US embassy cable - 04CARACAS2009

C O N F I D E N T I A L  CARACAS 002009 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
NSC FOR CBARTON 
USCINCSO ALSO FOR POLAD 
USAID DCHA/OTI FOR RPORTER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/27/2014 
TAGS: PGOV, KDEM, VE 
SUBJECT: PARAMILITARIES UPDATE 
 
 
Classified By: POLITICAL COUNSELOR ABELARDO A. ARIAS FOR REASONS 1.4 (d 
) 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  The May 9 discovery of alleged Colombian paramilitaries, 
replaced in national headlines by the appeals process and the 
announcement of the recall referendum, remains a salient 
issue.  The National Assembly has convened special 
investigative commission, which has already interviewed the 
Minister of Defense and has plans to interview several other 
high-ranking government officials.  The GOV has also issued 
detention orders for four senior military officers for 
alleged connections to the paramilitaries case.  Ten military 
officers and civilians have already been detained for alleged 
connections to the paramilitaries, and trials begin for first 
cases in the next two weeks.  End Summary. 
 
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SPECIAL INVESTIGATIVE COMMISSION 
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2.  (U)  The National Assembly (NA) has convened a Special 
Parliamentary Commission to investigate the case of the 
alleged Colombian paramilitaries discovered on the outskirts 
of Caracas on May 9.  The NA appointed Nestor Leon Heredia, a 
Movimiento Quinta Republica (MVR) deputy and former military 
officer, as president of the Commission.  On June 7, the 
Commission "privately" interviewed Minister of Defense Jorge 
Luis Garcia Carneiro.  The Commission plans to conduct 
additional interviews with Minister of Interior and Justice 
Lucas Rincon and Army Commander Gen. Raul Baduel, as well as 
the directors of DISIP (security police) and the Directorate 
of Military Intelligence (DIM). 
 
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TARGETING THE MILITARY 
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3.  (U)  As of June 1, the GOV had issued detention orders 
for four retired military officers in connection with the 
paramilitaries case; Gen. Nestor Gonzalez Gonzalez, Gen. 
Felipe Rodriguez, Gen. Ovido Poggioli and Col. Julio 
Rodriguez Salas.  On June 6, the GOV publicly offered a 
reward of twenty-five thousand dollar for information leading 
to the arrest of each of the four military officers.  In 
addition to links to the paramilitaries, the reward 
advertisements allege three of the officers are guilty of 
&military rebellion,8 a reference to their involvement in 
the October 2002 civil disobedience at Plaza Francia. 
 
4.  (U)  On June 8, Gen. Ovido Poggioli, a former director of 
the DIM, voluntarily presented himself to the Military 
Prosecutor,s Office, claiming that he had nothing to fear 
from the government,s accusations.  DISIP took Poggioli in 
custody for forty-eight hours following his appearance at the 
Military Prosecutor,s Office.  He is currently being held at 
a military detention center in Caracas. 
 
5.  (C) On June 14, poloff met with Alonso Medina, a defense 
lawyer specializing in military cases.  In addition to 
Poggioli, according to Medina, seven military officers and 
three civilians have been detained for alleged involvement in 
the paramilitaries case.  Medina noted that the first 
paramilitary involvement cases are scheduled to go to trial 
in the next two weeks. 
 
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MORE PARAMILITARIES TO COME? 
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(U)  On June 14, Eliecer Otaiza, MVR party figure and former 
director of DISIP, also currently president of the National 
Institute of Educational Cooperation, alleged that the 
paramilitaries detained at El Hatillo merely represent the 
&tip of the iceberg8 and that there are between four and 
five thousand paramilitaries currently in Venezuela.  Otaiza 
 
repeated the assertion that these alleged paramilitaries are 
seeking to assassinate President Chavez and other political 
leaders, and are a threat to Venezuelan sovereignty, the 
democratic process and the Bolivarian revolution. 
 
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COMMENT 
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(C)  The targeting of numerous military officers for alleged 
connections to the paramilitaries case is part of an 
increased GOV campaign to persecute military officers it 
considers disloyal, including officers connected with the 
October 2002 Plaza Francia incident and the events of April 
2002.  Allegations that there are between four and five 
thousand additional paramilitaries currently in Venezuela, 
however implausible, could produce a new set of the 
distractions for the GOV to use in the period leading up to 
the referendum.  The commencement of trials in the next two 
weeks will provide insight into how the GOV plans to use the 
paramilitaries issue. 
SHAPIRO 
 
 
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      2004CARACA02009 - CONFIDENTIAL