Arias Cardenas called the comments "meddling" and "disrespectful," especially since they were made in a country friendly to Venezuela.

Shannon, on landing in Brazil to take up his post and speaking Portuguese, called on the Venezuelan government not to repress people but to start listening to them ... "from our (USA) point of view, it's important in a time of political crisis to open a political space to all the people and all Venezuelan citizens." Shannon was referring to week-long student protests in Caracas and other cities.

The Venezuelan government, the Foreign Minister for Latin America and the Caribbean said, wanted the Ambassador to respect Venezuelan democracy and keep out of the country's internal affairs. The comments, he added, do not help the current relation of understanding between the two countries.

In a communique the Foreign Ministry rejects both the content and form of Shannon's comments, saying it is NOT the function of a diplomat in a friendly country to offer advice to another sovereign government. Shannon's role is to "promote relations between the USA and Brazil" and not use that country's territory to intervene in Venezuela's internal affairs.

According to the communique, the comments synchronize with a campaign launched by US and traditional power sectors in Venezuela aimed at destabilizing the country using dubious anti-democratic objectives.

Finally, Shannon should refrain from giving lessons to a country that has held more than 10 elections since 1999 and is preparing another in September.

Lt. Colonel (ret.) Arias Cardenas received a medal during the commemoration of the February 4, 1992 (4F) uprising last Thursday for his role as one of the leading rebels.

Shannon had difficulties getting his ambassadorial credentials accepted by the US Senate after claiming that tariffs on corn fuel from countries like Brazil should be lifted.

Patrick J. O'Donoghue
news.editor@vheadline.com