Three cheers for Chavez

Few people in the world, especially the democratic world, like a man who wants to rule his oil-rich country forever, much the same as Fidel Castro rules Cuba. He did not hide his ambitions. He proposed changes to the constitution by removing presidential term limits and giving him virtually unlimited power.

Last Sunday, Venezuelans went to the polls in a national referendum on President Chavez’s proposal, which was criticized by many as being a “coup” if it were approved. The results came as a victory for democracy — Chavez was defeated, narrowly, 51 to 49 percent.

What was surprising was not Chavez’s defeat, but his reaction to the defeat. He was able to take the setback in stride, telling voters: “The people’s decision will be upheld in respect for the basic rule of democracy — the winner is the one who gets the most votes.”

Judging from the near-absolute power Chavez wields and his marginal defeat, it would have been easy for him to let the “Central Election Committee” do something, which is certainly not unusual even in “democratic” countries. But Chavez opted otherwise. For this he deserves a cheer.

This soldier-turned strongman, surprisingly, did not concoct clever ways, like we have seen in Taiwan in 2000 and 2004, to steal votes from the voters at the last minute. For this he deserves another cheer.

And when voting results were finally on the wall, he did not protest aloud and did not refuse to accept the outcome. He swallowed it. He deserves a third cheer for being a gracious loser.

A dictator widely despised in the West, especially in the United States, the 53-year-old Chavez has made democracy shine. Remember how democracy looked at election time in the United States in 2000, and Taiwan in recent years? For a long time, “democratic Taiwan” has not heard words like “the people’s decision will be upheld.” We look small in comparison. We are dwarfed in his presence.

This said, Hugo Chavez is still a dictator, albeit perhaps an honest and straightforward dictator. His defeat at the polls last Sunday is not going to change his mind about pushing forward his “reforms.” The Venezuela he has ruled since 1999 will still be plagued by corruption and cronyism. But, what country in the world is immune to these? Certainly Taiwan is not one to cast the first stone.

As long as democracy is alive and kicking in Venezuela, as evidenced by last Sunday’s referendum, Venezuela will survive, even thrive, under Chavez’s “socialism.” President Chavez, who dares to say “No” to the united States, and who has the “LP” to call Bush a “devil,” should get some credit for helping the poor with his country’s enormous oil revenues, some US$150 million per day, despite his greed for power.

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