OPPOSITION ORGANIZES PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATION TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 000812

SIPDIS

HQSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
DEPARTMENT PASS TO AID/OTI (RPORTER)

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/09/2028
TAGS: PGOV PREL SCUL VE
SUBJECT: OPPOSITION ORGANIZES PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATION TO
PROTEST INELIGIBLE CANDIDATES

REF: A. CARACAS 000514

B. CARACAS 000267

Classified By: ACTING POLITICAL COUNSELOR VERONICA TORRES
FOR REASON 1.4 (D)


1. (SBU) SUMMARY. On June 7 the opposition led a peaceful
protest to the Comptroller's Office to protest the
administrative ruling making 400 public officials ineligible
to run for office. The Venezuelan Constitution, however,
stipulates that a person can only be barred from running for
public office following a judicial ruling. The Comptroller
asserted that the list of ineligible officials will remain,
while Chacao Mayor Leopoldo Lopez, leading light and barred
aspirant for the Caracas mayoral seat, said that the fight to
get candidate names on the registry will continue until the
mid-August deadline. Larger marches in support of the
ineligible candidates are expected to occur in the coming
weeks, including one on June 13 to the headquarters of the
Organization of American States. The Comptroller's list of
ineligible candidates disproportionately affects members of
opposition parties, especially up-and-coming leaders. END
SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) The opposition march ended a few hundred yards from
the headquarters of the Comptroller's Office where members of
the National Guard blocked further passage. After briefly
rallying the crowd from the top of a pick-up truck,
opposition leaders Leopoldo Lopez, David Uzcategui, and Oscar
Perez delivered a document outlining the unconstitutionality
of the Comptroller's actions to a lower level official. The
demonstration was mostly made up of members of the various
opposition parties, although students had a significant
presence in the march as well.


3. (SBU) The Comptroller, Clodosbaldo Russian, said his
decision to make certain officials ineligible to run for
office would not be lifted, and asserted that the march was a
testament to the strength of Venezuelan democracy. Lopez
told his supporters he will continue to contest the legality
of the measure until the registration period for candidates
ends in mid-August. According to Lopez and constitutional
experts in Venezuela, the Constitution indicates that a
person can only be prevented from running for election
following a judicial ruling.


4. (C) COMMENT: While the demonstration on June 7 proceeded
without incident, Oscar Perez of the National Resistance
Movement complained that members of the National Guard and
the police obstructed highways preventing persons from the
interior from attending the march in Caracas. It has taken
the opposition some time to rally around this issue, but it
seems to have earned support from important sectors. In the
coming weeks and months we expect to see more marches to
protest this issue, particularly if some of the opposition's
most qualified candidates continue to be banned from
participating in the November state and local elections. END
COMMENT.

Downes