Mexico ruling party head says Chavez embarrassment

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The head of Mexico’s ruling party
called Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez an embarrassment to his
country on Thursday in a diplomatic fight over free trade in
Latin America.

Mexico and Venezuela withdrew their ambassadors this week
after angry exchanges over Mexico’s support for U.S. plans to
set up a regional free-trade pact. Chavez dubbed Mexican
President Vicente Fox a U.S. imperialist “lap dog.”

Manuel Espino, the head of Fox’s National Action Party,
said he asked a body that brings together some 30 conservative
parties from the Americas to support the end of Chavez’s
government.

Espino said conservative parties in the region rejected
“Chavez’s shameful attitude which denigrates Latin American
politics, embarrasses the Venezuelan people and attacks the
sovereignty of the Mexican people.”

He said the first step in Chavez’s downfall should be the
defeat of pro-Chavez candidates at parliamentary elections on
Dec 4.

“I have asked the political parties to join in solidarity
with the Venezuelan people to come together to weaken Hugo
Chavez’s authoritarianism in December and to change the
government in Venezuela next year,” Espino said.

His comments, in the northern city of Monterrey, were
reported on the El Universal newspaper’s Web site.

Venezuela holds a presidential election in December 2006,
and Chavez, buoyed by soaring oil revenues and popular support,
looks set to win.

Mexico has insisted that Caracas apologize for remarks by
Chavez, who also told Fox last weekend, “Don’t mess with me,
mister, or you’ll get stung.”

The United States, the main foe of Chavez, says the
Venezuelan leader is funding anti-democratic groups in the
region, eroding human rights in Venezuela and building up his
military unnecessarily.

Chavez denies the accusations. He taps into anti-American
sentiment in the region by complaining U.S. President George W.
Bush is a warmonger who is pushing free-trade economics so U.S.
companies can dominate Latin American markets.

Washington on Thursday accused Chavez of making new enemies
abroad to fire up supporters at home with demagoguery, such as
saying Washington plans to invade his country.

Chavez’s strategy is “based on confrontation and conflict,
and in order to sustain it over time it requires an
ever-increasing search for enemies,” the assistant secretary of
state for Western Hemisphere affairs, Thomas Shannon, told
lawmakers.