State Department: Chavez, Castro won't derail FTAA plans

Miami Herald ^ | January 31, 2004 | AP

[Cincinatus' Wife]

MIAMI BEACH - The U.S. State Department's top official for Latin America said Friday the negotiations for the 34-nation Free Trade Area of the Americas would not be derailed by governments that don't fully support the trade bloc.

Roger Noriega, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, was asked at a business conference whether Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Cuban President Fidel Castro can influence other Latin American nations to lessen their support for the President Bush-backed free trade area.

''I don't think any one country constitutes a roadblock on the FTAA,'' Noriega said. ``We'll just go around them.''

Chavez, a friend of Castro, has expressed his opposition to many aspects of the FTAA and has been accused by U.S. officials of stoking anti-American sentiment in Latin America. Communist Cuba is not included in the FTAA talks, but Castro has been singled out by Noriega for promoting policies to destabilize democratic governments.

''None of us is ignoring the negative aspects and the penchant for some to fish in troubled waters and cause trouble for other countries,'' Noriega said.

Steps toward the creation of the FTAA would be in place by January 2005, a move agreed upon by nations at this month's Special Summit of the Americas, Noriega said.

However, Isilio Arriaga, president of Miami's chamber of commerce, said Noriega was too evasive of how the ''Chavez-Castro axis'' can affect FTAA negotiations. He pointed out that Castro and Chavez have been guests of honor at several recent political inaugurations in Latin America.

''For the ambassador to say that we're just going to go around them and negotiate directly with others is practically ignoring the very important influence that these two gentlemen have over the Latin American nations,'' Arriaga said.

The FTAA's stated purpose is to eliminate trade barriers and spur economic growth, but critics say it would lead to corporate corruption, the exploitation of workers and the degradation of the environment.

Noriega also touched on the sensitive issue of Haiti after a speech before about 150 people at the Outlook for the Americas conference.

Haiti has been in turmoil since Aristide's Lavalas Family party swept flawed 2000 elections. Since mid-September, at least 50 people have been killed in anti-government demonstrations. Aristide was planning to meet regional leaders Saturday in Jamaica to negotiate an end to the long-standing political impasse.

Noriega said the situation in Haiti was a high priority for him and that the plight of the Haitians could be compared with that of the Cuban people, who have limited rights of expression and assembly.

''They're similar in as much as they are both countries that are trapped by willful leaders who do not want to give people an opportunity to make decisions for themselves and plan for their own future,'' Noriega said.

However, Noriega's statements are contrasted with existing U.S. immigration policies with both nations.

While Cubans who reach the United States are generally allowed to remain in the country, efforts are made to return most Haitians who arrive illegally.

U.S. officials say they fear a mass immigration rush from Haiti, which they say would threaten national security, if Haitian migrants are given the same treatment.

Because of Cuba's communist government, the 1966 Cuba Adjustment Act lets Cubans be paroled into the community and apply for automatic legal residency one year after arriving, even if economics are the apparent reason for their leaving the island.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Castro accuses Bush of plotting with Cuban American exiles to kill him''We know that Mr. Bush has committed himself to the mafia ... to assassinate me,'' the Cuban president said, using the term commonly employed here to describe anti-Castro Cuban Americans.

U.S. Wary of Cuba's (and Chavez's) Support for Leftists ***WASHINGTON - The Bush administration is becoming increasingly concerned about what it sees as a joint effort by Cuba and Venezuela to nurture anti-American sentiment in Latin America with money, political indoctrination and training.

As U.S. officials see it, the alliance combines Cuban President Fidel Castro's political savvy with surplus cash that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez obtains from oil exports.

Venezuelan resources may have been decisive in the ouster of Bolivia's elected, pro-American president, Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada, said the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity.

A key recipient of Venezuelan help has been Evo Morales, a charismatic Bolivian legislator who has broad support among his country's indigenous population. He is an avowed opponent of the capitalist system.

Before Sanchez de Lozada was deposed, one official said, Venezuela's military attache in Bolivia was expelled for giving money to Morales, and Morales received money from Venezuelan officials in a visit to Caracas.

There also has been evidence of Venezuelan money and manpower in Ecuador and Uruguay being used in support of anti-government groups, the officials said. Despite Venezuelan denials, they said, Chavez has supported Colombia's FARC and ELN rebels, allowing use of territory in western Venezuela as a springboard for attacks inside Colombia.***

Hugo Chavez - Venezuela

Fidel Castro - Cuba

[endthematrix]

Funny. the last half the article discusses immigration. Haiti rears it's voodoo head...again. Interesting US comparison of Aristide and Castro.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

January 31, 2004 Some Americans advised to leave Haiti State Department-AP -- The State Department doesn't think it's very safe for Americans in Haiti.

The department is authorizing the departure of non-essential American diplomats and family members from the Caribbean country -- where political turmoil continues.

And the department is warning U-S citizens against traveling there.

Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide (zhahn behr-TRAHN' ahr-ihs-TEED') has been the target of violent protests. In the past four months, at least 50 people have been killed.

According to the State Department, there's the potential for spontaneous demonstrations -- and for violent confrontations between supporters and foes of the Aristide government.