E D I T O R I A L and O P I N I O N

3/6/2013

E D I T O R I A L and O P I N I O N

The Death of Hugo Chavez Surrounded in Veil of Concealment

By: Jerry Brewer
Yesterdays official pronounced death of Venezuelas President Hugo Chavez (58) is indicative of his more than 14 years in office; one of turbulent leftist dictatorial rule and obvious deception. Despite his own words that called for transparency within his own government, his record on the truth and facts only a clear obfuscation. As late as his ultimate upcoming demise in December of 2012 due to what has been described as an aggressive pelvic cancer, Vice President Nicolas Maduro stated (in December, "he (Chavez) gave us his approval to keep the people informed always, always with the truth, however harsh it could be." His illness and circumstances of death, as a world nations elected leader might be one of the closest guarded secrets in recent history. The drama continuing to unfold in Venezuela is anything but transparent. Chavez had not been publicly seen or heard from since undergoing his fourth cancer-related operation in Cuba on December 11, 2012. This, very odd due to Chavez love of the camera and microphone and domination of the media outlets that he allowed to transmit. After two more months of alleged additional surgery/care in Cuba, it was announced that Chavez had returned unannounced to Caracas in the early morning hours of 18 February 2013. He remained out of sight and reported to be closely guarded. Three Twitter messages read Weve arrived once again in our Venezuelan homeland. Thank you, my God!! Thank you, beloved nation!! We will continue our treatment here. This miraculous feat after constant reports of partial coma, slight lucidity, paralysis and other descriptions of declining life. He was taken to Carlos Carvelo Military Hospital in Caracas. Hospital workers reported that they never saw him, and was reported to be on the 9th floor in a restricted area guarded by police and military. A woman who identified herself as a hospital employee (Dubraska Mora), told state television, our

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president arrived walking, strong. Apparently no camera or microphone caught the miracle for publication. Chavez was to be sworn in again on 10 January 2013 while he was in Cuba. It was announced that "The process of post-surgical recuperation must continue past January 10 of this year, so he will not be able to appear on that date before the National Assembly in Venezuela. Could it be that Hugo Chavez died at or shortly after his surgery in Cuba in December 2012? Possibly not a fitting death for the Venezuelan leader to die on Cuban soil. It might not also have been a proper tribute to have not been transported back to Venezuela alive to proclaim death in the Venezuelan homeland. Ultimately, there is no documented visual evidence of Chavez alive, other than mere words by a closely guarded handful of statements- including one alleged hospital employee that said he was walking strong. The true legacy of Hugo Chavez must be based on the factual record and not propaganda by close supporters and fellow left-wing revolutionaries. Chavez was often rattling his sword and threatening anyone that did not share his ideals and penchant for revolution. He often demonstrated that he was quick on the draw to make threats and then squandered millions on military weapons with purchases from leftist and other rogue international governments. These massive and less than transparent expenditures by Chavez have been at great detriment to the Venezuelan homeland that suffered from food shortages, rolling blackouts of electricity, lack of foodstuffs, and massive infrastructure decay. Little was done to curb Venezuelas safety from homicides and related violent crime that are setting world records. Gifts and significant discounts of oil to Cuba and others, severely crippled the Venezuelan economy with essentially no paper or record of this massively squandered Venezuelan oil revenue. He consistently refused to explain how such an oil-rich country had fallen financially and failed the people. The squandering and unaccountability of Venezuela's vast oil revenues remains a mystery to the Venezuelan populace Chavezs insults and attempts at strong-arming world democratic leaders are well known throughout the world. In the Americas alone he has done it to the US, Colombia, Mexico, Honduras, and Paraguay, to name a few. He threatened to mass troops to defend his allies, such as Rafael Correa of Ecuador in turf disputes with Colombia involving the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) guerrillas; as well as in support of the former and ousted President of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya. Even Great Britain was not spared from the Chavez arrogance and threat. In a bizarre verbal attack in February 2010, on Queen Elizabeth, Chavez ranted with his usual weakness and lack of public decorum; "Look, England, how long are you going to be in Las Malvinas (Argentina)? Queen of England, I'm talking to you. The times for empires are over, haven't you noticed? Return the Malvinas to the Argentine people. The English are still threatening Argentina. Things have changed. We are no longer in 1982. If conflict breaks out, be sure Argentina will not be alone like it was back then."

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Chavez carried his in-your-face style to the world stage often. In a 2006 speech to the U.N. General Assembly, he called President George W. Bush the devil, saying the podium reeked of sulfur after Bush's address. Hugo Chavez established much of his control of Venezuela through iron fisted fear and Cuban security initiatives. He adopted the previous Soviet-styled Cuban intelligence service as his model for Venezuela. This has included Cubans involved in immigration and passport control. Chavez enjoyed direct access to these security operatives as indicated by cables sent from the U.S. Embassy in Caracas to the State Department. The number of Cuban intelligence experts working in Venezuela is reported to be over 3,000. An estimated 5,000 Cuban soldiers are currently on the ground in Venezuela in strategic locations. Much of these arriving in late 2012. Hugo Chavez of Venezuela claimed a devotion -- emulating and glorifying Castro's revolution as their own. The Castro brother's tenure of a dictatorial lack of humane leadership and ruin of the Cuban homeland remains constant chatter by those that have lived and continue to fear the nightmare. Cuba's true intentions in Venezuela now may only be known by the departed Hugo Chavez.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATES

United States of America
Jerry Brewer is C.E.O. of Criminal Justice International Associates, a global threat mitigation firm headquartered in northern Virginia. His website is located at www.cjiausa.org TWITTER:

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