Victory for Chávez

In a referendum held in Venezuela 54 percent of the country's electorate voted for the abolishment of presidential term limits, paving the way for President Hugo Chávez to be re-elected indefinitely. His political success however depends on the price of crude oil and is therefore not stable, writes the daily Diário de Notícias. "It's no secret that Chávez loves power. However he does not behave like a dictator. Venezuela's president has always insisted on elections and now 54 percent of Venezuelans supported him on the question of abolishing the limit of two terms in office. … He owes his success to his social policy and the latter depends on the state of his country's finances which rely for the most part on sales of crude oil. If oil prices go down Chávez risks a loss of popularity. He can change the constitution as much as he likes but his power is as unstable as the price of crude oil."

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