Presidents of Uruguay, Bolivia, Nicaragua attend ‘Chavez rally’
11 Jan 2013 6:39 AM IST
enezuela’s government has organised what seems an alternative inauguration outside the presidential palace on Thursday and is hosting regional leaders in an unusual show of support for ailing President Hugo Chavez, whose swearing-in ceremony has been indefinitely postponed.
Vice President Nicolas Maduro urged supporters to gather on a street outside Miraflores Palace to demonstrate their solidarity with Chavez, who remains in Cuba fighting complications after cancer surgery and hasn’t spoken publicly or been seen in more than a month.
‘Everyone to the street,’ Maduro said at a televised Cabinet meeting on Wednesday night. ‘We’re going to have a great function in honour of President Chavez.’
Leaders from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean were invited, as they normally would be for a formal inauguration. President Jose Mujica of Uruguay arrived on Wednesday, and other presidents expected to attend included Bolivia’s Evo Morales and Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega. Maduro said heads of state, foreign ministers and other officials from 19 countries had come to Caracas. The vice president, whom Chavez designated his chosen successor last month, said that even though it wasn’t an official swearing-in, today’s event still marks the start of a new term for the president following his re-election in October.
‘A historic period of this second decade of the 21st century is starting, with our commander leading,’ Maduro said.
But glaring above all in the planned event was Chavez’s absence from the presidential where he has so often spoken for hours on television, chided his opponents and called for a socialist revolution.
The opposition, limping from two recent electoral defeats, seems powerless to effectively challenge the postponement of Chavez’s swearing-in, a legislative move that was endorsed on Wednesday -by a Supreme Court widely viewed as favouring the government.
US ‘WILLING TO IMPROVE TIES WITH VENEZUELA’
The US has expressed willingness to improve its ties with Venezuela, as the uncertainty over Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s health continues.
Chavez, 58, who has been at odds with the US and during his period the relationship between the two countries has plumed to an all-time low, is suffering from cancer.
The Venezuelan government on Wednesday announced that he would not attend his inauguration his fourth on Thursday.
‘Regardless of what happens politically in Venezuela, if the Venezuelan Government and if the Venezuelan people want to move forward with us, we think there is a path that’s possible. It’s just going to take two to tango,’ State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland told reporters.
‘We have for some time made clear that we were willing and open to trying to improve our ties with Venezuela. We’ve put a number of ideas forward to the government. We’ve been in conversation about it,’ she said.
‘We had been saying for some time that if the Venezuelans were willing to work with us, we were willing to consider what might be possible, but there have just been difficulties. So again, from our perspective, it need not be personality-based, but it’s going to take action on the Venezuelan side as well as our willingness in order to improve relations,’ she said.
Vice President Nicolas Maduro urged supporters to gather on a street outside Miraflores Palace to demonstrate their solidarity with Chavez, who remains in Cuba fighting complications after cancer surgery and hasn’t spoken publicly or been seen in more than a month.
‘Everyone to the street,’ Maduro said at a televised Cabinet meeting on Wednesday night. ‘We’re going to have a great function in honour of President Chavez.’
Leaders from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean were invited, as they normally would be for a formal inauguration. President Jose Mujica of Uruguay arrived on Wednesday, and other presidents expected to attend included Bolivia’s Evo Morales and Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega. Maduro said heads of state, foreign ministers and other officials from 19 countries had come to Caracas. The vice president, whom Chavez designated his chosen successor last month, said that even though it wasn’t an official swearing-in, today’s event still marks the start of a new term for the president following his re-election in October.
‘A historic period of this second decade of the 21st century is starting, with our commander leading,’ Maduro said.
But glaring above all in the planned event was Chavez’s absence from the presidential where he has so often spoken for hours on television, chided his opponents and called for a socialist revolution.
The opposition, limping from two recent electoral defeats, seems powerless to effectively challenge the postponement of Chavez’s swearing-in, a legislative move that was endorsed on Wednesday -by a Supreme Court widely viewed as favouring the government.
US ‘WILLING TO IMPROVE TIES WITH VENEZUELA’
The US has expressed willingness to improve its ties with Venezuela, as the uncertainty over Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s health continues.
Chavez, 58, who has been at odds with the US and during his period the relationship between the two countries has plumed to an all-time low, is suffering from cancer.
The Venezuelan government on Wednesday announced that he would not attend his inauguration his fourth on Thursday.
‘Regardless of what happens politically in Venezuela, if the Venezuelan Government and if the Venezuelan people want to move forward with us, we think there is a path that’s possible. It’s just going to take two to tango,’ State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland told reporters.
‘We have for some time made clear that we were willing and open to trying to improve our ties with Venezuela. We’ve put a number of ideas forward to the government. We’ve been in conversation about it,’ she said.
‘We had been saying for some time that if the Venezuelans were willing to work with us, we were willing to consider what might be possible, but there have just been difficulties. So again, from our perspective, it need not be personality-based, but it’s going to take action on the Venezuelan side as well as our willingness in order to improve relations,’ she said.
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