Raising RCTV and Haiti with Venezuelan Foreign Ministry

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E.O. 12958: DECL: 2020/01/28
TAGS: PREL PHUM KDEM VE PINR
SUBJECT: Raising RCTV and Haiti with Venezuelan Foreign Ministry

REF: 10 STATE 6918; 10 CARACAS 103; 10 CARACAS 75; 10 CARACAS 89
10 CARACAS 23; 10 CARACAS 99

CLASSIFIED BY: Robin D. Meyer, Political Counselor, State, POL;
REASON: 1.4(B),(D)


1. (C) Summary. In a January 27 lunch with the Venezuelan
Foreign Ministry's Director for North American Affairs, Yaneth
Arocha, Polcouns raised U.S. concerns about official Venezuelan
misinformation about U.S. assistance efforts in Haiti (ref a) and
the closure of RCTV. Arocha said she would review the non-paper
and diplomatic note regarding Haiti (ref b),but insisted RCTV was
an internal issue. End Summary.



RCTV a Destabilizing Factor




2. (C) In a January 27 lunch with Yaneth Arocha, the
Director for North American Affairs, and Wendy Vitera, the desk
officer for the United States, Polcouns delivered ref a demarche
regarding U.S. assistance to Haiti (reported separately in ref b)
and expressed U.S. concern about the closing of RCTV (refs c and
d). (Note: The EMBASSY had earlier expressed public concern about
the closing of RCTV, saying that "access to information is a
cornerstone of democracy" and that "by restricting yet again the
Venezuelan people's access to RCTV broadcasts, the Venezuelan
government continues to erode this cornerstone." End Note.) While
emphasizing that she had no instructions on the issue, Arocha
insisted that the government's action regarding RCTV was an
internal matter. She said that RCTV was simply being required to
follow the law regarding national cable producers and had recourse
through Conatel, the media regulatory agency, if they wanted to
appeal their classification as a "national" producer. She stressed
that the airwaves were social property; RCTV President Granier
"should form his own political party" and not use RCTV as a
political platform. She alleged that the protests surrounding
RCTV's closing were timed to take advantage of the sensitive
electoral and energy environment in the country. (Note: In fact,
the GBRV chose the timing, with its January 21 decision to classify
RCTV as a "national" producer and its January 23 announcement that
it had asked the major cable operators to stop transmitting
networks not in compliance with the requirements for "national"
producers. End Note.)



MFA Restructuring Plans Overturned




3. (C) Arocha said that the longstanding plan to combine the
North America and Latin America desks into an "Americas Desk,"
reporting to a new Vice Minister for the Americas, had been
cancelled. She said the MFA would continue as currently
structured, with the North America Desk (covering the United States
and Canada) reporting to Ambassador Valero, who would continue to
serve as both the Vice Minister for North America and the Permanent
Representative to the United Nations.




4. (C) Arocha, who returned to her position after a
yearlong absence, observed that she no longer felt as free to deal
with the U.S. EMBASSY as she had previously. Relations used to be
"fluid," but now "it's hard."



Bio Note




5. (C) Arocha returned to the position of Director of North
American Affairs after a yearlong absence to care for her 41-year

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old Amcit husband, who died in November 2009. They had been
married for only a year before he took ill. Arocha is a 20-year
career diplomat who served overseas in at the Venezuelan Mission in
Geneva and at the Venezuelan embassies in Tel Aviv and Guatemala
City. Within the MFA, she served as the Director for Caribbean
Affairs before assuming the position as Director for North America
in 2005. Both she and Viteri expect to be assigned to the
Venezuelan Mission to the United Nations in New York as soon as a
budget freeze has been lifted.



Comment




6. (C) The MFA restructuring plan was to have made
Francisco Arias Cardenas, the current Vice Minister for Latin
America, the new Vice Minister for the Americas. Arias Cardenas,
who met with Ambassador Duddy on January 8 (ref e),has figured
prominently in recent rumors regarding a possible Cabinet
reshuffle, with the press speculating about his possible
appointment as either Vice President or Foreign Minister.
President Chavez' January 25 appointment of Elias Jaua as Vice
President (ref f) has put a temporary end to this speculation, but
post expects rumors about Arias Cardenas' future role in the Chavez
government to reappear.
CAULFIELD