VZCZCXRO7392
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA
RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHCV #1033/01 1452130
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 252130Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY CARACAS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8823
INFO RUEHWH/WESTERN HEMISPHERIC AFFAIRS DIPL POSTS PRIORITY
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUMIAAA/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 001033 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
HQSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD 
DEPT PASS TO AID/OTI RPORTER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV KDEM VE
SUBJECT: IV PROGRAM INVITEES AND PARTICIPANTS OUTED 
 
 
CARACAS 00001033  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary: During a press conference from Telesur 
headquarters May 25, Amcit Eva Golinger released names of 
prominent, mostly pro-opposition, journalists who had either 
been selected for or had participated in the International 
Visitors (IV) Program.  She claimed the IV participants were 
USG employees directed to infiltrate Venezuelan media and 
influence public opinion.  She also accused USAID and Freedom 
House of trying to foment destabilizing acts in conjunction 
with the closure of RCTV.  End Summary. 
 
------------------------------------------ 
Golinger Reveals Names of IV Participants 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶2.  (U) Eva Golinger, lawyer and Amcit, held a press 
conference May 25 in Caracas to demonstrate alleged USG 
interference in Venezuelan media outlets.  Telesur set up a 
special set for the broadcast, which was also carried on VTV. 
 Golinger displayed documents she had received in response to 
a FOIA request on the International Visitor (IV) program, 
including a list of IV recipients, the programs they 
attended, and the amount of each recipient's grant.  She said 
that she considered all grant recipients to be employees of 
the State Department.  Golinger mentioned at least six 
journalists by name--many associated with pro-opposition 
media outlets--that had participated in the International 
Visitors program between 2000 and 2005.  Golinger also 
offered to email the full list to those in attendance. 
Attendees included local pro-BRV news agencies, a few 
pro-opposition media (El Universal, Globovision and Union 
Radio), and a Reuters correspondent. 
 
¶3.  (U) Golinger described the IV program as a way in which 
the USG tried to infiltrate the Venezuelan media and 
influence public opinion on issues of U.S. interest.  She 
also tried to draw parallels between the timing of some of 
the IV programs, particularly those held in 2002 and 2003, 
with the April 2002 coup and the national strike, in an 
effort to support BRV theories of U.S. participation in those 
events.   Golinger said she was making the announcement in 
the name of transparency and to alert Venezuelans and the 
world to U.S. attempts to interfere in Venezuelan affairs. 
She thought the timing was important given the alleged 
international media campaign to impugn Venezuela's image in 
the wake of the BRV's decision to close RCTV.  In response to 
several journalists' questions, Golinger said her intention 
was not to intimidate, persecute or encourage aggression 
towards any of the journalists mentioned.  She said she would 
give participants "the benefit of the doubt" that they may 
have agreed to participate in the IV program out of 
professional curiosity and were manipulated by the USG. 
 
¶4.  (U) Golinger also cautioned reporters to differentiate 
between people who may have only been selected for the 
program--which she said would not have been their fault--but 
rejected the offer, and those who participated.  However, she 
did not clarify whether she had tried to determine who may 
not have participated in the program.  Instead, Golinger put 
the burden of proof on the journalists, saying they 
themselves should confirm whether they participated and if 
they were influenced or pressured by the United States.  In 
response to a question, Golinger claimed to be unsure whether 
pro-government journalists participated in the IV-program, 
but said it would be "worrisome" ("preocupante") if they did 
because they must have intended to collaborate with USG plans. 
 
-------------------------------- 
Accusations against Freedom House 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (U) Golinger also accused USAID of using Freedom House to 
plan violent acts against the BRV in relation to the closure 
of RCTV.  She claimed that Freedom House, using USAID money, 
had brought a group from Serbian NGO OTPOR to train 
government opponents in violent destabilization techniques. 
(Note: The Albert Einstein Institute did sponsor a European 
NGO visit to Venezuela to evaluate the possible effectiveness 
of civil resistance training, but decided such training was 
not appropriate.  Neither USAID nor Freedom House financed 
the trip.) 
 
----------------------------------- 
Questions about Golinger's BRV Ties 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶6.  (U) International journalists questioned Golinger 
extensively about her relationship to the BRV.  While she 
 
CARACAS 00001033  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
admitted to having worked for the Venezuelan Embassy on a 
legal matter in 2003, she said she does not have an official 
government position, nor did she claim to have ever received 
money from the BRV for her investigations.  She also denied 
traveling to the United States to promote BRV interests. 
 
BROWNFIELD