Oil workers and a crew loyal to the government of Hugo Chávez, the Venezuelan president, began unloading fuel yesterday from the Pilín León, a strike-bound tanker containing 280,000 barrels of gasoline, at a distribution terminal near the western city of Maracaibo.
Distribution of the gasoline will ease shortages in the Maracaibo area for several days and the government is likely to ensure priority fuel supplies for food transportation.
A second vessel was yesterday reportedly being steered by an army general towards the main port near Caracas, temporarily easing fuel shortages around the capital.
As Christmas approaches, public support for the opposition-led strike against the government is slipping, as drivers become frustrated at being forced to spend hours in long lines, sometimes overnight, in the search for petrol....
***** New York Times 23 December 2002
Some in Venezuela Say Forget About Politics
By GINGER THOMPSON
...Business owners who are opposed to Mr. Chávez began opening restaurants and stores that had been shuttered at the start of the national strike, saying they hoped to restore some sense of normality to the Christmas season and recover from weeks of steep financial losses....
<http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/23/international/americas/23VENE.html> ***** -- Yoshie
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