Fidel Castro’s Big Dumb Houseboy down in Caracas will listen to any sweet talk from his hairy Havana caudillo provided he says it nicely enough. That was why it was so easy to convince the hulky fool to turnnnnnn the checkbook, uhrrrr …. precious oil resources … over … to Castro’s own loving care. Fidel, you see, has convinced Chavez that he knows his wants and needs better than even Chavez himself. And can take care of Venezuela’s oil supply mucccccchhhhhh better than the Venezuelans can. It all makes perfect sense. Doesn’t it?

Miguel Octavio has the deadly lowdown on this spectacular swindle that is sure to entrench Castro in power for years to come, along with some gross pictures of the pair here.

UPDATE: Daniel Duquenal has more seething analysis (and a good map) on the expropriation of Venezuela’s oil here.

Randy Paul has a short item on Miguel Inzulza of Chile winning the post as OAS Secretary General. He points out differences in media coverage on this somewhat mysterious issue.

Why was it so controversial?

Inzulza had been Hugo Chavez’s candidate, which is in itself a minus, because Chavez is the Foremost Troublemaker in our hemisphere. On the other hand, Inzulza is a Chilean, and with Chilean attitudes, apparently this was enough to convince Condi Rice to accept him as the U.S.’s candidate, too. If he’s good enough for Condi, I am going to bet he’s O.K., too.

Now, with the future of the Americas on the line, he may well prove to be very important in the regions’s likely coming revolutions. Let’s hope he’s a force for good. Read Randy’s account here.

Over the past two months there have been protests in Ingushetia demanding the president resign over corruption. So far, things have gone generally peacefully. But read this recent report on RFE/RL and you will see just how corrupt those authorities are, and how they put down the protests by defaming them with fake fliers before arresting them.

Prague, 30 April 2005 (RFE/RL) — Police and army troops used force on 30 April to disperse a protest in Nazran, the capital of Ingushetia, and detain its organizers. Officials had earlier warned the protest organizers, including Ingushetian Parliament Deputy Musa Ozdoev, against holding the demonstration.

The objective of the protest was to call for the resignation of Ingushetia’s president, Murat Zyazikov. The opposition has repeatedly criticized Zyazikov, a former Federal Security Service (FSB) general who was elected president three years ago, for corruption and incompetence in economic affairs.

The opposition began planning in early April to stage simultaneous protests in several towns after police thwarted a demonstration in late March to protest crime, corruption, and appalling soci-economic conditions and to demand the return to Ingushetia of the Prigorodnyi Raion of neighboring North Ossetia, which was part of the pre-World War II Checheno-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.

The protests were first scheduled for 28 April, and then postponed until 30 April. Earlier this week, the Nazran municipal authorities warned Ozdoev that he had failed to comply with the legal requirements when informing them of the planned protest. Ingushetian acting Interior Minister Beslan Khamkhoev wrote to Ozdoev on 26 April recommending that he call off the protests lest “illegal armed formations” stage terrorist attacks against the participants. Khamkhoev warned that if that happened, Ozdoev would be held responsible for any casualties.

The Ingushetian authorities then began circulating false fliers calling on the population to congregate on the central square in Nazran at the precise time Ozdoev’s meeting was to take place. But while Ozdoev insisted that the meeting was to be nonviolent and that participants would protest the socio-economic situation and call for Zyazikov’s resignation, the counterfeit fliers said in addition to calling for a crackdown on corruption in Ingushetia and for the creation of jobs for unemployed young people, participants would call for the immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from Chechnya. The counterfeit fliers further said demonstrators would seek to oust the republic’s leaders by force if the latter rejected their demands.

Several prominent Muslim clergymen visited Ozdoev’s home late on 29 April but failed to persuade him to call off the protest. Also on 29 April, armored vehicles blocked all approaches to the town of Magas, where the opposition Youth Movement of Ingushetia (MDI) planned to hold a parallel peaceful demonstration. MDI leader Rustam Archakov announced early on 30 April that the movement had decided the previous evening to postpone the Magas protest indefinitely.

In Nazran, armored vehicles were deployed near the train station early on 30 April and up to 1,000 police and troops blocked off the main square where Ozdoev’s demonstration was to take place. Roadblocks were set up on all highways leading to Nazran and numerous buses transporting would-be participants to the protest were halted and turned back. An unspecified number of people nonetheless managed to congregate at 11 a.m. near the main square, but shortly after Ozdoev began to address the meeting, masked men attacked the participants with clubs and dispersed them. Ozdoev was taken by force to the local Interior Ministry headquarters, but he later told the website ingushetiya.ru by telephone that “the campaign against corruption and embezzlement will continue. We shall continue to insist that President Zyazikov resigns” and that the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office begins investigating his “crimes.” Ozdoev stressed that the opposition will continue to act within the framework of the law and the constitution.

Meanwhile Gennadii Gudkov, chairman of the People’s Party of Russia (of which Ozdoev heads the Ingushetian branch), told RIA Novosti that the Nazran demonstration was convened in full compliance with relevant legislation. He added that police acted illegally in detaining Ozdoev, who as a parliament deputy enjoys immunity from arrest.

If I remember correctly, there are some Ingushetian rebels who aid the Chechnyan rebels next door. There have been several arrests of these rebels recently, and by using these phony fliers to compare the peaceful opposition protests to Chechnyan rebels, the authorities are effectively giving themselves a corrupt reason to crack down. Connect two and two together, and perhaps this part of the reason Russia keeps losing the hearts of so many people.

Whether the MSM reports it or not, Latin America has been heating up with Cuba and Venezuela seeking to destabilize and undermine democracy throughout the entire continent. At a time when the Community of Democracies is meeting in Santiago, Chile, its virtual antagonist composed of the most criminal minds in the western hemisphere converged on Havana to seek an alternative to free trade and democracy. I have never in my life seen such a perverted brothel of lowlifes, making perhaps the most up-front declaration of intentions I have ever heard.

HAVANA (Reuters) - The leaders of Cuba and Venezuela relished their roles as Washington’s bad boys in Latin American on Friday and vowed to build a socialist alternative to U.S. policies in the hemisphere.

President Fidel Castro and the younger and equally loquacious Hugo Chavez mocked Bush administration charges that their burgeoning partnership threatens to undermine democracy in Latin America.

“I’m realizing that your friendship is hurting my image,” Castro joked to Chavez during a meeting with hundreds of free trade opponents from across the Americas.

The Bush administration’s former point man for Latin America, Otto Reich, recently called Havana and Caracas the region’s “axis of subversion” and accused Chavez of squandering Venezuelan oil wealth to prop up Castro’s 46-year-long rule.

“With the combination of Castro’s evil genius, experience in political warfare and economic desperation, and Chavez’s unlimited money and recklessness, the peace of this region in peril,” Reich wrote in an article.

Castro, 78, read out Reich’s words to a delighted audience in Havana’s Karl Marx theater.

Among the attendees were Bolivian coca farmer Evo Morales, whose peasant movement helped oust a U.S. ally from the presidency in 2003, and former Salvadoran guerrilla Shafik Handal, leader of the Farabundo Marti Liberation Front.

“If we are speaking of an axis, that axis is spreading in all directions and turning into masses of people that are rising up,” said Chavez, who has aligned his oil-exporting nation with Cuba since his election in 1999.

Appealing to poverty-stricken Latin Americans disillusioned with the promises of free-market capitalism, Chavez last year countered the troubled U.S.-backed Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) with his Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA, also Spanish for dawn).

It wasn’t just Hugo and Castro partying it up and smoking their respective countries into ash. They had the likes of Bolivia crisis instigator Evo Morales and guerilla murderer Shafik Handal serving them drinks! How is it that the MSM can give hours of its reporting each day to the skunk on Donald Trump’s head while elsewhere in our own backyard the forces of communism are working to send the entire western hemisphere into chaos?

Michael Totten declared victory from the tent city earlier today, noting that the elections have been officially confirmed for May 29. Read his entire post, as it is very thought provoking.

The elections are to be held a month from now in four parts, 0n May 29, June 5, June 12 and June 19. They couldn’t agree on new election rules, so they had to constitutionally settle for the 2000 law. Not to much dismay, of course, as this is easily another big victory for the revolution. Under the 2000 law, districts remain much smaller and in single mandate status, so the opposition is going to be able to take an incredible amount of seats in a month’s time.

Since the emergency can only constitutionally last for three months though, it’s kind of by default.

KATHMANDU, April 30 (Reuters) - Nepal’s king ended a state of emergency two days early, the Palace said on Saturday, but the sudden midnight proclamation does not reduce extraordinary powers he seized in February’s royal coup.

Politicians said it was a positive move but advised caution and urged the king to hold talks with political parties.

Constitutionally, the three-month state of emergency granting the military extra powers of search, arrest and curfew had to end or be formally extended by midnight on Sunday.

King Gyanendra’s announcement made no mention of him giving up most of the extra powers assumed when he sacked the government, suspended democracy and took control himself on Feb. 1 in a bid to end a long-running Maoist rebellion.

The king suspended civil liberties, arrested the ousted prime minister and gave sweeping powers to soldiers to fight the Maoist rebels, drawing international condemnation and failing to check the rebellion.

The midnight announcement came hours after Gyanendra returned from his first foreign tour since Feb. 1, aimed at shoring up international support, a visit during which he convinced India to resume military aid.

He had reassured India and the United States, another major supporter, that he would restore democracy as soon as possible.

United We Blog! Nepalese commenters are skeptical, as I am as well. In the three months since he dissolved the government in the name of putting down the Maoist insurgency, he has not gotten any closer in actually doing so. While no progress has been made in this front, he has certainly made personal progress in gaining absolute power over the civil liberties of individuals. What happens within Nepal now will be the result of internal and international pressure on the king to give way to democracy.

Of particular note, I want to bring up India’s influence over its smaller neighbor. Meeting just recently, India promised military aid to combat the insurgency while pressing the king to revert back to democracy. I don’t talk about India much, but when I do, it usually pertains to the ability of regional powers to influence democracy on smaller ones. This is what I wrote back in February, ten days after the state of emergency was issued:

However, I think this signifies, in conjunction with the global freedom persuit, a change in fundamental U.S. policy from unilateralism to support for regional powers to quell totalitarianism. As they correctly note, India is beginning to take action on the King????????s government. This is because India is a regional power on the verge of becoming a world power. With India on the scene, the United States doesn????????t have to handle the conflict actively. The same can be seen with the current handling of Iran. The United States is working with the governments of the world on broad issues that are more easily agreeable and ready to be worked on, instead of focusing on minute details and disagreements.

As large, democratic nations grow, so too will their ability to influence neighboring countries toward democracy. India, at this point, is a good example.

In the long run, India will do a lot of good in pressuring the king into reform. I have a feeling they will be handling the situation much more actively now, given that the king just went back on his word.

New Delhi, April 28: Regretting the fresh crackdown on politicians in Nepal, India on Thursday said this ran contrary to assurances given by King Gyanendra that he would soon ‘unwind emergency’ measures and release political detenues.

“It is distressing and deplorable that these actions have come after assurances given by the King in his meetings with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and me that he would take steps to unwind emergency, release political prisoners and take measures to return to democratic process in the Himalayan Kingdom,” External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh told the Rajya Sabha.

Informing the House that relations with Nepal were constantly under review, Singh said the Nepalese monarch had also given assurance to remove curbs on the press and allow Indian television channels to be accessed in the country.

This is why we must constantly remain skeptical of Nepal’s monarch despite whatever supposed changes he makes. Once nobody is watching, even for a second, he’ll take advantage of it. More of this twisting and turning is going to continue to happen in the future, and the recently announced return of municipal elections soon are even looking to be shady. The Nepalese are not going to see their freedom in the short term, but in the long term, I believe they have a friend in India who will aid them there.

I posted the other day an interview by RFE/RL with Kyrgyz interim president Bakiev who said he wants separation of powers and a stronger presidency. I argued, in short, for a stronger legislature. The Constitutional Council, which is supposed to debate the reforms necessary before the July 10 election, convened for the first time and thinks that a stronger legislature is absolutely pertinent.

Kyrgyzstan’s new Constitutional Council today held its first meeting to discuss constitutional reforms expected to be implemented before presidential elections scheduled for 10 July. Proponents of amending the constitution say the reforms will give more authority to parliament and prevent the president from gaining absolute power. But analysts say it won’t be easy to forge a balanced political system in a country traditionally divided among clans and regions.

Prague, 28 April 2005 (RFE/RL) — The debate about dividing power among the president, government, and parliament is not new for Kyrgyzstan.

But it has taken on new urgency after the 24 March revolution. That’s because many are concerned that existing legislation does not prevent the new president from gaining absolute power — and becoming as authoritarian as ousted President Askar Akaev.

Seeking to take advantage of the current window of opportunity, the new Kyrgyz leadership established the Constitutional Council on 25 April. The council, holding its first session today, is an ad hoc advisory body due to be dissolved after the constitutional amendments are made.

However, the country’s new leaders are already locked in dispute. They appear to have no consensus on what amendments should be made or how much authority to accord to each branch of government.

Many say the parliament must be given more authority. But not everyone supports the idea of changing from a presidential to a parliamentary system of governance.

Interim President Kurmanbek Bakiev, a favorite in June’s presidential polls, supports constitutional reform. But he says the constitution must give broader powers and at the same time more clearly defined responsibilities to the president:

“The authority of a nationally elected president has to be greater because he is elected by the whole Kyrgyzstan nation,” Bakiev told RFE/RL’s Kyrgyz Service. “At the same time, a nationally elected president should have his ÄproperÅ responsibilities as well. For instance, the existing constitution does not design Äthe responsibilities of the presidentÅ.”

However, Bakiev’s main rival Feliks Kulov, the leader of the Ar-Namys (Dignity) party, says the legislature must be given more power.

Iskhak Masaliev, a Communist parliamentarian, says he supports this idea: “Our party’s position has always been that Kyrgyzstan should be a parliamentary republic. We’ve had a presidential republic for 15 years. But we must not continue this way. I believe parliamentary form of governance suits us better.”
…
Still others note that even a perfectly democratic constitution cannot on its own ensure that all branches of government will follow it. Many Central Asian countries, after all, have constitutions that meet international standards yet are often violated or amended by those in power.

Analyst David Lewis, director of Central Asia project of the International Crisis Group, says he believes Kyrgyzstan needs to try to better balance its governmental system.

“The idea is to produce more checks and balances within the system,” Lewis tells RFE/RL by telephone. “The existing system does give a huge amount of power to the presidency, particularly in the area of appointments and in terms of things like control of the judicial system. So, I think the constitutional reform will also look at the judicial system, which has never been independent, and try to make it stronger and more independent in a new system, which will provide another check or another balance on the executive power. There is a very difficult equation and certainly constitutional reform is not a panacea. It’s one step in a wider process.”

Bakiev’s soundbite argument is a weak one, given that presidential votes tend to be much more divisive than parliamentary ones. Putting together many representatives elected by local interests all together in a national parliament will move the country in a way much like the free market works — closer to the will of the people. As Nathan notes, ” the presidential system pretty much guarantees corruption and mild authoritarianism.” That’s because one person simply can’t or will not codify the interests of people he does not wish to represent. More than anything, the president should be a national figurehead who gives guidance to his country, but should never control it with the degree that Akayev did.

UPDATE: I wrote a long analysis piece regarding my thoughts on the Tulip Revolution after it unfolded. In the comments section, it was brought up that the Islamic extremist movement is present there, as I had not brought it up in my post. This was my response:

I didn????????t even want to get into that though. I????????m hoping any kind of Islamic extremism will be quelled if good governance is put into place. And if any kind of Al Qaeda type camps did spring up, we do have a military base. Overall though, I think Russia will be more scared of that happening.

Well, this just in: Banned Hizb ut-Tahrir Faces Dwindling Appeal, Internal Divisions.

Alvaro Vargas Llosa, an author of The Complete Guide To The Perfect Latin American Idiot (it has a whole chapter on Castro worship) and now, Liberty for Latin America: How to undo 500 years of state oppression will be interviewed by Jim Lehrer of PBS.

Alvaro Vargas Llosa is one of the world’s foremost experts on Latin America. Like Hernando de Soto, he’s a Peruvian, and he’s now at the Independent Institute, in Oakland. When people ask me where I learned about the place, I always point in his direction. He is one of the most brilliant and interesting intellectuals of the day and on every single issue, he is spot on. He knows the deal. He understands revolutions. He picks the buffoons. He’s someone everyone needs to listen to - a lot!

At least Lehrer is. Lehrer, you may recall, was the Perfect Schmuck who ignored the topic of Latin America in Miami during the first televised presidential debate on foreign policy, annoying me, annoying Miami Herald columnist Andres Oppenheimer, and even annoying Hugo Chavez, all three of whom complained about it one way or another. It looks like the guy is finally waking up because he is listening to a first-rater like Alvaro Vargas Llosa.

Don’t miss it. The details are here:

Senior Fellow Alvaro Vargas
Llosa will appear this evening on PBS-TV’s program, “The NewsHour
with Jim Lehrer”, which also airs on National Public Radio (NPR):

Friday, April 29, 2005
Airs on PBS, 6:00-7:00 p.m. local time throughout the U.S., but check
your local listings
Airs on NPR live 6:00-7:00 p.m. ET (3:00-4:00 p.m. PT)

UPDATE: Well, it was television, I just saw it. Schmuck Lehrer STILL couldn’t be bothered about Latin America so he had some underling with a Spanish name, Suarez, do it. I thought that was pretty tokenish, asking to myself, ‘is this guy really interested in Latam?’ Or was he just a token? From the lacklustre questions he asked, I was willing to guess the latter. And it infuriates me! I don’t like the ghettoizing of Latin America on the mainstream of TV news at all. ‘Latin hour, save it for the Latinos,’ I can imagine Lehrer saying. Such a goldarn schmuck! Latin America is not just for Latin Americans anymore, it is everyone in this hemisphere’s concern.

Of course Vargas Llosa and the other fellow from Duke University who was on were both gracious. But the quality of the questions was weak. And they saved the whole segment for the tail end of the show. It had a boring title - it was vaguely identified as ‘a view from South America,’ forgetting that the problems discussed were endemic to all of the region, not just the South American countries. They should have said Latin America. The Lehrer stand-in was not utterly dumb but not very enthusiastic. He probably wanted to be somewhere else. Also, he showed bad manners to Vargas Llosa.

Vargas Llosa explained and outlined the current struggle for the OAS leadership with the dramatic development in the last few hours of Mexico’s Derbez pulling out of the race, clearing the way for Hugo Chavez’s favorite candidate, Inzulza to be named chief. Vargas Llosa was just about to explain the significance of it and he was cut off right at the punch line. I definitely wanted to slap that Suarez guy. The polite thing for a newscaster with limited time to do is signal to the guest that there is 30 seconds remaining so he can concentrate his thoughts. No such luck from Suarez. He just cut Vargas Llosa off all of a sudden and moved on to the next segment. I was disgusted. Vargas Llosa was very interesting and clearly had something interesting to say. My guess is: Suarez, along with Lehrer, were not interested. They remain schmucks.

UPDATE II: I think I was right - I googled Ray Suarez, who as it turns out, is a distinguised enough journo on the American scene. But based on his past reporting, he doesn’t know beans about Latam. He’s pure Mister Domestic Issues. Therefore, throwing him in with a giant of Vargas Llosa’s caliber was a little above his head. I bet he didn’t have the slightest clue about what Vargas Llosa was getting at.

The Community of Democracies are meeting right now in my favorite city, Santiago de Chile, which I think is a fine country to hold such an event in. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is leading the U.S. delegation through this three day event from April 28-30. In the company of the democratic friends, she spoke of no less than the end of political tyranny worldwide.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday it is the historic duty of the world’s democracies to eliminate political tyranny. She addressed officials from more than 100 countries at the Community of Democracies meeting in Santiago.

Ms. Rice has made the promotion of democracy and free-market economics the theme of her current four-nation trip to South America, her first since taking office.

And in her address to the Community of Democracies, she said the world’s democrats should strive for nothing less than the end of dictatorial rule: “Every nation in this room has experienced moments of tyranny in its history, some long ago, some very recently. Today our citizens share the common bond of having overcome tyranny through our commitment to freedom and democracy. Now, it is our historic duty to tell the world that tyranny is a crime of man, not a fact of nature. Our goal must always be the elimination of tyranny in our world,” she said.

The Community of democracies is an informal grouping founded in 2000 to improve and advance democratic governance.

Ms. Rice said the selection of Chile for the group’s third ministerial meeting was a fitting choice, given what she said was that country’s triumphant return to democracy after a 1973 military coup.

In her address, the Secretary of State endorsed a Hungarian proposal to host a Democracy Transition Center to help countries in the process of becoming democratic.

She also urged support for the creation of what she termed a legitimate human rights body within the United Nations.

The Bush administration has been critical of the existing U.N. Human Rights Commission in Geneva, which earlier this week awarded seats to countries widely accused of human rights violations including Zimbabwe, China and Sudan.

Speaking of the UN, Kofi Annan also gave a speech at this meeting, emphasizing that democracy means more than elections, ironic given that three nations mentioned above who were just awarded UNCHR seats.

28 April 2005 ???????? The United Nations does more than any other single organization to promote and strengthen democratic institutions and democratic practices around the world, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the Community of Democracies today.

???????In that work, we are conscious that, while democracy is a universal value, there is no uniform model to be applied,??????? he said in a message to the Community????????s Third Ministerial Meeting in Santiago, Chile, delivered by former President Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico, who is one of the Secretary-General????????s envoys for next September????????s UN summit.

???????We are fully aware that, while democracy must come from within, international cooperation can help support it. And we have learned that while elections are a vital part of democracy, much more is required,??????? he added.

UN electoral staff is currently helping conduct elections in 45 countries and its human rights staff are at work in 39 countries, while dozens of other countries have benefited from technical or advisory missions and visits from special human rights rapporteurs and other human rights experts, Mr. Annan said.
…
Mr. Annan said the struggle for democracy required not only constant vigilance against unconstitutional seizures of power, but also the provision for the basic well-being of citizens, without which confidence in democracy could decline.

He invited members of the Community to contribute to a new voluntary Democracy Fund ???????? proposed by United States President George W. Bush ???????? that would assist projects to build and strengthen democratic institutions and governance.

Mr. Annan noted that in his ???????In Larger Freedom??????? reform agenda, now being discussed by UN Member States, he proposed a comprehensive strategy for international cooperation on development, security and human rights.

He said he hoped world leaders meeting in September to review the first five years of the Millennium Declaration on reducing or eliminating host of socio-economic ills by 2015 would ???????summon the vision and pragmatism to make far-reaching reforms and to renew the UN, rendering it a more effective instrument of their common purpose.

???????In that effort, the Community of Democracies has a vital role to play ???????? and, I believe, a clear interest in playing it,??????? he said.

I suppose Jimmy Carter is in on this too, as while I cannot name each of those 45 countries they help conduct elections in, I am willing to bet the vast majority of them are those with the most flawed. Freedom House released a statement saying that the UN Democracy Caucus, an outgrowth of the COD, is incredibly weak and must be strengthened in order to prevent human rights abuses from continuously slipping through the UN.

“The Democracy Caucus is still weak, and as a result, gross human rights violations continue to get a free pass at the UN,” said Freedom House Executive Director Jennifer. Windsor. “It is therefore of extreme importance that the current leadership of the Community of Democracies emboldens, empowers, and unites the Caucus. An endorsement of the Secretary General’s plan would be a significant step toward correcting the worst flaws of the UN’s current human rights regime,” she said.

The NGOs expressed concern that the invitation process for governments needs to be reformed, given the decision to invite a number of governments that clearly do not meet the democratic criteria of the Community of Democracies.

Invitations were made by a Convening Group composed of Chile, Czech Republic, India, Mali, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, South Africa, and the United States. They expressed particular concern over the decision to invite Russia and Venezuela as full participants. Both countries have experienced pronounced democratic backsliding and the erosion of political rights and civil liberties since the last COD meeting in 2002. In December, Freedom House downgraded Russia to “Not Free” in its annual global survey of freedom, “Freedom in the World,” due to the further concentration of political authority, harassment, and intimidation of the media, and other setbacks. Venezuela, which is “Partly Free” in the survey, has attacked non-governmental organizations engaged in democracy and human rights promotion for receiving funding from international sources.

“The COD is urged to uphold its own standards, which include not inviting countries where democracy is disrupted or severely degraded,” said Theodore Piccone, executive director of the Democracy Coalition Project. “In the case of Nepal, where the king has suspended the democratic process in the face of a Maoist insurgency, the COD did the right thing by revoking its invitation to the Santiago meeting,” he said. “It should have done the same with Russia and Venezuela given the steady deterioration of democracy we see there.”

Ouch. That’s probably just a matter of time anyhow. Read here what the Venezuelan delegation had to say. They weren’t pleased, but I suspect that if they stay on the course, they won’t be attending the next summit.

In any case, back to Condi, because she’s the real newsmaker. President Lagos of Chile and Secretary Rice had good words to exchange about one another.

Lagos, a Socialist and staunch opponent of Chile’s military dictatorship, is one of a number of left-of-center leaders in South America. Rice has said the political tendencies of governments around the hemisphere are of little importance to the United States so long as they respect democratic principles.

Lagos praised the éémodern, mature” U.S.-Chilean relationship and noted that two-way trade has grown sharply since a free trade agreement took effect.

During her travels, Rice repeatedly has been asked about the perceived erosion of democratic principles in Venezuela under the leadership of the country’s anti-American, pro-Cuban president, Hugo Chavez.

She has made a point of playing down U.S. concerns about Chavez, saying she wants to stress the administration’s éépositive agenda” for the hemisphere. Rice’s visit to Chile coincided with a visit by Chavez to Cuba.

At the start of her speech, Rice said all Community of Democracy members éédeclare our deep conviction that freedom is the universal longing of every soul, and democracy is the ideal path for every nation.”

Since the last high-level meeting of the group, in South Korea in 2002, Rice noted that free elections have been held in Afghanistan and Iraq and that éétremendous developments” have taken place in Georgia, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan and Lebanon.

Lagos’ Concertacion party, while indeed socialist, got him elected to office just about the same time I first left Chile in early 2000. When going back in 2003-2004, I noticed an incredible increase in the standard of living and infrastructure in Chile. Wages were up, trade was really up, and there was definitely no longer the electricity and water rationing we had to live through back then. He may bear the title of a “left-winger,” but his free trade economic policies and opposition to totalitarianism is something that the modern left can only hope to strive for.

I think that, overall, the summit is going to go very well. Rice had a stop in Brazil in which she urged them to also promote democracy as a regional and eventual world power. According to the article, Brazilian government officials have assured her that Brazil will work toward strengthening democracy in Venezuela without abridging its sovereignty. The most important part of this summit, however, is by far her clear and strong message “that tyranny is a crime of man, not a fact of nature. Our goal must always be the elimination of tyranny in our world.” I can think of no message more beautiful.

I’d find it hard to disagree with this.

The West African Bar Association (WABA) has called for the cancellation of the results of Togo’s election and formation a government of national unity, according to a statement from its president, Femi Falana.

“Any attempt to form a national government on the basis of the flawed elections will be resisted by the Togolese people,” Falana observed in a statement in Lagos Tuesday.

Falana said he was not surprised by the violence that greeted the declaration of the result of the presidential election, won by candidate Faure Gnassingbe of the ruling party, because, he said, Togolese were determined more than ever “to shake off the yoke of the Eyadema dynasty”.

Faure is the son of the late Togolese President Gnassingbe Eyadema.

African Union (AU) chairman and Nigeria’s President Olusegun Obasanjo announced Monday, after talks with Faure and opposition leader Gilchrist Olympio in Abuja, that the parties that featured in last Sunday’s elections had agreed to form a unity government.

Though Olympio was later quoted as having repudiated the supposed agreement, President Obasanjo insisted Tuesday that only a government of national unity can ensure peace and stability in Togo.

He urged the parties to respect the Abuja agreement.

Meanwhile, thousands continue to flee to Benin and the UN has dispatched an emergency refugee team there.

GENEVA, April 28 (UNHCR) ???????? As refugees fleeing general insecurity in Togo continue to cross into neighbouring Benin, UNHCR is deploying an emergency team to the country and trucking in further non-food supplies from its regional warehouse in Accra, Ghana, via Burkina Faso.

“The situation is still volatile in Togo and refugees are fleeing general insecurity, mainly into Benin. But many of them are telling us they want to stay close to the border to see if the situation settles down and they can return,” said UNHCR’s Africa bureau director, David Lambo.

By mid-day Thursday, more than 3,623 refugees had arrived in Benin since the election results were announced on Tuesday, with 2,000 crossing overnight on Wednesday ???????? the majority of them women and children. Over 500 of the refugees have been transferred to Come camp, 80 km from the capital Cotonou, where there is shelter, water and sanitation. In Athieme in southern Benin, where some 100 refugees arrived on Tuesday, only 19 refugees remain, as most preferred to join relatives in the area or move elsewhere. But as the security situation across the border in Togo is uncertain, all have opted to remain in Benin.

In Ghana, some 450 refugees have sought shelter, but there are initial reports of small numbers of new arrivals in the Dzozde district and Akatsi/Keta area fleeing general insecurity. A UNHCR mission is underway to check on the situation and verify the new arrivals.

“Generally the situation in Ghana is stable, with just small groups of people arriving, most of whom hope to be able to return to their home villages in the near future once things calm down,” said UNHCR’s Representative in Ghana, Thomas Albrecht.

UNHCR is mobilising funds and personnel to meet the demands of the new refugee influx. On Thursday, $500,000 was requested from the agency’s operational reserve to meet the immediate financial needs of the operation. In addition, a three-person emergency team of protection, programme and community services staff will deploy to Benin over the weekend to boost staff numbers already on the ground. Another three-person emergency team is on standby to be deployed at short notice.

In Ghana, the refugee agency is today loading up a convoy of four 10-tonne trucks to start taking non-food items for 5,000 people from its regional warehouse in Accra to Cotonou, where supplies for 2,500 people had already been pre-positioned. The 1,600-km journey via Burkina Faso is expected to last three days and the trucks will remain in Benin to assist with the delivery of assistance to refugees.

For the most part, violence has gone down in Togo. Again, for the most part, this is mainly because the military and police regime has reasserted itself. The State Department has spoken out against violence on both sides and wants to see a national unity government formed on the basis of reconciliation.

By Thursday, the mobs of machete-wielding demonstrators had disappeared from Lome’s opposition neighborhood of Be, scene of the heaviest clashes, while Lome’s downtown streets slowly came back to life.

Some shops had opened by late afternoon, but much of the capital remained shuttered and soldiers were visible everywhere.

But in Be, soldiers beat residents and forced them to dismantle crude roadblocks - symbols remaining from the days of unrest.

ééThis is what you’ve done, now take it apart,” one soldier screamed at several women walking past. The soldier whipped two of the women in the back with a steel cord, while other troops beat several teenage boys with clubs and batons, forcing them to work.

The troops grabbed motorcycle taxi drivers off their bikes and pressed them into cleaning streets piled high with stones, burned tires and garbage. The soldiers kept the bikes.

On Wednesday, people in Togo’s Tokoin neighborhood buried 6-year-old Fanou Kokou Marcelin. According to the boy’s father, he was shot and killed when gunmen wearing T-shirts bearing Gnassingbe’s face broke into the house at night and started shooting randomly.

Reports of violence in the countryside began emerging in the capital on Thursday.

Gerard Besson of the International Committee of the Red Cross said eight people died in political violence at the town of Atakpame, 100 miles north of Lome. Further details weren’t available and it wasn’t clear when the violence occurred.

Still, government officials on Thursday reopened Togo’s land borders, which had been closed two days before Sunday’s election.

The United States welcomed the decision to reopen borders and strongly condemned opposition parties’ agitation for violent protests over the election outcome.

State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said Thursday that reopening the borders was a éésign of progress, something we welcome.”

He urged the Gnassingbe’s government now to restore telephone service and let private radio and the press function freely.

Ereli said calls by Gnassingbe’s opponents to continue protests is éésomething we strongly condemn.”

ééWe continue to urge all political leaders to publicly insist that their supporters avoid violence,” he said, ééand we would certainly take this opportunity to hold accountable any leader who incites violence or contributes to violence.”

Ereli said the government and the opposition have an obligation to make peace with each other and join in dialogue aimed at reconciliation.

He also reasserted a statement Wednesday that the United States believes ééthere were serious questions about the legitimacy of the results and the legitimacy of the process. That is our judgment based on what we saw.”

A national unity government may be a good idea, as insofar it has been practically impossible to prevent each side from rioting at each other. It is important to remember that elections are not an end in themselves — especially ones that are totally rigged and held in haste. A national unity government would serve to serve broad appeals such as economic growth, stability, and preparing for real democratic elections on another date. A government of this type, being accountable to both sides, would also help foster the beginnings of free media, one of the key cornerstones in democratic development where so little of it exists.

Arthur Chrenkoff can go ahead and put this one under good news from Iraq.

Almost three months after the elections in January, Iraq’s National Assembly voted overwhelmingly Thursday to approve a Shiite-led cabinet, establishing the first elected government in Iraqi history.

The assembly chamber burst into wild applause after a show of hands revealed that 180 of 185 legislators in attendance had voted in favor, with almost a third absent.

A traditional Islamic chant of praise - “God’s blessings be on Muhammad and on his family” - went up soon afterward.

But the divisions that had delayed the government’s formation for so long became apparent almost immediately. Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the Shiite political alliance that dominates the assembly and the cabinet, gave a warlike speech hinting at purges to come in the government security forces.

A Sunni Arab assembly member later stood up to angrily accuse the Shiites of dividing the country and said one member had threatened to gather evidence that would send him to the gallows.

“This is not a national government, it is a government of the winners,” said the Sunni member, Meshaan al-Juburi. “I am here to say that the Sunni Arab members have been marginalized, and the Sunni Arab political forces should be aware of that.”

Tensions were visible even in the list of cabinet members, which remains incomplete. Four important positions - the ministries of Defense, Oil, Electricity, and Human Rights - were given to place holders, because the assembly’s political factions have not yet agreed on candidates.

Under pressure from Washington as well as fellow Iraqis, the members agreed to submit the incomplete list rather than delay it further. Two deputy prime minister posts have also not been filled. Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the new Shiite prime minister, said he expected to fill those positions in less than a week.

Despite the gaps, the assembly vote placed Jaafari at the head of a multi-ethnic cabinet that will include 17 Shiites, 8 Kurds, 6 Sunni Arabs, 1 Christian and at least 6 women.

Iraq’s Kurdish president, Jalal Talabani, and his two deputies approved the cabinet list late Wednesday night, allowing it to proceed to the assembly vote.

When it assumes power early next week, the new government will face an extraordinary array of challenges, from guiding the effort to write a new constitution to rebuilding Iraq’s shattered cities to fighting an undiminished insurgency.

Jaafari and his aides will also need to assert firm control over the provincial governments, which began to drift into chaos in recent weeks as Iraq’s post-election political stalemate continued. Last weekend, Bush administration officials warned Shiite and Kurdish leaders that the political vacuum appeared to be fueling the insurgency.

Mohammed from Iraq The Model has a lengthy post reflecting his take on the events of the day. Ali is also hosting a question and answer session from readers with regards to how daily life has progressed in Iraq.

I think that the above article is correct in saying that the vacuum caused by the month of trying to form a government has lead directly to a partial security fallout in some areas. The Iraqi blogs also give this impression, and Hammorabi blogs on it quite a bit. On the other hand, a new government has just been formed and the vacuum can be closed up, the difference now being that it will be necessarily done by Iraqis over American troops. The “insurgents” should be scared, because when the legitimately elected government cracks down on criminal terrorists, I can imagine they will not only be less politically correct than we are, but the everyday Iraqi will approve of the actions taken.

Ever wonder how Chavista-dom is changing the face of Venezuelan society?

Blogger Daniel walked into a Caracas restaurant now frequented by the nouveau elite of the newly wealthy Chavista class and encountered a plethora of hoggishness. He dubs this new Marie Antoinette class of communist thugs the Boliburguesa, or, Bolivarian Bourgeois. Believe it or not, they’re out there. Daniel then wrote an essay of manners a la Voltaire or Samuel Pepys. You have to read it here!

Instapundit alerts us to a Babes of Cairo sighting, see it here.

After hundreds of thousands protested in Mexico this weekend in defense of Obrador, Fox announced the resignation of the attorney general.

MEXICO CITY - Mexico’s attorney general has stepped down, in an apparent attempt to free President Vicente Fox’s government from a controversial legal battle with a popular leftist mayor.

Rafael Macedo de la Concha led a campaign that stripped Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador of immunity so he could stand trial on charges that he defied court orders in a land dispute.

If Lopez Obrador is found guilty, he could be blocked from running in next year’s presidential election.

Polls suggest the mayor holds a strong lead in the election, leading critics to accuse the government of cooking up bogus charges to knock off a political rival.

The stripping of his immunity ???????? and the subsequent claim that he was therefore stripped of his office ???????? sparked weeks of demonstrations. The largest, in Mexico City on April 20, drew hundreds of thousands of protesters.

Fox announced the resignation in a televised broadcast Wednesday, saying that his primary duty as head of state was “to promote national unity.”

The president said the new attorney general, as yet unnamed, would continue the case against Lopez Obrador while “seeking to preserve the greatest political harmony in the country.”

Fox, who can not run for re-election, also promised that the 2006 election would be free and fair.

“My government will prevent no one from participating in the next federal election race,” Fox said.

Also, on Wednesday, Fox agreed to meet with Obrador in order to discuss the charges.

Fox’s speech came after he agreed Wednesday to meet with Lopez Obrador to discuss criminal charges pending against the mayor over a minor land dispute. Analysts said his decision to meet with the mayor is a recognition that Lopez Obrador is holding the political high ground in the struggle over Macedo’s determination to charge Lopez Obrador with criminal contempt of court. No date for the meeting has been announced.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the meeting or Macedo’s resignation would defuse the political crisis that has enveloped this country since Congress lifted the mayor’s immunity from prosecution three weeks ago.

Fox is also planning to ask the congress to pass a law which would protect the political rights of people charged with a crime.

April 27 (Bloomberg) — Mexican President Vicente Fox, responding to criticism he’s trying to prevent the Mexico City mayor from running in next year’s presidential race, will ask Congress to pass a law that protects the rights of citizens facing criminal charges.

The initiative, if approved, would allow Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the frontrunner in presidential polls, to keep his political rights while being tried in court. Mexico’s attorney general’s office plans to file contempt of court charges against Lopez Obrador because he disobeyed a court order to halt construction of a road in 2001. Under Mexican law, defendants are considered guilty unless proven innocent.

I’m not sure what this law would do if Obrador is actually found guilty, but I think the “guilty until proven innocent” path is a bad one. I do think that the charges are politically motivated, so ensuring the political rights of people only charged with a crime is certainly acceptable. Perhaps it is a step in the direction of “innocent until proven guilty.”

UPDATE: Related, I just caught this, one of the most ironic stories of the day, on Fark.com. Fidel Castro thinks that Fox needs to resign. I wonder if his speech writer had a laughing fit when he wrote that.

Mass violence, dubbed by some as even “urban warfare,” has erupted in Togo over the last few days (See Gateway Pundit’s coverage here and some pictures here. Opposition Bob-Akitani has responded to the heavily flawed polls by declaring himself president to his supporters.

Togo’s opposition presidential candidate has declared himself president with 70% of the vote, despite official results giving him only 38%.

“We must fight with our lives if necessary,” Bob Akitani said, claiming the poll was rigged in favour of Faure Gnassingbe, the former leader’s son.

Security forces have again fired teargas at his supporters who erected and burned barricades in the streets.

Earlier, regional observers gave the poll a clean bill of health.

But the opposition has been collating the data from its agents who were at the polling stations, and says these prove Mr Akitani won all the most populous regions of the country.

According to provisional results from the electoral commission Mr Akitani - the main opposition candidate - got 38% of votes cast compared to 60% for the ruling RPT party candidate Mr Faure.

“Men and women of Togo, this is your president speaking,” Mr Akitani told journalists.

The opposition intends to appeal to the constitutional court which has still to confirm the result of the election.

Mr Akitani appealed to his supporters to stand firm, saying their strength was the determination of the people.

But it is difficult for him to get his message across to his supporters, correspondents say.

Local reporters were not at his press conference and the government closed down on Wednesday the local relay of Radio France Internationale and most of Togo’s private radio stations.

The government has warned the opposition that it will be held accountable for all violence in the capital. They are calling for a complete crackdown.

Togo’s interim government warns that security forces will detain all those acting illegally in the wake of increasing violence following controversial elections Sunday. Clashes involving angry opposition militants have already killed at least 20 people, but some residents say the number could be much higher.

In a speech on state television, interim leader Abass Bonfoh said he was asking all security forces to arrest those who go against the rule of law and order.

He also said any self-proclamation of being president by a losing candidate was “pure fantasy, null and void.”

Meanwhile, the State Department has agreed that the elections were flawed.

Washington, Apr 28: The US today said the legitimacy of Togo’s presidential elections “fell short of the aspirations of both the Togolese people and the expectations of Togo’s friends in the international community”.

“In particular, we would note irregularities in voter registration and voter card distribution prior to the election, and on election day, flaws in voting procedures that raise serious questions about the accuracy of the provisional vote totals which were announced yesterday,” State Department Deputy Spokesman Adam Ereli said.

Ereli continued: “The United States joins the African Union and the economic community of West African states in calling for the formation of a national reconciliation government in Togo in which all the principal political forces in the country participate.”

The goal of such a government, or the purpose of such a government, he said, would be to heal the political divisions in Togo created by this election process and to focus on constitutional reform and on an electoral code that would allow for fully credible, transparent and free elections in the future.

“We also take this opportunity to remind everybody involved in the process,” said Ereli, “that violence is not a solution. It is not the answer to this problem. All political leaders in Togo have a responsibility to ensure that their supporters remain calm and avoid violent confrontations.”

One thing I want to bring up now, amid all this violence, is the possibility of an inter-tribal conflict in Togo. A comment from a Togolese expat that was left in my first post this week highlights this.

It????????s a bit more complex than just the people versus the dictator????????s kid - like so much of Africa, there????????s a tribal element as well. The majority of the Togolese population are members of the Ewe tribe. Eyadema was a Kabye from the north of the country. Most of the army and police are also Kabye. There????????s quite a real chance that this could turn into a civil war between numerically superior Ewes and militarily trained and equipped Kabyes, with the usual atrocities from both sides. If it did come down to this, there is some chance of ghana becoming involved as well, since there is a large Ewe population in that nation too. The Olympio family has a great deal of support among the Ghanaian Ewes.

What will happen when the results are announced? I don????????t know. It may turn out to be as bad as Liberia. I hope and pray it does not.

There are two major stories regarding Ghana and Togo at the moment. The first is that as soon as the election results were announecd, Togolese soldiers fired across the border.

Aflao, April 27, GNA - Three people were injured when Togolese soldiers fired across the Ghana/Togo frontier at Aflao shortly after the declaration of the results of the presidential election on Tuesday. Mr King Kosmos 28, an artisan and two basic school pupils, Linda Donu, 10 and Mabel Ahedor, 13 are on admission at the Aflao District Government Hospital.
…
Ghanaian order security officials told the GNA that Togolese soldiers shot into a crowd of Ghanaians who hooted at them from Aflao, wounding the three.

The officials said the crowd had ignored cautions from Ghanaian security personnel on patrol duties to avoid getting close to the wire fence in view of the security risk involved.

Kosmos, one of the victims, however, denied any hooting incident, saying he was in the area playing games with friends when he was hit. The Togo side of the border remained closed.

Ghana has been officially trying to distance itself from the incident, however, saying that it is not ready for refugees.

The minister for information, Mr Daniel Kweku Botwe, has stated that it would be unwise and unfortunate for anyone to expect Ghana to put up measures to accommodate refugees from neighbouring Togo whilst efforts are being made to compel the contesting parties to accept the outcome of the election.

He said the best thing would be to wish for an incident-free and fair election that will see the election of a president who will be acceptable by all.

Mr Botwe said this yesterday when the paper enquired from him to know whether the Government was expecting any influx of refugees from Togo owing to the fact that the opposition in that country has promised hell fire if Mr Faure Gnassigbe is declared the winner of the election.

He told the paper that it is the hope of the Government that the people in Togo accept the outcome of the election as a true reflection of the will of the people and allow peace to prevail in the entire sub-region, stressing, ???????we can only hope that sanity prevails in the country.???????

But so far it looks like sanity does not prevail on either side, and if people try to pull Ghana into the violence or refugee situation, they may not be able to halt the momentum. Already, Benin is unable to control hundreds of refugees already fleeing the country.

COTONOU, April 27 (Reuters) - Hundreds of people have fled from southern Togo into neighbouring Benin after youths and security forces clashed in the town of Aneho, Togolese residents and a police official in Benin said on Wednesday.

The violence came after the son of Togo’s former authoritarian ruler was declared the winner of a weekend presidential election — triggering riots in the capital Lome in which at least 10 people have already been killed.

The police official in Benin, who did not want to be named, said around 600 people had already crossed the border.

The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR in Cotonou said people were still arriving on Wednesday although they did not have exact numbers.

The head of a private radio station in Aneho, 45 km (28 miles) from Lome, said opposition youths attacked the police headquarters and mayor’s house after the election victory of Faure Gnassingbe, son of former president Gnassingbe Eyadema.

“The security forces retaliated and several people were injured by bullets and people were also killed but I don’t know how many because I had to cross the frontier after the security forces wrecked my radio station,” the station owner said. (Additional reporting by John Zodzi)

At this point, nobody really knows what is going to happen.

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty was able to have an exclusive interview with Kyrgyzstan’s interim president Kurmanbek Bakiev, in which he talks about constitutional reform, separation of powers, and the free media.

Bishkek, 27 April 2005 (RFE/RL) — Interim President Kurmanbek Bakiev said today in an exclusive interview with RFE/RL that he supports constitutional reform in Kyrgyzstan, but added that he believes the branches of power need more authority if such reforms are to be implemented.

“The power of the president elected nationwide has to be greater, because he is elected by the entire Kyrgyzstan nation,” Bakiev said. “At the same time, the president…should have his ÄproperÅ responsibilities as well. For instance, the existing constitution does not contain Äresponsibilities for the presidentÅ.”

Bakiev said that all the branches of power Äexecutive, legislative, and judicialÅ must be equal. He said it is not good to give too much power to the presidency.

Bakiev, responding to questions regarding the negatives and benefits of former President Askar Akaev’s activities, said Akaev was an effective president until 1997. Bakiev said Akaev contributed to Kyrgyzstan’s efforts to develop a market economy and to democratic reforms, but eventually most government declarations were in word only and were never carried out and the country became more and more authoritarian.

Bakiev said that former President Akaev should not escape from his country. Bakiev also stressed that mass media outlets are now free to cover all the events in Kyrgyzstan. He said there is no order from his government to censor state owned media outlets.

Bakiev also criticized the current parliament for what he characterized as heavily politicized activities. He urged the parliament to work together with the interim government.

Bakiev said that the events in Kyrgyzstan on 24 March were the result of a people’s revolution, and that there was no contribution or influence from abroad, including the United States or Russia.

I think that if he can establish a government based on these principles, all the better. On the other hand, I think a strengthened legislature would serve the country better than a strengthened president. If we look at the United States, it is exactly because our legislature is the most powerful branch that it is divided into two houses. It is also the most responsive to the will of the people — and if the elections go fairly and freely come July 10, then every district will have both the candidate it wants in office and the ability to push legislation it wants. Compare this to extensively rigged elections where many popular candidates were prevented from running, and I think we’ll see a much better Kyrgyzstan by the end of the year.

…that he can trust his military anymore? Not very.

He’s got more things to worry about from his army than he can list. My own analysis of the galaxy of factors is here.

… among the Chavistas and the white coats are calling. Just another sunny day in Caracas. Read it here and here.

I spent the day on the phone, talking to people in Chile. Somehow, Chile’s famous world-class social security system always got brought up, and on every occasion, Chileans, no matter who they were, expressed a vibrant enthusiasm for the program. I can’t describe how intense it was - and it was utterly real. As the U.S. debates adopting the wonderful Chilean system - which, by the way, has a lot to do with why Chilean stocks are so hot in the market - Miguel Octavio asks the penetrating question of: Why isn’t the rest of Latin America looking at Chile’s quiet revolution for inspiration? It’s a good item and asks all the right questions, with a good use of statistics. Read it here.

Israel’s long-planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip is almost ready to go ahead, and it is becoming clearer what will take the place of Israeli administration there - a coalition government between the Palestinian Authority (run by the secular Fatah Party) and the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas.

The debate over the Gaza pullout has just about pulled Israel apart. Those who favor the pullout argue as follows: Since everyone knows that Israel will eventually have to leave Gaza, and since it is such a financial burden to maintain the few settlements there, it is better to leave now, even in the absence of an agreement with the Palestinians. Unlike the West Bank, which contains many Biblical holy sites, Gaza has nothing of real significance to the Jewish heritage, and this could be a show of good faith in addition to a cost-cutting measure.

Those who have opposed the Gaza pullout have argued that it would give Palestinian terrorists a state, and encourage them to increase the attacks, as was the case following Israel’s withdrawal from south Lebanon. They argue that Israeli should withdraw from territory only where there is an agreement in place with the Palestinians ensuring a peaceful, stable transition. (There are other opponents of the pullout, mainly settler parties, which oppose any withdrawal on the principal that a Jew should never be removed from part of Eretz Yisrael - the Land of Israel - but I am referring to reasonable people above.)

I have always been ambivalent about this issue. Certainly, Israel will have to withdraw from territory taken in 1967, but not if it leads to a terrorist state in Gaza or the West Bank, and it appears that this may well be the result. Today Al-Quds Al-Arabi published an article headlined “Hamas Rejects Abu Mazen’s Call for a Split with its Armed Wing in Case it Participates in Elections.” The fact that PA President Mahmud Abbas (aka Abu Mazen) called for Hamas to disarm, and not just in front of Western television cameras, is a good thing. But this also shows how powerless he is. Hamas boycotted the Palestinian presidential elections but did respectably in the local elections, and might win a majority if Gaza has fair elections following the transfer.

Moreover, on Tuesday Al-Hayat published a report entitled “Dahlan Proposes Nationalist and Islamist Power Sharing Responsibility for Gaza After the Withdrawal.” This is a reference to Muhammad Dahlan, current Civil Affairs Minister and a former security chief in Gaza, a member of the younger generation of Palestinians whom some in the West hoped might succeed Arafat. The article notes that he suggested regular bimonthly meetings between Palestinian Authority officials and Hamas and other Islamist parties, and refers to the proposal as including “complete responsibility” for Gaza.

The article also discussed various measures Abbas has taken to manage the transfer, including six “technical groups” to essentially function as ministries after Israel pulls out. These measures included the appointment of Rashid Abu Shabak as security chief over both the West Bank and Gaza. As this Jerusalem Post article explains, Abu Shabak is believed to have been involved in an attack on a school bus that killed two teachers and maimed three children, and is also alleged by Israel to have been involved in the hunting and killing of Palestinians who cooperate with Israel.

So, overall, not a great day on this front.

Contributed by Kirk H. Sowell of Window on the Arab World, and More!

Hat tip to Stefania for letting me know about this. Tell me everyone, how often do you see this happen?

DAMASCUS: Chanting “freedom, freedom,” about 200 Syrians protested on Sunday outside a Damascus state security court where a prominent human rights campaigner accused of opposing the state was on trial.

The area was sealed off by about 50 riot police as demonstrators, including many Kurds, carried posters of the defendants and banners denouncing the emergency law in force in Syria since the Baath Party took power in 1963.

Among three activists on trial Sunday was prominent campaigner Aktham Naisse, who faces between three years and life in jail if convicted on charges of activities against the state.

Naisse, who heads the Committee for the Defense of Democratic Liberties and Human Rights in Syria, was detained in April 2004 after he organized a rare demonstration calling for the lifting of the emergency laws.

He was freed on bail after five months in detention.

Foreign diplomats and representatives of international organizations attended his trial, which was adjourned until June 26, lawyer Anwar Bunni said.

His group denounced the court as “illegal and unconstitutional” and said Naisse’s trial “raises many questions over promised political reforms and the ability of the Syrian authorities to deal with challenges.”

Also on trial was Kurd Shevan Abdo, who was arrested following bloody clashes in northern Syria in March 2004. Demonstrators cheered and chanted “freedom, freedom” as he arrived in court in a prison van.

The court also heard from the defense team of Massaab Hariri, who has been in detention for three years. His father is wanted for being a member of banned Muslim Brotherhood.

Human rights groups have repeatedly called for the release of detainees, as well as the scrapping of the security court and the emergency law. - AFP

Is this the first piece of glass to break in Assad’s regime? One protest usually doesn’t tell us much, but one protest in Syria might. The political fallout after the army’s withdrawal from Lebanon is enormous. What we might see in the many months to come are increasing protests, and with the international eye magnifying pressure on him, Assad will be less likely to go Hama on them.

Constitutionally, the Lebanese electoral law must be passed a month before the elections are to take place. Which means they have have three days left– April 29th. New and short-living Premier Mikati wants to hold the election over a period of three days.

Parliament on Tuesday opened a nationally televised debate of a policy statement by Premier Mikati’s newly formed government, which is seeking a vote of confidence on a basis that the elections would be held in three stages on May 26, 29 and 31.

The prime minister has made it plain that he was unshakably determined to hold the elections within the last week of May irrespective of which law the parliament would endorse for the first elections after Syria’s evacuation of Lebanon.

One of the draft electoral laws that would favor the pro-Syrians, however, would take quite a long time to implement.

The second option, which both Hizbullah and Amal have called for, is the designation of an electoral law of proportional representation in larger districts known as mohafazat or governorates. (For an example of how to calculate the appointment of seats in a proportional representation system, see box on left).

But such a system has never existed in Lebanon and would require a thorough count of the country’s population to accurately divide the electoral districts, particularly considering the sectarian requirements for the 128 seats in Parliament.

According to the 1989 Taif Accord, Parliament’s 128 seats must be split 50-50 between Christians and Muslims, with each half required to include representation of the country’s 18 recognized confessions.

Considering the monumental undertaking this system would entail, observers have said calls for its implementation can only serve to delay polls.

If the system is implemented in Lebanon, it is expected to be designed in a way that respects the sectarian division of parliamentary seats. Several suggestions have been put forward by electoral experts on how to implement the system, but none has yet been approved.

Proportional representation asks voters to elect one entire list of candidates as opposed to individual names. It could be applied on a national level drawing the whole country as a single electoral district or in large regions known as governorates.

The third option is a possible compromise between the two previous electoral systems that some observers have said Mikati may suggest. It considers the implementation of a mixed system, including both majority and proportional representation.

This system was first implemented in Germany and stipulates the election of half of Parliament based on a majority system and the other half based on proportional representation.

Voters would simultaneously elect a candidate that represents their electoral district and a list that represents their political affiliations.

But this system has also never been implemented in Lebanon and would require preparations to explain it to voters and candidates. Therefore, it could also be seen as a means to delay elections.

Another complication for Mikati’s new Cabinet is the fact there is no clear-cut preference for an electoral law among the loyalists as a group or among the opposition.

I’ve written about the possibilities concerning the electoral law at length so you may want to check that out. Keeping the districts as they are now, however, would best suit the opposition.

It’s a little opportunist, but the Belarussian opposition has to take advantage when it can! They took the anniversary of Chernobyl and turned it into a rally against Lukashenko.

MINSK, April 26 (Reuters) - Police in ex-Soviet Belarus on Tuesday detained more than two dozen protesters who tried to present a petition to President Alexander Lukashenko on the 19th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Belarus’s small opposition, which accuses Lukashenko of systematically violating human rights, traditionally stages its largest protest of the year on the anniversary of the accident which contaminated a quarter of the country’s territory.

But given the routine dispersal by police of even small rallies in recent months, organisers decided against major protests this year and wanted instead to hand in a petition.

“Citizens of Belarus demand to know what the authorities are doing to solve the problems of Chernobyl,” read the petition, read out by activists outside the presidential administration.

Police seized about 15 of the 300 protesters after they unfurled a banner reading “Today Ukraine, tomorrow Belarus!” — referring to last year’s “Orange Revolution” protests which led to the election of liberal president Viktor Yushchenko.

About 10 activists of Russia’s liberal Union of Right Forces party were detained before the rally, a party official said.

Demonstrators were demanding an end to efforts by Lukashenko’s government to persuade villagers to return to resettle areas affected by the April 26, 1986 explosion in Chernobyl’s fourth reactor — the world’s worst civil disaster.

And they were so kind, too. Come on, Lukashenko! They just wanted to give you a petition!

I guess this means there’s no chance of a unity government, though that was far-fetched anyhow. Here are the cold, dry results.

Announcing the results, the head of the CENI National Electoral Commission, Kissem Tchangai-Walla, said Gnassingbe of the Rally of the Togolese People (RPT) won 60.22 percent of the vote in Sunday’s poll while the main opposition candidate Emmanuel Bob-Akitani captured 38.19 percent.

“In view of these results … the candidate of the RPT has been provisionally elected,” said Kissem Tchangai-Walla.

The electoral commission chief said the provisional results must be confirmed by the constitutional council under Togolese law and that they did not include polling stations where ballot boxes had been destroyed.

Accusations of fraud and voting irregularities have been made by both sides in an election marred by violence, with diplomats and hospital sources saying three people had been killed in clashes on Sunday.

The weekend vote was held after the sudden death in office on 5 February of Eyadema, who ruled the tiny country of five million people for 38 years, becoming Africa’s longest serving ruler.

Turnout was high in the landmark election, at 63.57 percent, according to CENI.

The election was a straight race between Gnassingbe, who is 39, and 74-year-old Bob-Akitani, who ran on behalf of a coalition of six opposition parties.

A third opposition candidate, Nicolas Lawson won 1.04 percent according to the provisional results while Harry Olympio, who at the last minute withdrew from the race, nonetheless picked up 0.55 percent, CENI said.

The election results are in, though. And seconds after the announcement, protestors spilled into the streets.

The son of Togo’s late leader Gnassingbe Eyadema who ruled Togo for 38 years, has won Sunday’s controversial presidential election, sparking riots in the capital and calls for popular resistance by the opposition.

Just seconds after the national electoral commission said Faure Gnassingbe had won the presidential vote with a provisional tally of more than 60 percent, opposition militants armed with axes, machetes and sticks, started running in the streets of Lome, burning tires, erecting barricades and stopping cars, eliciting gunfire and tear gas from soldiers and police in riot gear.

Smoke rose in the sky in many parts of the coastal capital.

One of the protesters said he was not scared.

“We want to be killed by the soldiers or we will kill them,??????? he said. ???????We won’t allow Faure to become president in this country. He will not become president in this country. We don’t want Faure. Togo is not the property of the Gnassingbe family. Togo is the property of all the Togolese. We are tired, see ÄafterÅ 38 years, see the country, see the roads, all of us, we don’t get work, we are not doing anything.”

Other residents in Lome immediately left public areas and sought refuge inside their homes. One journalist had his car smashed.

The campaign director for the 39-year-old new president immediately appealed for calm.

Komi Klassou said Faure Gnassingbe was no longer a candidate, and as new president he would move swiftly to make changes to bring about reconciliation and change for the country’s youth.

But an opposition spokesman, Jean-Pierre Fabre, called for what he called a popular resistance movement.

He said the results were in his words a ridiculous masquerade of fraud, and that youths should take to the streets to prevent Mr. Gnassingbe from taking power. He also blamed the international community saying it was backing the continuation of the Eyadema reign.

For more, check out Gateway Pundit. Unlike Zimbabwe, the opposition leaders are actively encouraging their followers to rebel.

Alek Boyd has a disturbing e-mail message from someone inside Venezuela’s phone system, reporting the growing signs of a potential Internet blackout in beleaguered Venezuela. If so, this would be the first steps toward making the Internet as accessible to Venezuelans as it is to Cubans. And that’s not a step upward. Read it here.