Venezuela: Chavez publicly insults Bush and Blair

-Contributed by the greatest terrorist in the world" British head Tony Blair a pawn of imperialism who should hand the Falkland Islands to Argentina. Meanwhile, Venezuelan police apprehended Colombian drug lord Alonso Ojeda, one of the most wanted drug barons in Latin America.

Haitian presidential election: Preval supporters

-Contributed by (CTV) On the cusp of what appears to be Preval's victory, the Miami Herald shows the obstacles that lay ahead for Haiti's next president as well as Preval's problems during his previous administration. (Miami)

Op/ed article in NYU student newspaper on “Killer Coke” campaign

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. An op/ed article in the Washington Square News points out the lack of “sustainability” as to why the ban against Coca-Cola at NYU, has been ineffective in causing real change. “The core of the ‘Killer Coke’ campaign isn’t murders in Colombia, but the insanity that a cost-benefit analysis could justify having workers killed to keep others from demanding better working conditions. That central principle needs to be generalized and made explicit” according to the article. (NYUNews)

colombia, latin america, South America, coke, NYU

Costa Rica: Recount begins of dead-heat presidential election

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Costa Rica’s electoral board began a recount on Tuesday to see if either ex-president Oscar Arias or rival Otton Solis won outright or will face each other in a second round. Though exit polls indicated Arias won easily, it is believed that a winner will be announced in two weeks. (ABC)

central america, latin america, international politics, Costa Rica, oscar arias

Venezuela’s state oil company will pay off debt

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Petroleos de Venezuela SA will pay off its multibillion dollar debt traded in U.S. markets in order to avoid filing financial reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "We should not be in the Security Exchange Commission, and when we pay off our private debt we will leave," said the president of Petroleos de Venezuela SA on Wednesday. (Business Week)

Venezuela, latin america, South America, latin america, Petroleos de Venezuela

El Salvador will continue sending troops to Iraq

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. El Salvador’s government will send another group of troops to serve in with coalition forces in Iraq even though President Tony Saca mentioned last year that the decision would be up to coalition officials. El Salvador is the only Latin American country to have troops in Iraq. (Mercury News)

el salvador, central america, donald rumsfeld, latin america, international politics, Iraq, Tony Saca

Halliburton subsidiary wins contract to build U.S. immigration detention centers

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Kellogg Brown & Root won a contract worth nearly $400 million in order to build temporary immigration detention centers. A government spokesman noted that these centers are useful in emergency situations, though Representative Henry Waxman critiqued that “with Halliburton's ever expanding track record of overcharging, it's hard to believe that the administration has decided to entrust Halliburton with even more taxpayer dollars.” (New York Times) (Registration required).

bush administration, immigration, Halliburton

Foot-and-mouth disease hits Argentina

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Officials in Argentina have identified an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in cattle located near the border with Paraguay. Argentina was hit with a serious outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in cattle five years ago, while Brazil was hurt by it last year. (The Latin Americanist)

argentina, foot and mouth, latin america, South America

Flores continues leading Peru presidential race

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Center-right candidate Lourdes Flores holds a near double-digit lead over her nearest rival, Ollanta Humala. Humala has been hurt by recent accusations that he committed human rights abuses as a local police chief in the early 1990s. (Angus Reid)

international politics, latin america, Peru, South America, lourdes flores

Amerindians from five South American countries seek their own nation

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Thousands of Amerindians belonging to the Guarani nation are demanding lands taken by 18th century European colonialists. "Without land, we cannot live, there is no health, there is no education. And we need our full land, with forest, rivers and air," according to a Guarani from Paraguay. (WAPO)

brazil, international politics, latin america, South America, amerindians, paraguay

U.S. to slash military aid to Bolivia

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. The United States plans to cut military aid to Bolivia by 96% nearly a month after the election of Evo Morales in Bolivia. The U.S. State Department claims that this cut may be necessary since Bolivia has refused to ratify an agreement avoiding extradition of Americans to the International Criminal Court. (IHT)

bolivia, evo morales, international politics, latin america, South America, foreign aid, bush administration

Lula in Algeria as part of tour in Africa

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. On Wednesday, Brazil’s president started a four-nation tour of Africa in order to improve business ties and lobby for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council. "We want to build cooperation in (economic) sectors and prove to Algerians that in choosing Brazil they have made a good choice," Lula told the Algerian press. (CNN)

brazil, international politics, latin america, lula, algeria

Cuban government ups the ante in visual display battle with United States

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. A “memorial” was erected in front of the U.S. Interests Section in Havana on Tuesday. The display consists of over 100 black flags raised high enough to block an electric ticker on the fifth floor of the U.S. mission that transmitted anti-Castro messages. (CBS)

caribbean, Cuba, international politics, latin america

Cops to screen for illegal immigrants in North Carolina

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Under a new program announced on Monday, 10 Mecklenburg County deputies will receive training to become certified immigration officers.
North Carolina has seen a huge boost in illegal immigration over the past decade that has angered some residents fearful of increased crime, yet immigration has changed and helped the state’s economy. (Reflector)

immigration, north carolina

Haitian presidential election: vote-counting continues

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Ballots from Tuesday’s first round of Haitian presidential elections continue to be counted under the auspices of United Nations troops. Though the secretary-generals of the UN and Organization of American States praised the massive turnout and relative lack of violence, four people were killed on Election Day and some voters complained that they were unable to cast their votes. (CNN)

caribbean, haiti, international politics, rene preval

Cuban exiles protest Bahamas’ treatment of refugees

-Contributed by Erwin Cifuentes. Members of Miami’s Cuban exile community protested alleged abuse of Cuban refugees recently detained in the Bahamas. In addition, several Cuban-American congressmen have condemned Bahamian authorities via a letter written to Condoleezza Rice. (CBS)

bahamas, caribbean, Cuba, immigration, latin america