Chavez to face recall vote

2003-10-17 16:15

Caracas - A recall referendum against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will be held on March 27, the daily El Mundo reported on Thursday, quoting a statement from the National Electoral Council.

It said the date was ratified by the head of the Democratic Co-ordinator, an umbrella group of parties and organisations seeking Chavez's recall.

The recall is the third try by Chavez opponents to oust the former paratrooper, after a failed coup in 2002 and a general strike this year which crippled crude oil exports from Venezuela, the United States's third-largest supplier.

After the two-month strike ended in February, opposition politicians, labour unions and business groups agreed to use only legal means to oust Chavez, while the government undertook to remove obstacles to a recall vote.

The opposition needed to gather the signatures of 20 percent of Venezuela's nearly 12 million registered voters to demand the binding referendum.

Once the referendum is conducted, Chavez is legally obliged to stand down if mandated to do so by more than the 3.76 million people who voted for him in 2000.

Before running for president, Chavez tried to take power in a failed military coup for which he served two years in prison.

While he still enjoys support from impoverished Venezuelans, he is loathed by the business community and by many in the middle class, who accuse him of ruining the economy and fuelling violence.

But his supporters say Chavez has rescued the country from four decades of corruption and mismanagement, which have impoverished millions of Venezuelans.

- AFP