Chavistas out in force

VENEZUELA: Tens of thousands of Venezuelans marched in the streets of Caracas in support of cancer-stricken President Hugo Chavez, overshadowing a much smaller rival rally by the opposition.

Vice President Nicolas Maduro returned late Wednesday to Havana to visit Chavez, who has been convalescing in Cuba since his latest surgery last month, but whose condition is improving, according to Caracas.

Opposition leader Henrique Capriles, who lost to the 58-year-old Chavez in October’s election, meanwhile challenged the ailing leader to speak to the nation if he is able, saying the Venezuelan people deserve “peace of mind.” Chavez supporters -- clad in red shirts bearing the phrase “Chavez is all of us” -- however seemed to need no reassurances about their president’s prolonged absence from the oil-rich South American country.

Bearing flags, crosses, and pictures of Chavez and independence hero Simon Bolivar, pro-government demonstrators converged on the capital’s January 23 neighbourhood for the main rally.

Both Chavistas and the opposition were rallying to celebrate the anniversary of the 1958 ousting of Venezuela’s last dictator, Marcos Perez Jimenez. But the rallies reflected the tension of the current political crisis.

“The goal is to confirm the people’s commitment to President Chavez, to support him wherever he may be, however he may be, and so the world will know that the seed he planted is growing and will continue to grow,” Audrey Ramirez, 43, a state bank employee, told AFP.

“We are with Chavez because he is the only president who has, for 14 years, fought for the people -- because he is one of the people.

“We are with Hugo because we are Hugo,” said 44-year-old Nora Machado.

Chavez, who had surgery on December 11, was too sick to attend his January 10 inauguration, prompting the government to delay the swearing-in indefinitely under an interpretation of the constitution criticized by the opposition.

AFP