Pedro Francisco Carmona Estanga (born 6 July 1941) is a former Venezuelan business leader who was briefly installed as acting

president of Venezuela The president of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de Venezuela), officially known as the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is the head of state and head of government in Ven ...

in place of

Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Republ ...

, following the attempted military coup in April 2002.Venezuelan coup leader given asylum
- BBC News, 27 May 2002

April 2002

The early part of 2002 saw mass protests and a general strike by opponents of Hugo Chávez. On April 11, 2002, following clashes between both supporters and opponents of Chávez, Lucas Rincón, commander-in-chief of the

Venezuelan Armed Forces The National Bolivarian Armed Forces ( es, Fuerza Armada Nacional Bolivariana - FANB) of Venezuela are controlled by the Commander-in-Chief (the President) and a civilian Minister of Defense. In addition to the army, navy, and air force there ...

, announced in a nationwide broadcast that Chávez had tendered his resignation from the presidency. While Chávez was brought to a military base and held there, military leaders appointed Carmona as the transitional

President of Venezuela The president of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de Venezuela), officially known as the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, Presidente de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is the head of state and head of government in Ven ...

. In the face of crowds of Chávez supporters taking to the streets and under pressure from some quarters of the military, Chávez was restored to office. During Carmona's 36-hour government, military officers held Chávez and attempted to force his exile. Additionally, security forces conducted raids without warrants and took some Chávez supporters into custody illegally, including

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

deputy

Tarek William Saab Tarek William Saab Halabi (, ar, طارق وليام صعب حلبي; born 10 September 1962) is a Venezuelan politician, lawyer and poet. He is a leader of the Fifth Republic Movement (MVR) party founded by Hugo Chávez, President of Venezuela, ...

, a member of the Chávez-aligned MVR, who was taken into protective custody by security forces after a large crowd had gathered around his home, threatening him and his family. He was held incommunicado for several hours. After the coup, Carmona was placed under house arrest, but he was able to gain asylum in the Colombian embassy after an anti-Chávez protest drew away his security detail.Kozloff (2007:30) Later, he was granted asylum in Colombia, where he has worked as a tenured lecturer at the

Sergio Arboleda University Sergio Arboleda University ( es, Universidad Sergio Arboleda) is a university located in Bogotá, Colombia, with sectionals located in Santa Marta, Colombia and in Madrid, in Spain. References

Universities and colleges in Colombia, Ser ...

References

External links

BBC: Venezuelan coup leader given asylumCBS: Venezuelan Coup Leader ExitsBBC Mundo: Pedro Carmona, presidente por un día

Venezuela's Attorney General Office requests formal charges of civilian rebellion against Pedro Carmona Estanga
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carmona, Pedro Leaders who took power by coup 1941 births Living people People from Barquisimeto Venezuelan businesspeople 20th-century Venezuelan economists Andrés Bello Catholic University alumni Venezuelan anti-communists Venezuelan exiles

April 2002

See also

References

External links