The best friend of Cuba, how would Commander in Chief Fidel Castro Ruz describe the eternal Commander of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez Frías, would turn 67 this July 28 if he had not passed to immortality in his struggle to fulfill the dreams of The Liberator Simón Bolívar.
For Fidel Castro, Commander Chávez was “(…) a Venezuelan soldier in whose mind Bolívar's ideas naturally germinated. It is enough to observe how his thought went through various stages of political development from humble origins, school, military academy, reading history, the reality of his country and the humiliating presence of the Yankee rule.
On March 5, 2013, the world learned the unfortunate news of Chávez's death, after a tenacious fight against cancer that finally took his life at age 59, in which he was until the last moment at the head of his people against the actions of the Latin American right folded to the dictates of Washington to subjugate Venezuela.
"We lost our best friend," Fidel wrote on March 11, 2013, after highlighting the struggle of Chávez, who "did not even suspect how great he was."
The first contact with Cuban soil of the then Lieutenant Colonel (r) Hugo Chávez Frías, when he was the leader of the 200 Bolivarian Revolutionary Movement, was when he arrived in Havana on December 13, 1994, a few months after he was released from prison on December 26. March of that year, due to popular pressure after two years of captivity for leading a military uprising against the package of neoliberal economic measures of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) implemented by the Venezuelan president of the time, Carlos Andrés Pérez.
Invited by the historian of the city, Eusebio Leal Spengler, and to the surprise of the visitor, at the foot of the plane's steps, Fidel Castro received him with a strong hug that began a friendship that would last until his death.
The Venezuelan military and politician was born in Sabaneta de Barinas, being the second of the six children of Hugo and Elena, both primary school teachers. He grew up in a humble home in a small town in the Venezuelan plain, and at a young age his paternal grandmother took care of his upbringing. From a young age he was a baseball fan, an altar boy and had a penchant for painting, music, narrative writing and theater.
Three weeks after obtaining the bachelor's degree, he entered the Military Academy of the Venezuelan National Army, where he graduated and received a degree in Military Arts and Sciences, specializing in Engineering, graduating with the rank of second lieutenant, on the 5th July 1975.
He stood out for obtaining the highest marks in the various courses he took within the Armed Forces. In 1977 he was promoted to lieutenant and in 1979 he completed the Medium Army Armored Course, where he ranks first among all the students. In 1982 he was promoted to captain and took the Advanced Armored Course in 1983, where he would again occupy the first place among all the students. He was a professor of higher studies and held various positions in the Armed Forces.
He participated in the International Course on Political Wars in Guatemala in 1988. He completed a Master's degree in Political Science at the Simón Bolívar University in 1989 and 1990 and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 1990. He completed a Course in Command and General Staff at the Higher School of the Army in 1991 and 1992, and commanded a Parachute Battalion in Maracay.
On February 4, 1992, some 2,350 young soldiers from 10 battalions from the states of Aragua, Carabobo, Miranda, Zulia and the Capital District, led by Chávez, rose up against the package of neoliberal economic measures implemented by President Carlos Andrés Pérez. Many of the rebels were part of the 200 Bolivarian Revolutionary Movement, whose political ideology was based on the thought of Simón Bolívar.
The attempt to overthrow the Pérez government and guide the life of the country on a path of social justice failed. According to official figures there were 14 dead and 53 injured, but unofficial estimates place this balance at 50 dead and more than 100 injured. All the participants in this action were taken to prison. The case was dismissed due to popular pressure and the military was released two years later, during the presidency of Rafael Caldera.
From prison, a place where he devoted himself to studying, reflecting and analyzing the national and international reality, Chávez went out to visit all the national borders, claiming libertarian and righteous predicaments, which were shared by broad sectors of the population. To carry out his popular program, he founded, together with a group of his former comrades in arms, the V Republic Movement.
A very broad popular sentiment in favor of substantive changes in the conduct of State affairs became evident on December 6, 1998, when 56.24% of the voters elected Chávez as Constitutional President of the then Republic of Venezuela. This fact is considered one of the most momentous achievements in the contemporary political history of Venezuela.
On December 15, 1999, he summoned the Venezuelan people to a referendum to decide whether to approve the new Bolivarian Constitution of Venezuela, through direct, universal and secret suffrage.
This proposal was supported by the majority and published in the Official Gazette on December 30, 1999. Thus, a democratic, participatory, protagonist, multiethnic and multicultural society was established in a decentralized State and federal justice, which ensures the right to life. , to work, culture, education, social justice and equality, without any discrimination or subordination.
In the elections of July 30, 2000, Chávez crystallized the constituent political project and was re-legitimized as President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela with 59.5% of the votes. Thus he begins the Fifth Republic.
During 2001, the creation of the microfinance system was finalized, as well as the laws that regulate the productive activities of the private sector. Likewise, the Hydrocarbons Law is reformed and the Bank for Economic and Social Development of Venezuela is created. In this way, the oil industry is retaken as a company belonging to the nation. Likewise, the document General Lines of the 2001-2007 Economic and Social Development Plan is designed, which is based on the interaction of the five balance axes: economic, social, political, territorial and international.
On April 11, 2002, a coup d'etat took place, generated from the call for a work stoppage by the Federation of Chambers and Associations of Commerce and Production of Venezuela (Fedecámaras), the Central de Trabajadores de Venezuela (CTV), political parties right wing and military sectors opposed to the transformation of society. The planning and implementation of the coup plan had the approval and support of the then Administration of George W. Bush. Its main objective was to prevent the execution of the Enabling Laws to ruin the adaptation of the Venezuelan State and society to the times of socialist revolution.
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