Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez taken at New York City in 2009. Photo: Platon Antoniou/The New Yorker/file photo.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez paid a heartfelt tribute on Thursday to the commander of the Bolivarian Revolution and eternal symbol of Venezuelan dignity, President Hugo Chávez, on the 13th anniversary of his passing on March 5, 2013.
Rodríguez declared that the revolutionary leader’s presence lives on in every struggle and every victory of the Venezuelan people, that he did not merely lead them but became them, woven into the soul of the nation as undying hope and inexhaustible inspiration.
“Thirteen years after the passing of Commander Hugo Chávez, we feel his living presence in every struggle, and every victory of the people. He taught us to love this land deeply, to hold our heads high with dignity, and never to surrender,” she wrote.
His greatest legacy, Rodríguez affirmed, was not power but purpose: peace, equality, and social justice forged through consciousness and true unity among the people.
Orinoco Tribune also honored the founder of Chavismo, our guide and our beacon, taken from us too suddenly and under circumstances that remain deeply contested.
Thirteen years have passed since Commander Hugo Chávez’s death, and he continues to be a beacon of light and inspiration for true Chavismo. Those outside Venezuela, or those who are not truly Chavista, might find this hard to understand.
Today, we commemorate another anniversary of his sudden departure. We know in our bones that the Chavista leadership after Jan. 3 remains loyal to him, to the tectonic movement that enabled him, and to the historic legacy he tremendously helped to build.
¡Nosotros venceremos, no matter what!
¡Chávez vive, carajo!
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We at Orinoco Tribune also take this moment to speak plainly to those outside Venezuela, or to those who have not yet come to understand the true nature of Chavismo. Despite the difficult and at times controversial strategic decisions made by its leadership in the aftermath of the atrocious January 3 US military bombing of Venezuela, the heart of the Bolivarian movement has not wavered. The majority of Chavistas continue to stand with their leadership and remain steadfast in their commitment to the socialist and anti-imperialist ideals that Chávez gave his life to build.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/DZ
