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#1 Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2013 1:02 am
by frigidmagi
BBC
Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has died aged 58, after 14 years in power.

Mr Chavez had been seriously ill with cancer for more than a year, undergoing several operations in Cuba, and had not been seen in public for several months.

Foreign Minister Elias Jose Jaua Milano declared seven days of mourning and said Mr Chavez's body would lie in state until his funeral on Friday.

Vice-President Nicolas Maduro would assume the presidency until an election was called within 30 days, he added.

"It is the mandate that Comandante President Hugo Chavez gave us," Mr Jaua told state television, adding that Mr Maduro would also be the candidate of the governing United Socialist Party (PSUV).

It was not immediately clear when the election would take place.

Mr Chavez's illness prevented him from taking the oath of office after he was re-elected for a third term in October and the President of the National Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, had been expected by some to take over as interim president in the event of his death.

However, he was not among the political and military leaders who flanked the vice-president when he announced Mr Chavez's death.

Military loyal
In Tuesday's televised address, a tearful Mr Maduro said the president had passed away "after battling a tough illness for nearly two years".

"We have received the toughest and tragic information that... Comandante President Hugo Chavez died today at 16:25 (20:55 GMT)," he added.

Mr Maduro called on the nation to close ranks after its leader's demise.

"Let there be no weakness, no violence. Let there be no hate. In our hearts there should only be one sentiment: Love."

But he revealed that the government had deployed the armed forces and police nationwide "to accompany and protect our people and guarantee the peace".

The vice-president also spoke of a plot against Venezuela, saying he had no doubt that Mr Chavez's cancer, first diagnosed in 2011, had been induced by foul play by Venezuela's enemies - the US promptly rejected the accusations as "absurd".

He said a scientific commission could one day investigate whether Mr Chavez's illness was brought about by what he called an enemy attack.

Two US diplomats had been expelled from the country for spying on Venezuela's military, he added.

A statement by the military issued after Mr Chavez's death said it would protect the sovereignty, integrity and security of the country. It would remain loyal to the vice-president and to parliament, it added, urging people to remain calm.

Mr Jaua said a procession would carry Mr Chavez's body to the Military Academy in Caracas on Wednesday, where it will lie in state until Friday to allow his supporters to pay their respects.

He added that the official funeral attended by foreign heads of state would take place at 10:00 local time (14:30 GMT) on Friday, and called on Mr Chavez's supporters to wear clothes in the three colours of the Venezuelan flag in his honour.

Hundreds of Chavez supporters appeared in front of the hospital where he died, shouting:"We are all Chavez!" and "Chavez lives!"

One of them, Francis Izquierdo, told Agence France-Presse: "He was a man who taught us to love our fatherland. The comandante is physically gone but he remains in our hearts and we must continue building the fatherland."

Opposition leader Henrique Capriles, whom Mr Chavez defeated in October's election, called on the government to "act in strict accordance with its constitutional duties".

But he also told Venezuelans wondering what might happen: "They should have no fear and feel no anxiety, because between us all we are going to guarantee peace that this dear fatherland deserves."

Political shift
The US described the death as a "challenging time", reaffirming what it described as its support for the Venezuelan people and its interest in developing a constructive relationship with Caracas.

"As Venezuela begins a new chapter in its history, the United States remains committed to policies that promote democratic principles, the rule of law, and respect for human rights," said a statement from the White House.

Russia's permanent representative to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, said Mr Chavez had been a great politician, for his country, for Latin America and the world.

The government of Cuba declared three days of national mourning. In a statement read out on state television, it said Mr Chavez had "stood by Fidel [Castro] like a true son", referring to Cuba's former president, who stepped down in 2006 due to ill-health.

In Argentina, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, a close friend, suspended all activities after the death was announced.

Peru's Congress held a minute of silence in his honour while Bolivia's President Evo Morales said he was leaving immediately for Caracas.

The Ecuadorian government said it felt the loss as its own, and hoped its neighbours could carry on Mr Chavez's revolution.

Analysts say Mr Chavez's death could alter the political balance in Latin America - dealing a blow to leftist states while favouring more centrist countries.

There could also be an economic impact given that Venezuela sells oil at below market prices to some neighbouring countries, especially in the Caribbean.

UK Foreign Minister William Hague said he was "saddened" to learn of the death, saying Mr Chavez had left a "lasting impression" on Venezuela.

One of the most visible, vocal and controversial leaders in Latin America, Hugo Chavez won the presidency in 1998 and had most recently won another six-year presidential term in October 2012.

His government has implemented a number of "missions" or social programmes, including education and health services for all. But poverty and unemployment are still widespread, despite the country's oil wealth.

Last May, the former army paratrooper said he had recovered from an unspecified cancer, after undergoing surgery and chemotherapy in 2011 and a further operation in February 2012.

However, in December, he announced he needed further cancer surgery in Cuba, and named Mr Maduro as his preferred successor. Mr Chavez returned to Venezuela in February, but was confined to hospital.
I am not sorry Hugo Chavez is dead. That said I am not celebrating either. Chavez was a man who hounded his opposition and treated the resources of the state as his by right. His price control policies were ruinous, his failure to invest in maintaining the Venezuelan oil industry that he seized will cost his nation heavily and many of his policies damaged the rule of law and the economy of Venezuela. He also supported a gang of drug running terrorist because once upon a time they talked about being socialist.

That said, while I wish I could tell you that Chavez was the worse ruler that the 21st century so far had to offer (because if it were true, it would make us so much better then we are), he wasn't. He maintained the democratic tradition in Venezuela and did not do to much damage to the National Assembly. In short it is quiet likely that that Venezuela can recover from his rule. Additionally he did at least attempt, clumsily and ham fistedly to aide the worse off in his own nation. That's more then many.

He does not deserved to be lionized, but given the Saudis, Sudanians, Syrians, Iranians, Kim's and more... He's not quiet worthy of vilification either. He instead falls into the gray area of men who abused their power but were restrained in their abuse. The best and perhaps the worse I can say about Chavez is, he could have been worse.

#2 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2013 8:44 am
by Dark Silver
Good riddance, but agreed, it could have been worse.

Hopefully they can recover from his rule without another arsehole filling in Chavez's shoes.

#3 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2013 11:41 am
by Josh
Oh, I think he deserves vilification. He was no Pinochet or Kim Jong Il, but his misrule goes beyond simply mismanaging the oil industry. In the teeth of a boom he saddled the country with huge debt, and as soon as that market declines, they're pretty fucked. Given that he deliberately made sure that there was no strong successor along with essentially creating paramilitary thug gangs that will not go quietly into the night. Furthermore, his entire organization ran on his policy directives, which meant the government ran on his policy directives. He didn't directly abolish the legislative branch, he made them irrelevant and therefore weak and vulnerable.

In other words, he's left a time bomb behind him and I really don't see this coming out well. Fuck the dead son of a bitch.

#4 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 1:42 am
by Cynical Cat
He wasn't a monster, but he failed at his self proclaimed primary goal (alleviating poverty) and left the country a mess. This essentially makes him a destructive version of Mugabe.

#5 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Thu Mar 07, 2013 9:30 pm
by Rogue 9
Cynical Cat wrote:He wasn't a monster, but he failed at his self proclaimed primary goal (alleviating poverty) and left the country a mess. This essentially makes him a destructive version of Mugabe.
Mugabe needs a destructive version? I think the original is quite destructive enough.

#6 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 3:54 am
by Cynical Cat
Sorry, the "less" before the destructive got omitted.

Canadian historian Gwynne Dyer has a different opinion. While not denying that Chavez was power hungry and a poor governor (the phrase "terrible administrator" appeared more than once) he counts Chavez as a success for two reasons. The first that Chavez, despite wasting a shit ton of money and running a corrupt regime, managed to greatly reduce Venezuela's inequality which was formerly one of the worst on the continent. The second is that he has changed politics in Venezuela from formerly being controlled totally by factions of the elite to a situation where how the party and candidates will help the poor has become a central issue for any group that aspires to govern.

I have to concede that he has good points. Chavez, in life and death, remains a mixed bag.

#7 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 12:16 pm
by Josh
Problems with all that:

Chavez didn't do anything structural about poverty. Rather he conspicuously threw money at poor people, especially when election time was closing in. It's textbook 'give a man a fish' and what it's done is create a situation where yes, this will be expected to continue. However, since he built no sustainable industry but rather milked the high price of oil, the end result is that they're not going to be able to afford to continue this indefinitely and when they do the masses are very likely to fucking explode. The likeliest result of that explosion is that ultimately the poor go back to being the neglected poor.

Add into the mix these Chavista paramilitaries he created. The ones that weren't already moving into being professional shakedown rackets will probably make the transition, creating a new layer of well-armed organized crime in a country that's already drowning in robberies, kidnappings, and murders. Especially when all this debt comes due during an inevitable decline in oil prices.

Basically, Chavez was an asshole who played the old trick of throwing some crumbs at the plebs in order to corner the vote in a society with extreme wealth differential. In return he got to be president for life, a massive cult of personality, and will leave nothing but misery in his wake.

How do you fix a mess like that? Or even like what he started with? If I knew all the answers to that one I'd be making beau-coupe money and have heads of state on my speed dial. What I do know is that basically robbing the future in order to bribe the present isn't the path.

ETA: But because he cloaked all this in the guise of 'socialism' he gets a free pass for all his repressive shit and mismanagement from certain folks (not in this forum, mind.) Chavez has proven to be a damn good indicator of who really wants something done for the poor and neglected of the world and who just gives a free pass to anybody who dresses in lefty clothes and spouts generic anti-Americanism.

#8 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 2:10 pm
by frigidmagi
I should note that under Chavez the murder rate has spiked dramatically as well. However the conviction rate remains low (I think it's around 12%). This is partly to the police being underfunded and partly due to Chavez being more concerned about judges political leanings then anything else.

That said, Chavez don't even break the bottom 10%. Not with guys like Assad and Al Bashir running around.

#9 Re: Venezuela's Hugo Chavez dies aged 58

Posted: Fri Mar 08, 2013 7:30 pm
by Cynical Cat
Josh wrote:Problems with all that:

Chavez didn't do anything structural about poverty. Rather he conspicuously threw money at poor people, especially when election time was closing in. It's textbook 'give a man a fish' and what it's done is create a situation where yes, this will be expected to continue. However, since he built no sustainable industry but rather milked the high price of oil, the end result is that they're not going to be able to afford to continue this indefinitely and when they do the masses are very likely to fucking explode. The likeliest result of that explosion is that ultimately the poor go back to being the neglected poor.
That's not quite true. He did manage to build a fair amount of health and education infrastructure, which is a very positive structural improvement when it comes to poverty.