Guyana-Venezuela Border Dispute: Timeline of Recent Events
(Updated August 2003)
December 1997
¤ A National Development Strategy for Guyana was informally agreed, designed to
assist the country to develop economically in ways that bring together all sectors of
society. The Strategy was drafted by representatives of the Indo-Guyanese, AfroGuyanese and indigenous Amerindian communities, with Carter Center facilitation.
July 1998
¤ President Janet Jagan and Venezuelan President Rafael Caldera proposed an
ecological co-operation agreement (Stabroek News and Venezuela's El Nacional), under
which the two countries would jointly define the ecological considerations underpinning
mining and logging operations in the Essequibo. Jagan said this did not affect their
agreement to resolve their border controversy within the framework of the Geneva
Agreement and the United Nations-based Good Officer process.
However, critics of Jagan’s People's Progressive Party's frontiers policy complained
of non-consultation with the minority PNC party “which has a more than fair record in the
management of relations with Venezuela, over a long period, and in the face of
frightening provocation.” They argued that the Venezuelan Foreign Minister had long
sought to sell Caracas's so-called 'globality' policy, the central element of which was the
idea of the joint Guyana-Venezuela development of the Essequibo zone which
Venezuela claims. This is in contrast to Guyana's long held policy towards Venezuela,
that the Essequibo is Guyana's sovereign territory and there can be no question of joint
development of that land or restrictions on Guyana's sovereign right to the exploitation of
the mineral- and timber-rich Essequibo (Guyana Review).
December 1998
¤ The Venezuela electorate surprised the political establishment by voting in General
Hugo Chavez as president. The populist former coup leader raised hopes that as a
nationalist outsider, he could bring change to a nation struggling with corruption and a
faltering, oil-dependent economy.
May 1999
¤ Officials of Beal Aerospace Technologies Inc., a Texas-based company, held talks
with the Government of Guyana regarding the construction of a launch site on the
northern bank on the Waini River which is part of the Essequibo area claimed by
Venezuela.
June 1999
¤ Venezuela is reported to be opposed to the proposed satellite launch site in the Waini
area and that Venezuela's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is moving to study the
environmental implications of the satellite launch site (Stabroek News, Guyana).
August 1999
¤ Janet Jagan stepped down as president of Guyana (reportedly because of advanced
age) in favor of her finance minister, Bharrat Jagdeo. The predominantly Afro-Guyanese
People’s National Congress, led by former president Desmond Hoyte, refused to
recognize the new leader as they have refused to recognize previous leaders from the
Indo-Guyanese dominated ruling People’s Progressive Party which has been in office
over the last decade.
October 1999
¤ Venezuela protested to Guyana and to the UN “Good Officer” in charge of finding a
solution to the border controversy between the two countries, Sir Alister McIntyre, that oil
exploration licenses granted earlier this year to Century Offshore Management
Corporation and Maxus Energy Corporation by Guyana extend into Venezuelan territory.
Cabinet Secretary Roger Luncheon confirmed that the Guyana Geology and Mines
Commission might have used the wrong boundary markers in granting the licenses.
¤ Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Jose Vicente Rangel, said that the oil companies
granted permission to explore for oil offshore from Guyana had agreed to suspend their
operations until Venezuela's claim to the Essequibo region had been settled (Oct. 8
report from Caracas by the Bloomberg News Agency, and by the Venezuelan daily
newspaper, El Nacional). Rangel was also reported as saying that a settlement could
involve an agreement to share the resources of the area being claimed by Venezuela.
¤ Venezuelan helicopters intruded into Guyana's airspace and several shots were fired
by Venezuelan National Guardsmen from Ankoko Island, half of which is within the
disputed Essequibo territory but which has been occupied by Venezuela since 1968.
¤ A statement from Guyana's Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicated that Guyana had been
assured that unusual movements of Venezuelan troops along the border pose no threat
to Guyana's territorial integrity and national sovereignty. They are said to be exclusively
related to an exercise being conducted to counter the trafficking of drugs in the area.
¤ Venezuela's Constitutional Assembly approved an article recognizing only those
territorial treaties and rulings “not considered null.” Included under this null category is
the 1899 decision of the International Tribunal of Arbitration which awarded the
Essequibo region to then British Guyana.
¤ The Assembly of Caribbean Community Parliamentarians (ACCP) meeting in Grenada
passed a resolution in support of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Guyana,
stating their desire for a peaceful settlement to the controversy between Guyana and
Venezuela.
¤ An Oct. 27 communiqué from the conference of Heads of Government of the
Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in Trinidad and Tobago fully endorsed the resolution
approved by the ACCP in Grenada, reiterating their firm support for sovereignty and
territorial integrity of Guyana and their desire for a peaceful settlement with Venezuela.
November 1999
¤ A Nov. 15 communiqué issued in South Africa by the Commonwealth Heads of
Government expressed their firm support for and solidarity with the Government and
people of Guyana in the maintenance of their territorial integrity and sovereignty, and
commended their continued commitment to a peaceful settlement to the controversy with
Venezuela.
December 1999
¤ Guyana's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Clement Rohee, said: "The Essequibo belongs to
Guyana and if we give concessions to anyone to exploit the country's resources we
expect them to do so." This was in response to a question about an October 8 report
from Caracas by the Bloomberg News Agency. Rohee asserted that he knew of no
agreement which provided for the non-exploitation of the resources of the Essequibo nor
of proposals to share the resources to be exploited with Venezuela.
March 2000
¤ On March 20, both of Guyana's daily newspapers, Guyana Chronicle and Stabroek
News, reported that President Hugo Chavez vowed to maintain Venezuela's longstanding claim over three-quarters of Guyana. President Chavez also expressed
concern about plans by the Texas-based private company, Beal Aerospace
Technologies Inc., to build a rocket-launch site for commercial satellites in the sparsely
populated disputed area.
March 2000
¤ Guyana is reported by the New York Times to be opening up its economy to
investment, after nearly three decades of inward-looking, socialist-inspired policies, at
time when Brazil is flexing economic muscle with policies aimed at strengthening ties
with neighbors. A new 60-mile road will link thinly populated southern Guyana with Boa
Vista, state capital in northern Brazil, symbolizing Brazil's increased presence in region
but also stirring fears that Guyana will be drawn into Brazil's orbit once it is completed.
Some fear that increased trade with a neighboring economic powerhouse may bring
economic growth at the expense of national identity.
April 2000
¤ According to Gerald Gouveia, founder of Guyana’s Roraima Airways, progress has
been made in strengthening Guyanese ties with Brazil through the forming of a tourism
and trade commission (which he heads). Gouveia says Guyana is realizing that much of
its future is linked to better Brazilian relations. (New York Times).
May 2000
¤ The Government of Guyana entered into an Agreement with Beal Guyana Launch
Services, LLC, a subsidiary of Beal Aerospace Technologies Inc., to establish a space
launch facility in the north west region of Guyana which is claimed by Venezuela. The
agreement was signed on May 19 at the Office of the Prime Minister and provides for a
99-year lease of land for the site.
June 2000
¤ A Canadian oil company, CGX Energy Inc., was preparing to drill off the coast of
Guyana under a production-sharing contract with the government of Guyana, when
Suriname patrol boats forced them to retreat. The patrol boats were part of a larger fleet
recently purchased by a rapidly expanding Suriname military. Despite a weak economy,
Suriname had been using international loans to beef up its military through the purchase
of boats and aircraft. CGX has secured exploration rights from Guyana's government for
a 5,970-square-mile (15,280-square-kilometer) area that runs along the coast and
includes some of the disputed zone. Other companies with concessions granted by
Guyana in the disputed area include Exxon to the north and a joint venture involving ENI
of Italy and Repsol of Spain to the west. CGX has invested more than $12 million to
explore the area in the past two years, and seismic surveys have suggested the
possibility of huge oil deposits. (Since June, CGX has drilled an exploratory well on
another site outside the zone, but didn't find oil there. Since then, there has been little
coastal exploration for oil in the region—AP).
¤ Guyana and Suriname met in Trinidad on June 6 to discuss the claim by Suriname to
the southwestern corner of Guyana. However, no agreement came out of the talks,
which ended in July.
July 2000
¤ Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said on 21 July that the planned commercial
rocket-launch site in Guyana could be used for military purposes. He reasoned that the
planned rocket base would be protected by troops from the United States and vowed
that his country will block the project. Guyana's Prime Minister Samuel Hinds responded
that the base will be used only for the launching of commercial satellites and not for
military purposes. He said that the agreement with Beal does not include military use
and that there will be no US troops at the site. Chavez's critics, including Carlos Andres
Perez, see in his statements an effort to distract Venezuelans from mounting problems
(New York Times).
¤ Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Jose Vincente Rangel, indicated in a television interview
on 26 July that Venezuela would grant oil exploration concessions in the large disputed
border area that is currently part of Guyana. According to Reuters, the Foreign Minister
stated, "We have warned oil companies that have accepted concessions there from
Guyana that we would take measures."
¤ President Bharrat Jagdeo on 28 July accused Venezuela of trying to scare serious
investors away from Guyana. He said that Guyana would spare no effort to counter
Venezuela's offer of oil concessions on Guyana's territory.
¤ A statement released on 29 July by Guyana's Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused
Venezuela of blatant interference in trying to block the development of the Beal
commercial rocket launch site. The release also expressed deep concern at recent
statements by Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez against Beal Guyana Launch
Services.
August 2000
¤ According to an August 3 report in the Venezuelan daily newspaper El National,
Energy Minister Ali Rodriguez stated that his country will not explore for oil off the
Essequibo coast if Guyana suspends oil exploration licenses which were granted to
Century and Exxon in the disputed area. Venezuela regards the granting of the
concessions to the oil companies as a breach of the Geneva agreement.
¤: Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Jose Vincente Rangel, claimed on August 9 that the oil
companies, Century and Exxon, were ready to cancel oil concession contracts which
they were granted by the Guyana Government in the disputed Essequibo area. He noted
that Century has already indicated to the Guyana Government that it intends to cancel
its contract and that Exxon is studying the move.
October 2000
¤ Beal Aerospace Technologies Inc. announced on October 23 that it has terminated its
program for launching commercial satellites. Unfair competition from the US
government-subsidized NASA was cited as the main reason behind the decision.
November 2000
¤ An enabling law was passed by the Venezuelan legislature allowing the President
broad license to create legislation. This new power, along with a constitution already
amended in his favor and an absolute majority in the legislature, give Chavez very few
obstacles in governing the way he wants and sending Venezuela in the direction he sees
fit.
December 2000
¤ President Chavez, until recently considered widely popular, suffered a rare political
setback in a referendum on trade union laws. According to The Economist, he still
enjoyed majority support and it did not mean that the populace was turning against him.
But the defeat is a signal that his political support was waning and that he will have to be
more mindful of public opinion than he had been.
¤ Colombia withdrew its ambassador from Venezuela for several weeks after FARC
rebels were invited to speak to a group of Venezuelan parliamentarians. Chavez had
become increasingly supportive of the FARC, a left wing revolutionary group in
Colombia, since coming to power a year earlier but after this diplomatic incident he has
softened his line.
March 2001
¤ Bharrat Jagdeo, an Indo-Guyanese, was reelected as president of Guyana. Deadly
riots flared up as Afro-Guyanese, representing a third of the population and led by
former president Desmond Hoyte, protested their lack of political power. The Carter
Center drafted a statement of cooperation between the two opposing sides that both
leaders signed, but the riots continued. According to The Economist, Guyana has
teetered on the brink of ethnic violence for years and these riots are ominous signs of
what could be an unstable domestic future.
¤ Guyana's government has said it will build a navy to counter what it calls Surinamese
aggression. The country, which until recently had only small coastal patrol boats, now
plans to buy two used military ships from Britain and to obtain three ships from the
United States in exchange for pledging to cooperate in anti-drug patrols. Military leaders
in Suriname say they plan to put most of this year's roughly 400 military recruits into its
navy. "We have heard that Guyana is trying to build a navy," Defense Minister Ronald
Assen said earlier this year. "I do not think they want to fight Suriname, but we are
watching them closely” (AP).
¤ Tension between Venezuela and Colombia flared up again over the FARC as
Venezuela released a suspected terrorist wanted for extradition to Colombia. Both sides
exchanged harsh rhetoric and Chavez personally presided over military training
operations only a few miles from the border with Colombia. Francisco Arias Cardenas,
an opposition leader and Chavez rival in Venezuela stated: “I fear the president may
have a war with Colombia in mind.” Chavez’ support for the FARC, which is in open
rebellion against Colombia’s government and engages in political assassination, was
seen as troubling to OAS nations.
November 2001
¤ Chavez was reported as continuing to lose support, as the price of oil, Venezuela’s
main source of wealth, fell to $16.5 per barrel. His poll numbers fell from a previous high
of 90% approval rating to barely 40% in November. Loss of domestic support from many
sectors was also evidenced by the breakup of his political party and by worsening
relations with organized labor and the military. He was accused of trying to use foreign
conflict to rally domestic support when he criticized the U.S. in early November for its
war in Afghanistan.
December 2001
¤ The problems facing Chavez became more serious as labor unions successfully
organized a one-day work stoppage. His poll numbers dropped closer to 30% and he
was accused of resorting to subtle threats of military power to try to deter opposition.
While it was clear to many that the military would not agree to any unconstitutional
decisions, Chavez was determined not to compromise with his opponents and “political
turmoil” continued.
April 2002
¤ Chavez was briefly deposed in a coup, following demonstrations of popular discontent
from a variety of sources (including oil executives, organized labor, and farmers)
unhappy with his “Bolivarian Revolution” policies. The military would not fully support
him and he was deposed after massive protests in Caracas. However it soon became
clear there was little popular support for a coup against a democratically elected leader
either domestically or internationally, and under international pressure from Latin
American nations, Chavez was reinstated as leader in a matter of days.
July 2002
¤ On July 4 Georgetown erupted in political violence in which two demonstrators were
shot to death by police. The rioting, reportedly intended by the Afro-Guyanese
demonstrators to embarrass the Indo-Guyanese president, Bharrat Jagdeo, as he
hosted a summit of the Caribbean Community, resulted in demonstrators storming the
presidential complex and torching shops in the city center.
August 2002
¤ On August 3 supporters of Chavez clashed with riot police in the most serious
outbreak of street violence since the attempted coup. The violent protests had started in
anticipation of the nation’s high court ruling against the coup leaders being brought to
court. It turned out the court did rule in favor of the coup leaders a few days later.
Caracas had seen sporadic street violence since the coup.
¤ Also on August 3, several South American countries, including both Guyana and
Venezuela, signed a Peace Zone Declaration. It banned the use of force, or the threat
of the use of force, in South America.
¤ On August 24 unidentified gunmen shot and killed the deputy head of Guyana’s antidrug agency, the most recent in a series of attacks on the nation’s law enforcement
community. Gunmen had apparently attacked that agencies headquarters days before
the August 24 event, and also had killed 8 policemen and several businessmen in the
prior weeks and months. This was part of a larger violent crime wave sweeping the
country.
September 2002
¤ After the offshore border dispute between Guyana and Suriname in June 2000, the
two countries were reportedly trying to reach an agreement on a joint venture so they
could each share in the expected massive oil revenue from drilling. However by
September 2002 there had been little progress on an agreement.
¤ On September 26 gunmen opened fire on a bar popular with Guyana’s ruling party,
killing 3 and injuring 7. This was part of a wider crime wave intensifying in Guyana.
October 2002
¤ Dissatisfaction over the massive crime wave in Guyana, and poor economic
performance led to a 2 day business shutdown and calls by the opposition for the
president to resign.
¤ On October 10 worker groups in Venezuela organized a 400,000-strong march in
opposition to Chavez, and polls at the time showed almost 70% of Venezuelans in favor
of cutting the term of Chavez short.
November 2002
¤ On November 3 it was announced that Samuel Rudy Insanally, Foreign Minister of
Guyana, was to meet with Kofi Annan before year end to push for a final settlement to
the border dispute with Venezuela.
¤ A still worsening crime wave in Guyana has killed almost 140 since January (four
times the normal rate). The rising level of violent crime has undermined the popularity of
the government and increased racial tensions, leading some newspapers to renew calls
for dividing the nation into an Indian and African half.
¤ In mid November it was reported that Brazil had carried out a military operation in the
region of Guyana claimed by Suriname, to destroy several airstrips used by drug
traffickers. The Brazilian government did not confirm the story but insisted that if it had
been carried out it would have been done with Guyana's permission. Officials for
Guyana denied knowledge of the operation. This raised worries in Guyana that such
operations could set a dangerous precedent for Venezuela to involve itself in the
Essequibo region.
¤ On November 10 Venezuela’s opposition and the government began talks to resolve
the political crisis in the country with the OAS mediating. However the political situation
in Venezuela continued to worsen, and on November 19 the National Guard dispersed
thousands of protestors in Caracas with tear gas to prevent a street battle between
government supporters and opponents protesting Chavez’s placing several Caracas
police stations under military control.
December 2002
¤ On December 1 an agreement between Venezuela and Guyana, signed a year earlier,
was activated which allowed Guyana to by oil from Venezuela on concessionaire terms
during times of high global oil prices.
¤ On December 2 Venezuela’s fourth general strike in a year was called following the
rejection of a non-binding referendum on Chavez’s presidency. By mid-December oil
exports were largely halted and the country brought to a standstill. Through the rest of
the month, Venezuela was in extreme crisis and near economic collapse as strike
leaders insisted the strike would not end until Chavez stepped down.
¤ On December 5 Amerindian groups in Guyana expressed outrage that they were not
consulted with a decision to set up a nature preserve in southern Guyana. The
Amerindian Peoples Association called it a gross disrespect to 200 Wai Wait Indians
who live in the designated area.
¤ On December 12 Afro-Guyanese leaders reacted to rumors of sophisticated weapons
acquisition by the government by warning of planned genocide, urging PNCR supporters
to be "focused, vigilant, and mobilized." The Indo-Guyanese ruling party urged them to
resume dialogue, insisting on a process beyond bilateral talks between President
Jagdeo and Desmond Hoyte, towards a sustained engagement between the two sides.
¤ On December 22 Desmond Hoyte, former President and leader of the Afro-Guyanese
opposition, died. He had instigated much of the extreme, ethnically motivated opposition
to the Indo-Guyanese government in recent years, and had last broken off talks with
President Jagdeo in April 2002. His unexpected death was considered an opportunity for
rapprochement in the stormy relationship between the government and opposition.
January 2003
¤ Throughout January the general strike in Venezuela continued, accompanied by
massive, occasionally violent street demonstrations. However by the end of the month
the strike showed signs of ending. By January 28 Venezuela was able to produce more
than a billion barrels of oil a day, creeping up to one-third of pre-strike levels.
¤ On January 6 the government of Guyana, and the ruling People's Progressive Party,
expressed its complete solidarity with Chavez and his government in Venezuela and
condemned efforts to overthrow the democratically elected government.
¤ Seven policeman were killed in Guyana in January, as a devastating crime wave and
murder spree continued, with ethnic tensions considered a common motive. The army
and police clashed violently with residents protesting their heavy-handed search tactics.
February 2003
¤ On February 2 Chavez declared victory as the two-month-old general strike in
Venezuela had all but collapsed. Oil production was continuing to climb but the economy
had shrunk by 17% in fourth quarter 2002. Tensions remained high through February,
with Chavez attempting to crack down on opposition leaders, and the discovery of four
murdered opponents of the regime.
¤ In mid February, the two major parties in Guyana met to try to improve relations, the
first such engagement since Desmond Hoyte’s successor, Robert Corbin, took up the
presidency of the Afro-Guyanese PNCR party. Corbin announced his party would end its
year-long boycott of parliament and take their seats. However several days later the
boycott resumed, as the ruling party rejected several PNCR policy proposals.
March 2003
¤ At least 7,000 protestors marched peacefully in Georgetown against what they saw as
extra-judicial killings by police as a tactic to control the continuing crime wave. Over 200
people, mainly Afro-Guyanese, have been killed by police over the last seven years.
¤ On March 12 Guyana protested a demand by Suriname that all diplomatic missions
there show the territory disputed between the two as within Suriname on their maps: the
6,000 square mile New River Triangle is internationally recognized as part of Guyana.
Guyana claimed the move could undermine efforts to improve relations and insisted that
they both continue to use the Joint Border Commission as the forum for border issues.
¤ On March 13 Guyana sent extra troops and gunboats to patrol the Corantijn River, the
border between Guyana and Suriname, as a “show of force”. There was said to be a real
threat of military conflict for the first time since the eviction by Surinamese gunboats of a
Canadian offshore oil rig in June 2000 from coastal waters disputed with Guyana. The
increased tensions threatened already lethargic CARICOM-mediated talks (started after
the June 2000 crisis) over joint oil exploration in what may be one of the largest
untapped oil fields in the world.
¤ On March 27 the leader of the failed Venezuelan general strike, Carlos Ortega, was
sent into exile. The opposition was already losing much of its leverage due to the failure
of the strike, although conflict continued between Chavez supporters and opponents.
Observers of ongoing OAS-mediated talks saw the most likely solution as a recall
referendum in August, previously rejected by the opposition as not going far enough.
¤ On March 28 the Wall Street Journal reported that Venezuela was “giving weapons,
safe haven, and even training” to leftist rebels in neighboring Colombia. The Vice
President of Venezuela denied the allegations and in early April Chavez took military
action against Colombian guerillas hiding on the Venezuelan side of the border.
April 2003
¤ On April 1 it was reported that the government of Guyana was looking for investors to
develop bauxite-aluminum deposits in Pakaraimas, western Guyana, within the area
claimed by Venezuela. The hope was to get investment to take the process from mining
all the way to production and export of finished aluminum. The government estimates
that deposits could sustain 5m tons of bauxite-aluminum per year.
¤ On April 14 the opposition and government in Venezuela agreed on a 22-point plan to
end the crisis. A recall referendum would take place in August, in exchange for the
opposition abiding by peaceful and legal strategies. Despite the agreement several
instances of violence continued to occur.
¤ On April 29 the Foreign Minister of Venezuela arrived in Georgetown for two days of
talks with his Guyanese counterpart. The talks centered on improving bilateral
cooperation, including efforts to relaunch the UN Good Officer process, which had run
out of steam in recent months. Although delineation of the maritime boundary was not on
the agenda, both sides pledged to work to resolve the fishing dispute centered mainly on
Guyanese complaints of Venezuelan fishing boats in their territorial waters.
May 2003
¤ In early May agreements were made to bolster cooperation between the two main
ethnic groups in Guyana. On May 2 President Jagdeo and opposition leader Corbin
hailed the swearing in of an Ethnic Relations Committee as a landmark achievement for
improving relations between the Afro-Guyanese and Indo-Guyanese. On the same day
Corbin ended the opposition’s boycott of parliament after some agreement was reached
on policy, including dealing with the continuing violent crime wave. On May 7 Corbin and
Jagdeo signed a “comprehensive communiqué” designed to end months of political
impasse in Guyana and improve ethnic relations.
¤ On May 29 the Venezuelan government and opposition signed an accord which
recommended a date for a recall referendum on August 19, 2003. In order for there to be
a referendum a petition would need to be filed with signatures from 20% of registered
voters. Protest and violence continued however, as distrust on both sides was high.
June 2003
¤ On June 18 the government of Guyana announced it would not attend a peace
conference sponsored by the British government with the goal of improving ethnic
relations in Guyana. The reason given for not attending was lack of consultation.
Throughout June the violent crime wave in Guyana continued.
July 2003
¤ On July 7 rioters clashed with police in Caracas at the wake of a former archbishop
and outspoken opponent of Chavez, Cardinal Velasco, with police firing tear gas and
pellets at the crowd. Ten days later a protestor was shot dead by a government soldier
when protesting unemployed oil workers clashed with government troops.
¤ On July 15 the UN Special Rapporteur on Racism and Discrimination arrived in
Guyana to begin a 13-day assessment of ethnic tension in the country.
¤ On July 28 the Venezuelan Foreign Minister held talks with Oliver Jackman, an envoy
of the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan. The visit was the first to Venezuela in three
years by Jackman, who has been working to mediate the border controversy between
Venezuela and Guyana. Jackman hoped that the visit would be a first step to relaunch
the mediation process, with a planned meeting in September between Jackman, Kofi
Annan, and the foreign ministers of Guyana and Venezuela, to be held in New York.
August 2003
¤ It became clear that there was not enough time to hold a recall referendum on August
19 in Venezuela, and perhaps not before the end of the year. This was due to stalled
attempts in the National Assembly to appoint a new electoral council, a constitutional
prerequisite for a referendum, as well as legal hurdles put up by Chavez supporters.