When Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was assassinated. President Hugo Chavez died - who will lead Venezuela now

In the town of Sabaneta in the state of Barinas in southeastern Venezuela, in a large family of a school teacher.

His maternal ancestor was an active participant in the Civil War of 1859-1863. My great-grandfather became famous for raising an anti-dictatorship uprising in 1914. Stories and legends about these heroic events in the family were passed down from generation to generation and had a strong influence on the formation of the future leader of the “Bolivarian revolution”.

Immediately after school, Hugo Chavez entered the Venezuelan Military Academy, from which he graduated in 1975 with the rank of junior lieutenant. Served in airborne units; The paratrooper's red beret subsequently became an integral part of his image.

In 1982 (according to other sources, while studying at the academy), Chavez, together with his colleagues, created the organization COMACATE (COMACATE, an abbreviation of the first two letters of military ranks - comandante, major, captain, teniente, which means lieutenant). Chavez immediately became the undisputed leader of the organization. Over time, KOMAKATE transformed into the Revolutionary Bolivarian Movement, named after the hero of the Latin American War of Independence, Simon Bolivar.

In February 1992, Lieutenant Colonel Hugo Chavez led a coup against Venezuelan President Carlos Andres Perez, unpopular due to high levels of corruption and policies of cutting government spending. Chavez planned to create a military-civilian junta from among people untainted by corruption, as well as to convene a Constituent Assembly to draft a new Constitution. However, the government managed to stop the attempted rebellion.

Chavez surrendered to authorities and was placed in a military prison. He spent two years in prison and was released in 1994 under an amnesty. He organized his supporters into the Fifth Republic Movement and moved from armed struggle to legal political activity.

Hugo Chavez participated in the 1998 presidential campaign under the slogan of fighting corruption. On December 6, 1998, in the general elections held in Venezuela, he won a landslide victory, gaining 56.5% of the vote. Three months later, on July 25, elections to the unicameral assembly were held. They ended with the triumph of Chavez's supporters.

The government established tight control over the state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela, whose profits were directed to the needs of society: the construction of hospitals and schools, the fight against illiteracy, agrarian reform and other social programs. All this contributed to the mass popularity of the new leader among the poor majority. Relying on his support, Chavez began to nationalize enterprises in various industries.

In 1999, Venezuela adopted a new constitution, and on July 30, 2000, new general elections were held, which Hugo Chavez won with 60% of the vote.

In the subsequent period, Chavez's political course, called the "Bolivarian movement towards socialism", shifted to the left.

Taking advantage of favorable conditions on the global energy market, as well as a certain US dependence on Venezuelan oil supplies, Chavez changed his foreign policy course. In a matter of years, Venezuela has emerged as a respected regional leader and has effectively led the movement against neoliberalism in the Western Hemisphere. Sharp criticism of the policies of the United States, the IMF and the WTO, attempts to rally other Latin American countries around them on the basis of anti-Americanism led to an acute confrontation between Venezuela and the United States.

The opposition, frightened by the statements and, most importantly, by the actions of Chavez, tried by all means to get rid of him. On April 12, 2002, Chavez was overthrown in a coup d'etat, but two days later, on April 14, thanks to the help of his supporters and loyal army units, he returned to power.

Chavez suffered from cancer, which required him to undergo long-term treatment in Cuba and in Venezuela itself. He underwent several surgeries and underwent chemotherapy. After another operation performed on him in Cuba in early December 2012, Chavez’s condition was complicated by a pulmonary infection.

For medical reasons, the inauguration of the elected President of Venezuela.

In February, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez returned to his homeland from Cuba, as he announced on his microblog on Twitter. Since then, he was in a military hospital in Caracas, but never appeared on television after returning home.

On March 6, 2013, Agence France-Presse, citing the country's Vice President Nicolas Maduro, reported that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

Hugo Chavez had organizational talent, vigorous energy, enormous capacity for work, eloquence, and the ability to convince people that he was right. He quoted the Bible and the works of Bolivar from memory, and was interested in Zen Buddhism. He wrote poems and stories and was fond of painting.

At the end of 2007, Chavez published a collection of songs, which included popular Venezuelan and Mexican songs performed personally by the president in a special television and radio program; in 2008, he recorded a composition for the musical collection of revolutionary songs "Musica Para la Batalla" ("Music for Struggle").

As a child, Chavez dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player and retained his passion for baseball throughout his life.

Chavez was married twice. He divorced his first wife, Nancy Colmenares, in 1992. His second wife was journalist Marisabel Rodriguez. Marisabel helped Chavez create the 1999 constitution, but filed for divorce in 2002 and condemned the reforms carried out by her ex-husband.

Chavez has four children from his first marriage: Rosa Virginia, Maria Gabriela, Hugo Rafael and Raul Alfonso, and one daughter from his second, Rocines.

The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources

Biography and episodes of life Hugo Chavez. When born and died Hugo Chavez, memorable places and dates of important events in his life. Politician Quotes, Photo and video.

Years of life of Hugo Chavez:

born July 28, 1954, died March 5, 2013

Epitaph

Words can't express it
No tears to cry
Our grief.
You are always in our hearts.

Biography

The biography of Hugo Chavez was predetermined by his great-great-grandfather, who launched an anti-dictatorship uprising in 1914. In the Chavez family, legends about the heroism of their ancestor were passed down from generation to generation. Perhaps inspired by these stories, Hugo Chavez saw no other destiny for himself than to one day become the leader of the “Bolivirian revolution.” Chavez's life is the story of a revolutionary, a man who loved his country and dreamed of changing its destiny.

Hugo Chavez was born in the town of Sabaneta, in a large family. After finishing school, he entered the Military Academy, after which he served in the airborne forces. When Chavez and his colleagues created the KOMAKATE organization, Hugo immediately became its undisputed leader, which determined the further political biography of Chavez. This organization later transformed into the Revolutionary Bolivian Movement. In 1992, Hugo Chavez led a coup d'etat, but the rebellion was stopped. Chavez spent two years in prison, but again returned to political activity, this time preferring legal methods. In 1998, he was elected president of Venezuela with 56.5% of the vote.

The people, especially the poor, previously disadvantaged masses, fell in love with the president. A lot of funds began to be directed to the needs of society, to the construction of schools, hospitals and many other social programs. Two years later, Chavez won the election again. But his rather harsh policy towards the United States, the WTO and the IFO frightened Chavez’s opposition, and on April 14, 2002, Chavez was overthrown, although two days later the president returned to his chair. Afterwards he was re-elected to his post twice more. At the time of his election in 2012, Hugo Chavez already knew that he was seriously ill.

In 2011, the President of Venezuela was diagnosed with cancer. Hugo Chavez fought with him for two years, undergoing treatment in Venezuela, Cuba, and Bolivia. Several operations and chemotherapy courses did not save the Venezuelan leader. Hugo Chavez died on March 5, 2013. The immediate cause of death was complications from a respiratory infection due to the body weakened by chemotherapy. The death of Hugo Chavez was a real loss for his people. Until his death, Chavez remained the leader of his country, even when there was no hope for recovery. On March 6, Chavez's body was put on display so that the people of Venezuela could pay tribute to Hugo Chavez. On March 8, a state memorial service was held, and on March 15, Chavez’s funeral was held at the Museum of the Revolution. A monument to Chavez will appear in Venezuela in the near future.

Hugo Chavez with his allies - the 54th President of Argentina Nestor Kirchner and the 35th President of Brazil Lula da Silva

Life line

July 28, 1954 Date of birth of Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias.
1992 Chavez's leadership of the coup against President Carlos Andres Perez, Chavez's arrest.
1994 Chavez's release, organization of the Fifth Republic Movement.
1998 Participation and victory of Chavez in the presidential campaign.
2000 Victory of Hugo Chavez in the next elections.
April 12, 2002 Overthrow of Chavez as a result of a coup d'etat.
April 14, 2002 Chavez's return to power.
December 3, 2006 Another election of Chavez as President of Venezuela.
2008 Heading the new political organization “United Socialist Party of Venezuela”.
2011 Health problems, initiation of treatment.
February 18, 2013 Return to Venezuela after treatment in Cuba, rehabilitation.
March 2, 2013 Report on Hugo Chavez undergoing chemotherapy in Caracas.
March 5, 2013 Date of death of Hugo Chavez.
March 6, 2013 Funeral ceremony, display of Chavez's body for farewell at the Military Academy.
March 8, 2013 State memorial service.
March 15, 2013 Funeral of Hugo Chavez.

Memorable places

1. The city of Sabaneta in Venezuela, where Hugo Chavez was born.
2. Simon Bolivar University in Caracas, where Hugo Chavez may have studied.
3. University of Havana, where Chavez spoke on his first visit to Cuba.
4. Cuban clinic “Simek”, where Chavez was operated on.
5. Dr. Carlos Arvelo Hospital in Caracas, where Chavez underwent chemotherapy.
6. Headquarters of the Military Academy of Venezuela, where farewell to Chavez took place.
7. Museum of the Revolution in Caracas, where Chavez is buried.

Episodes of life

Hugo Chavez was a very talented and educated man. So, he could quote the Bible and the works of Simon Bolivar by heart, composed stories, poems, and drew. In 2007, the President of Venezuela released a collection of songs performed by him personally.

Hugo Chavez with his daughters

Covenant

"Long live the unity of Latin America!"

TV story “Hugo Chavez: man, politician, myth”

Condolences

“He was an extraordinary and strong man who looked to the future and always set the highest standards for himself.”
Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation

“Comandante was a strong and bright man who loved life and fought for it to the last. For yourself, your loved ones and for the people of your country. Hugo loved Russia and did a lot to ensure that our state’s relations with Venezuela were the kindest. Everlasting memory".
Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation

“Chavez has been one of the famous figures in international life in recent years. He made great efforts for his country, defending the independence of Venezuela, improving the lives of the population and international relations."
Emomali Rakhmonov, President of Tajikistan

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has died. He was 58 years old. The death was announced by the country's Vice President Nicolas Maduro. The flag outside the military hospital in Caracas, where the Venezuelan leader was treated for the last two weeks before the death of the country, is at half-staff.
The last lifetime and now historical footage: December 10, 2012, the President of Venezuela flies to Cuba. Hugo Chavez, in a tracksuit, smiles, pats a guardsman on the shoulder, clenches his hand firmly and characteristically in a Latin American manner into a mighty fist, and says: “We will win” and “Long live Venezuela.”
Venezuelans believed that the attack - an aggressive cancer - would again succumb to Hugo's inner strength, as they believed last summer when, after three operations, he declared that he had conquered death for his people. Already in the fall, Chavez again confidently won the presidential election.

Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias could become a priest - such was the will of his parents, poor rural teachers. But one day the boy got into a fight with the holy father and was expelled from the church. He could be a baseball player - Chavez dreamed of this himself. Already as the president of the country, he began every weekly newspaper column with baseball. However, as a young man, Hugo decided that a military uniform suited him much better. The red beret of the paratrooper, as well as the fist raised above his head, were an integral attribute of the unique image of Hugo Chavez until his last days.
Hugo Chavez's main dream is unlikely to come true. Dedicated to the cause of Simon Bolivar, who brought Venezuela freedom from the Spanish colonists, he preached Bolivarianism - the idea of ​​uniting Latin America into one country. But in our time, it was this idealist and romantic who separated not only Venezuela, but also a good part of the continent from the seemingly eternal protectorate of the United States. American preacher Pat Robertson called: "We must kill Hugo Chavez. It is cheaper than starting a war. He is a dangerous enemy."
They used to call him an irreconcilable fighter against the United States, but in reality he simply responded with dignity to imperial attacks and criticized those who meekly carried out the directives of the State Department. This is how he spoke about US President George W. Bush from the rostrum of the UN General Assembly: “The devil was here, yesterday he stood in this very place. It still smells of sulfur. The US President is the devil in the flesh. He teaches us to live, speaks to us as the ruler of the world. He needs a psychiatrist. He wants world domination and teaches us how to behave. This is more serious than Hitchcock films. I came up with the name - “The Devil's Cookbook.”
Like many in Latin America, he began his ascent with a coup: on February 4, 1992, Lieutenant Colonel Chavez with a thousand soldiers tried to seize power, but failed. He would return to politics after two years in prison and in 1998 he would win his first presidential election, promising drastic changes to Venezuela, which was then impoverished.
In 2002, he was almost overthrown. Dissatisfied with the nationalization of oil enterprises, US-incited liberals kidnapped Chavez and occupied the Miraflores presidential palace. But only for two days. Slum dwellers rebelled against the new government, those whose lives the ousted president tried to change with the help of oil revenues redirected to the Venezuelan treasury.
Before Chavez, half of Venezuelans lived below the poverty line, now the same is true - 30 percent. But the times when newspapers wrote about how to properly eat dog food, and there was such a thing, are long gone. Cable cars were installed in the breeze-swept slums, and kindergartens and schools appeared there. Recently, the UN recognized that illiteracy in the country has been eliminated; in every village there is a mercal - a store with fixed prices and a doctor, most often a Cuban. Hugo Chavez's best friends, brothers Fidel and Raul Castro, sent 30 thousand doctors to Venezuela.
Hugo Chavez was flattered by the nickname "Red Rebel". He could talk endlessly about the future of Venezuela, and once hosted his own TV show, “Hello, President,” for eight hours and six minutes without a break, distracted only by taking a sip of coffee. And he drank 17 cups of coffee a day.
Chavez's curiosity is legendary. He scrupulously studied how Belarusian tractors work, how Russian military planes and helicopters work, and spent a long time at construction sites in Caracas, where engineers from Moscow are building entire neighborhoods for Venezuelans.
Hugo Chavez is not your typical politician. He openly admitted mistakes, sincerely repented to the people if something didn’t work out, wrote poetry, and drew excellently. The gene responsible for fear was completely absent.
Even monarchs could not stand his criticism. Thus, in 2007, at an Ibero-American meeting, the King of Spain, Juan Carlos, lost his temper. “Why don’t you shut up,” he shouted to Hugo Chavez, irritably and turning his attention to everyone. The President of Venezuela just grinned at this.
The disease overtook the “Red Rebel” a year and a half ago, and since then American newspapers have written dozens of times that Hugo Chavez has died. But after each operation in Cuba, he returned to Miraflores and even went on the radio from his hospital room.
The last operation lasted six hours and was unsuccessful - a fatal infection entered the lungs. The Venezuelan leader's heart stopped. It was as if he had a presentiment of death: he managed to appoint a successor. Chavez always hoped that the Bolivarian Revolution would survive him.

Travel notes, day 7

Today Venezuela has sunk to the bottom. Crime is rampant here, and Caracas is rightfully considered the most dangerous city in the world. There are no essential products here, and people stand in line for hours to buy something. There is terrible inflation here, and money will soon be weighed on scales, since the largest bill today is equal to our 3 rubles.

In Caracas, I tried to buy a T-shirt with Hugo Chavez as a gift for a communist friend. But you can’t find a T-shirt with Chavez... There are no portraits of the late leader either in the city or at the airport.

The miracle of the great Bolivarian revolution collapsed along with oil prices. The country approached the crisis with a dead economy and complete dependence on oil sales (95% of Venezuela’s foreign exchange income from oil sales). That's all.

With the arrival of Chavez, minimum wages increased. Many Venezuelans have managed to escape poverty. Salaries were increased due to the fact that the state gained control of the national oil company and distributed high oil revenues to the benefit of the poor. If in 1999 the number of poor in the country was 48.6%, then in 2013 it decreased to 32.1%.

Expenditures on social needs have increased. This also happened due to the sale of oil. Over the decade, spending in this area has increased by 60%.

The health care system has improved. If in 1998 there were 18 doctors per 1000 people, then in 2012 there were already 58. During the years of Chavez’s rule, 13.7 thousand clinics were built, which is 169% more than over the previous 40 years. In 2011 alone, 67 thousand Venezuelans received expensive medicines for free. In addition, the country has a network of state-run pharmacies that sell medications at a 35-40% discount. The problem is that you can't get any of this today.

The drainage system in the hospital is on the ceiling. Interesting solution. Early in his rule, Chavez strengthened his ties with Cuba by entering into an agreement to supply the country with 53,000 barrels of oil per day at a preferential rate in exchange for 20,000 Cuban doctors and teachers who would work in Venezuela. Subsequently, daily supplies were increased to 90,000 barrels, and another 40,000 Cuban doctors and teachers arrived in Venezuela.

Came to get vaccinated against yellow fever...

A nurse is looking at information on her phone about protests against Chavez’s successor Maduro, and is about to go overthrow the regime. Now doctors have no salary, and hospitals have no medicine. They say that now there are not even basic antibiotics and painkillers.

Everything that was acquired through backbreaking labor is slowly falling apart.

Under Chavez, illiteracy was eliminated in the country. The authorities spent more than 6% of GDP on education. Education became free, 10 new universities and thousands of schools appeared in the country. In terms of the number of students in the country, Venezuela in 2012 ranked second among Latin American countries and fifth in the world. In terms of the number of people reading, Venezuela was in third place in its region.

In May 2007, the leader of Venezuela canceled entrance exams to higher education institutions. All this was done as part of flirting with the poor population.

Several cable cars were built under Chavez. One in the slums, the other on the top of the mountain. They wanted to make another line to the sea, but the money either ran out or someone stole it.

The lift price for locals is 0.65 dollars, for foreigners 15!

Cable car station

There are very few people. Only a few can afford such a trip. The average salary is $30, remember?

Caracas

Even under Chavez's rule, food became more accessible to the poor. In 1998, 21% of the country's population was hungry. Therefore, the authorities began to create chains of grocery stores and supermarkets. In addition, Venezuela has issued about half a million loans to agriculture to stop depending on imported products. Five million Venezuelans began receiving free food.

Again, none of this helped. Everything was stolen; today Venezuela cannot even provide itself with bread and milk.

Under Chavez, a large amount of social housing was built. Today this housing is turning into a ghetto worse than a slum.

Above the clouds

People come here for the view.

There are also some shops and some very bad restaurants.

Cat Martha

The roads were paved with stone, just like in the good old days.

Caracas

Chavez actually bought himself votes and popular support. The economy cannot work properly when you have free gas, free utilities, free (or at fixed prices) products. Chavez built his 21st century socialism, but miracles do not happen. Instead of using the favorable time for the development of the country, all the money was simply stolen, and the poor people were fed scraps from the master’s table.

Perhaps if oil prices had not fallen, Venezuela would have survived for another 5 or 10 years. Today in Venezuela there are a huge number of completely unmotivated, lazy and embittered people. Why work when they give you everything for free? Why study when there are no exams and education is also free? Why save up for something when you can take a gun, kill someone and take the thing you like for yourself?

What Venezuela should do with these today is completely unclear.

Continue tomorrow…

Travel notes: