Venezuelan military officers have expressed growing alarm at attempts by President Hugo Chávez to turn the armed forces into a political instrument of his socialist revolution. One general has been detained and hundreds of other officers reportedly sidelined for protesting against the ideological drive. Chávez has ordered the armed forces to adopt the Cuba-style salute 'Fatherland, socialism or death' to put the institution at the heart of his effort to transform Venezuela. Pastors from the recently formed pro-Chávez Reformed Catholic church have been installed as army chaplains to weaken the influence of the traditional Catholic church, which is hostile to the president. 'That's causing a lot of resentment, a lot of upset,' said a source close to the military. Last week military intelligence agents detained an outspoken critic, General Ángel Vivas Perdomo, and questioned him for nine hours. Vivas had asked the supreme court to ban the new official salute. As a replacement he suggested 'Death to tyranny. Long live freedom!' - a slogan from the 19th-century independence hero Francisco de Miranda. The general was ordered to report to the military prosecutor's office twice a month and to stay in Caracas but was not charged with any crime.
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