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A12 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 9 January 2019

US sanctions Venezuela TV magnate for alleged currency deals

By JOSHUA GOODMAN lack of authorization to dis-
Associated Press cuss policy options, added
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) that that there is increas-
— The Trump administra- ing scrutiny of the Maduro
tion imposed sanctions government’s alleged ties
Tuesday on a Venezuelan to Colombian rebels in a
media magnate close to lawless, gold-rich area of
President Nicolas Maduro’s southern Venezuela.
government for allegedly Maduro has accused the
being the ringleader of a Trump administration of
graft network that stole plotting with his opponents
$2.4 billion from state cof- and conservative allies in
fers through corrupt cur- Latin America to oust him
rency deals. from power by sabotaging
The action by the U.S Trea- an economy hurt by wide-
sury Department gives Raul spread food and medical
Gorrin and his business part- shortages, as well as seven-
ner Gustavo Perdomo one digit inflation.
year to divest their shares “The arbitrary measures
and control of Globovi- taken against individuals
sion in order to lift sanctions really don’t worry us,” Vice
against Venezuela’s largest In this Oct. 3, 2003 file photo, an employee at Globovision, a 24-hour television news channel, President Delcy Rodriguez,
private broadcaster. Glo- works behind a glass reading “News” with Globovision’s logo “G” at the channel’s headquarters one of dozens of high-
bovision is among 24 com- in Caracas, Venezuela. ranking Venezuelan offi-
panies and entities whose Associated Press cials previously sanctioned
U.S. bank accounts will be dicted Gorrin last year on officials, including Supreme ration, which the U.S. has by the U.S., said at a press
frozen and barred from do- charges of paying millions Court chief justice Maikel said will consolidate Madu- conference.
ing business in the U.S. in bribes to senior officials Moreno, and used the pro- ro’s path to “dictatorship,” Gorrin helped purchase
“Regime insiders have in Venezuela’s treasury for ceeds to buy gifts for first opponents have been urg- Globovision in 2013 and
plundered billions of dollars contracts to buy dollars at lady Cilia Flores. ing even stronger action softened anti-government
from Venezuela while the the highly overvalued of- Gorrin, Perdomo and Glob- from the Trump administra- coverage after becoming
Venezuelan people suffer,” ficial exchange rate. He ovision didn’t respond to a tion, such as a ban on oil president of the popular TV
Treasury Secretary Steven T. then would allegedly resell request seeking comment. purchases from the OPEC network.
Mnuchin said. “Our actions the hard currency on the The actions against Gorrin nation or designating the For example, on Saturday,
against this corrupt cur- black market, turning a come as international pres- Maduro government a the network aired a pre-
rency exchange network huge profit overnight. sure is building on Madu- state sponsor of terrorism. recorded cooking show as
expose yet another deplor- Treasury said Gorrin plowed ro, who is preparing to be A senior U.S. official told The the head of congress de-
able practice that Venezu- the earnings into yachts, sworn in Thursday for a sec- Associated Press that some livered a defiant speech
ela regime insiders have horses, private jets and a ond, six-year term consid- sort of oil embargo remains against Maduro to kick off
used to benefit themselves number of luxury properties ered illegitimate by the U.S. under active consideration, a new legislative session
at the expense of the Ven- in Miami and Manhattan. and more than a dozen re- as it has for months. The of- that several anti-govern-
ezuelan people.” He also allegedly invested gional governments. ficial, who spoke on the ment web-based broad-
Prosecutors in Miami in- funds for other high-level In the run-up to the inaugu- condition of anonymity for casters carried live.q

Peru’s attorney general resigns over corruption probe

Associated Press opposition parties, whose derail the investigation and
LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peru’s leaders are currently being immediately pushed for an
attorney general resigned investigated for allegedly overhaul of the Attorney
on Tuesday amid accusa- taking bribes from Odebre- General’s Office, calling on
tions that he hindered a cht. On New Year’s eve, congress to declare that
corruption probe involving Chavarry dismissed two office in a state of emer-
Brazilian construction giant popular prosecutors who gency.
Odebrecht. led the Odebrecht corrup- Faced with those threats,
In a letter presented to Pe- tion probe, accusing Jose Chavarry reinstated the
ru’s chief prosecutors, Cha- Domingo Perez and Rafael prosecutors.
varry said he was stepping Vela of blocking his request But as investigators turned
down in order to preserve for information on the case. their attention towards the
the autonomy of the Attor- He also said Perez made attorney general and raid-
ney General’s Office and public statements that put ed the offices of one of his
stop the country’s president his objectivity in doubt. closest aides, Chavarry de-
from intervening in other, A demonstrator holds up a poster that reads in Spanish: “Get But the dismissal sparked cided that he could no lon-
independent branches of out Chavarry!”, referring to Attorney General Pedro Chavarry, in street protests in several cit- ger keep his job.
government. Lima, Peru, Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019. ies in which demonstrators “If I am the pretext for these
Chavarry described himself Associated Press accused Chavarry of trying illegal actions to be taken
as a “victim” of journalists, him for performing his con- pointed to the three-year to protect corrupt officials against the institution I rep-
politicians and non-govern- stitutional duties. position by an independent and called for his resigna- resent, then it is best for me
mental organizations bent Chavarry has repeatedly panel in July. But Chavarry tion. to step aside,” Chavarry
on having him removed clashed with President Mar- stayed in his post thanks to Vizcarra said the removal wrote in his resignation let-
from office and hounding tin Vizcarra since being ap- the support of two mayor of the prosecutors would ter. q