Venezuelan Official Detained at JFK

[warpedskydiver 0]

Venezuelan Official Detained at JFK
Sunday, September 24, 2006 7:22 AM EDT
The Associated Press
By IAN JAMES

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NEW YORK (AP) — Venezuela's foreign minister said he was illegally detained for 90 minutes by officials at a New York airport and accused them of treating him abusively by trying to frisk and handcuff him.

U.S. officials called Saturday's incident regrettable and said they had apologized to Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro. Maduro called that insufficient and said Venezuela would seek a legal challenge through the U.N. to what he called a "flagrant violation of international law" and his diplomatic immunity.

"We were detained for an hour and a half, threatened by police with being beaten," Maduro told reporters at Venezuela's mission to the U.N. "We hold the U.S. government responsible."

A U.N. diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, said Maduro's trip was delayed because he had showed up late without a ticket, prompting extra screening.

Department of Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke denied that Maduro was mistreated at John F. Kennedy International Airport when he was selected for an added security check.

"He began to articulate his frustration with secondary screening right after he went through," a metal detector, Knocke said. "Port Authority officials confronted him when the situation became a ruckus."

Maduro said when one official ordered him to go to another room for a strip-search, he refused. He told CNN en Espanol that the official pushed him and yelled at him.

He told reporters the situation only worsened when he explained he was the Venezuelan foreign minister and showed his diplomatic passport.

Maduro said authorities at one point ordered him and other officials to spread their arms and legs and be frisked, but he said they forcefully refused. He said officers also threatened to handcuff him.

"We responded with the dignity of Venezuelan revolutionaries ... with strength," Maduro told reporters at Venezuela's mission to the U.N. "It's a Nazi government, a racist government."

If this is how U.S. authorities treat a foreign minister, he said, "what won't they do to Arab people for wearing a turban?"

He said his passport and ticket were seized and eventually returned, but the incident prevented him from flying home Saturday.

U.S. State Department spokesman Tom Casey said it was a "regrettable incident" for which "the U.S. government has apologized."

The two countries' relations — strained for several years — took a particularly confrontational turn this week, when Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, speaking at the annual U.N. General Assembly, called President Bush "the devil." U.S. officials often call Chavez a threat to democracy.

Maduro told reporters that the treatment of him and other Venezuelan officials seemed in part to be an "attempt to provoke us."

He said about an hour and 20 minutes into his detention, he received a call from U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Shannon, who apologized and said State Department officials were on their way to resolve the matter.

Five minutes later, State Department officials arrived and ordered Maduro and the others to spread their arms and legs to be frisked by police, he said.

Maduro said Venezuela has lodged a protest with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and that the incident should be investigated so that those responsible are punished. He said those who detained him did not make any particular accusations.

Earlier Saturday, Chavez said on Venezuelan television that U.S. officials had detained Maduro after linking him to a failed coup that Chavez led in 1992.

"They have held him accusing him of participating in terrorist acts," Chavez said in Venezuela. "He didn't even participate in that patriotic rebellion."

Chavez also said Bush may be seeking to kill him for calling him "the devil" at the U.N.

Venezuela is among the top five suppliers of crude to the U.S., but relations soured in 2002 after the Bush administration swiftly recognized leaders who briefly ousted Chavez in a coup

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Somebody here is lying, and I think it was a setup by Maduro and others.

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[freeflir29 0]

I hope they gave him a nice cavity search.

[wmw999 2,167]

He's a dumbass; showing up late for a flight and wanting to pay cash is a pretty big red flag from what I understand. On the other hand, when they realized who they had (and verified it), the correct response is not "let's fuck with him a little, he deserves it."

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[freeflir29 0]

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when they realized who they had (and verified it), the correct response is not "let's fuck with him a little, he deserves it."

Yeah but when the guy is flipping attitude who could resist. I have seen FAR too many "diplomats" be abusive because they think their status makes them royalty.

[juanesky 0]

I don't think they messed with him, they probably were checking the autenticity of his diplomatic passport, and probably got a slow response from the Venezuelan Embassy.

"According to some of the conservatives here, it sounds like it's fine to beat your wide - as long as she had it coming." -Billvon

[steveorino 7]

I admit it would be hard to not want to mess with the dude after the verbal bashing his president gave ours, but I'd suggest the best way to get his goat is to detain him as long as possible to verify who he is, and cover him with pseudo-gentleness, "Yes, sir, I apologize, but will you please face the wall and spread your legs. "

steveOrino

[StreetScooby 5]

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I hope they gave him a nice cavity search.

He's probably used to it from Chavez...

We are all engines of karma

[pirana 0]

As an aside, could one of the legal beagles out there clue me in on the true nature of diplomatic immunity?

Is it as broad as TV & Hollywood make it out to be? Could a diplomat just go out and kill somebody, then leave the country unscathed?

" . . . the lust for power can be just as completely satisfied by suggesting people into loving their servitude as by flogging them and kicking them into obedience." -- Aldous Huxley

[SkyDekker 1,150]

yes they can...more or less:

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060320/whistleblower_immunity_060330/20060330/

[Casurf1978 0]

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As an aside, could one of the legal beagles out there clue me in on the true nature of diplomatic immunity?

Is it as broad as TV & Hollywood make it out to be? Could a diplomat just go out and kill somebody, then leave the country unscathed?

Hope this helps. The guy did not break any laws and even though he acted like a prick the second he showed his diplomatic passport they should have verified it, let the guy buy his ticket and get the hell out of this country. I'm sure many of our diplomats have acted out too. Wonder how we would feel if one our own was treated like this.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplomatic_immunity

[rehmwa 2]

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Wonder how we would feel if one our own was treated like this.

well, I suspect if he was appointed by a republican, then the republicans would be outraged, the liberals would blame the diplomat for being foolish and then chastise the president

and

well, I suspect if he was appointed by a democrat, then the liberals would be outraged, the republicans would blame the diplomat for being foolish and then chastise a former president

and

the conspiracy theorists would say it's all staged either way

and

libertarians would complain that we even have to pay for diplomats

frankly, it's all clinbushton's fault

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

[LouDiamond 1]

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could one of the legal beagles out there clue me in on the true nature of diplomatic immunity?

I am by no means a legal beagle but I have served overseas in several US embassies over the years and have had to deal with this every time. Without getting into the weeds, the answer is it depends on the persons status in that country. Most(not all) countries have different color passports for different uses. ie: U.S. Blue cover=normal citizen, maroon=Official passport, Black=diplomatic.

Believe it or not, many of the people working in US Embassies as well as foreigners working in Embassies in the U.S. do not have what most think as "diplomatic immunity". TV is to blame for this one as is the way the U.S. often times affords more latitude to other embassies employees than the U.S. embassy personell are often afforded abroad in other countries. However the idea that everyone working at an Embassy can do whatever they want and get a way with it is false. There are stipulations and degrees of immunity/protection that are afforded to foreigners working in Embassies and they can vary from country to country.Often times the political climate at the time can dictate how things are handled. See below



The conventions provide immunity to persons according to their rank in a diplomatic mission or consular post and according to the need for immunity in performing their duties. For example, diplomatic agents and members of their immediate families are immune from all criminal prosecution and most civil law suits. Administrative and technical staff members of embassies have a lower level of immunity. Consular officers serving in consulates throughout the country have an even lower level of immunity. Members of an embassy's service staff and consular employees are immune only for acts performed as part of their official duties

It is true that diplomats are exempt from the criminal, civil and administrative jurisdiction of the host country. However, this exemption may be waived by their home country. Moreover, the immunity of a diplomat from the jurisdiction of the host country does not exempt him/her from the jurisdiction of his/her home country.

It is also within the discretion of the host country to declare any member of the diplomatic staff of a mission persona non grata (or unwanted person). This may be done at any time and there is no obligation to explain such a decision. In these situations, the home country, as a rule, would recall the person or terminate his/her function with the mission.

"It's just skydiving..additional drama is not required"
Some people dream about flying, I live my dream
SKYMONKEY PUBLISHING

[juanesky 0]

You need to throw a couple of pies into your well thought explanation

"According to some of the conservatives here, it sounds like it's fine to beat your wide - as long as she had it coming." -Billvon

[freeflir29 0]

Yep..............found out how all this stuff works last year. Seems some local authorities (Something similar to US FBI) wanted to question certain people. This became a tricky thing since they literally stopped one guy in the street. This is Iraq and something like that could turn into a shoot out in mere seconds. I was a little surprised to find out how some of the legal protections work. Like the fact that because our houses are leased in the performance of a diplomatic mission they are now considered sovereign US soil. I DO carry full diplomatic immunity here. Yep...........just like on TV. However, I am still subject to US law. It can be described as tricky at best.