With the recent Honduran coup, lots of folks have been talking about a certain character named Hugo Chavez. As someone who has spent an enormous amount of time researching Chavez, what is happening in Venezuela, and what is happening inb Latin America more generally, I wanted to take some time to provide a introduction on him to the Daily Kos community. Although Chavez himself would likely deny this, as would most actors in the recent events in Honduras, I argue that the presence of Chavez on the global scene does have a lot to do with the events in Honduras, and in order to understand what is happening in Latin America today, it is crucial to have at least a basic understanding of what the man is about, and what is going on in Venezuela today.
Considerably more below the fold. Come on down!
Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias, born July 28, 1954, is the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, formerly the Republic of Venezuela. Chavez joined the military at 17, and had a relatively distinguished military career, ending with his 19992 coup attempt against Carlos Andres Perez.
However, I'm not one generally for biographies, rather, I would like to focus on some key events involving Chavez that the US media tends to seize on. Contrary to the editorial page of the Washington Post, these events are significantly more complicated than they may appear.
The first is Chavez's 1992 coup attempt, which many point out as an example that Chavez does not respect democracy. The coup was largely in response to the Caracazo, a government-sponsored massacre on the streets of Caracas in response to wide public dissatisfaction with a long economic recession (in Venezuela prior to Chavez, if the oil prices were low, there was a recession, in 1988, prices had been low for about 8 years). In addition, Venezuela had a form of democracy not unlike Chile today (or the United States for that matter) where there was a pacted democracy, with a few good people but for the most part almost entirely controled by elites out for their own self-interest- that is control of the vast Venezuelan oil fortune. In this environment, it was extremely difficult for outside agitators to get into government.
Chavez's coup turned him into a folk hero. With the failure of the coup attempt, Chavez was given a chance to address the public in exchange for surrendering, where he announced that he had failed "por ahora" for now. THe term "por ahora" is deeply emblazoned in the Chavista consciousness, as it was the slogan for organizing for the next seven years.
Chavez was pardoned in 1994, and immediately began campaigning for the Presidency afterwards. In 1999, Chavez was elected President with 56% of the vote. CHavez was the first Venezuelan president of color, and the first democratically elected President in fifty years to come from a party besides Accion Democratica and COPEI. Immediately, Chavez convened a constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution. The constitution, among other things, changed the Venezuelan legislature from a bicameral system to a unicameral National Assembly similar to the Knesset, allowed the reelection of the President, and changed the Presidential term from 5 to 6 years. It is important to remember that this constitution was championed by Chavez, and exists because of Chavez. There are some further key points of the 1999 constitution that are relevant:
Article 3 states:
The essential purposes of the State are the protection and development of the individual and respect for the dignity of the individual, the democratic exercise of the will of the people, the building of a just and peace-loving society, the furtherance of the prosperity and welfare of the people and the guaranteeing of the Fulfillment of the principles, rights and duties established in this Constitution. Education and work are the fundamental processes for guaranteeing these purposes.
Article 5
Sovereignty resides untransferable in the people, who exercise it directly in the manner provided for in this Constitution and in the law, and indirectly, by suffrage, through the organs exercising Public Power. The organs of the State emanate from and are subject to the sovereignty of the people.
Article 6:
The government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and of the political organs comprising the same, is and shall always be democratic, participatory, elective, decentralized, alternative, responsible and pluralist, with revocable mandates.
As you can see, if the constitution is a reflection of Chavez's ideology, I argue that it is, the accusation that he is undemocratic tends to ring a little hollow.
The third event that I would like to talk about is the 2002 coup attempt against Chavez, which is highly relevant for today. For further information, an excellent documentary is 'The Revolution Will Not Be Televised'. But that's for next time.