Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez greets supporters during an election rally in the central state of Guarico, 200 miles south of Caracas, on July 18, 2012. Chavez has a strong lead in most opinion polls as he seeks to beat opposition challenger Henrique Capriles and win a new six-year term in an October 7 election. Reuters
Latin America’s New Authoritarians -- Washington Post
CARACAS, Venezuela – More than two decades after Latin America’s last right-wing dictatorships dissolved, a new kind of authoritarian leader is rising in several countries: democratically elected presidents who are ruling in increasingly undemocratic ways.
Unlike the iron-fisted juntas of a generation ago, these leaders do not assassinate opposition figures or declare martial law.
But in a handful of countries, charismatic populists are posing the most serious challenge to democratic institutions in Latin America since the 1980s, when rebel wars and dictators were the norm. In Venezuela, Ecuador, Nicaragua and other countries, leaders have amassed vast powers that they use to control courts while marginalizing their opponents and the media, human rights groups and analysts say.
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My Comment: Goodbye to the old boss .... hello to the new boss.