04/08/09
The Economist blunder exposed by the Venezuelan Embassy

In response to Bolivian and Venezuelan Embassy demands, as well as the pressure mounted by the Venezuelan Solidarity Campaign, VSC., The Economist had no choice but to clarify a statement made in an earlier issue of the magazine that said: “Venezuelan troops helped quell a rebellion centered on the airport at Santa Cruz in the east in 2007”.

According to Venezuelan Ambassador Samuel Moncada no Venezuelan military personnel have engaged in any kind of military operation in Bolivia.

In total Moncada sent two letters to the Latin American editor of the magazine, Michael Reid. In the first one, Moncada demanded a rectification by The Economist and on the second he challenged Reid to make public a video he claimed to have in his possession that supposedly proved that Venezuelan troops had participated in the military operation in Bolivia.

Beatriz Souviron, Bolivian Ambassador in London, also sent a letter to The Economist clarifying that there was no Venezuelan military involvement in Bolivia.

In addition, last month the VSC began a campaign of letter writing to Michael Reid demanding that he publish the video material in his possession.  

In its clarification statement, The Economist says that its report on Venezuelan troops operating in Bolivia is based on “television footage aired at the time which shows a Venezuelan air force plane and uniformed Venezuelan personnel at Santa Cruz airport shortly after it had been seized by the Bolivian government from the local authorities”.

The Economist adds: “However, we are happy to clarify that this footage does not prove Venezuelan troops played an active role in quelling the rebellion”.

Francisco Dominguez, General Secretary of the VSC, said: “The footage which Michael Reid was forced to make public shows nothing of any kind whatsoever that could be construed as ‘Venezuelan troops [having] helped quell a rebellion’ in Bolivia in 2007, as affirmed in the July 18 article”.

You can read The Economist clarification by accessing the following website: http://www.economist.com/world/americas/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14142418

Press office Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in the United Kingdom