Posted on 09/24/2003 12:16:49 PM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuelan lawmakers traded blows on Wednesday during a marathon debate on Supreme Court reforms that the opposition fears could weaken its bid for a vote to recall President Hugo Chavez.
The acrimonious all-night debate in the National Assembly, which was suspended until Thursday, reflected political tensions gripping the world's No. 5 oil exporter as it waited for electoral authorities to set regulations for a referendum.
Left-winger Chavez, who was elected in 1998 and survived a coup last year, is resisting the fight for a constitutional referendum to try to vote him out of office. His foes say his self-styled "revolution" is leading Venezuela toward Cuba-style communism.
Following a scuffle between lawmakers in the National Assembly building, opposition Christian Democrat deputy Cesar Perez displayed bleeding scratch marks on his face and accused Chavez ally Iris Varela of having attacked him.
"This vindictive parliamentarian jumped at me," Perez said.
Varela, who earlier exchanged shoves and kicks with Perez, blamed him for starting the fight. "This man is an animal," she said as government and opposition deputies jeered each other.
Parliament leaders suspended the debate, in which opposition lawmakers were contesting government proposals to reform the 20-member Supreme Court by adding 12 more magistrates to be elected by a simple majority in the National Assembly.
Chavez supporters hold a slim majority in the 165-member parliament. His opponents fear that the reforms, if passed, will allow the government to pack the Supreme Court with allies and tilt decisions in its favor.
As the Supreme Court could be the final judge in any dispute over the referendum on Chavez's rule, the opposition sees the proposed reforms as part of a government strategy to try to torpedo the election process.
"This draft law (reforming the Supreme Court) tries to extend the government's kidnapping of public institutions," opposition deputy Carlos Ocariz said.
Members of the National Electoral Council, also split between Chavez supporters and foes, were still haggling Wednesday over regulations that will govern the steps toward a referendum and the actual voting process.
The electoral body rejected as flawed earlier this month a previous opposition referendum petition. Opponents of Chavez are planning a second collection of signatures to repeat the request but must wait for the electoral rules to be decided.
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