Blows and Counterblows in Venezuela

Abstract

The ratification of President Chávez's mandate in the recall referendum of August 15, 2004--a process without precedent in world history--was a great defeat that the Venezuelan opposition suffered in attempting to terminate the government of President Chávez. The triumph, by a huge margin, and under the attentive gaze of hundreds of international observers, who unanimously ratified the results, was a gift from the opposition. It was not the victory of a single man, but rather of a humanist and solidarity-based project for the country, as much in the international as in the national arena; of a project for the country which had emerged as an alternative to the voracious and predatory neoliberal model--a model of endogenous development and social economy. It was a triumph of the current Venezuelan constitution, the only constitution in the world that contemplates the idea of a recall referendum for the presidency. But, above all else, it was a victory of the people, of popular organization, of the people from the barrios, but also of the people from the middle class, who responded to the call of the president to organize themselves in their local voting areas, taking the initiative without waiting to be constituted by the organizations that were heading the electoral campaign. With this triumph, a new stage in the Bolivarian revolutionary process began. The challenges to be met in this new stage were extremely varied: political, economic, institutional and communicational.