Bush Warns Of "Erosion Of Democracy" In Venezuela, Bolivia
Bush Warns of `Erosion of Democracy' in Venezuela, Bolivia
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...=latin_america
May 22 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush said he's concerned about an ``erosion of democracy'' in Venezuela, one of the four largest suppliers of oil to the U.S., and Bolivia.
``Let me just put it bluntly - I'm concerned about the erosion of democracy in the countries you mentioned,'' Bush said today in response to a question about Venezuela and Bolivia while addressing the National Restaurant Association in Chicago. ``I am going to continue to remind our hemisphere that respect for property rights and human rights is essential for all countries in order for there to be prosperity and peace.''
U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, last year said that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez poses a threat to stability in the Western Hemisphere. Chavez has repeatedly accused Bush of backing efforts to topple his government, a charge the U.S. denies.
Chavez has rewritten contracts with oil companies and raised royalties and taxes on crude production while Bolivian President Evo Morales took control of the country's oil and gas fields on May 1. Morales, an ally of Chavez, gave foreign companies operating in the country 180 days to agree to new contracts with the government.
