Leaders from around Latin America have attended events in Venezuela to mark the 200th anniversary of the country's independence. <br/> <br/>President Evo Morales of Bolivia and Danial Ortega of Nicaragua were among the left-wing leaders celebrating the legacy of the Independence hero Simon Bolivar. <br/> <br/>Thousand of supporters of President Hugo Chavez did parades in the capital Caracas. <br/> <br/>A parade drawn from every sector of society has trooped past the socialist leader – including Venezuela's Olympic athletes, Afro-Caribbean descendants and indigenous groups. <br/> <br/>The military has been ever-present too, with F-16 fighter jets screaming overhead. <br/>Everywhere are red T-shirts, red baseball caps and Venezuelan flags. <br/> <br/>Opening the celebrations, President Chavez said his socialist revolution was "part of the same battle as Simon Bolivar's" and many of his supporters agree. <br/> <br/>"I completely agree – this is the dream of our liberator, Simon Bolivar, that we create Latin American unity – one nation, one people," said one man. <br/> <br/>Another reveller talked of a "struggle for resistance". <br/><br/>"The indigenous people in the parade, for example, are fighting against deculturalisation – having a culture imposed which we don't want," she said. <br/> <br/>However Mr Chavez's opponents remain sceptical. <br/>