After 11 years of the death of Hugo Chávez, Tulio Hernandez – exiled to Colombia due to a prison threat from Nicolás Maduro on the national radio station – referred to the departure of the “Comandante” and how Venezuela has forgotten the numerous violent episodes that caused millions of Caracas residents to flee a country that was in its heyday the most envied in South America.
According to the figures, 333,029 deaths due to violence were recorded between 1999, the year Hugo Chávez took power in Venezuela, and 2018. On average, 40 people died every day, most of whom were young people in economically precarious situations.
Chávez took command of the executive branch and 25 years later, Venezuela is still controlled by Chavismo. Photo: AFP
“He will go down in history as another despot”
-11 years after the death of Hugo Chávez, how do you personally remember the former president, how did you get to know him?
-I always remember Hugo Chavez through an interview he conducted Gabriel Garcia Marquez on a return trip from Havana to Caracas. “Gabo” says he was shocked by the image as he walked away amid his escort of decorated soldiers – the inspiration of having traveled and spoken to two opposite men was overwhelming.
Fortune offered him the opportunity to free his country from the deep crisis in which it found itself, but illusionist was the word that could go down in history as another corrupt military despot. I guess I'm not sure if corrupt, but as still a despot. .
“He was a very small man”
-You had the opportunity to meet Hugo Chávez. Could you share anecdotes or personal experiences with him?
-One of the memories was the night we were waiting, I was in that room waiting for the arrival of Hugo Rafael Chavez to give the press conference to the international press. It caught my attention when I saw that he was a very small man, but still he grabbed the civilian leaders by the shoulders.
However, he did not stay with them, but was eventually accompanied by the non-commissioned officers and lieutenant captains who, when they were very young, accompanied Chávez in carrying out the coup on February 4, 1992. God given hair either Taiza Bernal or all the soldiers who ruled these 25 years.
Chávez's first appearance on the stage came on February 4, 1992, when he and other middle-ranking soldiers staged a coup. Photo: AFP
“There will be no single way to remember Chávez”
-What direction did Venezuela take after Chávez's death?
-TO Hugo Chavez He is remembered in a polarized way and will be remembered for many years to come by those who believe that the devil is the devil who came to put an end to the little good that we had achieved through democracy, and a minority that today, according to polls, must be between 8 and 10%, and there are those who believe that he was a transformative man who loved the poor and fought for equality and justice.
There will be no single way to remember Chávez. What is certain is that he will be remembered for many decades to come, just as Franco is remembered in Spain, as Mussolini is remembered in Italy, and also in the remnants of the Russian Federation They remember Stalin: for two reasons , out of deepest hatred and deepest admiration.
According to OVV, 7,523 Venezuelans were murdered in 2018 for resisting state security authorities. Photo: AFP
“Chávez’s legacy is a failure”
-Is Chávez's legacy the reason Nicolás Maduro remains in power and why?
-Chávez's legacy has failed, but it is not the reason why Nicolás Maduro remains in power. Obviously, if Chávez, very influenced by Fidel And his brother Raul Castroask him not to call Diosdado Cabello but Nicolás Maduro, because he came from the Socialist League and was trained by the Cubans.
Maduro rules for seven things: Supreme Courtthe election judge, the media whose freedoms have been removed, the Armed forces that they are not advisory but Praetorian Guards, also due to the absolute control over three forces that give them their greatest weight: the groups that are paramilitary apparatuses of armed civilians, the FARC dissidents that operate freely in Venezuela, and the members of the National Liberation Army.