US accepts Venezuelan result

2004-08-18 08:14

Caracas - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez got a major boost on Tuesday as an initially hesitant Washington recognised his electoral victory, while authorities agreed to audit the vote denounced by the opposition.

The random audit was suggested by former United States president Jimmy Carter and the Organisation of American States, who said nonetheless they had no reason to doubt the outcome of Sunday's vote.

"The results of this second audit should be sufficient to address the remaining concerns that have been expressed by the opposition," said Carter who had led an observer team at the referendum on Chavez's mandate.

The announcement came hours after US authorities endorsed the outcome of the referendum, dealing a huge blow to the fractious opposition.

The world's fifth-largest oil exporter

At the same time, 10 heads of state and government from Latin America and Caribbean nations signed a letter recognising Chavez's electoral victory.

With most of the votes counted, the leftist president defeated with 58% of the ballots the opposition's attempt to revoke his mandate.

Miranda state Governor Enrique Mendoza, who heads the Democratic Coordinator opposition coalition, on Monday demanded a repeat of the recall referendum, saying he had proof the official results of Sunday's voting were rigged.

But another leading Chavez foe, Zulia Governor Manuel Rosales, recognised the referendum outcome, as did a leading business group that plays a key role in the Venezuelan opposition.

Several analysts conceded there were a number of irregularities in the balloting, but that in any case, Chavez would have survived the attempt to revoke his mandate.

Venezuelan analyst Alberto Muller Rojas said the allegations of massive fraud harmed the credibility of the opposition far more than they hurt Chavez.

Another Venezuelan analyst, Alberto Garrido, said claims of fraud were to be expected irrespective of how the voting was conducted.

The triumph by the charismatic Chavez was largely attributed to the strong boost he got from recent spending on highly popular health programmes as record crude prices boosted the coffers of the world's fifth-largest oil exporter.

As he celebrated his victory, Chavez adopted a conciliatory tone and congratulated the opposition for garnering what he said was a very respectable 40% of the vote.

The federation of chambers of commerce, Fedecamaras, on Tuesday recognised the outcome of the vote and said the government needed to restore trust in the economy of the oil-rich country.

Police say one woman was killed and at least four others were wounded when gunmen wearing outfits favoured by Chavez supporters opened fire on an opposition rally on Monday.

Only a few hundred people had attended the Caracas protest as a call by some opposition leaders for a massive demonstration against the alleged fraud was largely ignored.

- AFP