ARGENTINA: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez leads thousands in rally against U. S. President George W. Bush

Record ID: 449006

  • Title: ARGENTINA: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez leads thousands in rally against U. S. President George W. Bush
  • Date: 5th November 2005
  • Summary: (BN13) BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (NOVEMBER 04, 2005) (REUTERS) WIDE SHOT ANTI-BUSH PROTESTERS GETTING CLOSE TO THE U.S. EMBASSY; POLICE WALKING TOWARD FENCES GUARDING THE EMBASSY; PROTESTERS ARRIVING AT THE EMBASSY; POLICE PROTECTING THE EMBASSY WIDE SHOT PROTESTERS BREAKING THE GUARD RAIL AND POLICE TRYING TO HOLD THEM OFF; PROTESTERS SINGING SONGS IN SUPPORT OF ARGENTINA
  • Embargoed: 20th November 2005 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Argentina
  • Country: Argentina
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVAASW0C2FT4579M6EMPZ4VJEICS
  • Story Text: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez addressed thousands protesting against U.S. President George W. Bush on Friday (November 4, 2005) at a rally in Mar del Plata hours before the fourth Summit of the Americas opened.
    Thousands of protesters as well as Argentine soccer star Diego Maradona and Bolivian presidential candidate Evo Morales turned out at the rally.
    Chavez led the crowd in a rousing welcome to Maradona, who had promised Fidel Castro last week that he would participate in the summit's protests.
    "Let's throw out Bush," he told the crowd.
    As Chavez began chanting "Free trade, free trade, go to hell" the crowd began singing and jumping up and down in protest. A broadly grinning Chavez joined in the jumping.
    "The capitalist model, the developed model, the consumer model which comes from the North, which it has forced on the world, is falling apart on Earth. And there is no planet nearby that we can immigrate to. It seems that Mars is closer these days," he said.
    Meanwhile, in another part of Mar del Plata, U.S. President George W. Bush made his first comments regarding Chavez, who is seen by many as Bush's nemesis.
    "Well, I will of course, be polite. That is what the American expect their president to be polite and when I run across him, I will do just that," Bush said.
    Bush arrived late on Thursday (November 3) for the two-day Summit. Sentiment against him runs high in Argentina due to opposition to the Iraq war and to U.S.-backed, free-market policies that many say pushed millions into poverty.
    In Buenos Aires, some fifty protesters marching against Bush turned out at the U.S. embassy in Buenos Aires as larger protests gathered steam in Mar del Plata.
    A few anxious moments broke out when the group scuffled with police guarding the embassy, but it quickly passed and the protest remained peaceful.
    Later on Friday, the protesters will turn out to throw garbage at a local McDonald's.
    In Argentina, the summit of 34 leaders will concentrate on job creation as the key to long-term prosperity in Latin America, where the $3,000 US dollars per capita income is less than 10 percent of the U.S. average.
    Washington's goal is to convince Latin Americans to "unlock" or further open their economies to boost investment, trade and jobs, said Tom Shannon, U.S. assistant secretary for the Western Hemisphere at the State Department.
    A more prickly issue, the U.S. push to restart stalled talks for the Free Trade Area of the Americas or FTAA in 2006, may not make much progress in the forum due to resistance among Latin America's big economies, fearful of the impact on their farm sectors.
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