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Isaías Rodríguez | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 16 December 1942 Valle de la Pascua, Venezuela |
| Died | 12 January 2025 (aged 82) Caracas, Venezuela |
| Political orientation | Chavismo Bolivarianism |
| Political party | PSUV |
Julián Isaías Rodríguez Díaz (16 December 1942 – 12 January 2025) was a Venezuelan politician who served as Attorney General of Venezuela from 2000 to 2007. Rodríguez played a pivotal role in saving the Bolivarian Revolution during the 2002 coup attempt by revealing to the public that a coup was taking place and that President Hugo Chávez had been kidnapped. He also served as vice-president of Venezuela from January 2000 to December 2000, vice president of the National Constituent Assembly in 2017 and Venezuelan ambassador to Italy from 2018 to 2019.
Life[edit | edit source]
Early life[edit | edit source]
Rodríguez was born in Valle de la Pascua in the Guárico state of Venezuela, on December 16, 1942. He attended the Central University of Venezuela, graduating with a law degree and becoming a lawyer.[1]
Attorney General[edit | edit source]
He became the first vice-president of Venezuela in 2000 under the 1999 constitution before switching roles to Attorney General near the end of the year.[1]
In April 2002, the Venezuelan far-right, backed by the U.S. and bourgeois media, initiated a coup, kidnapped President Chávez and falsely claimed that Chávez had resigned with bourgeois media amplifying the erroneous claim. Rodríguez was pressured to support the coup, but after receiving word that Chávez was being held prisoner by a section of the military in Fort Tiuna and had not resigned, Rodríguez tricked the opposition into putting him live on air by telling them he was going to resign publicly. However, at the press conference he instead announced to the public that an illegal coup was in progress and Chávez had not resigned but was instead being held prisoner. Rodríguez's announcement helped inspire Venezuelans to action and protestors descended on the Presidential palace demanding the return of their rightful President, resulting in Chávez's subsequent release and the coups failure.[1]
Death[edit | edit source]
The prosecutor passed away in Caracas on January 12, at the age of 82. President Nicolás Maduro, from the funeral service held at the National Assembly to honor Rodríguez, paid tribute to him and posthumously awarded the Post-Mortem Order of Liberators of Venezuela, first class, to Rodríguez, as well as a replica of the saber of victory of the Battle of Carabobo.[1]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Former Attorney General of Venezuela Isaías Rodríguez Passes Away" (2025-01-14). Orinoco Tribune. Archived from the original on 2025-01-15.