CHAVEZ BLASTS POLITICAL ALLIES AND ZULIA OPPOSITION

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 001449

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TAGS: PREL PGOV VE
SUBJECT: CHAVEZ BLASTS POLITICAL ALLIES AND ZULIA OPPOSITION

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Classified By: POLITICAL COUNSELOR FRANCISCO FERNANDEZ
FOR REASON 1.4 (D)


1. (C) Summary: During campaign stops in three states
October 11-13, President Chavez vociferously attacked both
key opposition leaders and two pro-government allied parties.
Despite his pledge not to AIR his weekly "Alo, Presidente"
TV show, he used an obligatory two-hour "cadena" broadcast on
Sunday to campaign alongside PSUV candidate Gian Carlo Di
Martino, who is running for the governorship of Zulia in a
tight race. Chavez also pledged to "erase" the
pro-government Patria Para Todos (PPT) and Communist (PCV)
parties off the political map for supporting dissident
candidates. Chavez's vitriolic rhetoric and revival of
assassination plot accusations suggests he is once again
seeking to polarize the November 23 state and local
elections, framing them as a referendum on his physical and
political survival. End Summary.

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CHAVEZ INSULTS ALLIES AND OPPOSITION LEADERS
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2. (SBU) In Trujillo State on October 11, Chavez campaigned
alongside PSUV gubernatorial candidate Hugo Cabezas, who is
running in a three-way race that includes Octavio Mejias, a
PSUV dissident running with the support of PPT and the PCV.
Chavez told supporters at a rally that he no longer
recognized or wanted anything to do with the PPT and PCV
leadership, his erstwhile "patriotic alliance" partners.
Chavez announced that he wants to "erase (them) off the map"
and called Mejias a "deserter." Nevertheless, he called out
to the PCV base, asking those who are "honest" to support
Cabezas, lauding the examples of PPT-turned-PSUV leaders
Aristobulo Izturiz, the PSUV candidate for the Caracas
mayorship, and Alberto Muller Rojas, Vice President of the
PSUV.


3. (SBU) Although Chavez maintained his commitment to the
National Electoral Council (CNE) not to televise his weekly
"Alo, Presidente" show on October 12, he monopolized
television and radio AIR time for roughly two hours with an
obligatory "cadena" broadcast from Zulia state to inaugurate
a school and an aqueduct. During the rally, Chavez called
the state's opposition gubernatorial candidate Pablo Perez an
"imbecile who doesn't even know how to speak," and compared
him to Bernardo, the mute sidekick from the popular "Zorro"
TV series, an allusion to his close relationship to current
Zulia governor Manuel Rosales. Chavez also attacked Rosales
-- who is running for the mayorship of Maracaibo -- calling
him a "wretch, bandit, mafioso, and assassin." The same day
via state radio, Chavez pledged that he would sue Rosales for
defamation and injury, telling the Presidential Judicial
Office to investigate the governor for alleged "ill-gotten
gains" while in office.


4. (C) Venezuelan special police (DISIP) arrested three
university students during the televised event after getting
close to the stage to take pictures. Although they were
wearing red state oil company (PDVSA) t-shirts,
representatives from Rosales' Un Nuevo Tiempo party
acknowledged that they were party members disguised as
Chavistas carrying out "normal intelligence functions" on
behalf of the party. Their arrest has received widespread
media attention, and is likely to feed into Chavez's ongoing
claims of an opposition-sponsored assassination plot in the
making. DISIP transferred the students to Caracas on October

13.

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OPPOSITION, DISSIDENTS REACT
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5. (SBU) Manuel Rosales responded on Monday by calling
Chavez a "lunatic" who should "double his dosage" of Tranxen
(an anti-anxiety medication),asserting that the President is
"openly losing the elections and knows it." Jose Albornoz,
secretary general of the PPT, condemned Chavez's attacks on
his party, claiming they were reminiscent of Joseph Stalin
and demanding that the President be more respectful and
considerate. Albornoz also stated that the PPT and PSUV had
agreed to run separately in areas where the PPT thought their
candidate was viable. He pledged that the PPT will continue
running its candidates, despite Chavez's threats. Opposition
journalist Rafael Poleo called a Globovision news program on
October 12 and said Chavez could end up "hanged" like
Mussolini. The following day, Minister of Communication and

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Information Andres Izarra accused pro-opposition media outlet
Globovision of openly supporting a plot against Chavez.


6. (C) PCV secretary general Oscar Figuera on October 13
called Chavez's attacks "unjust" and protested that "nobody
is more socialist than the PCV," advising the President that
he should not abuse terms like "counterrevolutionary" lest
they lose their importance and credibility. Nevertheless,
Figuera announced that the party would continue supporting
PSUV candidates because they oppose the "enemies of the
revolutionary process, namely imperialism, the oligarchy, and
reformism." Regarding Chavez's threat to "erase" the party
from the political map, Figuera told pro-government daily VEA
that the PCV is like a "leather hide, when you step on one
side, the other side jumps up with more force."

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COMMENT
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8. (C) Chavez appears to be trying to recreate his favored
electoral conditions, polarizing the Venezuelan public by
labeling any who does not fall into line with his PSUV as
traitors and conspirators. He continues to try to frame the
November 23 gubernatorial and mayoral elections as a
plebiscite on him, rather than electoral contests between the
actual candidates. He is also actively trying to focus
public and media attention on his continued survival, rather
than pressing local issues. Poleo's reactionary comments
play into Chavez's efforts to provoke the opposition into a
confrontation -- further polarizing the electoral
battleground. In several states, the PPT has a strong
electoral base and is well-respected as a serious party,
suggesting that its leadership may be confident of going it
alone without Chavez's support or preparing for an eventual
break with the BRV. End Comment.

CAULFIELD