were so rutted that the only access was by four-wheel drive; electrical service was sporadic and one of the most expensive in Venezuela. Leading U.S. firms, including Nabisco and Proctor and Gamble, were also downsizing, according to Chamber of Commerce board members. Proctor and Gamble had reduced its presence and Nabisco was down to half-day operations in comparison to three full shifts a few years ago. -------------- Lara: Laboratory for the Revolution -------------- ¶16. (C) A large number of Lara residents traditionally supported leftist ideologies, according to "El Impulso's" Carmona; thus initial support for Chavez was understandable. With its governor and all nine mayors belonging to pro-Chavez parties, Lara had become one of the Chavez revolution's principal laboratories, opined Carmona, a view echoed by a number of the other media interlocutors. Over 350 Lara residents had already returned from social worker training in Cuba; another 120 had recently departed for Cuba, he said. Flights departed from the air base to and from Cuba on a daily basis; the governor traveled regularly to Havana. According to Carmona and Seijas, about 3,500 Cubans were present in Lara; the Cubans worked as medical practitioners, sports trainers, social workers, and security advisers. ¶17. (C) FM radio station owner Gelly Del Moral, whose daughter is married to one of Governor Reye's assistants, and who had a particularly contentious interview with then President-elect Chavez in December 1998, recounted an incident that sheds light on the complexity of Lara's political loyalties and affiliations. Police detained and then jailed former Social Movement Party (MAS) Mayor Macario Gonzalez for his participation in an anti-GOV demonstration in early March. He told Del Moral that, contrary to his fears the other prisoners would attack and perhaps try to kill him, they welcomed him with open arms, urging him to continue his fight against the Chavez regime. Meanwhile, as Del Moral attempted to persuade the police to release Gonazlez, several of the officers, even some with "the stern semblance of chavistas," approached her and confided that they opposed Chavez and respected her journalistic efforts to challenge the government. -------------- Political Inclinations -------------- ¶18. (C) Despite the prominence of Chavez loyalists in the state and local governments, media owner Kossowski opined that only about 10 to 12 percent of Lara's population was die-hard pro-Chavez. He estimated that an additional 20 to 25 percent supported Chavez out of self-interest. Unequivocal opposition support was probably less then 20 percent; the remainder of the population favored a regime change but it was not convinced that the formal opposition under the Democratic Coordinator (CD) had either the leadership or the agenda to offer the population a viable alternative that was neither chavista nor elitist. "El Impulso's" Carmona decried the passive stance of most of Lara's opposition, commenting that their idea of participating in a march was at home seated comfortably in front of a television, glass of scotch in hand. ¶19. (C) Local support for Governor Reyes Reyes had also declined, according to Carmona; only around 44 percent of the population favored the governor. Mayor Falcon's support was around 68 percent, estimated Carmona, largely because the mayor had beautified Barquisimeto; mere cosmetic touches, but visible to the public eye. (Comment: A July 2003 University Fermin Toro poll (1,470 respondents; 3.5 percent margin of error) conducted in the greater Barquisimeto area, produced similar results to Carmona's assertions. Almost 60 percent of the respondents said they would vote against President Chavez in a recall referendum; 31 percent would support Chavez; and 9 percent were undecided. About 59 percent either did not support or had nothing positive to comment on Governor Reyes Reyes. Over 70 percent of the respondents either supported or had no negative comment on Mayor Henri Falcon. End Note.) -------------- Students - A New Force to Reckon With -------------- ¶20. (C) According to a number of interlocutors, almost 20 percent of Barquisimeto residents are students at one of the city's eleven institutions of higher learning. Barquisimeto has surpassed Merida as the country's leading university city. (Note: Merida's Binational Center Director estimates that about 26,000 students study at Merida's principal university, the University of the Andes (ULA) and that the city of Merida's population is about 250,000. End Note.) "El Impulso's" Carmona and Promar's Kossowsky underscored what they termed the reawakening of the city's university population following the late February early March opposition and student demonstrations and the especially brutal crackdown -- including assault, unlawful detentions, torture, and murder -- on students in Caracas and in Carabobo, Merida, Tachira, Zulia, and other states. Following these incidents, students approached the local media and requested a forum to express to views against alleged GOV brutality. According to Carmona, Kossowsky, and other media owners, media outlets were now printing student articles and interviewing student leaders on talk shows. "El Impulso's" March 8 editorial was titled, "Youth's Triumphant Return," in recognition of student protests against the National Electoral Council's (CNE) alleged theft of the Venezuelan people's right to conduct a recall referendum against President Chavez. Venezuelan university student participation in Venezuela's political process would turn the tide in favor of the opposition, predicted Carmona. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶21. (C) Notwithstanding its relatively tranquil facade, Lara's media and other sectors have not been immune to political confrontations and tensions. On March 15, Molotov cocktails were lobbed at pro-opposition Democratic Action Party (AD) headquarters in Barquisimeto. Retaliatory threats against government workers who signed the presidential recall petition are also commonplace. According to the Radio Chamber, Reyes Reyes has threatened to fire 18 state-run electrical company (ENELBAR) mid and upper-management employees, who had signed the recall petition unless they retract their signatures. Though nominally a pro-Chavez state, much of the loyalty in Lara appears to be merely "employment-deep," driven in part by economic interests rather than a commitment to Chavez's Bolivarian revolution. With a large and increasingly active university student population, recently awakened to the country's political crisis and by the targeting of students by GOV security forces, student partnership with the private media suggests Lara's days of relative calm may be numbered. End Comment. SHAPIRO NNNN 2004CARACA01031 - CONFIDENTIAL