Venezuelan first satellite launched from China

Caracas, Venezuela, 29 October 2008. After a much waited occasion, Venezuelans gathered to watch live on TV the launching of their first ever satellite from Xichang in China. Baptised after their father of the nation, Simon Bolivar, the Venesat 1 satellite is meant to boost telephone communication, TV transmission and Internet access to remote areas. The government plans to use such facilities to improve its education and health programmes too. President Chavez and his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales, watched the lauching from Puerto Ordaz, Eastern Venezuela.

The opposition has criticised the satellite as it is a joint venture with China with high costs to the country.  But the $406m (£252m) agreement with China has provided Venezuela not only with the satellite itself but also with proper training and technological know-how to its own technicians. Posing as a  telecommunications expert from Simon Bolivar University, the opposition professor at Universidad Central of Venezuela, Daniel Varnazy, said the satellite could serve both military and civilian purposes. However, Venezuela has struggled to regain its own control over communications after US boycotted its oil industry during the attempted coup in 2002 and a general strike in 2003.  Vital communications of the Venezuelan oil industry managed by PDVSA was controlled by satellite from a US owned company.

Sources: VTV, YVKE, Globovision, BBC, Telesur, Unionradio, ABN,