In Peru's high plains, Chavez is exalted

[Judi Lynn]

In Peru's high plains, Chavez is exalted
Liubomir Fernandez / For The Times



Liubomir Fernandez / For The Times

GOVERNOR: Hernan Fuentes of Peru’s Puno
province is a supporter of Hugo Chavez.
A homespun version of leftist politics
predominates in the destitute southern
highlands.

Many in a poor southern enclave feel closer in spirit to Venezuela than to Lima and Washington.
By Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
March 9, 2008

PUNO, PERU -- His private office features a life-size photo of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. He dons bright red shirts, mimicking Chavez's trademark hue. He calls himself a proud foot soldier in Chavez's Bolivarian Revolution.

But the top elected official of this stunning but destitute wind-swept corner of southern Peru flatly denies that Chavez is bankrolling his leftist leadership.

"I wish Venezuela could help us out," said Hernan Fuentes, regional president, or governor, of Puno province. "We could use their gasoline for our trucks. . . . We could use more teachers, doctors."

Throughout Latin American, U.S. officials and allied governments fret about Chavez's spreading influence, be it political, diplomatic or financial. From Mexico to Chile, Washington and Caracas vie for sway in a high-stakes battle for the hearts and minds of Latin Americans.

More:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-puno9mar09,1,7225422.story?track=rss