One year on from his death, Hugo Chavez still exerts a powerful influence over Venezuela.
As his chosen successor, President Nicolás Maduro, prepares celebrations for the anniversary, opposition activists are readying themselves for more mass protests.
Though some saw Chavez as a dictator others saw him as saviour.
Caracas resident Felida Mora, said when he died she cried more than she did for her family members who had passed. “My mother, may she rest in peace, she died and I never cried, well the first day I did, but not like I cried for him.”
Another resident feels somewhat differently: “I don’t agree with any of this, not with his government, nor his policies, and I certainly don’t agree with the celebration (for the anniversary of his death) especially in the circumstances the country is in.”
On Tuesday thousands of anti-government protesters took to the streets of Caracas denouncing the continuation of Chavez’s policies under Maduro. They blame him for high inflation and escalating crime whilst the country’s economy flounders, despite its oil wealth.
Demonstrators have pledged further rallies during the day, raising fears of violent clashes which have been a feature of protests in recent weeks.
