Chavez defends decision to deport alleged rebel JOAQUIN PEREZ BECERRA

Chavez defends decision to deport alleged rebel

By JORGE RUEDA
Associated Press
http://www.wqow.com/Global/story.asp?S=14549003

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has
defended his decision to deport to Colombia a man accused of being a
leftist rebel after some of his left-wing supporters criticized the
handover.

In a speech Saturday night, Chavez dismissed a recent protest over the
capture and deportation of Joaquin Perez. He referred to those who
staged the small protest in Caracas as "ultra-leftists."

Several dozen demonstrators, including members of the Bolivarian
Continental Movement, protested outside the Foreign Ministry on
Thursday and burned an effigy bearing photos of Chavez's foreign
minister and information minister, accusing them of betraying Chavez's
leftist ideals.

"Don't be burning my ministers," Chavez said. "Burn me because I'm the
one who gives the orders. I make the decisions and I assume my
responsibilities."

Perez's deportation was the latest sign of a thaw in relations between
U.S.-allied Colombia and Chavez's leftist government, a shift from the
tensions of recent years as Colombian officials previously accused
Venezuela of harboring leftist rebels.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said he personally called
Chavez a week ago to inform him of Perez's pending arrival on a flight
from Germany and to request his arrest. Perez was deported to Colombia
two days later.

Colombian and Swedish officials say Perez is a Swedish citizen who
renounced his Colombian citizenship years ago. Sweden has asked
Venezuela to explain why it wasn't informed before he was deported.

"I lived up to my responsibility and we captured him," Chavez said.
"Those who now want to call me a traitor to the global
Marxist-Leninist cause, well that's fine."

Santos has called Perez the most important operative in Europe of the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. Perez ran a
Swedish-based website that serves as the leftist rebels' news agency
and regularly carries FARC statements. However, Perez has denied
belonging to the guerrilla group.

Chavez said Perez was responsible for his own capture because he
traveled to Venezuela while there was an international order for his
arrest.

"One has to ask: why did they let him leave Sweden? ... Why didn't
they detain him in Germany?," Chavez said. Without elaborating, he
said he suspects "they planted him here to give us a hot potato."