BOLIVIA: Bolivians march in support of Venezuelan presidential candidate Nicolas Maduro

Record ID: 213932

  • Title: BOLIVIA: Bolivians march in support of Venezuelan presidential candidate Nicolas Maduro
  • Date: 13th April 2013
  • Summary: LA PAZ, BOLIVIA (APRIL 12, 2013) (REUTERS) GENERAL VIEW OF RALLY IN SUPPORT OF VENEZUELAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE NICOLAS MADURO MEMBERS OF THE BARTOLINA SISA FEDERATION MARCHING WITH VENEZUELAN FLAGS CLOSE-UP OF OF AYMARA MILITARY RESERVISTS MARCHING IN SUPPORT OF MADURO VARIOUS OF AUTHORITIES MARCHING IN SUPPORT OF MADURO VARIOUS OF MEMBERS OF THE BARTOLINA SISA CONFEDERATION MARCHING AND CHANTING "VIVA CHAVEZ" GENERAL VIEW OF PEOPLE MARCHING THROUGH LA PAZ IN SUPPORT OF MADURO CLOSE-UP OF YOUNG PEOPLE MARCHING WITH POSTERS DEPICTING HUGO CHAVEZ GENERAL VIEW OF CROWD MARCHING IN SUPPORT OF MADURO (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LEONILDA ZURITA, LEADER OF THE BARTOLINA SISA CONFEDERATION, SAYING: "We are marching in solidarity and paying homage to those who were lost in the coup d'etat. Eleven years ago there was a coup d'etat against our Hugo Chavez. But we are also showing solidarity with Venezuela. On Sunday Nicolas Maduro will be the victor, and it will be a victory for our people and for Latin America." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE MARCHING IN SUPPORT OF MADURO (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CONSTANCIO GUTIERREZ, MAYOR OF ACHACACHI, SAYING: "This march supports the candidacy of our brother Nicolas Maduro in Sunday's elections. We came to support him becoming president, because in the province of Omasuyos we have benefited from the Venezuelan embassy's projects, and that is why we are supporting our brother for the presidency of the Republic of Venezuela." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE MARCHING CLOSE-UP OF WOMAN HOLDING A VENEZUELAN FLAG CLOSE-UP OF A MAN HOLDING A PHOTOGRAPH OF HUGO CHAVEZ
  • Embargoed: 28th April 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Bolivia, Plurinational State Of
  • Country: Bolivia
  • Topics: International Relations,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA82C3PW73R61W0LUX3TM96I75X
  • Story Text: Members of various social organizations in the Bolivian capital of La Paz on Friday (April 12) marched in solidarity with Venezuelan presidential candidate Nicolas Maduro ahead of Venezuela's April 14 elections.
    Bolivian President Evo Morales was a close friend and ally of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who died on March 5 after a long battle with cancer, and vowed to carry on Chavez's dream of "Bolivarian" unity in the hemisphere.
    The march comes on the 11th anniversary of a 2002 coup d'etat which briefly unseated Chavez from power.
    Leonilda Zurita, the director of the Bartolina Sisa Confederation, a union of peasant women in Bolivia, said that a Maduro victory would be a victory for all of Latin America.

    "We are marching in solidarity and paying homage to those who were lost in the coup d'etat. Eleven years ago there was a coup d'etat against our Hugo Chavez. But we are also showing solidarity with Venezuela. On Sunday Nicolas Maduro will be the victor, and it will be a victory for our people and for Latin America," she said.
    Members of 12 different social organizations participated in Friday's march, and local media reports that a delegation of Bolivians has travelled to Venezuela to show their support for Maduro and be present for Sunday's election.
    During Chavez's administration, Bolivia was a major recipient of aid from Venezuela in the form of social, infrastructure and development projects.
    The mayor of the small town of Achacachi, Constancio Gutierrez, said that Venezuelan oil profits made a real difference to people in his community.

    "This march supports the candidacy of our brother Nicolas Maduro in Sunday's elections. We came to support him becoming president, because in the province of Omasuyos we have benefited from the Venezuelan embassy's projects, and that is why we are supporting our brother for the presidency of the Republic of Venezuela," said Gutierrez.
    Most opinion polls give Maduro a strong lead over opposition challenger Henrique Capriles thanks to Chavez's endorsement and the surge of grief and sympathy over his death from cancer last month.
    At stake in Venezuela's election is not only the future of Chavez's leftist revolution but also the continuation of Venezuelan oil subsidies and other aid crucial to the economies of leftist allies around Latin America, from Cuba to Bolivia.
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