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Venezuela: Army unrest grows over Chavez reforms
Venezuelan military officers have expressed growing alarm at attempts by President Hugo Chavez to turn the armed forces into a political instrument of his socialist revolution.

One general has been detained and hundreds of other officers reportedly sidelined for protesting against the ideological drive. Chavez has ordered the armed forces to adopt the Cuba-style salute 'Fatherland, socialism or death' to put the institution at the heart of his effort to transform Venezuela.

Pastors from the recently formed pro-Chavez Reformed Catholic church have been installed as army chaplains to weaken the influence of the traditional Catholic church, which is hostile to the president. 'That's causing a lot of resentment, a lot of upset,' said a source close to the military.
Reminds me of the old joke in communist Poland, in which a commissar was being celebrated for his anti-religious campaign, since church attendance in his district was down to 95% of the population ...
Last week military intelligence agents detained an outspoken critic, General Angel Vivas Perdomo, and questioned him for nine hours. Vivas had asked the supreme court to ban the new official salute. As a replacement he suggested 'Death to tyranny. Long live freedom!' - a slogan from the 19th-century independence hero Francisco de Miranda.
I rather like that slogan. Catchy and rather relevant to today. I guess Hugo's not happy with it ...
The general was ordered to report to the military prosecutor's office twice a month and to stay in Caracas but was not charged with any crime.

Before his detention he told the Associated Press that the new motto deprived 'the right of every Venezuelan citizen to think differently and to disagree with socialism'.
That being the idea for Hugo and his crowd ...
According to Citizen Control for Security, a watchdog group, about 800 disgruntled officers have been left without formal duties. Many sit at home awaiting early retirement, it said.
Not a good idea for officers in a South American country to be left without formal duties ...

Posted by: Steve White 2008-07-07
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=243544