Chavez's coffin taken to streets, crowds mourn

The corpse of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will lie in state through Friday when a public funeral will be held with invited guests from across Latin America, Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said late on Tuesday.                                             

He declared seven days of mourning for the leader who died of cancer and said Chavez's body would be transferred from hospital to a military academy on Wednesday.                                           

In this context, the coffin of deceased Venezuelan leader was brought out of a military hospital onto the streets of Caracas on Wednesday, where grieving multitudes gathered to honor him.                

Soldiers placed the coffin on a car, where it was driven outside of the hospital. "Chavez to the pantheon!" shouted supporters; referring to a mausoleum he had built to house the remains of independence hero Simon Bolivar.                          

Authorities have not yet said where Chavez will be buried after his state funeral on Friday.     

On the other hand, Venezuelans will vote for a new president in 30 days and Vice President Nicolas Maduro will temporarily assume power following the death on Tuesday of Hugo Chavez, the foreign minister said.                                       

"The vice president assumes power as the president, and elections will be held in the next 30 days," Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said in televised comments.  


International reactions:          

Reactions to the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez were as mixed, polemical and outsized as the leader was in life, with some saying his passing was a tragic loss and others calling it an opportunity for Venezuela to escape his long shadow.          

Seen as a hero by some for his anti-US rhetoric and gifts of cut-rate oil, others considered him a bully.                    

US            

In the United States, where relations with Venezuela were strained under Chavez, President Barack Obama issued a statement reaffirming Washington's support for the "Venezuelan people and its interest in developing a constructive relationship with the Venezuelan government."                                

"As Venezuela begins a new chapter in its history, the United States remains committed to policies that promote democratic principles, the rule of law, and respect for human rights," the statement read.                                               

Filmmaker Oliver Stone, who produced a film about Chavez and his leftist allies, wrote in his Twitter account, "I mourn a great hero to the majority of his people and those who struggle throughout the world ... Hated by the entrenched classes, Hugo Chavez will live forever in history. My friend, rest finally in a peace long earned."                                      

Republican US Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida called Chavez's death "an opportunity for democracy in Venezuela."                       

Former US President Jimmy Carter released a statement saying Chavez "will be remembered for his bold assertion of autonomy and independence for Latin American governments."                                                   

Canada  

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered condolences to Venezuela's people and said he hopes Chavez's death brings hope of a better future.    
                               
A wistful Rafael Correa, president of Ecuador and another of Chavez's closest allies, predicted Chavez would have a lasting influence. "We have lost a revolutionary, but millions of us remain inspired."                                             

Russia               

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that late President Chavez was an uncommon and strong man who looked into the future and always set the highest target for himself.       

China              

In China, which has provided tens of billions of dollars in loans that helped bankroll Chavez's social programs in exchange for oil, Chinese leaders did not immediately comment. But the Internet, the freest court of public opinion in China, crackled with praise for Chavez for standing up to the US and for his socialist policies.                                     

Iran                    

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, like Chavez a frequent U.S. adversary, announced a day of mourning and compared Chavez to a saint, saying he will "return on resurrection day."                                          

Ahmadinejad said he has "no doubt Chavez will return to Earth together with Jesus and the perfect" Imam Mahdi, the most revered figure of Shiite's Muslims, and help the two "establish peace, justice and kindness" in the world. He said he believes something "suspicious" caused the cancer that killed Chavez.
                    
Syria                         

Syrian state media praised on Wednesday late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, stating that he had taken an "honorable" position on the two-year-old uprising against the Damascus regime.                                           

“Chavez stood on the side of the Arabs' legitimate rights," said a statement published by SANA. "He took an honorable stance regarding the conspiracy against Syria,” the statement added.             

Cuba               

In Cuba, President Raul Castro's government declared two days of national mourning and ordered the flag to fly at half-staff.                                                 

"It is with deep and excruciating sorrow that our people and the revolutionary government have learned of President Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias' decease," it said in a statement read on the nightly state TV newscast. "The Cuban people view him as one of their most outstanding sons."                                   

Some islanders worried that the loss of the country's No. 1 ally, who has sent billions of dollars of oil to Cuba at preferential terms, could have a negative ripple effect there.                         

Cuban folk singer Silvio Rodriguez, whose ode to revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara became famous, used the song's title words to bid farewell to Chavez on his blog.                  

Bolivia                    

A teary-eyed Bolivian President Evo Morales, one of Chavez's closest allies and most loyal disciples, declared that "Chavez is more alive than ever."     
                        
"Chavez will continue to be an inspiration for all peoples who fight for their liberation," Morales said Tuesday in a televised speech. "Chavez will always be present in all the regions of the world and all social sectors. Hugo Chavez will always be with us, accompanying us."                                       

Argentina                    

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez, another Chavez ally, declared three days of mourning nationwide.                                     

Nicaragua    

In Nicaragua, another nation that broadly benefited from Venezuelan cut-rate oil, Rosario Murillo, the wife and spokeswoman of President Daniel Ortega, said Chavez is "one of the dead who never die."                                                                                                  

France                  

France's Socialist President Francois Hollande, noted that "not everyone shared" his political views.                                  

In a statement, Hollande, who made social and economic justice a pillar of his campaign for France's presidency last year praised Chavez' "undeniable will to fight for justice and development."                         

Britain: British Foreign Secretary William Hague sent condolences to Venezuela and the family of Chavez, who he said "left a lasting impression on the country and more widely" during his 14 years as president.                                  

UN            

At the United Nations, Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin called the death a tragedy.                         

"He was a great politician for his country, Latin America and the world. He played a very important role in the development of relations between Venezuela and Russia, so we feel very badly about it," Churkin said.      


REUTERS/AP

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