Opposition Officials Attacked During Protest Of Budget Cuts

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 001519 SIPDIS HQ SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD TREASURY FOR MKACZMAREK NSC FOR DRESTREPO AND LROSSELLO USDOC FOR 4332 MAC/ITA/WH/JLAO AMEMBASSY BRIDGETOWN PASS TO AMEMBASSY GRENADA AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL DUSSELDORF AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL LEIPZIG AMEMBASSY ATHENS PASS TO AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI AMEMBASSY OTTAWA PASS TO AMCONSUL QUEBEC AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PASS TO AMCONSUL RECIFE E.O. 12958: DECL: 2029/11/20 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM EFIN VE SUBJECT: Opposition Officials Attacked During Protest Of Budget Cuts REF: CARACAS 1375; CARACAS 776; CARACAS 1434 CLASSIFIED BY: Darnall C. Steuart, Acting Deputy Chief of Mission, DOS, EXEC; REASON: 1.4(B),(D) ¶1. (C) Summary: Leading opposition officials held a march in downtown Caracas on December 1 in protest of proposed cuts of the 2010 allocation of funds from the central government to the states. In an unusually strong show of opposition unity, Miranda Governor Henrique Capriles Rodonski was joined by Tachira governor Cesar Perez Vivas, the mayors of Greater Caracas and the boroughs of Sucre and Baruta, and opposition National Assembly deputies. After marching with an estimated 8,000 protestors towards the National Assembly, the governors, mayors and deputies separated from the group to hand deliver a protest letter, at which point a pro-government crowd attacked them by throwing rocks, bottles and eggs. Baruta Mayor Gerardo Blyde and Podemos National Assembly member Wilmer Azuaje were both hit in the head and required medical treatment. National Assembly president Cilia Flores said the aggression against the opposition officials was justified, "as a lesson from the people." End Summary. Proposed 2010 Budget Cuts Would Centralize Resources ¶2. (SBU) Venezuelan states have limited ability to raise money on their own; instead they depend almost entirely on constitutionally-mandated transfers from the central government. Municipalities have more authority to raise taxes, but most also depend on transfers from the central government (Ref B). The draft budget for 2010 proposes cuts to the state allocations, which, given the inflation rate of 25 to 30%, would result in significantly reduced resources. Opposition leaders view the draft budget as a mechanism for ensuring that more money is spent at the discretion of the central government (Ref A). Miranda State has further found its budget reduced through the "Special Law on the Municipal Regimen in Two Levels for the Metropolitan Area of Caracas," which went into effect in October (Ref C). A United Opposition Marches in Protest ¶3. (SBU) In protest of the proposed budget cuts, Miranda Governor Henrique Capriles Rodonski led an estimated 8000 people, many of whom were Miranda State employees. Rodonski was joined by Tachira Governor Cesar Perez Vivas, Greater Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma, Sucre Mayor Carlos Ocariz, Baruta Mayor Gerardo Blyde, and two opposition National Assembly deputies from the Podemos party, Ismael Garcia and Wilmer Azuaje. Demonstrators marched in downtown Caracas from Plaza Brion to Plaza Morelos, near the National Assembly. Speaking to the protestors at Plaza Morelos before delivering the letter to the National Assembly, Governor Rodonski said the demonstration had achieved its goal in showing the government the voice of the people. He added, "decentralization has been the most revolutionary change of the past 20 years, not centralization, and not the concentration of power." Opposition Leaders Face A Violent Crowd ¶4. (C) Shortly following this speech Rodonski and the other leading opposition officials faced an aggressive pro-government crowd of about 150 as they delivered the protest letter to the National Assembly. Upon reaching the National Assembly the officials, including the National Assembly deputies Garcia and CARACAS 00001519 002 OF 002 Azuaje, were barred from entering the premises. National Assembly Secretary Ivan Zerpa came outside the National Assembly to receive the letter. According to press reports, eggs, rocks and bottles were thrown at the officials. Both Blyde and Azuaje were hit in the head; Blyde's injury required several stitches and Azuaje also required medical treatment. Anibal Sanchez (please protect),a member of the opposition present at the scene, told PolFSN December 2 that several members of the pro-government crowd, who were wearing Vargas State police t-shirts, encouraged crowd members to attack the opposition leaders; he said others in the crowd appeared to be associated with United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) member Freddy Bernal. The National Assembly's National Guard detail and the Metropolitan Police intervened to protect the opposition leaders, allowing them to leave the area. ¶5. (SBU) The pro-government newspaper Diario Vea published a front page article December 2 criticizing the opposition leaders for "trying to provoke the Chavista people," by holding a demonstration. The article said the march was evidence of the opposition's aggression and desire for international attention, and referred to the world-wide economic crises as the reason for the budget cut. National Assembly president Cilia Flores justified the attacks against the opposition officials "as a lesson from the people," and said "just as they could not enter here [the National Assembly] by force, they will not be able to enter by any other means either." ¶6. (C) Comment: This march was one of the more successful demonstrations of the opposition's ability to unify, and it is not surprising that the focus was on the 2010 budget. Flores's comment linked the attacks on the opposition leaders to the 2010 National Assembly elections, and is consistent with appointed Vice President of Greater Caracas and PSUV Director General Jacqueline Faria's November 30 warning to party members of the danger to the Bolivarian Revolution should the PSUV lose control of the National Assembly in 2010. End Comment. DUDDY