ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) -- Paraguayans mourned their slain vice
                  president while the country began proceedings to remove the president from
                  office for the early release of a former general, sentenced to 10 years in prison for
                  his part in a failed coup.

                  Blaming President Raul Cubas for the turmoil surrounding the slaying, the lower
                  house of Congress voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to charge him with misconduct
                  and begin a judicial process that could lead to his ouster.

                  The vote, similar to an impeachment vote in the U.S. Congress, set up a trial against
                  him in the Senate to begin Thursday. The vote came the day after the assassination
                  of Vice President Luis Argana.

                  Argana, angered over Cubas's decision to release former Gen. Lino Oviedo
                  from jail, had led an effort within the ruling Colorado Party to oust the
                  president.

                  Cubas and Oviedo have been widely blamed for the assassination of
                  Argana, a political foe whom they defeated in the Colorado Party primary
                  last year.

                  In an attempt to defuse tension, Cubas ordered Oviedo's arrest Wednesday.
                  Oviedo, sentenced by a military tribunal for his part in a failed 1996 coup,
                  denied he was under arrest.

                  It was unclear whether Oviedo would go to prison, Cubas said.

                  "There is a sentence by a military tribunal, but it is not in my jurisdiction to
                  know if he will complete it or not," he said.

                  Sen. Juan Carlos Galaverna of the Colorado Party called the arrest "a trick
                  by Cubas, who is trying to fool us."

                  Cubas named two lawyers to represent him and said he would not attend the
                  trial against him.

                  Outside Congress, students and opposition members cheered the vote to
                  impeach Cubas. Rodrigo Gonzalez, a 19-year-old student, said, "Our
                  country deserves a better government, and I'm certain Cubas will be voted
                  down by the senators."

                  On Wednesday, Argana's coffin was carried by motorcade to tributes at
                  Colorado Party headquarters and the Congress before burial in an Asuncion
                  cemetery.

                  Mourners waved flags and chanted slogans to demand Cubas' resignation.
                  Labor unions began a strike organized before Argana's death and vowed to
                  continue it until Cubas resigns.

                  Cubas did not attend any of the ceremonies honoring Argana, who was
                  fatally shot by three men in battle fatigues as he drove to work Tuesday.

                  Cubas said he would ask the U.S. Embassy in Asuncion for help in the
                  investigation.

                  In Washington, President Clinton strongly condemned the "brutal murder,
                  which occurred against the backdrop of continued political turmoil" in
                  Paraguay.

                  Paraguay, which returned to democracy in 1989 after 35 years of military
                  dictatorship, is struggling with political infighting, a deepening economic crisis
                  and rising unemployment.

                    Copyright 1999 The Associated Press.