Daily Headlines: March 24, 2015

* U.S.: According to a new study about forty million people in the U.S. speaks the blend of English and Spanish known as “Spanglish.”

* Uruguay: Uruguay will reportedly not take in more former Guantanamo detainees as President Tabaré Vasquez seems to distance himself from the policies of his predecessor, José Mujica.

* Argentina: The recent archeological find of an allegedly secret Nazi hideout in northern Argentina appears to be more a case of fiction rather than fact.

* Mexico: Family members of some of the missing and possibly massacred forty-three Ayotzinapa students continued their U.S. tour by protesting over the past few days in New York, Los Angeles and other cities.

Video Source – YouTube user NCLLP
 
Online Sources – UPI; Dominican Today; The Guardian; KTLA

Daily Headlines: March 2, 2015

* Uruguay: Tabaré Vázquez returned to the Uruguay presidency as the successor to José Mujica, the leader who helped legalize marijuana, decriminalize abortion and accept refugees from Syria.

* U.S.: Cuban-born Latin American baseball pioneer Orestes “Minnie” Minoso died on Sunday purportedly at the age off ninety.

* Brazil: In another negative sign for Brazil’s economy, financial analysts cited by the central bank predicted that the gross domestic product will decrease while inflation will grow.

* Chile: President Michelle Bachelet visited Valentina Maureira, a 14-year-old girl hospitalized with cystic fibrosis whose plea for euthanasia was rejected by the Chilean government.

Video Source – YouTube via euronews (“Uruguay has sworn in Tabare Vazquez as President replacing one leftist leader with another.”)

Online Sources – CNN; Fox News Latino; MercoPress; Bloomberg

Mujica Promotes “Fashionable” Uruguay to U.S. Business Group

Uruguayan President José Mujica attempted to woo foreign investment to his country in a speech given on Tuesday to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

“It seems like Uruguay is a fashionable country…this is thanks to the people, not the government” he said as part of his address entitled “Uruguay: A New Age of Global Dynamism”.

Mujica emphasized to the crowd of U.S. businessmen and Uruguayan expats that his country has overcome the “vicious cycle” of anxiety towards foreign investment and Uruguay has enjoyed steady economic growth over the past decade.  As a result, Uruguay’s leader since 2010 observed that his country has “the mechanisms for investment and this will lead to a multiplication of productivity and competitiveness.”

The 78-year-old former guerrilla fighter turned president also defended economic policies that have not been seen favorably by local business interests such as raising the minimum wage to one of the highest in Latin America.

“Uruguay grows due to (income) distribution…We have achieved growth while distributing wealth. I acknowledge that we’ve had problems but they’re related to (economic) expansion,” Mujica claimed.

Mujica’s visit to the U.S. continues today when he meets with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and an address to students at American University. On Monday he visited the White House where he met his U.S. counterpart, Barack Obama, and reportedly did not talk about controversial issues such as Uruguay’s legalization of marijuana and the transfer of a handful of Guantanamo detainees to the South American country.  Nevertheless, Mujica criticized tobacco use and advised Americans to learn to speak Spanish:

The Uruguayan president spoke about his country's tough restrictions on tobacco smoking, which have led to it being sued by the US tobacco giant Philip Morris.

"In the world, eight million people die each year from smoking tobacco," he said.

"This is mass murder. We are in an arduous fight, very arduous, and we must fight against very strong [corporate] interests."

Mr Mujica also said that, as people were learning English in his country out of necessity, Americans also had to learn Spanish because of an increase in the Latino population.

"The strength of Latin women is admirable, and they will fill this continent with people who speak Spanish and also Portuguese."

Aside from backing the plan for the legalized distribution and production of marijuana, Mujica has become a “cult hero to droves of young progressives around the world” due to other policy chances including legalizing gay marriage and the decriminalization of certain types of abortion.  He cannot run for immediate reelection though polls indicate that the ruling Broad Front of leftist parties is expected to continue in power following the October 26th presidential elections.

Video Source – YouTube user teleSURenglishtv
 
Online Sources – El Observador; Buenos Aires Herald; BBC News; MercoPress; VICE News; Prensa Latina; Caracol Radio

Daily Headlines: April 25, 2014

* U.S.: Streaming media service Netflix ordered its first Spanish-language series, which will be a comedy on professional soccer and starring Mexican actor Louis Gerardo Méndez.

* Brazil: Riot police clashed again with dozens of residents of a Rio de Janeiro favela who were still angry at the authorities for possibly causing the death of a local professional dancer.
 
* Latin America: Several Latin American figures were named to TIME magazine’s list of the “100 most influential people in the world” including Argentine-born Pope Francis, Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón and the presidents of Chile, Uruguay and Venezuela.
 
* Cuba: Conrado Marrero, the oldest former Major League Baseball player, died in Havana this week just two days prior to his 103rd birthday.
 
Video Source– YouTube user Film Festivals and Indie Films (Actor Louis Gerardo Méndez and director Gaz Alazraki worked on the Mexican film Nosotros los Nobles and they will reunite for Netflix’s first Spanish-language series).

Online Sources – The A.V. Club, BBC News; LAHT; The Latin Americanist; Reuters

Daily Headlines: April 22, 2014

* Mexico: Could Mexico’s new food labeling rules aimed at reversing an obesity epidemic backfire and lead to an increased consumption of items with sugar?

* Uruguay: Uruguayan President Jose Mujica may have given the green light to a U.S. deal that would allow the repatriation of five Guantanamo detainees but he rejected the possibility of a free trade pact with the U.S.
  
* Argentina: U.S. Supreme Court justices listened to arguments yesterday regarding a lawsuit from creditors seeking payment of Argentina's $82 billion default in 2001.
  
* Peru: A new poll found that two in three Peruvians oppose a proposal that would permit civil unions though most people back specific components of the bill.

Video Source– AFP via YouTube
 
Online Sources – NBC News; Businessweek; Xinhua; GlobalPost; Gayopolis

Daily Headlines: March 27, 2014

* Cuba: According to the Cuba state media, the government is planning to introduce a new foreign investment law aimed at boosting the island’s sagging economy.

* U.S.: Could the latest Obamacare deadline change help Latinos trying to apply for medical coverage before the end of this month?

* El Salvador: The F.B.I. placed on “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” an MS-13 gang member suspected of murdering two people and who is allegedly in hiding in El Salvador.

* Uruguay: President Jose Mujica of Uruguay said that his any of the five Guantanamo Bay detainees that might be taken in by his country would be considered as refugees and, thus, could freely travel.

Video Source – AFP via YouTube (“Cuba inaugurated its new Mariel "megaport" (last January), in hopes the project will symbolize a more open stance towards commerce and become a regional hub for shipments despite a lack of investment and the US economic embargo”.)
 
Online Sources- Bloomberg; Reuters; CBS News; NBC News; The Huffington Post

Daily Headlines: March 24, 2014

* El Salvador: Will Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero, who was murdered while celebrating Mass on this day 34 years ago, be granted sainthood by the Vatican within the next three years?

* Spain: Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi’s hat trick helped push Barcelona to a 4-3 victory against their traditional Spanish rivals Real Madrid.

* Brazil: Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has reportedly come under fire over alleged irregularities in the costly purchase of a California oil refinery by Petrobras in 2006.

* Uruguay: President Jose Mujica of Uruguay said that his country would take in several Guantanamo Bay detainees in exchange for the U.S. freeing three Cubans convicted of spying in 2001.
 
Video Source – YouTube user interestmedia

Online Sources- The Pilot; SI.com; Forbes.com; Xinhua

Daily Headlines: February 7, 2014

* Uruguay: Members of Uruguay’s ruling party and a Dutch NGO have nominated President Jose Mujica for the Nobel Peace Prize due to his support of decriminalizing marijuana use.

* Costa Rica: Is the Super Bowl to blame for the low turnout of Costa Rican expat voters to last Sunday’s elections?

* Bolivia: Meteorologists predicted that more rain would continue to hit heavily flooded areas of northern Bolivia where the inclement weather has killed at least thirty-eight people.

* Puerto Rico: Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla criticized Standard & Poor’s decision to lower Puerto Rico’s bond status to “junk” levels despite his claims that officials were “committed to taking correct and sensible actions to rebuild” the commonwealth.

Video Source – AFP via YouTube

Online Sources- LAHT; Reuters; Tico Times; The Latin Americanist; Huffington Post

Uruguay: Hundreds Protest Against Supreme Court Rulings

Hundreds of demonstrators have gathered in Montevideo, Uruguay to protest against a pair of recent controversial decisions by the country’s Supreme Court.

“Supreme Court rulings are celebrated by assassins, torturers and large landowners,” read one of the signs held at the protest on Monday afternoon.

The protest is being held days after the top court declared unconstitutional a law that “that made new rights trials possible in spite of a 1986 amnesty law shielding most officers from prosecution”.

The decision, which was backed by four of the five Supreme Court judges, also halted over fifty trials demanding compensations for human rights crimes.  However those military and police officers already sentenced will remain imprisoned.

Students, labor unions and human rights activists are believed to be participating in the demonstration that is organized in part by politicians allied to the ruling leftist Frente Amplio bloc.  Despite the backing of the protests by the coalition some Frente politicos are divided regarding how to deal with the Supreme Court:

Daily Headlines: December 25, 2012

* Uruguay: President Jose Mujica requested last week that legislators delay voting on a proposal that would legalize and regulate marijuana use.

* Colombia: Peace talks held in Cuba between the FARC rebels and the Colombian government have been put on hold until January 14th.

* Argentina: Former minister Jaime Smart became the first civilian to be sentenced for crimes against humanity committed during the repressive Dirty War era.

* Ecuador: President Rafael Correa proposed raising the minimum wage by 9% so that workers can receive a “dignified salary”.

Video Source – YouTube via the Washington Office on Latin America 

Online Sources- BBC News, Fox News Latino, Reuters, Christian Science Monitor

Daily Headlines: January 26, 2011

* U.S.: A federal judge handed down a sentence of life in prison in the case of the first former Guantanamo detainee to be tried in a civilian court.

* Venezuela: One month after he passed away legal wrangling continues amongst family members of ex-Venezuelan president Carlos Andres Perez over where he should be buried.

* South America: After meeting on Tuesday the presidents of Uruguay and Peru both called for greater unity and cooperation throughout Latin America.

* Peru: Lori Berenson might not return to prison after a Peruvian court upheld her parole.

Image – Shirley Shepard /AFP-Getty Images via MSNBC (Ahmed Ghailani was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted for his role in a pair of deadly U.S. embassy bombings in Africa in 1998).
Online Sources- Bloomberg, People’s Daily Online, NPR, BBC News

Ex-Uruguay president blasts Philip Morris

Under then-President Tabare Vazquez, Uruguay became one of the world's strongest anti-tobacco countries. Since 2006 smoking is barred in public places and the former cancer specialist prohibited all tobacco advertising. Though Vazquez has been out of the presidency since last March he has not shied away from emphasizing the ill effects of smoking as well as criticizing tobacco multinationals.

During a speech given at a World Health Organization (WHO) meeting in Montevideo, Vazquez accused Philip Morris of unfairly trying to “intimidate” countries like Uruguay. Philip Morris “like all tobacco companies does not care for the health of their consumers” said Vazquez who also accused the firm of attempting to “punish” Uruguay due to the anti-smoking laws. “Tobacco, like war, produces deaths among citizens around the world while enriching a few," said Vasquez at the conference.

Earlier this year Philip Morris filed for arbitration at the World Bank against the Uruguay government. The company claimed that the tobacco restrictions violated signed trade pacts and that they also unjustly hurt business with the South American country. In July current president Jose Mujica partially caved into pressure from the tobacco giant by modifying the anti-smoking laws. Yet he reversed himself in September by strengthening the ban on smoking indoors.

At the WHO meeting this week, Mujica refused to bow down completely to the tobacco industry:

President Jose Mujica described Uruguay Monday as a "laboratory of confrontation" with Big Tobacco…

Mujica said the trade violation claim seeks to "complicate the life and sovereignty of a small nation that has the boldness to defend itself and try to defend the health of its people."

He said Uruguay will maintain its anti-smoking laws despite the pressure.

A statement from Philip Morris (via Reuters) said that the firm “disputed several regulations” that “go far beyond public health objectives” of Uruguay.

Uruguay’s push against tobacco has earned praise not only from health care advocates worldwide but also from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. On Monday he reportedly pledged $375 million of his own money to pay for Uruguay’s legal defense.

Image- trussel.com
Online Sources- La Republica, The Guardian, BusinessWeek, MSNBC, AFP, New York Times,

Overworked Uruguayan president vows “healthier regimen”

Is Uruguayan president Jose Mujica (to use an famous phrase from the “Lethal Weapon” movies) “too old for this shit”? Perhaps, but the 75-year-old has been ordered by doctors to slow down from his daily routine.

According to presidential physicians Mujica suffers from an “over exposure to stress” since he took office in March. Indeed, as MercoPress noted, Mujica has visited several countries in the Americas since assuming the presidency roughly ten weeks ago and he tends to work between 12 to 15 hours each day.

As a result of the doctors’ recommendations Mujica will skip the Caribbean and the European Union Summit next week in Spain and Vice President Luis Almagro will instead head the Uruguayan delegation. Furthermore, Mujica pledged today to change his habits including undergoing a strict diet:

"I won't have a serious problem if I do something about it ... . I need to control myself and try to prioritize issues rather than do everything at the same time," Mujica said during his twice-weekly radio program.

"I wake up at night at 3 a.m. and my head is buzzing with all kinds of problems," he added.

The leftist, who was jailed for 14 years for his guerrilla activities, said he would switch to a new healthier regimen next week, aiming to fit in an hour's walk and an afternoon nap.

Mujica won’t be the only notable absence at next week’s conference; Honduran President Porfirio Lobo will skip the summit since some countries still do not recognize his government.

Image- BBC News
Online Sources- imdb.com, momento2.com, MercoPress, Clarin, Reuters, LAHT

Clinton intervenes in Falklands dispute

Could U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton help resolve the renewed tensions between the U.K. and Argentina over the Falkland Islands? It may seem like a long shot but the senior diplomat agreed to help intervene:

(Argentine President Cristina Fernández de) Kirchner asked Clinton to be a mediator on the issue, but it appears Clinton doesn't want to take her involvement that far.

Instead, she said she would be publicly urging the two countries to talk and said, "We would like to see Argentina and the U.K. sit down and resolve the issues between them in a peaceful and productive way."

Clinton commenced the first day of her trip to Latin America yesterday with a visit to Montevideo for the inauguration of new Uruguayan President Jose Mujica. He pledged that his main responsibilities would be, according to BBC News, to “improve education, guarantee energy supplies and maintain security.” Mujica later urged “as much mediation as possible” to calm tensions between the governments of Venezuela and Colombia.

Clinton continued her tour with a visit this morning to earthquake-ravaged Chile where she promised “solidarity” and aid.

Image- Guardian UK (“Hillary Clinton, left, and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner during their meeting in Buenos Aires yesterday.”)
Online Sources- The Latin Americanist, Foreign Policy, CNN, Colombia Reports, BBC News

Daily Headlines: February 24, 2010

* Puerto Rico: Several high-profile Puerto Rican officials are reportedly unhappy with the White House’s health care reform initiative.

* Latin America: Representatives of Latin America’s two largest economies- Mexico and Brazil- will supposedly soon start bilateral free trade negotiations.

* U.S.: The federal government ended its four-year monitoring of elections in Springfield, Massachusetts where it was claimed that Latino voters had been discriminated against.

* Uruguay: Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be among the dignitaries scheduled to attend the inauguration of incoming Uruguayan President Jose Mujica.

Image – USA TODAY
Online Sources- Orlando Sentinel, BusinessWeek, Boston Herald, MercoPress