CARACAS, (Reuters) – Venezuela’s usually loquacious leader Hugo Chavez has been uncharacteristically quiet on the unfolding revolt in Libya against his close friend and ally Muammar Gaddafi.
Usually quick to opine on any global crisis, Chavez has Tweeted once but otherwise barely mentioned the uprising against a man he in the past showered with gifts, awards and garrulous praise as a fellow socialist revolutionary. Some opponents see the Venezuelan president’s attitude as evidence of nerves the wave of protests against authoritarian rulers in North Africa and the Middle East could extend as far as Latin America — and threaten his own 12-year rule.
Yet there is scant evidence on the ground of a nascent mass resistance movement. On the contrary, the opposition is calmly preparing for primaries at the end
