"Very delicate" and "clinging to life" -- that is how the Venezuelan government has described Hugo Chávez's condition, which took a turn for the worse late Monday.
Communications Minister Ernesto Villegas read a brief statement on national television, announcing that the charismatic president had developed a new respiratory problem that has him breathing with difficulty.
"Related to his depressed immune system there is now a new, severe infection," read the statement.
The 58-year-old socialist leader made a surprise return to his homeland last month after undergoing cancer surgery in Cuba. Through his eight months of on-and-off treatment, he has had tumors removed from his pelvic region, and has taken rounds of chemotherapy and radiation treatment. He has not been seen or heard in public in almost three months, since his last operation in Havana in Dec. 11.
Chávez suffered multiple complications after the operation, including bleeding and an earlier severe respiratory infection that is supposed to be under control. Reports stated that he could not speak because he was breathing through a tracheal tube but he was writing down orders for ministers. The only sight of Venezuela's leader included four official photos of him lying in a hospital bed, smiling and surrounded by his family.
The news of the president's new health problems come out in the midst of uncertainty and demands of information from the people of Venezuela. Last weekend hundreds of opposition supporters took to the streets of Caracas to demand the government provide full details of Chávez's condition.
On the other hand, the government is furious at rumors that Chávez might have died, blaming them on a plot by "far-right fascists."
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