REPORT ON VENEZUELAVENEZUELA THE TwoTwo FACESFACES OFOF HUGO CHAVEZCHAVEZ--, ChavezChdvez giving his 72-second televised speechspeech afterafter the failed FebruaiyFebruary 4, 19921992 coupcoup attempt. attempt. Chavez's Chdvez's presidential campaign posterposter forfor the May 28, 2000 election,election, which which reads: reads: "With "With Chavez Chavez thethe people people lead." lead." BYBy GABRIELGABRIEL GARCIA MARQUEZ tt dusk, Carlos AndrésAndr6s P6rezPerez walked off the responsibilityresponsibility for the action and turnedturned hishis speechspeech intointo aa plane thatthat hadhad broughtbrought himhim fromfrom Davos,Davos, political triumph. Although hehe spent two years in jail ASwitzerland, and was surprised toto see his before being amnestiedamnestied by PresidentPresident Rafael Caldera, defense minister, General Fernando Ochoa Antich,Antich, ononmany of hishis supporters,supporters, andand not a few of his enemies, thethe tarmac.tarmac. "What's up?" hehe asked,asked, concerned.concerned. The view the speechspeech he made in defeat as thethe beginningbeginning ofof minister put him atat ease with a story that was so believ-thethe electoral campaign thatthat would carry himhim toto thethe pres-pres- ableable that thethe PresidentPresident went home to thethe presidentialidencyidency justjust sevenseven years later. residence La Casona, instead of his office in Miraflores Hugo ChivezChavez FrfasFrIas toldtold meme thisthis asas wewe roderode inin a Palace. He was aboutabout to fall asleepasleep when the same mm-min- Venezuelan Air Force plane from Havana to CaracasCaracas isterister of defense called to inform him of a military upris-lessless than twotwo weeks before his inaugurationinauguration as the con- ing in Maracay. As soon as he had setset footfoot inin Miraflo-stitutionalstitutional president of Venezuela onon February 2,2, 1999. res, thethe artillery blasts began. We had met three days earlier in Havana, during aa It was February 4, 1992.1992. Colonel Hugo ChavezChivez Frfas,meeting with Cuban President Fidel Castro and Colom- in sacredsacred homagehomage to famousfamous dates, waswas leading thethe bian President Andr6sAndrés Pastrana, and the first thing that assaultassault from anan improvisedimprovised headquarters in La Planicieimpressedimpressed me was his body of reinforced concrete.concrete. HeHe Historical Museum. TheThe President knewknew thenthen that hishis had an immediate friendliness and a home-grown had an immediate friendliness and a home-grown cs only chance was to turn to the people,people, and he went charm that were unmistakably Venezuelan. We bothz straightstraight to the studiosstudios of VenevisiónVenevisi6n toto speak toto the tried to meet up again, but it was not possible forfor eithereither nation. Twelve hours later, the military coup was a fail-of us, soso wewe decideddecided to flyfly together to Caracas so we ure. ChavezChdvez surrendered,surrendered, but only underunder thethe conditioncondition couldcould chat about his life and other miracles. thatthat he tootoo be allowed to speakspeak to thethe peoplepeople on televi- It waswas aa goodgood experienceexperience forfor aa semi-retiredsemi-retired reporter.reporter. sion.sion. The young creolecreole colonel,colonel, with his parachutist's While he told me his life, bitbit byby bit I discovered aa per-per-= beret andand his admirableadmirable ease with words, took fullfullsonalitysonality that did not correspond at all to the despoticdespotic 5 imageimage we get of him throughthrough thethe media.media. ItIt waswas aa differ-differ-4U entent Chavez. Which of the two was real? z The latest book byby GabrielGabriel Garcia Garcia Marquez Mjrquez is NewsNews ofof aa The strongest argument against himhim during the cam- Kidnapping (Knopf, 1997). 1997). GarciaGarcia Marquez Mdrquez is the editorial board board paign was his recent past as a coup-plotting conspirator. Iz director of of the the Colombian Colombian weekly weekly newsmagazine, newsmagazine, Revista Revista Cam-Cam- But the history of Venezuela has absorbed atat leastleast fourfour0 bio,bio, inin whichwhich this this essay essay originallyoriginally appeared. appeared. TranslatedTranslated from thethe Spanish Spanish by by MarkMark Fried. Fried. like him, beginning with RómuloR6mulo Betancourt, correctly 18 NACIA REPORTREPORT ON ON THE THE AMERICASAMERICAS REPORT ON VENEZUELAVENEZUELA or incorrectly remembered todaytoday asas the father ofofschoolsschools the chance to pursue academicacademic studiesstudies asas farfar asas Venezuelan democracy. He overthrew IsalasIsafas Medina they wished. Angarita, an old military democrat who hadhad triedtried toto cleansecleanse the country of the 36-year36-year legacylegacy ofof Juan hávezhdvez studiedstudied political science,science, history and Vicente Gdmez.G6mez. HisHis successor, novelistnovelist ROmuloR6mulo Galle-Galle- Marxism-Leninism. HeHe developed aa passion for gos, waswas overthrownoverthrown by GeneralGeneral MarcosMarcos PerezPdrez Cthethe lifelife andand workwork ofof BolIvar—hisBolivar-his seniorsenior Leo—Leo- Jimdnez,Jim6nez, who was to remain in power for 1111 years. He, whose proclamations he learnedlearned by heart. But his first inin turn,turn, waswas overthrownoverthrown by an entire generation ofawarenessawareness of contemporary politics came with thethe young democratsdemocrats whowho inaugurated death of Chilean President Salvador thethe longestlongest period of electedelected presi-presi- Allende in SeptemberSeptember 1973.1973. dents.dents. Chavez did not understand: If vhelmed by Chavez did not understand: The February coup seems toto bebe thethe I waswas overoverwhelmed by Chileans elected Allende, why only thing that did not turn out well the feeling that II had had shouldshould Chilean officersofficers overthrowoverthrow for Hugo ChavezChAvez Frfas.Frias. HeHe views itit him? A short while later, the cap- positively, however, as a providential justjust beenbeen trtravelingaveling and tain of hishis companycompany assigned him reverse.reverse. It isis hishis wayway ofof understand-understand- chatting ple asantly with the task of keeping an eye on a son inging goodgood luck,luck, or intelligence,intelligence, orchatting pleasantly withof JoséJos6 Vicente Rangel, who was intuition, or astuteness, or whatever two opposingoppo sing men.men. believed to be a Communist. "Look"Look one can call the magic touch that has atat thethe wayway lifelife unfolds,"unfolds," ChavezChbvez favored him since he entered the told me with anan explosiveexplosive laugh. world in Sabaneta, inin the state of "Now"Now his father is my foreign min- Barinas, on JulyJuly 28, 1954, bornborn underunder Leo,Leo, thethe signsign of ister."ister." Even more ironicironic isis thethe factfact that when he gradu- power. Chbvez,Chavez, aa fervent Catholic, attributes his ated he received his saber from the hands of the Presi- charmed existence toto the 100-year-old100-year-old scapular which dent whom 20 years later he would try to overthrow, he has worn since childhood, inherited fromfrom aa maternalmaternalCarlos AndrésAndr6s Perez.P6rez. great-grandfather, Colonel PedroPedro P6rezPerez Delgado,Delgado, oneone ofof "What's"What's more,"more," I toldtold him,him, "you were about to kill his tutelary heroes. him." His parents barely scraped by on their primary- "Not"Not at all," ChavezChdvez protested. "The"The ideaidea was to set school-teacherschool-teacher salaries, andand fromfrom thethe ageage ofof ninenine hehe hadhadupup a constituent assembly and return to the barracks." to help themthem by sellingselling candiescandies and fruitfruit fromfrom a cart.cart. From the first moment I realized that he was a natural Sometimes he went byby donkey toto visit his maternal storyteller, a productproduct of Venezuela'sVenezuela's creative, exhilarat- grandmother in Los Rastrojos, a neighboring town that ing popular culture. He hashas aa greatgreat sensesense ofof timingtiming andand seemedseemed like a city because it had a littlelittle power plant a memory that has a touch of the supernatural, allowing that provided two hours of lights inin thethe evening,evening, asas wellwell him to recite poems by PabloPablo Neruda or WaltWalt Whit- asas aa midwifemidwife who welcomed him and his four brothers man, or entire passages of R6muloRdmulo Gallegos. intointo the world. His mother wanted himhim toto be a priest, At a veryvery youngyoung age,age, by chance,chance, he discovered that but he only made it to acolyte, though hehe rangrang the bellsbellshis great-grandfather waswas notnot a mass murderer, asas his with such delightdelight that everyone recognized his ring. mother had told him, but a legendarylegendary warrior from the "It's"It's HugoHugo who'swho's ringing,"ringing," theythey would say. Among hishistimes of JuanJuan Vicente Gómez.G6mez. Chavez's enthusiasmenthusiasm mother's booksbooks hehe foundfound anan encyclopedia,encyclopedia, whose first was such that hehe decided toto writewrite aa bookbook toto set thethe chapterchapter seemed heaven-sent and seduced himhim immedi- record straight.straight. He waded through historical archives ately:ately: "How to Succeed in Life."Life." and military libraries, covering thethe region from town to It.was actually just a list of options, and he triedtried near- town, his historian's kit in aa backpack,backpack, to reconstruct lyly all of them.them. AsAs aa 12-year-old12-year-old painter,painter, astonished by his great-grandfather's travels by the testimonies of his thethe worksworks