MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chavez supporters reject U.S. “interference”

Thousands of supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez filled the streets yesterday to protest foreign “interference” in the country's affairs and to demand ”respect for the (national) electoral authority.” Meanwhile, opposition groups demonstrated in eastern Caracas and in other Venezuelan cities against the decision by the National Electoral Council (CNE) to review questionable signatures collected in favor of the recall referendum against Chavez.

The autonomous five-member CNE issued a communiqué indicating that it had decided by a 3-0 vote with two abstentions to review 148,190 petitions bearing 1,185,520 signatures in which the personal identifying data for several different signers appears to have been written by a single hand, violating the rules.

Chavez supporters from around the country gathered at points east and west of the capital, from where they marched peacefully along the main Francisco Fajardo highway, converging at the botanical gardens in downtown Caracas.

Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel estimated there to be "more than a million" participants, emphasizing the "happy, peaceful and democratic" tone felt among the pro-government marchers, which "confirms that the majority of the Venezuelan people are with Chavez." "This is the democratic response of the Venezuelan people and the national armed forces. United, they show that power lies with the Venezuelan people, who are mobilizing to confront foreign interference," Rangel said.

Chavez claimed that the United States is "financing" groups intent on overthrowing him by a coup and that Washington plans to implement the Inter-American Democratic Charter if the recall referendum supported by the opposition is blocked.

The charter calls on member nations to isolate any Organization of American States member in which a government has come to power by means of a coup.

The CNE is expected to announce Sunday how many of the 3.4 million signatures supporting a recall referendum against Chavez need to be confirmed by their signers. This decision was harshly criticized by the Democratic Coordinator, an umbrella organization of opposition groups.

About 1.8 million signatures may fall under review at this point, according to the CNE. The Venezuelan Constitution states that at least 2.4 million signatures are required - or 20 percent of the electorate - to force authorities to hold a referendum on Chavez's permanence in office.

For their part, clashes among opposition groups and the National Guard continued for several hours in the Altamira neighborhood, in the wealthy municipality of Chacao, where two years ago a group of 14 high-ranking military officers and their supporters demanded that Chavez step down and symbolically declared the site "liberated territory." The National Guard thwarted protestors with tear gas, and soldiers could be seen dropping to the ground at moments to protect themselves from gunshots, according to the images shown on Globovision television.

A man and a woman, aged 27 and 45, respectively, were shot and killed Saturday night during opposition protests on the capital's east side, the state-owned Venezuelan de Television reported. On Friday, opposition spokesman Andres Velasquez called on those against the signature review to take to the streets near their homes Saturday as part of "peaceful resistance" against Chavez.