Chavez, Venezuela And The New Latin America ─ An Interview With Hugo Chavez

An intimate encounter between the charismatic Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Che Guevara's daughter Aleida

Is Venezuela the new Cuba? Elected by an overwhelming popular mandate in 1998, which has been reaffirmed in elections several times since, Hugo Chavez is one of Latin America's most outspoken political leaders today.

In this extraordinary encounter, Chavez is interviewed by Aleida Guevara, the daughter of the legendary revolutionary Che Guevara. He expresses a fiercely nationalist vision for Venezuela and a commitment to a united Latin America. He also discusses the significance of the military coup against his government in April 2002, Venezuela's new democratic constitution, the extensive social programs undertaken as part of the Bolivarian revolution and assesses his country's relations with the United States and Cuba.

In what became a remarkably intimate dialogue over several days, Chavez is probed about his personal political formation and his views about the legacy of Che Guevara's ideas and example in Latin America today.

Included as an appendix is an exclusive interview with Venezuela's former minister of defense Jorge Garcia Carneiro, who played a key role in defeating the 2002 coup against Chavez.

“There is a different Venezuela where the wretched of the earth know that they can free themselves from their past. And this is a different Latin America.” — Hugo Chavez

Aleida Guevara is the eldest daughter of Ernesto Che Guevara and Aleida March. She works as a pediatrician in Havana, Cuba, and is a prominent figure in the anti-globalization movement.

THIS INTERVIEW IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON DVD.

Hugo Chavez is the President of Venezuela. He came to power in a landslide election in 1998 and was subsequently reelected. He survived a military coup in April 2002 when he was forcibly detained and faced execution. David Deutschmann has edited numerous titles on Cuba, notably "The Che Guevara Reader" and "The Fidel Castro Reader." Javier Salado is a journalist based in Havana, Cuba. David Deutschmann is an Australian author whose recent books include the anthologies Fidel Castro Reader (2004) and Che Guevara Reader (2003).