April 16th., 2008

Chavez´ Version

Chávez denominated a series of events to commemorate what occurred on April 11 through April 13, 2002 as the week of the “Brave People”.  In his speeches, he highlighted April 13, the Day of the Comeback, omitting any reference to the previous days.  As expected, the debate regarding such events reopened, since such events represent an inflexion point in contemporary history, which the Regime commits to try to re write.  “The Chávez´ version” is given by journalist Eleazar Díaz Rangel, one of his most loyal party men, in a long interview to “the most current controversial character of Latin American politics”.  The journalist asked him if he saw the civic demonstration of April 11, “it was a great multitude, as never seen”, to which Chávez responded affirmatively, “but we knew that it was part of a conspiracy of diverse sectors of power, specially the media, and ended up becoming a mutiny that generated violence”.  He talks about the efforts made, as per his perception, to prevent a coup d´etat, the order to suppress it, by way of the Avila Plan, and the resistance of the Officers to comply; of how he was aware of the death of several persons near the Presidential Palace and of the information he received from the Generals and Admirals that also sided against his authority.  The time came, when, as declared by Chávez, “we saw that it was convenient to open to negotiation,  I would resign before the National Assembly and the Constitution would be respected, our lives would be preserved, and we would be allowed to leave the country…with such condition I requested members of the High Military Command to also present their conditions and therefore negotiate…meanwhile, I called Monsignor Baltazar Porras and spoke with several Ambassadors…at dawn, the situation presented wherein my resignation is demanded without any conditions, they threatened to send tanks and the Aviation would come by the break of day, I stayed alone for a while, to think things through…in such conditions I would not resign, take me to jail… we arrived at Tiuna Fort at approximately four am…they took me to the Army Command Office wherein many Generals stood by…I see Monsignors Porras and Azuaje and I sit beside them.

“General Fuenmayor spoke up-continues Chávez- and he proposes, on behalf of all, my resignation, upon the lack of governance situation, as they said…I told them that they should think well the responsibility that they were taking on before Venezuela and the world…they gave me the piece of paper with the resignation…I know it and I would not sign…I had given them four conditions for me to sign…as I speak I take note that I am being subject of attention because many there had been manipulated…General González González interrupted me and invited all to go to the room next door…they return about an hour later…they said they did not accept the conditions, that I could not leave the country, that I had to respond to the people for the crimes committed…they went out, a Colonel stayed with me and told me that I had to take off my uniform, I changed my clothes and the troops was already moving on to go to breakfast”.  Is it true that you apologized to Monsignor Porras?, questioned Díaz Rangel.  “Yes, I apologized for the treatment to the religious high ranking officers, more so to Monsignor Porras.  I clearly stated that I am a Catholic, a Christian”.

THE OTHER VERSION

“Forgive me for all the atrocities that I have said about you.  I am calling you to ask you if you are willing to take care of my life and of the ones that are with me in Miraflores.  In view of today’s  events, I have decided to abandon power”.  It was Chávez´ voice.  “At approximately 12:30 am of Friday, April 12, I got the unexpected call”, as affirmed by Archbishop Baltazar Porras in his Memoirs, at the time he was the President of the Venezuelan Episcopal Conference (CEV), and whom such circumstance made him a qualified witness of the controversial event.  “I responded that as a Priest, I was willing, more so if he was requesting that of me”.  He added:  (Chávez)  “What I want is to get out of the country.  I ask you to accompany me all the way to the plane staircase and if necessary, to accompany me all the way, if the case may be”.  Porras talks about the his errands along with his colleague, Monsignor José Luis Azuaje, who was the Secretary of the CEV at the time, to be able to get to Tiuna Fort, “wherein we were mute witnesses to what was happening around us…as per the dialogue by the Military men, it was clear that the President´s  condition was to sign the resignation if he was taken to Maiquetía, up the plane’s stairs to get out of the country…Many things were talked about…one of the things they were most against was the activation of the Avila Plan at around one pm on April 11, which, as they stated, obliged the Military to shoot against the population…In the midst of all the events, the televised information by Chief General Lucas Rincón, was relevant, when he stated that the High Command had requested his resignation, which he accepted”.

According to Porras, upon Chávez´ imminent arrival to Tiuna Fort, the Generals deliberated regarding what to do.  They analyzed whether to allow him to leave the country or subdue him to military custody.  One General said that they should let him go.  What was meant by “custody”?  We have no judicial order to back up the situation.  How are we going to justify to the people that fact that we have him here under arrest?… They answered back:  It is already decided that he is not leaving.  “At around 4 am, says Porras, the President arrived, he saluted me and asked for my blessing, I hugged him and I blessed him…he was communicated that he was under the custody of the Armed Forces and that he should sign the resignation just as they had agreed…he answered:  you have changed the rules of the game, I said that I would resign if I was to leave the country, but now you say I will remain under custody, you will arrest a President elected by the people, but I will not discuss that”.  Porras qualifies Chávez added words as lapidary:  I think that I am less of a problem for you if you allow me to leave than if I stay, but you have the last word.  The Generals retired and we were left alone, Azuaje and I with the President.  “We spoke for a long while.  We heard what he had to say:  I proposed to include in the resignation document the resignation of the Vice President and of all the Cabinet to facilitate things.  He repeated that now he was really going to have time to think things through, to evaluate his performance and think calmly for the future.  Loyal to our priestly role, we let him vent.  We, the Bishops, were the last ones to say goodbye.  He animus was broken.  He shed a tear and said to us:  pray for me, I ask forgiveness for not having been able to find a better path for a good relationship with the Church.  Give me your blessing”.  By that time, the first rays of sunlight appeared in the horizon.  It was 6:30 am of the morning of April 12. 

AN EMPTY REVOLUTION

Chávez celebrated his come back to power anniversary announcing a new mission:  April 13.  “That day of 2002 the end of the North American hegemony in this continent started”.   We must erect it as a patriotic date, similar to that of June 24, 1821, when Bolívar, in the Carabobo Battle, decreed the end of the Spanish Empire”.  He dedicated a few words to the deceased Velasco Cardinal, who visited him when he was incarcerated in La Orchila.  “May God have him in his glory, although I think that I will find him in hell.  Velasco asked me, in the name of God, to do the last gesture for the people, to sign the resignation”.  He announced that the new mission was destined to eradicate poverty in the most important municipalities.  The Tal Cual newspaper, gave way to Francisco Rodríguez´ opinions, who was the Economic Advisor to the General Assembly in 2002 and interviewed with Chávez to recommend to rationalize expenses by the State.  Rodríguez, currently a professor in a renown North American University, wrote an article for Foreign Affairs titled:  An Empty Revolution.  Hugo Chávez´ unkept Promises.  He points out, with solid arguments, that the poor are not a priority for Chávez government:  In Venezuela, the poverty reduction rate is of one point for every economic growth point.  The average in Latin America is of two points.  The proportion of expenses more favorable to the poor, as education, health and housing, is maintained at the same level as the one before Chávez:  a fourth of the budget.  The rest goes to military expense, expansion of bureaucracy, debt payment.  There has not been a change in the priorities.  In 2005, the Government declared Venezuela as a territory free of illiteracy, and the Official figures demonstrated that there are a Million illiterates.  Chávez position as the President of the poor is explained because the Missions were primarily conceived as a political strategy, communicational.  For the government it is more important to transmit the impression that they are doing things for the poor, than to really do them.

Chávez acknowledges the “inefficiency” of the government and announces a strategy that guarantees efficiency.  Luis Zambrano, a researcher from the UCAB (Universidad Católica Andrés Bello), as almost all the independent analysts, points out that there is no viable economic strategy, when a political and ideological strategy is imposed on it.  “A currency exchange rate that is over valuated in more than 70%, an uncontrolled inflation that is esteemed to end the year in 30% and the execution of a crazy nationalization plan, that will seriously impact the fiscal accounts, are the most urgent issues that the government should be correcting.  But there is a rule of gold that is very difficult that the President, maker of all the policies, will be willing to break:  in electoral years, measures of a high political cost are never taken.  The Interamerican Human Rights Commission (CIDH), in its last report, makes a graphic of the Venezuelan scenario:  hostility to political dissent, criminalization of the social protest, politicized administration of justice, obstacles to the freedom of expression.  The regime responds that these are calumnies from the Empire.  Business men complain about the insecurity.  Law men, of the lack of autonomy in the Judicial power.  The President responds:  here, there is nothing autonomous.  The government is one alone, and I preside it”.