CARACAS: Venezuela marked the first anniversary of Hugo Chavez's death on Wednesday with a parade of tanks, fighter jets and soldiers, as persistent protests dogged the late leader's handpicked successor.
Standing in an open-top limousine, President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores pumped their fists at thousands of supporters as they rolled along the Avenue of Heroes in Caracas before the military show of strength.
The crowd sang the national anthem in chorus with a recording of Chavez's booming voice, some choking back tears for the former colonel they remember as their "eternal comandante."
Anti-government students and the opposition -- angry over runaway crime, food shortages and soaring inflation -- sought to rain on the parade, but their protest in Caracas was smaller than the thousands who marched Tuesday and in previous days.
Some 300 people rallied in the capital's wealthier east side, where radical protesters built barricades with tree stumps, trash and furniture to disrupt traffic in several streets.
At least 18 people have died since early February during anti-government protests that Maduro has denounced as a US-backed plot by "fascists" to overthrow him.
"The violent groups threatened to shut down the country. The country is working freely, with calm," Maduro said, announcing an unspecified number of arrests of suspects he accused of trying to commit sabotage on bridges and highways.
The protests have posed the biggest challenge yet to Maduro's young presidency, though analysts say his government remains sturdy enough to withstand the pressure.
"The protests are a whim by the opposition to make the government fall, but they won't succeed," said Dubraska Graterol, a 24-year-old government worker at the parade.
Foreign dignitaries, including Cuba's President Raul Castro and his fellow leftist Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales, were on hand for the ceremony.
Earlier, Castro laid a white rose on Chavez's marble tomb in the Mountain Barracks which sit atop the hillside January 23 slum, renowned as a stronghold of government support. A ceremony was due to take place there later.
One of Chavez's Hollywood fans, US film-maker Oliver Stone, will premiere his documentary "My Friend Hugo" on national television.
- Power of Chavez's legacy -
After 14 years in power, Chavez lost his battle with cancer on March 5, 2013, at the age of 58, leaving behind a country sharply divided by his oil-funded socialist revolution.
His image is on billboards and walls throughout Caracas while his speeches can be heard on national TV or speakers blasting from the January 23 slum.
Chavez retains a religious-like following among his supporters. Maduro himself refers to his mentor's "physical departure," suggesting that his spirit lives on.
While the protests have concentrated on the capital's east side, the western slums remain government bastions. Some Chavistas say Maduro's fate is linked to the revolution that Chavez started.
"As long as he fulfills the legacy that he (Chavez) left behind, I say that people will be satisfied and happy. If he doesn't keep it up, he won't go very far," said Angela Sandoval, a 35-year-old resident of the January 23 slum.
Chavez's handpicked successor was elected by a razor-thin margin in April last year, defeating opposition leader Henrique Capriles, who cried foul and refused to recognize the results.
"The government is stable, though not as strong as a year ago," Carlos Romero, political science professor at the Central University of Venezuela, told AFP.
"There is no counter-power that can be considered enough to transition to another regime," he said.
The protests erupted on February 4 in the western city of San Cristobal, where students demonstrated against the nation's crime epidemic following the attempted rape of a young woman.
The students have since been joined by opposition figures, including Leopoldo Lopez, a former mayor of Chacao who was arrested on charges of inciting violence.
"We are protesting because one year after Chavez's death, we have a president with many failings," said Jesus Vielma, a 21-year-old engineering student who took part in Wednesday's small march.
Comments
Comments are closed.