Tears for Chavez, an ‘inspiration for all’

US president Barack Obama, meanwhile, focused on “a new chapter” for Venezuela, following 14 years in which Mr Chavez defied US domination.

Mr Chavez, who died of cancer on Tuesday aged 58, was seen as a hero by some for his socialist programmes, anti-US rhetoric and gifts of cut-rate oil. Others considered him a bully who repressed opponents.

A teary-eyed Bolivian president Evo Morales, one of Mr Chavez’s closest allies, declared that he was “more alive than ever”.

“Chavez will continue to be an inspiration for all peoples who fight for their liberation,” Mr Morales said in a televised speech.

Former London mayor Ken Livingstone, another left-wing fan of the Latin American strongman, said that Mr Chavez’s ability to shrug off American pressure and weather what he described as a US-backed coup attempt had inspired the entire continent to defy Washington.

“The fact that he survived encouraged other Latin American nations to break free and put their own people ahead of corporate interests,” Mr Livingstone said

Mr Chavez pulled Venezuela out of America’s sphere of influence and embraced Washington’s rivals including Cuba, Iran and Russia. Officials in all three countries had effusive praise for the late leader.

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced a day of mourning and said he had “no doubt Chavez will return to Earth together with Jesus and the perfect” Imam Mahdi, the most revered figure of Shiite’s Muslims, and help “establish peace, justice and kindness” in the world.

Some of the estimated 190,000 Venezuelan immigrants living in the US – about half of them in Florida - turned out cheering and waving their country’s flag and expressed hope that change would come to their homeland.