[Peace-discuss] Second coup attempt in Venezuela. Miami and Venezuelan military connections.

[Phil Stinard]

You heard it here first (unless you saw the AP propaganda piece).  The piece 
on the Miami connection is to follow.

--Phil
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Second coup attempt:  The Urban Security Command of the Venezuelan National 
Guard was to be attacked Wednesday, May 12.


Radio Nacional de Venezuela reports:  One of the 55 paramilitaries captured 
this morning on a ranch in El Hatillo (Caracas) owned by opposition leader 
Robert Alonso, was interviewed by journalist Darvin Romero Montiel of 
Venezolana de Television (VTV).

The presumed paramilitary, with a strong Colombian accent, gave his 
testimony anonymously, wearing a hood for security reasons.  He confirmed 
that he was deceived when he came to Venezuela.  They had offered him work 
as a campesino, and then threatened to kill his family if he tried to 
escape.

“The ranch owner told us that he would pay 500,000 pesos (USD $190) to each 
Colombian if they would come to work here.  After we arrived at the farm, 
people wearing camouflage gave us more information, that they would take us 
to another place to prepare us to capture strategic Venezuelan National 
Guard locations.”


“We couldn’t escape from here.”

The paramilitary confirmed that he was a reservist in the Colombian Army, 
that he didn’t belong to any subversive group, and that he has a family.  
“I’m a country man, a hard worker, and I was only looking for a place to 
work.”  He said that they it wasn’t until he arrived in Venezuela that they 
told him that he couldn’t escape or they would kill his family.  Today is 
his 46th day on the ranch.

“After 8 days, they told us that we couldn’t leave, that they wouldn’t give 
any of us information, and that we couldn’t meet with civilians or they 
would kill our families.”  The training consisted of “how to enter a house, 
kill from a car…  the majority of us had already served in the (military).  
They deceived us.  We thought that we were coming to work on a farm, to 
plant plantains and cassava.  Yesterday at 3:00 in the afternoon, some 
uniformed corporals and generals brought us camouflage clothing, boots, 
armbands, food, provisions, coffee; they supplied us well.  We saw them from 
afar.  They wouldn’t let us get close.”

They practiced shooting firearms.  “They brought an instructor from the 
(unintelligible) police, who brought equipment and made us watch films, VHS 
and everything.”  However, the access and use of firearms was restricted.  
“Four days ago, they brought 5 small arms, pistols, and one rifle.”

The youth (who said that he comes from Bucaramanga, Colombia), commented 
that they hadn’t asked for documents at any Venezuelan border crossing, 
because a contact, probably active Venezuelan military personnel, guaranteed 
their free transit through national territory.


Plan:  To steal arms from the National Guard to give to 3,000 
paramilitaries.

According to statements released this morning by DISIP Commissioner Miguel 
Rodriguez, the terrorist plan consisted of attacking a military installation 
in Caracas this week, possibly the Urban Security Command of the National 
Guard.  On Monday, the paramilitaries were to be taken to another ranch, 
where they would receive final training with arms and ammunition, and do the 
assault on Wednesday.  “We were going to attack a military base that has 
tunnels underneath containing arms,” said the presumed paramilitary.  The 
purpose, according to one of the anti-Chavez “generals,” was to steal arms 
from the base to give to a 3,000 strong paramilitary group who were to come 
to Venezuela in 8 days.

The final objective of the trained paramilitary group was to overthrow the 
Bolivarian government.

“When we learned everything, more than one Colombian wanted to escape; one 
Colombian got up and escaped, but they caught him after 100 meters, tied him 
up, and told him that next time he would be killed.  They took away our ID 
cards and all of our Colombian papers,” said the paramilitary.