Illustration by Gillian Blease

The title of Martin Kettle's piece (Chávez will continue to inspire – but not in Europe, 7 March) announces muddle – since when did inspiration have geographical borders? – and his key proposition is more or less smuggled through in the last sentence, viz the "increasingly beleaguered social model that is our continent's modern reality". The assumption that we're all helpless prisoners of global capitalism is what makes Tory governments so crushingly depressing, and is of course their chief weapon. Seumus Milne's article (Think there's no alternative? Latin America has a few, 20 February) took a very different view, and came like a glimpse of blue sky through the deadly overcast of rightwing pessimism.

Let's not let Hugo Chávez's achievements to be watered down in limp or cynical double-talk, as in "unconventional", or "a dictator to his opponents". If he's a hero to the poor, that's good enough for me. Remember, we had our oil wealth too. Look what that was used for.

Phillip Goodall

Norwich

• When referring to the lesson Chávez drew from Allende's Chile, Martin Kettle reminds us that Allende died from bullet wounds as his palace was stormed by the armed forces after being elected by 36% of the vote, compared with Chávez's support in the 50%-60%. He does not remind us of the now-documented US compliance in these events which included economic sanctions, support for internal disruption and overt approval of Pinochet's coup. Kissinger famously declared that the people of Chile could not be allowed to decide democratically in the wrong way.

This omission affects Kettle's conclusions about the significance of Chávez's approach to both pan-American and world affairs. It is a common feature of British and US reporting of events in Latin America, giving the impression of a media bloc determined passively to justify policies of intervention and opposition, even when they do not actively support them. The Chile40YearsOn network (www.chile40yearson.org) has been set up to link and encourage events and activities across the country leading up to the 40th anniversary of the military coup in Chile on 11 September. It is important that people today recognise the geopolitical significance of that event and its aftermath.

Keith Jackson, Pedro Fuentes, Apolo Santano

Chile40YearsOn network

• I am Venezuelan and read with disbelief Rory Carroll's article (Poor boy from the plains who became leftwing figurehead, 6 March). When the memories settle, Chávez's policies will stand the test of time and we will see the size of his legacy, which I know is hugely positive. Chávez transformed in so many ways the shape of my nation, and I am very proud of what we have achieved. Certainly, there are tons of things to do, but we're already a long distance on the way towards betterment of the human condition that Venezuela has walked under Chávez.

William Mora

London

• Under Chávez, Venezuela has become the most equal country in Latin America. Last May it passed one of the most progressive labour laws in the world, not mentioned in Rory Carroll's article. We in the UK trade union and Labour movement have seen Chávez as an inspiration and will continue to work for social justice in his name.

Tony Burke

Assistant general secretary, Unite and Vice chair, Venezuela Solidarity Campaign

• So, "embracing" a dictator like Assad is a black mark against Chávez which must be taken into account in trying to pass any judgment on him, according to Martin Kettle. I wonder did Chávez hand anybody over to Assad to be tortured? Did he ever throw the moral, political, financial and military resources of his country into supporting a man like Saddam Hussein?

B O'Brien

London

• In September 2012, the IMF estimated Venezuela's fiscal deficit at 7.4% of GDP and its interest payments at 3% of export earnings. Venezuela's "swollen" public sector is actually around 18.4% of the workforce, lower than in most European countries; and Venezuela ended 2012 with GDP growth of 5.5% and an inflation rate of 19.9%, which although high, is a significant reduction from 27.2% in 2010, not to mention its peak of 103.2% in 1996, prior to Chávez's first presidency. Indeed as Mark Weisbrot reported in this newspaper (Report, 4 March): "As for Venezuela's public debt … a better measure is the burden of the foreign part of this debt, which in 2012 was about 1% of GDP, or 4.1% of Venezuela's export earnings."

From the perspective of crisis-ridden Britain, where austerity is clearly not working, Venezuela's economy is robust in comparison. Chávez leaves a Venezuela in control of its sovereign oil wealth, committed and determined to build a society geared to meeting people's needs, rather than lining the pockets of the few.

Sam McGill

Editor, vivavenezuela.co.uk

• Rory Carroll's assertion that "Chavez … left his people hungry" is not supported by the co-ordinator of the UN food and agricultural organisation in Venezuela who commented: "In times when we have food prices soaring and people dying of starvation, Venezuela … has noticeably reduced the rate of malnourishment." Since 1998 calorific intake has risen by 40%, with 96% of Venezuelans eating three times a day, infant malnutrition has been cut from 7.7% in 1999 to 3.2% by 2009 and 8 million more people have access to clean drinking water.

Paul Atkin

London

• I was very disappointed with the obituary of Hugo Chávez (6 March). It was mealy mouthed and mean-spirited. Nowhere does it mention his erudition. He was extraordinarily well-read and was able to quote from classical literature and philosophy at will. This is in deep contrast to his antagonist, the appallingly ignorant George Bush

Nowhere does it mention his achievement in bringing down rates of poverty, raising standards of healthcare and education. Nowhere does it mention the increase in GDP in Venezuela. Nowhere does it mention that the part nationalisation of the oil industry was a reasonable and just way of trying to keep the vast profits being made by the American oil companies in Venezuela for the people of Venezuela. Nowhere does it mention the movement for the states of South and Latin America to form their own independent group outside the influence of the United States.

It belittled his coup attempt of 1992 and made little of the old corrupt regime where power and wealth was concentrated in the hands of very few. It almost implied that these factors were a figment of his imagination. It belittles his constitutional reforms that neutered that concentrated power of the rich and allowed the poor to have a say. It talks of General Romero somehow provoking a crisis but no mention of the covert and overt attempts by the US to remove an elected leader. It totally misrepresents his ideas of socialism. It does not mention that rightwing TV stations were actively encouraging revolution and sedition before being closed down.

What is the reference to class hatred? From the beginning he was threatened by the US and the rich. Instead of working with him (as with Fidel Castro), they drove him further to the left and into the arms of some rather unsavoury international politicians. Talk of seizure of land rather than land reform to allow a more just society shows how tilted this obituary was.

One has to read the articles by Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, and a letter from Nicholas Hoskyns to get a more balanced view of a great revolutionary figure who did more to reduce poverty and enfranchise the people than any western leader could ever do.

Dr Rupert Gud

Tavistock, Devon

• Martin Kettle's piece misses fundamental points about Chávez's legacy. He oversaw the elimination of illiteracy and the overwhelming majority of Venezuelans now eat three meals a day. To suggest he has failed to inspire people in Britain is just not true. Eye operations Venezuela has provided to the people of the Caribbean have huge resonance among black communities here and around the world. If the media reported these achievements, which should be the envy of the US and Europe, no doubt more people would be inspired.

Denis Fernando

London

• Directly using oil revenues to improve the lot of poorer people! Who'd a thought it?! Rich companies monopolising oil income and using the profits accrued to trickle down wealth throughout the community is a far saner policy. Centrica's recent results are a perfect example.

David Lewis

Selby, North Yorkshire