Pardo had talked about privatising the value added at the state electricity and telecoms monopoly, ICE. Pardo claimed that he was speaking in a personal, rather than a ministerial, capacity.
That was clearly not good enough for Pacheco, who accused Pardo of saying things which would provoke the unions and disturb the (delicate) social peace.
The workers at ICE last month forced the government into a humiliating retreat over the way ICE should be financed. The government had tried to impose more financial discipline on the behemoth.
The unions are keeping up the pressure on the government to rule out any privatisation of ICE.
Pardo said that by value added he meant activities such as call centres and internet services.
Pardo had been health minister in the previous administration, headed by Miguel Angel Rodríguez.
A peasant was killed and five other people hurt when the police went in to retake control of an estate, claimed by a banana company, Standard Fruit, part of the Dole Group.
The police say that they were ambushed when they moved into the estate. The banana workers say that the police simply attacked the estate.
The estate, Bambuzal, has been occupied by peasants for almost two years. The peasants were forced out by the police, but they returned when the police left.
Miguel Angel Rodríguez, a former president, announced that he intends to run for the secretary generalship of the Organization of American States. The job, currently held by the former president of Colombia, César Gaviria, falls vacant in 2005.
The election is likely to be next year. The US is said to want the President of El Salvador, Francisco Flores, to get the job.
End of preview - This article contains approximately 322 words.
Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article
Not a Subscriber?
Choose from one of the following options
