The King and Mr Chavez

Last week’s 17th Ibero-American Summit in Santiago, Chile, attended by the Heads of State and Government of twenty-two countries from Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula, was supposed to have been all about social cohesion.

Notwithstanding the positive language of the Summit Declaration and its accompanying Plan of Action on overcoming inequality and creating more inclusive societies, the lasting impression was more of political and ideological divisions than unity of purpose.

The main reason for this was, unsurprisingly, the attitude of Venezuelan President Hugo Ch