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Viewing cable 04CARACAS2812, CHAVEZ CALLS FOR LAND REFORM ON "ALO PRESIDENTE"

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
04CARACAS2812 2004-09-08 13:34 2011-08-24 01:00 UNCLASSIFIED Embassy Caracas
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS  CARACAS 002812 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
FOR WHA/PDA,WHA/AND,INR/R/MR,PACE/PR/FPCW/WHA 
 
NSC FOR CBARTON 
USCINCSO FOR POLAD 
STATE PASS USAID FOR DCHA/OTI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO PGOV OPRC KIRC VE
SUBJECT: CHAVEZ CALLS FOR LAND REFORM ON "ALO PRESIDENTE" 
 
------- 
SUMMARY 
------- 
1. Agriculture was the main topic of President Chavez's 
202nd "Alo, Presidente" which aired August 29. Indeed his 
choice of a rural town, El Socorro, in the state of Guarico 
helped to set the stage.   During this event, as in recent 
speeches before the National Assembly and other venues, he 
called for the reformation of the land law.  End Summary. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Agriculture to Return To Former Glory 
------------------------------------- 
 
2.  Chavez stated, "Now the revolution has begun the road 
toward construction of a agro-economy.  We have been working 
on this for some years, and 2004 will be a great year in 
this endeavor, a leap forward in agricultural production." 
 
3.  Chavez began his call for land reform by noting that 
there were persons who had thousands and thousands of 
hectares of unused land.   He complained that the current 
land law says if you have 20,000 hectares and they are 
producing it is not illegal.   He also noted that 1,500 
hectares seemed like an "adequate" size.   He made a call to 
the landowners of Guarico and of Venezuela, " I prefer that 
we come to an arrangement."  He continued saying, that "in 
this new stage of the revolution, and I have told the 
minister of agriculture today, and the president of the land 
institute and I tell them in front of the whole country, I 
insist on the severe application of the constitution and the 
land law."   He continued by saying the present law calls 
for the "elimination of large land holdings" and it has to 
be followed. 
 
----------------------------------- 
Neo-liberalism and Coup Fall-Guys 
----------------------------------- 
4.  President Chvez began his remarks by laying the blame 
for agricultural woes on neo-liberalism saying, "We are 
hitting hard on land, on agriculture. Venezuela was an 
agricultural country for many years, then came the oil and 
the bad governments and we lost our national concept, that 
is Venezuela lost its way, and installed a neo-liberal 
capitalist system that abandoned the countryside, the rural 
producers were left abandoned, the rural exodus, the 
economic history of the twentieth century, we went to the 
cities, we left the fields, and agriculture fell." 
 
5.  In  another remark, Chavez noted "The rural area  had  no 
access to technology, that is why we must leave aside the neo- 
liberalism  and it is the Government, the State assuming  the 
responsibility along with the private producers." 
 
6. The program also included a video entitled, "The Agrarian 
Revolution Marches Ahead."   It began noting that the rural 
struggle was being done in conjunction with the Bolivarian 
government to "break the chains of dependence on oil, that 
for many years relegated agriculture to a forgotten state. 
And the 2002 anti-government strike demonstrates how 
transnational interests penetrated our oil industry.  We all 
remember how we lacked basic goods and how they tried to 
subjugate the desire for change of the Bolivarian people 
with hunger." 
 
7. When speaking of the fall in production of beef and pork, 
Chavez called upon the minister of agriculture (Arnoldo 
Marquez) to repeat the explanation for the fall.   The 
minister noted a fall of nine to eleven percent and blamed 
the attempted coup.  Chavez went on to say that such a fall 
would not occur again because there now exists a government 
that will be working with the "nationalistic private sector 
to rid themselves of such a threat." 
 
----------------------------------- 
Private Producers Should Not Fear 
----------------------------------- 
 
8. Aware of the fact that private producers might find 
 
something to fear in these suggestions, Chavez assured them, 
"This revolution does not have anything against private 
producers, on the contrary, we extend our hand to give them 
credit, cheap credit, this is an example, an agreement with 
China, we brought tractors from China and we will continue 
to bring tractors and we give them to Venezuelan producers 
on credit, to small producers and really cheap."  He also 
noted the purchase of Brazilian tractors. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
Cubans Thanked for Medical Aid to Rural Guarico 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
9. President Chavez also talked about the poor of Guarico 
and the support received from Cuba.   He noted that there 
were 36 people from Guarico that had not returned from Cuba, 
where they were receiving medical aid.  He also spoke of 
other Venezuelans who likewise had traveled to Cuba: 
Carabobo, 1,480; Miranda, 1,300; Barinas, 434; Vargas, 520; 
Yaracuy, 601; and Zulia, 3,783.  Currently he estimated 
5,963 Venezuelans in Cuba.  "For this we must thank the 
Cuban revolution, the Cuban people, the Cuban medical 
science, and their leader comrade Fidel Castro, thank you 
very much. Thank you in the name of so many Venezuelans who 
had lost the hope of seeing, recovering their sight to see 
their corn fields, to see their loved ones, to see the sun 
rise and set, thank you.  This is a people coming out of the 
darkness." 
 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
10. In this broadcast of "Alo Presidente," and on other 
occasions, President Chavez has called for immediate 
amendment of the current land law, to cap land ownership at 
10,000 hectares per person (rather than the current 20,000 
hectares), while at the same time making contradictory 
statements to allay the fear of the private sectors. 
 
BROWNFIELD 
 
 
NNNN 
      2004CARACA02812 - UNCLASSIFIED