Bolivarians return to the streets
 of Caracas
• March and popular gathering to celebrate the 12th anniversary of the revolutionary uprising of February 4

BY FELIX LOPEZ—Granma daily staff writer—

CARACAS.—The Bolivarian people are to take to the streets of Caracas, from Victoria Avenue to La Rinconada Hippodrome, to celebrate together with President Chávez the 12th anniversary of the revolutionary uprising of February 4, 1992, which marked a new direction in the Venezuelan struggle: the rebellion against the corrupt and opportunist governments of the 4th Republic.

As Ismael García informed Granma, today’s event outside the Ayacucho Campaign Command is to go ahead in the same spirit as the recent February popular demonstration, when thousands of people from the capital surrounded Miraflores Palace to celebrate five years of Bolivarian government and listen to President Chávez’ speech from the People’s Balcony.

"On that February 2," affirmed Chávez, a government was installed here that came to break with the past and open the doors to the future. We did not come here to betray a people, but to commit ourselves every day to the hopes of the people."

In another part of his speech, the Venezuelan president criticized those who formerly governed his country. "This palace is now the House of the People, it is the sovereign house of Venezuelans."

The event, which continued into the small hours of Tuesday. began with a choir of thousands of popular voices, accompanied by the Caracas Symphony Orchestra, which sang greetings to the Revolution. Meanwhile, cabinet ministers, Bloque del Cambio (Bloc for Change) deputies, and members of the Ayacucho Command accompanied Chávez to the so-called Balcony of the People.

"On that February 2," Chávez reminded the crowd, "I entered that front door with a pen in my hand, ready to sign, as we did a few minutes later, the decree convening the a national referendum, the first in Venezuelan history. In those five years we buried the moribund 4th Republic; in 1999 we had the Constitution; one year later it was re-legitimized; and then came our great victory and the Empowering Laws of 2001; the fascist coup of 2002; and the anti-fascist civil-military rebellion of April 13, which was also a historical landmark."

The head of state reiterated: "In today’s Venezuela there is an indestructible civil-military unity, and that is of great importance, because it affords the Bolivarian project one of its greatest strengths, precisely that which has allowed it to resist and defeat the onslaughts of the native oligarchy and its international allies."