Caracas – Thousands of members of the Venezuelan opposition marched through the streets of this capital Sunday to repudiate the government of President Hugo Chavez and commemorate the 48th anniversary of the toppling of dictator Gen. Marcos Perez Jimenez.
Spokesmen for the various groups participating in the march – the largest anti-Chavez demonstration in several years – agreed that it is a “priority” for the opposition to form a united front against the government authorities and provide an alternative to lead the country.
The march began in eastern Caracas, where most of the city’s middle and upper class neighborhoods are located, and it ended up on Libertador Avenue in front of a dais exhibiting the slogan: “United to save democracy.”
The march – the opposition’s first organized activity for 2006 – was convened jointly by some 60 participating groups, including the “traditional” political parties, extreme rightist and leftist forces, unions, civil associations, anti-Chavez non-governmental organizations, and others.
It was the most heavily attended anti-Chavez event since 2003, although it did not approach the massive dimensions of the demonstrations held in Caracas by opposition groups prior to the April 2002 coup that deposed Chavez but failed after some 48 hours.
Henry Ramos, the secretary general for Democratic Action (AD), the main opposition party, said that it was essential to put out a “unified message,” and he criticized opposition leaders who want to run in the presidential elections this year, saying that they were “dividing instead of uniting.”
Followers of the social democratic party carried signs confirming that they had not disappeared from the political scene and chanted “AD is in the streets, AD is not afraid.”
The march, which was conducted peacefully with no reported incidents, was “protected” by some 2,000 police, along with scores of firefighters, ambulances and first aid teams.
Antonio Ledezma, the former Caracas mayor and head of the National Command for the Resistance, or CNR, agreed with Ramos that the best way to commemorate the Jan. 23, 1958, toppling of Gen. Perez Jimenez would be for the opposition to have a “united leadership” and act as a bloc against Chavism.
Gen. Raul Salazar, Venezuela’s former defense minister and ex-envoy to Spain, said that the march marked the “rebirth of the opposition.”
Over the seven years that Chavez has been in power, the country’s opposition leaders have been unable to develop a program for governance and largely have failed to agree on much except that “Chavez has to be thrown out of the presidency,” although they have not worked out precisely how to accomplish this.
Some marchers carried pictures of Cardinal Rosalio Castillo, a declared enemy of the government, while the placards and signs of different groups mainly denounced official corruption and called for freedom and democracy.
Meanwhile, the government commemorated the anniversary of Perez Jimenez’s ouster with a two-day music and dance festival along Bolivar Avenue that will wrap up on Monday afternoon.
Organizers of the “Festival of Revolutionary Democracy” said that 120 artists and musical groups will perform there, including Puerto Rican salsa star Jerry Rivera and Dominican merengue sensation Wilfrido Vargas.
The performers will run through their numbers on five stages, entertaining the crowd with combinations of Latin music, Venezuelan folk tunes, rock and all sorts of other styles that can be grouped under the rubric of “current music.”
The festival is considered to be a prelude to the 6th World Social Forum, which will bring some 150,000 persons from 54 countries to Caracas between Feb. 24-29.
Gen. Perez Jimenez was president of Venezuela from 1952-1958 after being a member of the military junta heading the country since the coup of 1948. Although he undertook many infrastructure projects and the Venezuelan economy developed rapidly during his government, he did not tolerate criticism and ruthlessly pursued and suppressed the opposition.
A general uprising with extensive street rioting toppled him in 1958 and he fled the country. He was extradited from the United States in 1963, was convicted of embezzling some $200 million during his tenure in power and served five years in prison. He died in Madrid in September 2001.
