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Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez called on his supporters on Friday to remain vigilant against a new coup attempt by the opposition, saying that he was also prepared for it.
"In April they surprised us, but now it will be very difficult for them to attempt a new coup d'etat, for we will be waiting for them," Chavez told a gathering of the Association of Venezuelan Professionals at Caracas Municipal Theater.
Chavez said opposition forces seeking a new coup would not takehim by surprise as what happened in April when a group of civilians and military servicemen seized power for 48 hours.
The Venezuelan head of state said the opposition was working tomake a new offensive against revolution, and called on his followers to increase "their political efficiency and conserve those spaces already gained."
Chavez made the remarks in reference to a call for an anti-government march on October 10 in Caracas, by the Federation of Businessmen (Fedecamaras), whose former leader, Pedro Carmona, nowexiled in Colombia, orchestrated the ephemeral coup d'etat in April.
"We could not lower our guard. If counter-revolutionaries make a one-million-people march, then we have to respond with another one comprised of 10 million individuals," said the Venezuelan leader.
In April, a three-day general strike staged by labor unions anda business federation was followed by a coup that removed Chavez from power for two days.
(Xinhua News Agency September 28, 2002)
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