Allies lead pro-Chavez rallies across Venezuela
Thousands of supporters of Venezuela's absent, cancer-stricken president held rallies across the nation on Sunday to defend Hugo Chavez's populist "revolution," with a top ally alleging that far-right factions were seeking violent instability. The opposition says the government's indefinite postponement of Chavez's inauguration, which was to have occurred on Thursday, is unconstitutional.
The successor Chavez himself designated, Vice President Nicolas Maduro, and other members of Venezuela's ruling inner circle, met Saturday evening in Havana with Raul Castro, Cuba's leader, during a visit to the island nation where the Venezuelan president remains hospitalized. (AP)
