[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 14]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 19351]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




SUPPORTING THE EFFORTS OF AMAVEX AND OTHER VENEZUELANS IN EXILE TO SHOW 
              THE ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN CHAVEZ AND THE FARC

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 16, 2008

  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. I rise today in support of the 
efforts of AMAVEX, a group of Venezuelan exiles who work, along with 
more than thirty non-profit organizations, in support of the ``Bring 
Chavez to Justice'' campaign. This campaign aims to highlight the 
troubling associations between Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez and the 
Marxist-terrorist group known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of 
Colombia, FARC.
  The FARC has been listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the 
United States government since 2001. Between 1996 and January 2008, the 
FARC kidnapped 6,877 people including three U.S. citizens who were 
recently liberated by the valiant efforts of Colombia's government. 
Mark Gonsalves, an American contractor kidnapped and held by the FARC 
for more than five years, described his ordeal at the hands of his 
captors and declared that the FARC are ``terrorists with a capital 
`T'.''
  Chavez supports the FARC unashamedly proclaims his admiration for 
this violent terrorist group. He described the FARC in January 2008 as 
``a real army.'' While his praise is sometimes peppered with 
halfhearted criticisms of the FARC's narco-trafficking, kidnappings, 
and violence, his actions betray his true intentions. He welcomes the 
FARC to conduct operations along Venezuela's border with Colombia and 
does nothing to cooperate with Colombia and the U.S. to combat the 
terrorist group's drug trafficking within its borders.
  The computers and evidence that came from the raid that killed the 
FARC's second in command, Raul Reyes, also resulted in the discovery of 
evidence showing FARC-Chavez associations. Seized computer files reveal 
high level connections between the FARC and senior officials in the 
Chavez administration. These files, authenticated by INTERPOL, reveal 
hundreds of millions of dollars in payments from the Venezuelan 
government to the FARC. And, as recently as June of this year, 
Colombian officials captured four men, one who was a sergeant in 
Venezuela's national guard, for transporting 40,000 rounds of AK-47 
ammunition to the FARC in Colombia.
  It is often said that one can judge a person by the company he keeps. 
In this context, we should all take note that just last Thursday, while 
Americans observed the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Chavez 
rejected all semblance of solidarity with the U.S. and our battle 
against terrorism by expelling the U.S. ambassador from Caracas. Chavez 
chooses the company of terrorists, drug traffickers, kidnappers and 
murderers, and severs diplomatic ties with the U.S. Chavez is a 
dictator who harbors terrorists.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of AMAVEX and the efforts of all 
Venezuelans to bring the terrorist associations of dictator Hugo Chavez 
to the world's attention.

                          ____________________