Posted on 04/07/2006 6:35:52 PM PDT by blam
US accuses Venezuela over attack
Motorcyclists chased the convoy for at least 10 minutes
The US has accused city officials of the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, of complicity in an attack on the car of US Ambassador William Brownfied. The ambassador's convoy was pelted with eggs, onions and tomatoes and chased by motorbikes for some miles by supporters of President Hugo Chavez.
US Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns said the attack had been condoned by the city government.
However, the mayor's office in Caracas denied any involvement in the incident.
The BBC's Greg Morbasch in Caracas said Mr Brownfield is accustomed to verbal abuse from supporters of the president but this latest incident is the first time he and his team have had objects thrown at them.
Mr Brownfield - who was visiting a low-income neighbourhood in Caracas to donate baseball equipment to underprivileged children - had recently stated he was concerned for his safety.
Diplomatic consequences
The US under secretary of state told Venezuelan Ambassador Bernardo Alvarez that if such an incident happens again there would be severe diplomatic consequences, department spokesman Sean McCormack said.
Supporters of Hugo Chavez are said to be behind the protests
Mr Burns said the attack was a violation of the Vienna Convention and that the action was clearly condoned by the local government, the spokesman said.
US Embassy spokesman Brian Penn said the Venezuelan police escorting the convoy did not intervene to stop the incident.
"The motorcyclists were throwing things at us for at least 10 minutes, and the police did nothing... It was serious," he said.
Mr Penn claimed the incident was organised by the mayor's office in Caracas, which has denied any involvement in the incident.
"No official authorised by the mayor's office participated," Luis Martinez, a spokesman for Mayor Juan Barreto, told AP.
Officials said the incident was organised by local residents who wanted Mr Brownfield to leave the area.
Strained relations
Relations between the US and Venezuela have been strained for some time, and Mr Brownfield has faced protests at recent appearances.
The American embassy has also asked the Venezuelan government to improve security for the ambassador, saying it is legally bound to do so.
President Chavez has been at loggerheads with Washington, accusing the Bush administration of orchestrating assassination and coup attempts in order to get at Venezuela's vast oil reserves, our correspondent says.
But US officials say Mr Chavez is causing instability in the region with his fiery anti-Bush rhetoric and autocratic style of leadership.
It's OK, the USS George Washington and her escorts will be there shortly.
We should have pulled our ambassador out the night Sluggo "won" the election.
In the meantime a Virginia class sub is offshore, watching.
Ping
Why do we have an ambassador?
They egged a Nixon motorcade there when he was VP. They must not be starving.
You're right, it's 1958 all over again.
But, in that year, hadn't Venezuela just emerged from under the overthrown dictatorship of Perez Jimenez?
Now, they just follow a dictator's dictates. That's what dictators do, don't they?
A number of my colleagues are Venezuelan emigres.
Good bunch of guys. The good ones are leaving if they can.
The problem with that is that Chavez is a Venezuelan problem. If they don't take him out, he isn't going. Most of these guys were involved in the civic action to push him out of office. He finessed that by getting them to agree to midterm elections, and then buying the company that ran the elections.
They all know that the next step is surrender, bloodshed, or exile. A lot of people are choosing exile.
Everyone who signed the petitions against Chavez, is listed in a database. When you go to transact any business the person dealing with you already knows if you are "with" them or against them. This is the dark side that computers have made possible.
As a side note, these databases have been downloaded and made public, and you can by a copy in the street for a buck.
tick, tick, tick......
Brownshirted thugs.
Reminds me quite a bit of the Panamanian "dignity battalions" who finally went too far and killed people. I wonder how Noriega's doing these days?
IB4TZ
Go back to DU and feed your pap to them as they admire your dictator.
Please don't come back to Free Republic.
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