Who will run Venezuela after Hugo Chavez?
Who will run Venezuela after Hugo Chavez? - Reporter
Many Venezuelans spent time over the holidays praying for the health of their President. Hugo Chavez hasn't been seen or heard from in three weeks, ever since his latest round of cancer surgery in Cuba. His condition is described by the Vice-President as "delicate." This morning, with just a week to go until he is supposed to be sworn in for another term, Venezuelans wonder if he will ever return to lead them.
Over the last 14 years, Hugo Chavez has helped re-invent his country as a Socialist Republic. He earned the admiration of many poor Venezuelans for building a sprawling network of social programs that redistributed the country's wealth. And he earned the ire of many others, for cosying up to foreign dictators, shutting down private media and greatly expanding his powers.
Phil Gunson has been covering Hugo Chavez since he first came to power in 1999. He's a freelance correspondent who writes for The Economist magazine and he was in Maturin, Venezuela.
Who will run Venezuela after Hugo Chavez? - Panel
Hugo Chavez transformed his country and much of Latin America in ways many reformers might envy. To discuss whether those transformations will be lasting, we reached Richard Gott in London, England. He is the author of In the Shadow of the Liberator: The Impact of Hugo Chavez on Venezuela and Latin America and former correspondent for The Guardian. And in Boston, Boris Munoz is a Venezuelan journalist who is now a fellow at the Rockerfeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University.
This segment was produced by The Current's Sujata Berry and Gord Westmacott.
Other segments from today's show:
Following the footsteps of humanity's ancestors: Paul Salopek