August 13, 2004 No. 92 Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew today called for a fair and peaceful presidential recall referendum in Venezuela on August 15. He also reiterated Canada’s support for the observation mission from the Organization of American States (OAS), which will be monitoring the vote. “This referendum is an important milestone in Venezuelan democracy,” said Minister Pettigrew. “It offers the opportunity to decide the future direction of the country and to end months of political polarization and instability. I wish to emphasize the importance of a violence-free vote, with results that are accepted by all sides.” International observation by the OAS and the Carter Center is intended to ensure that the referendum is transparent, fair and democratic, and instills confidence in the process. The Government of Canada is contributing $30,000 to assist with the OAS observation mission, which will include four Canadians. Following the attempted coup to unseat Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in April 2002, Canada has repeatedly called on all sectors of Venezuelan society to find a peaceful, democratic, constitutional and electoral solution to the political crisis. We have also strongly supported ongoing facilitation by the OAS in this effort. In May 2004, Canada contributed $60,000 to an OAS mission that oversaw the reconfirmation of 1.2 million signatures deemed invalid by Venezuela’s National Electoral Council. Four observers in that mission were Canadian. The Carter Centre is one of the largest observation missions in Venezuela, and is there along with the OAS to observe the referendum. The two groups have coordinated their observers to ensure there are representatives monitoring the voting throughout the country. For more information on Canada’s relations with Venezuela, please visit the following site: http://www.international.gc.ca/latinamerica/venezuelarelations-en.asp. For more information on Canada and the OAS, please visit http://www.international.gc.ca/latinamerica/oas-en.asp. - 30 - For further information, media representatives may contact: Sébastien Théberge Director of Communications Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs (613) 995-1851 Media Relations Office Foreign Affairs Canada and International Trade Canada (613) 995-1874 http://www.international.gc.ca
