Image
Chavista Motorcade Commemorates Anniversary of Death of Hugo Chavez
By Wilmer Errades, Henry Tesara, and Gregorio Terán – AVN
Thousands took part in a civic-military motorcade Wednesday in commemoration of the fourth anniversary of the death of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
The mobilization began outside the National Military Academy in Caracas' Park of Heroes and concluded at the Mountain Barracks in the revolutionary 23 de enero neighborhood in the western half of the city, following the same route as the historic motorcade that laid to rest Chavez's remains on March 15, 2013.
The parade was attended by diverse social movements, military personnel, motorcyclist collectives, United Socialist Party of Venezuela leaders and rank-and-file, as well as government officials.
Speaking at the Mountain Barracks, PSUV Vice-President Diosdado Cabello paid tribute to Chavez's legacy in light of what he described as a wave of international attacks against Venezuela.
"Today imperialism continues to attack Venezuela, but our people remains in the streets raising the banner of socialism in defense of the homeland, as did our commander Hugo Chávez. Four years after his passing… we can say that the revolutionary flame of the socialist leader remains alive in the hearts of Venezuelans," he declared.
Chavez died on March 5, 2013 following a protracted battle with cancer. Venezuela's Culture Ministry has organized a series of activities over the past ten days in honor of the late president.
See as: smaller image(s) | gallery
The motorcade began outside the National Military Academy in Caracas' historic Park of Heroes.
.Many carried photos and posters in memory of the late president.
.Thousands gathered the Park of Heroes before taking part in the parade.
.Drum circles are a critical part of Afro-Venezuelan culture and have been strongly identified with Hugo Chavez and the Bolivarian Revolution, which have sought to reclaim the nation's African heritage.
.The motorcade proceeded along Caracas' principal Pan-American highway towards the western part of the city.
.Motorcyclist clutches poster of Venezuela's independence hero Simon Bolivar. The image is the result of a scientific reconstruction of Bolivar's likeness, revealing the liberator's mixed African and European heritage in contrast to previous whitened portrayals. Motorcyclists, who themselves mainly hail from the country's black and brown barrios, have long been among the Bolivarian Revolution's strongest supporters.
.Four-legged Chavistas were also welcome.
.United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) Vice-President Diosdado Cabello also took part in the parade.
.Published on Mar 16th 2017 at 8.00pm
This work is licensed under a Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives Creative Commons license