FLOODING: DECENT GOV RESPONSE, WITH LOTS OF SPIN

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 000546 SIPDIS STATE PASS AID FOR OFDA NSC FOR CBARTON HQ USSOUTHCOM FOR POLAD SAN JOSE FOR OFDA - CALLAGHAN E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/30/2015 TAGS: EAID PGOV VE SUBJECT: FLOODING: DECENT GOV RESPONSE, WITH LOTS OF SPIN REF: CARACAS 470 Classified By: ECONOMIC COUNSELOR RICHARD M. SANDERS FOR REASON 1.4 D -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) From February 7 to February 13, heavy rains fell through much of Venezuela, along the north coast at first and later in the Andean region. As a result, President Hugo Chavez declared states of emergency in nine states, plus the capital district of Caracas. The death toll to date is at least 62, with dozens more missing. The Ambassador exercised his disaster assistance authority, and Embassy agencies donated about USD 150,000 in cash and goods to the Venezuelan Red Cross on February 11 for disaster relief assistance. This disaster echoed the tragic floods in the state of Vargas in 1999, for which the GOV response was considered highly inadequate. This time, the GOV centralized relief efforts, and got the military (many of whom were deployed throughout the country since it was a holiday weekend) thoroughly involved. Chavez has announced the creation of a permanent risk management committee. Significant in those efforts were a full-court media press, lack of coordination with NGOs such as the Red Cross, and attribution of blame to the U.S., specifically for failure to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. END SUMMARY. -------------- -------------- CENTRAL GOVERNMENT TAKES CONTROL, TAKES TO THE AIRWAVES -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) After about 24 consecutive hours of rain, Minister of Communication Andres Izarra announced February 8 that a task force had been created to oversee the relief efforts, then limited to the north coast and Caracas. He said this was on instructions from President Hugo Chavez, who initially made no public statement or appearance. The military was active in the rescue efforts. When some coastal cities were cut off due to washed out roads, a Navy frigate transported the stranded - both residents and vacationers - to a safer location. Chavez made his first public appearance in at least three days on February 10, greeting the frigate as it arrived. Such events received tremendous coverage from GOV press and television, and were accompanied by great fanfare for GOV efforts. Chavez publicly stated: "We've passed through a situation of crisis," though the rain had yet to stop, and in fact, the worst floods were yet to come. While the central Venezuelan coast (Vargas state) began to dry out, in subsequent days, rain was heavy and extensive flooding occurred in the mountainous areas of western Venezuela (Merida state),and according to press reports, areas south of Lake Maracaibo have been cut off. As of February 17, according to official figures, 62 persons have died as a result of the flooding. -------------- GOV - GOING IT ALONE -------------- ¶3. (C) The GOV made no apparent effort to involve NGOs and foreign governments in the relief efforts, and in fact may have rebuffed offers of assistance. Hernan Bongioanni of the Venezuelan Red Cross confirmed to econoff February 15 that, while relations on site with various government entities - especially the military, with the greatest presence - have been excellent, there has been no interchange with the central disaster task force. He added that the Red Cross is used to working independently of the current administration. Manuel Santana, the local USAID/OFDA contractor, told econoff on February 9 that he, too, had made unsuccessful efforts to liaise with the task force. Santana also observed that the GOV's PR effort was in full swing while the rainfall was still relatively light, and before any deaths had been reported. -------------- IT'S ALL THE U.S.'S FAULT -------------- ¶4. (SBU) GOV officials publicly tried to blame the U.S. for the natural disaster. The first was Nicolas Maduro, the pro-Chavez President of the National Assembly, who on February 9 blamed the disaster on the countries which had not signed the Kyoto Protocol, singling out the U.S. Chavez picked up the theme the next day, attributing the disaster to "the powerful countries (that) don't want to hear the Kyoto Protocol, global warming." He added on February 13, during his weekly "Alo, Presidente" show, that "the United States, which is the world's number one producer (sic),consumer of oil, gas and coal, does not want to sign the Kyoto Protocol." -------------- POST CONTRIBUTES -------------- ¶5. (U) Shortly after the flooding began, the Venezuelan chapter of the Red Cross contacted Post for assistance. The Ambassador exercised his disaster assistance authority, donating USD 50,000 in cash (reftel),two reconditioned trucks from the MilGroup, and other supplies and in-kind donations from USAID brought the total value of the embassy's contribution to the Red Cross to a total of about USD 150,000. The aid was intended principally for use in Vargas and Miranda (which were the hardest-hit areas at the time), where the Ambassador had visited just two months before. The donation to the Red Cross received substantial media coverage. The GOV made no comment on the contribution. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) Given its experience with the 1999 floods, the GOV knew it had to respond better this time, which helps explain the media blitz. It had a stroke of luck in that the crisis began during the Carnival holiday when police were already on duty to deal with holiday travel. But, while the GOV response was certainly better than in 1999, it is difficult to conclude that it is well prepared for another disaster of that magnitude. In any event, it has not escaped a renewal of criticism for its efforts at reconstruction and flood prevention after the 1999 flooding, which were not enough to prevent significant damage when the rains came again, albeit on a smaller scale. We are unsurprised at the GOV's cold shoulder to the Venezuelan Red Cross; it is generally suspicious of any civil society group over which it does not have control. Nor are we surprised at the effort, strained though it was, to put the blame for flooding on the U.S. It was a typical example of the kind of cheap shot to which we are now accustomed. Arias NNNN 2005CARACA00546 - CONFIDENTIAL