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CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuela never violated the rights of a farmer who died after lengthy hunger strikes, the country's vice-president said Thursday.
The government "did everything in our power" to keep Franklin Brito alive and to resolve the land dispute that led to his strike, Vice-President Elias Jaua said in the government's first detailed response to Brito's death Monday.
Brito's family and opponents of President Hugo Chavez accused the government of violating his rights and failing to properly handle his case.
Jaua said he regrets Brito's death, and the military hospital where he spent his final months gave him the best care.
He also called the United States' sending its condolences proof that Chavez's opposition is using the case as "political dirty laundry." The Chavez government has had tense relations with Washington for years.
Brito had staged hunger strikes since 2004, blaming the government for the seizure of a portion of his 716 acres (290 hectares) by farmers who invaded his property. The squatters moved onto land where Brito grew cassava, watermelons and cantaloupes after the government gave permission to others to work adjacent lands — eventually cutting off his access to the farm.
Jaua disputed that account, saying Brito's farm had not been invaded by squatters, that the government had fully respected the boundaries of the property and that it also made sure he had access to the farm.
"If we had made a mistake, we wouldn't have hesitated to rectify it," Jaua said at a news conference. But, he said, it was impossible for the government "to give back a right that hadn't been violated."
Brito's family says the Chavez government also forced him to spend his last days in a military hospital, where he didn't have access to doctors of his choice. The hospital's director denied that.
When asked about the case on Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said: "We are saddened to hear of Mr. Brito's passing and we extend our condolences to his family. We did follow his case closely ... but beyond that, we'll leave it to the government of Venezuela to explain."
