Eyewitness to a living revolution in Venezuela

John Peterson is a Hands Off Venezuela activist in Minneapolis and was part of the Hands Off Venezuela delegation to the presidential election on December 3rd. His impressions were published in The Pulse of the Twin Cities.

Although I've been active in defending the Venezuelan people's right to determine their own destiny since late 2002, I'd never actually been to the country. I could not have picked a better time to experience the process up close.

Along with international Hands Off Venezuela Campaign, HOV-Twin Cities helped organize a delegation of some 25 participants from the U.S., the UK, Canada, Sweden and Belgium to act as unofficial observers during the Venezuelan presidential elections that took place on Dec. 3.

Hugo Chavez was re-elected by the widest margin since he was first swept to power in 1998. His support has risen from 55 percent to more than 62 percent over the last eight years, which shows that he is winning over layers of the population that were previously skeptical or outright against him. Compare this with the usual trend in U.S. politics, where there is usually a steady nosedive in support over the course of any given president's term.

This was a direct election for the office of the Presidency (read: no Electoral College). Voting was orderly and turnout was high among both supporters and opponents of Chavez and the revolution-millions of Venezuelans got up as early as 3 a.m. to get to the polls.

Venezuela's voting process itself combines high-tech touch-screen computer voting with a printed-paper hard copy to confirm a voter's choice, which is then deposited in a sealed box. A sample of over half of these paper confirmation ballots is then counted to ensure the hard copies match the electronic tallies. All elections in Venezuela are efficiently organized in this manner by a national electoral council, which ensures a uniform electoral process, as opposed to the thousands of different national, state, county and city electoral systems we have in the U.S. (no "hanging chads" in Venezuela).

This alone should be enough to address the "concerns" of those in the Bush administration as to Chavez's democratic credentials. But even more important than this was the massive participation of the Bolivarian masses that are the backbone of the socialist revolution-one that has Chavez as its leader and adheres to a movement inspired by Simón Bolívar. The opposition was defeated not only at the polls, but on the streets, which teemed with millions of people in a celebratory mood-but who were ready for concerted action if any efforts were made to disrupt the process. After several coup attempts and economic sabotage by opponents of the revolution (who make up a minority of Venezuelan society), the majority wasn't taking any chances.

When the electoral commission announced the initial results, showing that Chavez had an overwhelming lead, the most raw and explosive-I'd even say primordial-celebration broke out. Drenched to the bone with rain and cold, the hundreds of thousands of people gathered around Caracas' Miraflores presidential palace jumped up and down, clenched and waved their fists, hugged, kissed, danced and cried, while fireworks went off above. The crowd's reaction seemed one of relief, exaltation and pure joy.

It's important to emphasize that although Chavez and the Venezuelan people are often depicted as "anti-American," this couldn't be further from the truth. The vast majority of Venezuelans are adamantly opposed to U.S. intervention in their country and around the world. But at the same time, everyone I met was extremely friendly and made it clear that what they oppose is U.S. government policy, not the ordinary working and poor people of the U.S.

Right now, most Venezuelans are in a holiday mood-they are fond of their extended Christmas holidays, foods and celebrations. Political activity in the country usually fizzles to nothing in the latter half of December, which was a strange contrast to the intensity and polarization of the weeks before election day. But come the middle of January, things will start to heat up, as the people of Venezuela get down to the business of building what they call "Socialism of the 21st Century."

Revolutions are a process, and the extended nature of the Bolivarian socialist revolution is proof of this. It has come a long way since it first really took off with the Caracazo uprising way back in 1989. Community and working class organization and consciousness have grown by leaps and bounds, and social investment of record oil revenues has allowed for tremendous advances in rebuilding in the country's infrastructure as well as funding its educational and health care systems (illiteracy has been eliminated in Venezuela and everyone has access to basic health care coverage).

Having failed several times in the past to halt the revolutionary process through military coups and blatant sabotage, Washington will now try and derail and wear out the revolution over time, waiting for a more propitious time to strike. The Bush Administration's quick recognition of Chavez's victory is only an attempt to "kill the revolution with kindness," since killing it with open blows has not worked so far. They will try to sow confusion and discontent within the government and among the people, and work to pick off the most advanced sectors one by one.

Minnesotans should keep their eyes firmly focused on events in Venezuela (and Oaxaca!). It is no exaggeration to say that what happens in Venezuela and Latin America as a whole in the coming months and years could literally change the entire course of human history. We must energetically defend the right of the Venezuelan people to decide what kind of society they want to live in-and we just might learn something in the process. ||

For more information, to get involved with Hands Off Venezuela, or to schedule a film presentation, please visit www.handsoffvenezuela.org or write us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..