[Marxism] PARAGUAY: Ruling allows Paraguayan ex-army chief to run

[Néstor Gorojovsky]

One may like this man or not, but the Court decission is democratic.

Oviedo is the political representative of a great mass of the
Paraguayan campesinos.

His proscription was a sore to the political system there.

2007/11/1, Walter Lippmann <walterlx en earthlink.net>:
> PARAGUAY
> Ruling allows Paraguayan ex-army chief to run
> In a last-minute decision, Paraguay's Supreme Court voided a conviction
>   of controversial ex-army leader Lino Oviedo,
>   clearing him to run in the presidential elections.
> Posted on Thu, Nov. 01, 2007
> Digg del.icio.us AIM reprint print email
> BY JACK CHANG
> McClatchy News Service
>
> RIO DE JANEIRO --
>
> The race for Paraguay's presidency took a dramatic turn when the
> country's Supreme Court late Tuesday voided the mutiny conviction of
> popular ex-army commander Lino Oviedo, freeing him to run for the top
> job.
>
> One of Paraguay's most controversial and colorful figures, Oviedo
> announced in September that he would seek the office, shortly after
> he was released on parole for a conviction of fomenting a coup d'etat
> against the government in 1996.
>
> But it was unclear whether he'd be allowed to seek the post until
> Tuesday's action. The election will be held April 20.
>
> The court's decision drew howls of outrage from some political
> analysts and politicians, who accused the Colorado Party of
> manipulating the court to allow Oviedo's candidacy and split possible
> opposition to its candidate, who will be chosen in December.
>
> The party, which has ruled Paraguay for 60 years, is facing a tough
> election battle against former priest Fernando Lugo, who has wide
> support from the poor among Paraguay's 6.7 million population.
>
> ''All the evidence we have shows this was the product of a pact
> between the Colorados and the supporters of Oviedo,'' said Lugo
> spokesman Ausberto Rodriguez. ``This will have an impact on the
> election, but Fernando Lugo's candidacy is already consolidated.''
>
> The court ruled that judicial authorities erred by trying Oviedo in
> both a military court and a civilian court for his role in connection
> with a plot to overthrow then-President Juan Carlos Wasmosy. The
> court also said that authorities erred by not allowing Oviedo's
> attorneys to cross-examine witnesses against him.
>
> The ruling came at the last minute.
>
> Under Paraguayan law, all candidates must be registered to vote and
> those serving prison sentences cannot register. The court decision
> came out shortly before Tuesday's midnight registration deadline, and
> Oviedo rushed to get on the voter rolls.
>
> ''It's such a visible and vulgar manipulation of justice on the part
> of President Nicanor Duarte Frutos,'' said Paraguayan political
> columnist Alfredo Boccia Paz. ``You'd have to be pathologically naive
> not to see the Colorado hand behind this.''
>
> Speaking to reporters before registering, Oviedo denied that Duarte
> Frutos had arranged his court victory. He promised a campaign
> ``without hate, without lies and without bitterness.''
>
> Colorado Party spokesman Adan Ledezma also said the court had acted
> independently. He warned that Oviedo, who left the party in 2005 and
> now leads a rival party, UNACE, represented as big a threat to the
> Colorados as he did to Lugo. UNACE stands for the National Union of
> Ethical Citizens.
>
> ''The promptness of this decision has raised questions in some
> sectors of society, but we think the Colorado Party did not
> manipulate anything,'' Ledezma said. ``The party is watching what's
> happened with the Oviedo case with much worry and fear.''
>
> The 64-year-old ex-general has been one of Paraguay's most popular
> figures for more than a decade. He helped oust longtime dictator
> Alfredo Stroessner in 1989 but was then convicted of mutiny when he
> refused to obey orders to resign his command of the army in 1996.
>
> He also has been indicted for his alleged role in the assassination
> of one of his political rivals, Vice President Luis María Argana in
> 1999, and the murders of seven protesters who were demanding his
> imprisonment in connection with Argana's death.
>
> Despite the accusations, Oviedo draws enthusiastic support with his
> mix of militaristic bravado and populist appeal.
>
>
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-- 
Néstor