VENEZUELA: Hugo Chavez profile part 2

February 4, 1992 - tear gas choked the streets of Caracas, tanks rolled toward the presidential palace, rebel soldiers and federal troops fought fiercely on the ground. A coup was underway and a rugged, young paratrooper led the charge. This is how the world first met Hugo Chavez. But the coup failed, and a defeated but spirited Chavez went on national television to call off his troops. "Regrettably, for now, our stated objectives were not achieved in the capital city (Caracas). That is to say, that we in Caracas did not manage to control power. You did really well over there (in Maracay, Valencia and Maracaibo), but now it is time to avoid more bloodshed," he said. He was shipped off to prison, and faded into Venezuelan history. Or so the world thought. Two years later, Venezuela's new President, Rafael Caldera, fulfilled a campaign promise and pardoned the 1992 coup plotters. Chavez emerged from jail with renewed energy - bound and determined to pick up where he had left off - but this time he had a different approach. Chavez took to the streets again, but on the campaign trail. Brandishing the Venezuelan flag and spewing fiery rhetoric, he established the Movement for the Fifth Republic Party (MVR) and ran for president in 1998. Campaigning as an advocate for the poor and a leader in the war on corruption that had blighted Venezuelan politics for so many years, his core support from poverty-stricken citizens grew ever stronger. "Now the time has arrived for the people of Venezuela (to make a change)," he roared to supporters at just one of his rallies in Caracas during the election campaign. He swept the election in 1998 with 56 percent of the vote and never looked back. President-elect Chavez pledged to change the Constitution and made that perfectly clear during his inauguration in February, 1999. "I swear in the name of God, in the name of the motherland, in the name of my people that above this moribund constitution I will complete and I will drive the democratic transformations necessary so that the new republic has a magna carta (constitution) adequate for today. I swear," he said. Two years later, Venezuela had a new constitution. It changed the country's name to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. It increased the presidential term of office from five to six years. It added the possibility of having two terms in office. And it created a clause for a recall referendum as a way to remove presidents from office before the end of the presidential term - a clause that would later come to haunt the Venezuelan leader. Having undertaken constitutional reform, Chavez then directed his government's efforts and funds at a myriad of social programmes aimed at improving the quality of life for poor Venezuelans. "This is the fundamental objective of the revolution, a life and happiness for all people. And nobody is going to knock us off course, no one is going to take this away and we will not back down," he said. Chavez's message further strengthened by his image as a military strongman, carrying his paratrooper background with him through his presidency. One of his initial moves was to get the military to carry out infrastructure projects. The visibility of the military in Venezuela marked much of his presidency. Although the poor continued to enthusiastically support Chavez many of Venezuela's elite, including some members of the military, were unhappy with his reforms and militaristic style. They accused him of authoritarian rule. This spurred a wave of civil action in 2002. The business community, aggrieved by various economic reforms, held a number of strikes to weaken Chavez's presidency. One by one military leaders came out publicly against Chavez, and the tension culminated in a coup d'etat on April 11, 2002. The opposition military stormed the presidential palace and took Chavez prisoner. Then they addressed journalists. "We announce: We declare in the name of legitimate disobedience that we do not recognise the current (Chavez) regime," they stated. They also claimed that Chavez had resigned of his own accord. Chavez was taken to a military base off the coast of Venezuela while his captors decided his fate. Meanwhile, the president of a national business federation, Pedro Carmona Estanga, assumed power. "I swear in the name of almighty God, in the name of the motherland and in the name of all Venezuelans to re-establish effectively the validity of the constitution of the republic of Venezuela (i.e. the constitution abolished by Chavez to make way for his new one)," he declared, omitting the work "Bolivarian" from Venezuela's formal title. Carmona immediately stated his intention to undo most of Chavez's work on social, economic and constitutional reform. However, this government did not last longer than 48 hours. Spontaneous pro-Chavez uprisings took place across Caracas and gathered in strength as the Venezuelans learned of the events by watching foreign television news. Through foreign news reports, they saw a fax that Chavez had sent stating that he had not, in fact, resigned. That part of the story had not made it on to Venezuelan news stations. The coup orchestrators had seized all TV stations in the country and broadcast messages claiming that there were only minor disturbances in response to the news of Chavez's resignation. As the hours ticked by, an angry crowd of Chavez supporters marched to the presidential palace. Meanwhile, troops still loyal to Chavez re-took the palace and brought the resilient leader back to Miraflores in a helicopter much to the delight of the throng gathered there. Never one to shy away from the spotlight, Chavez rallied the crowd and burst into triumphant song, bellowing lyrics from the famous Mexican tune "El Rey". "But I continue being the king!" he sang to the crowd. Chavez appealed for calm on returning to office and responded to the coup by removing many ranking military officers and replacing them with loyalists. He also improved conditions for servicemen and installed further initiatives for civilian and military co-operation. Additionally, he claimed that the coup attempt had the support of the United States' government, an accusation he often repeated in ensuing years. But Chavez's triumph was short-lived. Later that year, crisis enveloped the country again, this time as a general strike organized by a struggling opposition. The strike was carried out in response to Chavez's attempts to gain greater control of the state oil company, PDVSA, to clamp down on dissidents and also to gain more funds for his social programmes. But the strike backfired on the beleaguered opposition. All Venezuelans suffered from gas and food shortages. Transportation came to a standstill and many lost their jobs because they could not get to work. Chavez responded harshly, firing PDVSA's management and some 18,000 employees on the grounds of gross mismanagement and corruption. The strike ended and a relative calm at last fell over the weary country. In 2003 Chavez went on an oil-fuelled spending spree to boost his support. He established a number of "misiones" - social programmes targeted at the poor - to improve literacy rates, healthcare and access to affordable food and medicine among other things. However politics remained polarized, with many middle and upper class Venezuelans complaining of receiving little or no benefits from the Chavez government and worrying that Chavez wanted to make Venezuela another Cuba. The opposition turned to a new tactic - using Chavez's new constitution against him. Enter the 2004 recall referendum. In a country with historically high abstention rates, voter turnout for the referendum hit a record high and fifty-nine percent of the electorate voted for Chavez to stay in power. The opposition cried fraud, but the results were recognised as legitimate internationally. Having once more thwarted the opposition Chavez has gained strength and became yet more resolute in fulfilling his "Bolivarian Revolution". His discourse became more bellicose, and he transformed himself into a global spokesperson for developing nations through anti-capitalist rhetoric, anti-American posturing and petro-diplomacy. He has become a globetrotter in recent years, traveling among China, Russia, Cuba, Iran, Libya, Syria, India, the UK, and Algeria - to name a few. Looking to expand Venezuela's economic influence, he has signed trade and cooperation deals with many of these countries. Meanwhile, high oil prices allowed him to pour money into his social programmes and infrastructure projects. That work has solidified his core support, elevating him to a socialist icon equal in rank to Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. Today, Chavez's face graces t-shirts, buttons and posters. He is a puppet, a action figure and even a doll who, with the touch of a button spews forth a shortened version of his famous firebrand speeches. Chavez has also shored up his support by tapping into the tide of discontent against U.S. President George W. Bush. To many in and out of Venezuela, Chavez is the Latin American leader who stands up to Bush and what Chavez calls "savage capitalism." His discourse is regularly peppered with insults and sarcasm aimed at the White House. "One dollar is, one dollar is the following. Who lasts longer here, you in the White House or me in Miraflores (The Venezuelan presidential palace.) (CHAVEZ THROWS THE ONE DOLLAR BILL OVER HIS SHOULDER). That's ok, that's ok. That's ok," he said, testing out his English at a ceremony in Venezuela. Today Chavez is running for reelection and is widely expected to sweep an easy victory over opponent Manuel Rosales. He leads the polls by some thirty percent and his supporters pour out by the thousands in a sea of Chavez's trademark red. It's been a long and turbulent road for the fiery leader. Whether a supporter or an opponent, few can deny that crisis after crisis, Chavez has managed to defy political death. Each time, he returns ever stronger - more determined, more passionate, more triumphant. He's an enigma who has captured the world's attention. Theories abound on how he survives, but perhaps Chavez, himself, can explain it best in the style that's all his own: "With or without money, I always do what I want to do and my word is law. I don't have a throne or a queen, or anyone that understands me, but I continue being Chavez."

ITN Source | December 6, 2006

Tags:. .regrettably. .blighted. .disobedience. .brandishing. .plotters