| CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — From the very humble location, nestled together the loud road within a Caracas slum which looks out to Venezuela's presidential structure much beneath as well as, past, the actual towering Avila hill. This people's shrine — its name, "Saint Hugo Chavez del 23," inscribed in white paint — has been visited by tens of thousands of Venezuelans to pay homage to a president for some, a saint for others. Beneath a simple tin roof, there are sunflowers and votive candles, their dried wax drippings a testament to the many who've come since Chavez died of cancer on March 5. They still come to the 23rd of January barrio, just steps away from an army barracks used by a young Chavez, then an army paratroop commander, in a failed coup attempt on Feb. 4, 1992. On a wall is a poster showing Jesus Christ bearing a crucifix, paired with Chavez, in uniform and red beret, saluting. "God is with us. Who is against us?" it reads. Venezuela's Roman Catholic church has objected to comparisons of Chavez to Jesus Christ or descriptions of him as a saint. No matter. There are no such objections here. "He is our saint of the poor," says Eva Garcia, 45, who tends to the shrine each day after her shift at the local municipal offices as a community organizer. Elizabeth Torres, 48, a mother of six, places a tiny cup of freshly brewed coffee on the ground before a small statue of Chavez. The late president famously sipped, and savored, cup after cup of coffee during his frequent marathon speeches to the nation. "It's because of that that I bring coffee for him. Every day. And from the heart," Torres said. She briefly dances to music blaring from a passing truck that urges residents to vote for Chavez's chosen successor, Nicolas Maduro, in the presidential election. Blue, yellow and red Chavez earrings, and a red rosary adorned with Chavez's face, bounce on her frame. "He's still our supreme commander," Torres says with a relaxed smile that suggests that the initial trauma of Chavez's death has passed, and that the memories — and his social programs — endure. She wears a "4-F" armband to commemorate Chavez's failed uprising. "4-F" also adorns the army barracks nearby. "The fourth of February was the day Chavez began opening our eyes," said Garcia. To each and every visitor, Garcia hands out a copy of Chavez's official agenda for the 2013-2019 presidential term he won't complete. She also offers a handbill with Chavez's last public remarks in December, in which he named Maduro his chosen successor. Within 1992, Chavez's vicissitude try towards Leader Carlos Andres unsuccessful. This individual notoriously made an appearance upon tv to inform area which their motion experienced unsuccessful -- "for right now. inch Jailed for 2 many years, Chavez decide on the route which shipped your pet towards the obama administration within 99 as well as, possibly, transformed Venezuela permanently. "When Chavez that day said 'for now,' he really meant forever," Garcia said. "He opened our eyes. He taught us about revolution, socialism, ideology. Chavez lives." |
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