Momentum Builds in Support of Venezuela’s Constitutional Reform

A "sea of red" is support of the reforms, in the streets of Barcelona (CZA).

Caracas, November 16, 2007 (venezuelanalysis.com) - Tens of thousands of people rallied in support of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his proposed constitutional reform in the regional city of Barcelona, Anzoátegui on Wednesday, as the countdown to the December 2 constitutional referendum continues.

Addressing the crowd, Chavez said that the key objective of the reform, "is to give more power to the people." He pointed to a proposed change to Article 64, which would lower the voting age from 18 to 16, saying "This proposal will open participation to more than two million people; two million youths of 16 years of age will have the ability to vote."

He also said that to vote ‘No' would holdback the process of change in Venezuela, known as the Bolivarian revolution, and emphasized that the reforms are necessary "to complement the work of transforming the country, to open paths to participation and social justice."

Speaking earlier the same day at a rally of thousands of supporters in Maturín, in the state of Monagas, Chavez said the opposition's plans to destabilize the country would fail because "Venezuela now is not the same as it was in 2002 [when the opposition attempted a military coup]. The people as well as the government remain alert in the face of destabilizing plans...now we won't be surprised like we were in 2002."

However at a press conference on Tuesday, Chavez warned of the potential consequences of a repeated coup attempt. "If they kill me, or if there is a coup d'état, there will be a civil war here," he said.

Chavez stressed that Venezuela was the fifth largest exporter of crude oil in the world, and one of the largest suppliers to the United States. A coup d'état "is the perfect plan" for US imperialism he continued. "To them it is not important if the Caribbean Sea is dyed red with Venezuelan blood, they want our oil."

Chavez also reiterated his call to all Venezuelans to participate in the referendum in order to defeat abstention.

"We must work very hard in the socialist battalions, the commands of the campaign, the militants in the revolutionary parties, the students, the campesinos, the workers, the women, the indigenous all of us must work to reduce abstention," he said.

Similar rallies have been held throughout the country, in Barquisimeto, in the state of Lara, and in Aragua, the home state of former Chavez ally, retired General Raul Isaias Baduel, whose declaration against the reforms last week sparked demonstrations by Chavez supporters outside the military barracks in Maracay calling Baduel a "traitor." More rallies are planned for the remaining weeks of the campaign.

Small but violent demonstrations against the reforms by opposition students from Venezuela's elite and private universities, who claim the reforms that will enable Chavez to stand for reelection, will lead to a "dictatorship," have also galvanized Chavez's support base, the poor majority, into action in favor of the reforms.

While opposition to Chavez and the reforms is predominantly centered in the wealthy areas, red graffiti saying "Si a la Reforma" - Yes to the reforms - can be seen everywhere, on houses, cars and buses, in the poor barrios of Caracas, home to an estimated five million people.

The socialist battalions of the new United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), have also begun a door knocking campaign across the country, visiting all of the 5.7 million people who signed up to be members of the new party earlier this year and distributing information about the content of the reforms.

More than fifteen thousand university students wearing red shirts emblazoned with "Yes" also marched in Caracas on Wednesday in support of the reforms. The students also condemned violent acts by opposition students who attacked a group of Chavista students in the Central University of Venezuela last week, threatening to lynch them and holding them hostage for several hours inside the School of Social Work as they threw rocks and other objects and attempted to set fire to the building.

The students also distributed information about the reforms, which aim to democratize the universities by giving students and general staff and workers voting parity with academic staff in internal university elections, a move vehemently opposed by university authorities.

Gladis Gonzalez, a law student from the Bolivarian University of Venezuela said the reforms represent "a step towards participatory democracy...we are consolidating this revolutionary process."

Chavez assured yesterday that the majority of Venezuelans support the reforms and the results of a poll by Datanalisis published in the November 12 edition of El Universal indicates that the reforms will be approved by 55%.

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