In the entire history of the modern world order, it is unlikely to find many charismatic and odious representatives among the heads of state. Therefore, a man like Hugo Chavez could not remain without public attention even after his death. His emotional verbal attacks on political opponents, boundless love and respect for his people made the hero of our story one of the brightest and most famous modern presidents. His life and career will be discussed below.
Beginning of life
Chavez Hugo was born on July 28, 1954 in the western state of Venezuela - Barianas, in the city of Sabaneta. His father was Hugo de los Reyes Chavez, an Afro-Indian with an admixture of Spanish blood, who worked as a village teacher. Our hero still has five brothers alive, and another died as a baby.
Ugo's mother was a Creole and really hoped that her son would choose the path of a priest, although the young man himself dreamed of becoming an athlete and was fond of baseball. By the way, he retained his love for this sport for the rest of his life. It is also noteworthy that Chavez Hugo showed promise as an artist as a child and even received an award at one of the regional exhibitions at the age of 12.
Study and participation in the coup d'etat
The future head of the Latin American country graduated in 1975 from the Military Academy of Venezuela. There are unconfirmed reports that he also studied at the University. Simon Bolivar (Caracas). Hugo Chavez served in the airborne troops and therefore it is not surprising that he used the red color (an attribute of the Venezuelan paratrooper) as part of his image throughout his later life.
In 1992, Hugo, like many disaffected military personnel, took part in an attempt to remove then-president Carlos Andreas Pérez from power. Unfortunately for Chavez, the coup failed and he ended up in jail for two years, but was ultimately pardoned.
Life after prison term
Once free, the restless Venezuelan created a revolutionary political party called the Movement for the Fifth Republic. Largely thanks to such activity, he was at the top. In 1998, Chavez announced his candidacy for the presidency of the country. His election program included theses on the fight against corruption in the government, promises to carry out significant and such expected economic reforms.
Presidency
Having won the race for leadership, Hugo Chavez, whose photo is shown in the article, tried to amend the country's constitution, and also amended the powers of the main legislative body of Venezuela - the Congress. The new president touched on the work and the judiciary.
Being in the country's top post, Chavez fully felt all the "charms" of being president. So, his attempt to strengthen his control over the oil companies in 2002 led to serious controversy and protests, against which the military commanders were forced to remove Hugo from power for a while. As a compromise, a decision was made to hold a referendum, which would decide the question of the people's confidence in Chavez. In the summer of 2004, such a vote was held, and on its basis the leader of the country remained unchanged.
Relations with the United States of America
Time has shown that Hugo Chavez is a president who is extremely intolerant of US foreign policy. He repeatedly spoke negatively about the government of this country and believed that it was they who were involved in the attempt to overthrow him in 2002. Hugo vehemently opposed the military campaign in Iraq and stated that the US fought without proper authority. In addition, he called the then US President Bush Jr. "a vile imperialist."
It is also important that Chavez did not hesitate to sell oil in large quantities to the eternal enemy of the United States - Cuba, and also provided maximum support to partisan troops in neighboring states.
But despite all this, Chavez donated black gold to help the affected population from hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Domestic Politics
During the reign of Chavez, it was first officially announced that three hundred thousandrepresentatives of the indigenous population of the country - the Indians, have an unconditional right to own the lands of their original residence, and can take part in the registration and registration of their borders. Also, between 2000 and 2012, the poverty rate dropped significantly (from 44% to 24%). It is impossible not to note the increase in the level of education of Venezuelans, which became possible thanks to the involvement of Cuban teachers. The program for the construction of public housing stock was working, shops were opened for low-income segments of the population.
But with all this, it should be noted that the Venezuelan economy has always been and is heavily dependent on world oil prices. And therefore, at the time of the crisis of 2009-2010. The state's GDP fell from 3.2% to 1.5%.
Media Relations
Hugo Chavez, whose biography is literally full of colorful antics and phrases, has always had an ambiguous relationship with journalists.
Many privately owned media outlets have been talking about the development of a dictatorship in Venezuela. To this, Chavez responded by signing a law protecting children from dangerous information, on the basis of which airtime was divided into three daily periods. "Adult" hours were considered the interval 23:00-5:00.
In 1999, viewers saw a program called "Hello, President!". Hugo personally hosted the TV program, interacted with people, answered and asked questions. Starting from February 15, 2007, he began to spend an hour and a half on the air daily, thereby trying toget closer to the people.
End of life
In June 2011, Chavez was diagnosed with cancer. This happened after the removal of the pelvic abscess. The president spent the entire next year in continuous treatment, having gone through three surgeries. There was an active fight against cancerous tumors. But the result was sad, and on March 5, 2013, the great dictator died, leaving his wife a widow. He also left five children. The commandant was buried at the Museum of the Revolution, located in Caracas. The coffin with the body of the deceased was placed in a marble sarcophagus.
Who replaced Hugo Chavez? He was succeeded by Nicolás Maduro, who was Vice President during his predecessor's tenure.
