Today Venezuela marks the 26th anniversary of the Caracazo, a spontaneous rebellion that erupted on February 27, 1989, when residents of Caracas and other major cities took to the streets, enraged by the austerity measures imposed by the International Monetary Fund with the support of the government. President Carlos Andres Perez responded with a massive repression that left 3,000 dead. The Caracazo represented a major shift in Venezuelan politics, eventually leading to 1998 election of Hugo Chavez and the Bolivarian Revolution. teleSUR