Mixed signals on land intervention by Venezuela's Governors

blogs.salon.com ^ | Jan. 2, 2004 | Miguel Octavio

[Kitten Festival]

Sometimes it is truly hard to know what is going on. On the same day that the Governor of Yaracuy, not exactly Daniel’s favorite person, issues his own decree “rescuing” lands in his state, the Land Institute issues a communiqué saying that the intervention of lands requires a presidential decree. (El Nacional, page A-14, by subscription). Thus, three decrees intervening land and now a step back?

Well, as usual, it is unclear. All the Land Institute is saying is that it will have a meeting tomorrow about these issues. The Land Institute did say that Governors and Mayors have the duty to fulfill with the requirements of legislation, but is qualifies the need for a presidential decree to do it.

Thus, it is not as easy as the Governor of Cojedes suggested, saying that legal formalities have to be bypassed in the name of social Justice. Even if Governor Yanez had the backing of the President it is clear that there are some divisions on the issue. First of all, there is the Head of the Land Institute Eliezer Otaiza who obviously feels threatened as the interventions by the Governors certainly make his Land Institute useless. Moreover, all of the Governors have been saying they acted because of the slowness by the Land Institute in executing its mandates, something that affects Otaiza directly as he may go out of favor in the eyes of President Chavez.

But the most significant problem appears to be that the Governor of Cojedes included the land of the El Charcote farm, owned by British Group Vestey and that Embassy has not only expressed its concerns about the intervention, but apparently the Vice-President of Venezuela José Vicente Rangel had made promises to British authorities about their land being protected.

[Kitten Festival]

This is a huge underreported story. 'Intervention' is a code word for 'communist expropriation.' Slimey dictator Hugo Chavez is confiscating land Zimbabwe style. He is expropriating in 'the name of the people.' He's going after only the best farmland with the best running water and maintenance. The government owns 64% of the undeveloped land that no one wants but that is not what Hugo Chavez is interested in - he wants the real working farms for his 'bolivarian circles' of thugs to decimate. Just like Zimbabwe. Small wonder Chavez and Mugabe are the best of friends.

[livius]

Seizing land already? (Intervención does indeed mean expropriation or seizing.)

Bumpity bump. I haven't seen this anywhere else. Somebody at State needs to get on this ASAP.

CW, do you have a LatAm ping list? Things are happening down there, and I don't know who to ping.