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| Comandante |
I want to present the book Comandante about Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez by Rory Carroll, an Irish journalist I had the opportunity to know in Caracas.
I admire journalists who step forward and dare to write about Venezuelan politics because it is guaranteed to get heated criticism from both sides of the country's political divide: Chavistas and the opposition.
I lived in Caracas por six years covering news. The most difficult thing about the story of Chavez was that depending on your political views, you could find the good or the bad, but Rory explains nicely with these words: "Home was Caracas, a front-row seat to Hugo Chavez's Venezuela. A fascinating polarising, fustrating story: the world judged him as a monster or messiah, but he was more interesting, and it took a book to explain why."
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| (Photo ©Chico Sanchez-All Rights Reserved) |
Of course, one book can't fully explain any subject, much less the life of Hugo Chavez, but it sheds some light on him as a political figure.
Two of my photographs of Chavez are published in the book. One is an image of Hugo Chavez and Cuban President Fidel Castro. I took this picture when I was still learning how to take pictures. I was at the airport on my way home to visit family when I heard Fidel Castro was arriving to meet Chavez at the airport. I lined up with the rest of the press and got in, and took my first news pictures.
The other image is of Chavez holding up a bring green parrot wearing a Chavez's iconic red beret. I'll never forget being amazeed seeing that tiny red beret on the parrot's head! That was the first political rally I covered, and a few days later I started working as a freelancer with Reuters.
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| (Photo ©Chico Sanchez-All Rights Reserved) |
For more information about Comandante click here.
Fore more about the author Rory Carroll click here.
If you want to see some of the pictures I took in those years in Venezuela please visit the slide show in this link: www.chicosanchez.com/venezuela
