The Marriage of Hugo Chávez and Manuel Zelaya

He had gotten himself way too wrapped up with the smooth-talking wealthy guy from the south and was hopelessly smitten.

By Marco Cáceres
It is unclear when the lovefest between Hugo Chávez and Manuel Zelaya actually began, although you can assume that it has been ongoing at least since their formal engagement on August 25, 2008 when Mr. Zelaya signed Honduras up for Mr. Chávez's ALBA arrangement. The signing took place at the Presidential House in Tegucigalpa, complete with all the requisite pomp and circumstance and witnesses, including Evo Morales of Bolivia, Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua, Carlos Laje of Cuba, and even Roberto Micheletti. It has been a whirlwind engagement that began with Mr. Chávez showering Mr. Zelaya with all sorts of presents to demonstrate his affection.

While he was president of Honduras, Mr. Zelaya received gifts of cheap oil and untold amounts of cash from Mr. Chávez, who regularly called Mr. Zelaya on his cell phone to advise him, compliment him and build up his ego, and reassure him of his undying support and commitment. Mr. Chávez even sent Mr. Zelaya a planeload of ballots generously printed in Venezuela for him to use to gauge the Honduran public's interest in the so-called cuarta urna referendum on re-writing the Constitution.

The Establishment in Honduras was uneasy with the engagement from the very start, but it was willing to give Mr. Zelaya the benefit of the doubt... for awhile anyway. But then as the months went by, it became evident that Mr. Zelaya was increasingly looking and sounding more like a protégé of Mr. Chávez than the person he was when he began his presidency in 2006. In one of his many long-winded speeches, Mr. Zelaya made reference to the concern that some people felt about his politics being of the "center-left". In a display of provocative braggadocio, Mr. Zelaya went on to suggest that they should just go ahead then and remove the word "center" and be done with it.

Mr. Chávez was seducing Mr. Zelaya and winning over his mind and soul, and to the Establishment it appeared as if there would be no turning back for their president... He had gotten himself way too wrapped up with the smooth-talking wealthy guy from the south and was hopelessly smitten.

As so often happens in long-distance affairs of the heart that do not give sufficient consideration to the feelings of the couple's families and friends, they become messy and turbulent, and someone always ends up getting hurt. That is precisely what happened to Mr. Zelaya. His family disowned and banished him. They warned him repeatedly that this Chávez fellow was no good for him and brought nothing but trouble and shame upon the family. Mr. Zelaya would not listen. He would not give up the engagement. So he had to go.

For most of the initial three months following his banishment, Mr. Zelaya was taken care of by Mr. Chávez, who willingly provided a generous expense account and a private jet to whisk Mr. Zelaya and his friends up and down the Western Hemisphere to seek help in intervening with his family on his behalf. In return, Mr. Zelaya remained faithful to Mr. Chávez despite the fact that it was his relationship with him that got him shunned by his family and many of his friends.

If anything, Mr. Zelaya's banishment has drawn him even closer to Mr. Chávez... so much so, in fact, that during his surprise trip last week to visit Mr. Chávez at his house in Caracas, the Palacio Miraflores, Mr. Zelaya was asked to tie the knot, and he giddily accepted. At one hour past midnight on Friday, it was announced that Mr. Chávez and Mr. Zelaya were now officially joined. Mr. Zelaya would be Mr. Chávez's man in Petrocaribe, with perhaps one of the longest titles in the history of Latin American wordy titles... "Chief Political Consultant for Petrocaribe for the Process of Strengthening the Political Independence and Defense of Popular Democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean".

At the announcement in the Palace, Mr. Zelaya could hardly contain his emotions. He said that Mr. Chávez was his inspiration and the example that he sought to emulate. It was all so touching that it almost made you want to forget about the incalculable amounts of pain, suffering, and chaos the affair has caused.

So now Mr. Chávez and Mr. Zelaya are one. The honeymoon has begun. The marriage may well succeed. Or it may be short-lived once the two get to know each other more intimately. The engagement worked nicely. But long-distance relationships often tend to make the heart grow fonder. It's a little different when you start living together. (3/9/10) (photo of Manuel Zelaya and Hugo Chávez)