VENEZUELA: Opposition candidate Manuel Rosales mounts a high-profile campaign against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez

Record ID: 741044

  • Title: VENEZUELA: Opposition candidate Manuel Rosales mounts a high-profile campaign against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez
  • Date: 4th December 2006
  • Summary: (LATIN) MARACAIBO, VENEZUELA (RECENT) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MANUEL ROSALES, OPPOSITION PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, SAYING: "I come from a town (Santa Barbara) south of the lake (Lake Maracaibo in the state of Zulia), from a working (class) family. My mother was a teacher and my father a businessman and they worked on various activities. We grew up there (in that town) far from the capital where there were no higher education institutions and I had to move to Merida, the capital of Merida State (to study), which was the closest place to Santa Barbara (where I lived). In the course of my third year at university I had to return (to Santa Barbara) because my father died and I had to assume the role of the head of the family and manage the family businesses."
  • Embargoed: 19th December 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Domestic Politics,People
  • Reuters ID: LVA8KQ1RCZCD0J3U3RYLK4A7PBBD
  • Story Text: Manuel Rosales is an old hand at Venezuelan politics. He's taken some knocks, dealt a few of his own and has had his share of wins - but he hasn't faced a challenge like this before.
    Rosales is the opposition's main candidate in the presidential race against incumbent President Hugo Chavez. He trails Venezuela's charismatic leader in most polls by 19 to 30 points, and for many it's a forgone conclusion that Chavez will win.
    Rosales was handpicked in August by Venezuela's mainstream opposition leaders to be their 'unity candidate' and take on Chavez at the polls. Making a united stand is crucial to the opposition, which has been splintered and weakened over the past several years thanks to several failed attempts to topple Chavez.
    The opposition has run the gamut trying to oust the resilient president since his election in 1998. In 2002 business leaders joined forces with rebel military officers to topple him in a coup. No luck - 48 hours later, Chavez was back. Later that year, they organized a national strike which brought Venezuela to a standstill for weeks. No luck - the strike petered out and Chavez harshly punished the organizers. Finally, they tried a recall referendum in 2004. No luck there either - Chavez won with 59 percent. The bewildered opposition crumbled and the disparate groups weren't able to pull themselves together to try again.
    But the opposition hopes that 2006 will be the year this all changes. According to some experts, Rosales is one of the few opposition leaders that has the political experience necessary to take on a heavyweight like Chavez. He has held a number of offices at a local level - He first served as a town councilor in his home town of Santa Barbara beginning in 1979. In 1983 he was elected to the Zulia state legislature. And then in 1996, he was elected mayor of Maracaibo, Venezuela's second-largest city. Finally, he was elected Zulia's governor in 2000 and re-elected in 2004.
    He resigned that post to run for President.
    Rosales clearly knows how to run a political campaign. His experience in this area has reaped rewards over the past few months. Since August, Rosales has thrown himself heart and soul into his campaign, tirelessly touring Venezuela, shaking hands and getting his message to Venezuelans.
    Although he hasn't managed to draw near to Chavez in the polls, he has succeeded in uniting the fractured opposition. These days, hundreds of thousands of his supporters have turned out to support him throughout the campaign. On Saturday (November 4) throngs of followers gathered in Caracas in a display that spanned some 12 miles (20 km) reaching right across the Venezuelan capital.
    Rosales can count on the support of many of the country's elite, but like Chavez, Rosales has sought to take a pro-poor stance to win over Chavez followers. He has sought to show that he is not a member of the rich elite, but rather a "man of the people", able to understand their needs and desires. He emphasized his humble upbringing to Reuters.
    "I come from a town (Santa Barbara) south of the lake (Lake Maracaibo in the state of Zulia), from a working (class) family. My mother was a teacher and my father a businessman and they worked on various activities. We grew up there (in that town) far from the capital where there were no higher education institutions and I had to move to Merida, the capital of Merida State (to study), which was the closest place to Santa Barbara (where I lived). In the course of my third year at university I had to return (to Santa Barbara) because my dad died and I had to assume the role of the head of the family and manage the family businesses," he explained.
    In order to further win over the poor, Rosales is offering two million poor middle class and working class families a plan to ease their financial situation. He is proposing a debit card called 'Mi Negra', which would be funded directly from oil revenues. The beneficiaries can use the card to buy food or to invest in projects such as small businesses.
    But he has a larger vision in mind.
    "The first (thing to do is) to unite Venezuela, deepen democracy, liberty and social justice. It's not possible to achieve democracy and liberty without social justice. There is a lot of poverty, a lot of injustice and a lot of inequality (in Venezuela). (We have to) create confidence (in politics) through respect for human beings, human rights and private property so that investors come and so that industrial and commercial activity redevelops so that there is secure employment," he said.
    Rosales' platform has wooed many voters, especially those fed up with "chavism", which they see as authoritarian rule that seeks to make Venezuela a second Cuba. But others think that he is weak and simply does not have the political weight and charisma to defeat Chavez. Rosales has tried to respond to this by challenging Chavez to a debate.
    "I am waiting for the day, at whatever time in which we will come out and debate in front of the people of Venezuela," he said.
    Chavez did not accept the challenge, since the incumbent has sought to avoid giving any publicity to the other candidates standing.
    Some Venezuelans with longer memories do not see Rosales as a new start for Venezuela. Many cite links that he has with pre-Chavez regimes which were considered by large tracts of the population to be corrupt and unrepresentative. He is also criticized for his involvement in the 2002 coup attempt against Chavez. Rosales signed the decree that installed Pedro Carmona Estanga, the coup leader as President for 48 hours. Rosales maintains that he took this decision in good faith, thinking that Chavez had resigned the leadership as opposed to having been removed from office.
    The Rosales campaign team has been shrewd and has played on the weaknesses of the Chavez government to steer the debate towards their agenda. They have focused particularly on the issue of crime, which by many accounts has worsened under Chavez. They also claim that Chavez is squandering Venezuela's money abroad to curry favour with fellow leftists and fans of his anti-imperialist posturing instead of improving life for Venezuelans.
    A Rosales campaign video drives this message home.
    "This December 3 you choose the path that you want to follow. Choose between 90,000 dead, hundreds of thousands of muggings and more kidnappings in only 8 years (than before) or choose a more secure country with a president that takes responsibility for your security. Choose between hundreds of millions (of dollars) that (Chavez) has given to other countries or choose programmes such as 'mi negra' where (the oil money) goes directly to you and yours. It is a defining moment (for Venezuela) which will chart the path of your life and that of your loved ones. This December 3 dare yourself to vote and choose Rosales," it says in the voiceover.
    Rosales continues to speak and campaign optimistically, but the poll numbers tell a different story. Whatever Sunday's result, Venezuelans will be able to walk away from the election knowing Manuel Rosales.
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