On Eve of His Funeral, Debating Chávez’s Legacy
On Eve of His Funeral, Debating Chávez ’s Legacy By WILLIAM NEUMAN A Hugo Chávez stencil and the words “I will be present in the fight. Chavez lives in the heart of the people.” CARACAS, Venezuela — Heads of state from around Latin America flocked to Venezuela for the funeral on Friday of Hugo Chávez , a tribute to the undiminished drawing power of the charismatic leftist leader, although perhaps not to the lasting influence of his socialist-inspired policies. Mr. Chávez, who died Tuesday of cancer at 58, was one of the loudest voices in Latin America, pushing a vision of regional unity and defiance of Washington, sweetened with cheap oil shipments to needy neighbors. But the legacy of Mr. Chávez’s Bolivarian revolution remains more limited than he would have liked. “It didn’t catch on,” said Alejandro Toledo, a former president of Peru. “The important thing is that Mexico has not followed his example, Chile has not followed his example, Peru has not fo...
