Is De-Chávezification Underway in Venezuela at Last?

Hugo Chávez , the legendary socialist leader who preceded Nicolás Maduro , has long been a mythical figure.

With his signature red beret and bombastic speeches, the man is to the West ’s college Marxists what Justin Bieber once was to teenage girls.

Much of the late leader's mythologisation has been the result of an organised and persistent propaganda effort managed by adept political operatives.

Protests have snowballed into something like a cultural counter-revolution, writes Edmundo González .

In cities of Calabozo, Los Teques , Coro , La Guaira , Las Tejerías , statues of Chàvez have been pulled down, vandalised, and dismembered.

The likelihood of regime change remains uncertain but scenes like these have electrified Chavismo ’s opponents.

For Venezuela to close this perilous chapter in its history, the military will need to abandon the regime.

For now, such a development remains uncertain, not least because Maduro has invested heavily in making his army revolution-proof.

Machado isn't about to give up. “We will fight until the end,” she promises in all her public appearances, and she seems to mean it.