Putin compares U.S. missile plan to Cuban missile crisis

Russian president Vladimir Putin compared a U.S. plan to create a missile defense system in Europe to the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Said Putin at a press conference on Friday following a summit between the European Union and Russia:

"Analogous actions by the Soviet Union, when it deployed missiles in Cuba, prompted the 'Caribbean crisis,'" Putin said, using the Russian term for the Cuban missile crisis.

"For us the situation is technologically very similar. We have withdrawn the remains of our bases from Vietnam, from Cuba, and have liquidated everything there, while at our borders, such threats against our country are being created," he said.

Putin’s comments came two days after U.S. president George W. Bush spoke out on Cuban policy. In a speech at the State Department, Bush emphasized the urgency of supporting dissident movements and called on other countries to back democratic change on the island.

Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque replied to Bush’s speech by saying that it indicated his “personal hatred toward Cuba” and dismissed a domestic uprising on Cuba as a “fantasy”.

Image- BBC News

Sources- Associated Press, Sydney Morning Herald, Guardian UK

Study: Haiti “stepping stone” for HIV into Americas

A study released today by U.S. researchers claims that the HIV virus spread from Africa to the Americas via Haiti in the 1960s.

For years scientists believed the claim made by journalist Randy Shilts in “And the Band Played On”. Shilts’ theory said that AIDS had been spread by a gay Canadian flight attendant who died in 1984. Yet the conclusions of the report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences posits otherwise:

"Our results show that the strain of virus that spawned the U.S. AIDS epidemic probably arrived in or around 1969. That is earlier than a lot of people had imagined," said senior author Michael Worobey of the University of Arizona, Tuscon…

In fact "Haiti was the stepping stone the virus took when it left central Africa," said Worobey. "Once the virus got to the US then it just moved explosively around the world."

On a related note, pharmaceutical firm Merck has advised that the volunteers of an experimental AIDS vaccine get further tests since the vaccine may increase the risk of infection. Over 2000 people from several countries in the Americas including Haiti, Jamaica, and Brazil had volunteered for the trial in 2004.

Sources (English)- Reuters, The Telegraph, Wikipedia

Sources (Spanish)- El Tiempo

Image- the Money Times

Colombia: Uribe allies biggest losers in elections

Opposition politicians were the big winners in local elections held in Colombia yesterday. One of the most notable victories was by Samuel Moreno for the mayor of Bogota (image); the former legislator ensured that the leftist Alternative Democratic Pole (PDA) would continue its hold on the Bogota mayoralty by easily beating ex-mayor Enrique Peñalosa. In addition, several independent candidates won key mayoral positions including the son of impoverished campesinos in Medellin and a woman in Cartagena.

The head of the PDA- Carlos Gaviria emphasized the “convincing victory” in Bogota served as a “massive defeat” to President Alvaro Uribe. The Uribe administration took the claims with their usual humility and good nature:

“Those in charge with responding…where (Interior Minister) Carlos Holguin and (Vice President) Francisco Santos. The former accused Gaviria of being one of the intellectual heads behind the website of the FARC (guerilla organization). Santos assured that nobody with high ethical principals can be defeated.”

The build-up to yesterday’s elections was punctuated by violence against candidates, especially those from rural areas. Yet the vote transpired calmly and with little violence except for a few isolated incidents.

Sources (English)- Reuters, BBC News, PRESS TV, International Herald Tribune

Sources (Spanish)- El Tiempo, RCN

Image- BBC News

Argentina: Say hello to "Presidenta" Kirchner

Current First Lady and Senator Cristina Kirchner will be the next president of Argentina after winning comfortably in the first round of election yesterday. Kirchner became the first woman elected to the argentine presidency after earning nearly double the amount of votes as second-place finisher Elisa Carrio.

Despite some worries over the economy, Kirchner’s victory speech emphasized her campaign message of continuing the progress enjoyed during her husband’s administration:

“Since 2003 we've fought poverty, unemployment and the things that did so much damage and brought so much tragedy to the Argentine people,” Fernandez said with her husband by her side. “We're going to construct a different history.”

Throughout the elections Kirchner’s victory appeared to be a foregone conclusion; for months most polls had placed her as the clear favorite in the run-up to Sunday and one political analyst told BBC News that “the vote was one of the most disorganized in recent Argentine history.”

In addition, Kirchner tried to shake off comparisons between her and other notable female political leaders like Eva Peron and Hillary Clinton. Some political commentators had even gone as far as to compare the jewelry worn between Kirchner and Clinton.

Sources- BBC News, Forbes, Voice of America, Bloomberg, The Latin Americanist,

Image- BBC News

Daily Headlines: October 29, 2007

* Democratic presidential contender John Edwards spoke out against a U.S. free trade agreement with Peru that’s up for approval in the Senate.

* Venezuela’s space agency was officially established last week and hopes to launch a satellite by August 2008.

* Eleven Mexican migrants that crossed into Southern California are being treated for burns from massive wildfires.

* Peru’s government wants the extradition of a former aide to Bolivian president Evo Morales on charges of terrorism.

* The former president and three serving senior executives of Cisco in Brazil continue to be under custody due to accusations of tax fraud.

Sources- International Herald Tribune, MSNBC, Prensa Latina, Guardian UK

Image- ABC News

The one and only Moz

We end our week with a tip of the hat to English singer Morrissey whom we’ve covered in several blog posts.

I confess that I really wish I could go to one of this weekend’s gigs in New York but the tix are a little too pricey. (Also, I’m holding out for opening night of a rumored Morrissey/The Smiths Broadway musical).

Anyway, here is a video of Moz singing “First of the Gang to Die” at last year’s Glastonbury Music Festival. This song is known as the tribute song to his cult Latino fan base. (Video link):

Have a great weekend!

p.s. Oh who am I kidding. If anyone has a spare wheelchair accessible ticket for either the Saturday or Sunday gigs pretty please contact me!

Sources- The Latin Americanist, Huevos Pericos, Wikipedia, YouTube

Chile: Court drops charges against Pinochet family

A Chilean appeals court dropped corruption charges against the widow and four children of ex-dictator Augusto Pinochet. The court’s ruling extends beyond the Pinochet clan and includes charges being revoked against nine former aides of the deceased ruler.

One of Pinochet’s accused daughters- Lucia- felt indicated by the today’s ruling, according to La Nacion:

“I never worked for the government and I cannot be charged as a public servant. It is a silly case.”

Though the government refused to comment publicly on the case, Prosecutor Alfonso Insunza said that the ruling will be appealed before the Supreme Court.

The five accused members of Pinochet’s family were arrested earlier this month over their possibly connection to Augusto Pinochet’s diverting of public funds to the Washington-based Riggs Bank.

Sources (English)- Monsters & Critics, BBC News, Associated Press, Canada.com, Bloomberg

Source (Spanish)- La Nacion

Image- elmundo.es

Explosion at Mexican consulate in NYC

The New York Police Department is looking into a small explosion that took place today at the city’s Mexican consulate. Nobody was injured from the action that took place in the early morning hours though the consulate was evacuated around 9:30 and subsequently cordoned off by police.

According to one news source police are investigating one particular lead:

The suspect, who investigators believe was riding a bicycle, tossed two replica grenades filled with explosive powder onto a walkway between a fence and an entranceway of the consulate at about 3:50 a.m., (NYPD Commissioner Ray) Kelly said. The explosives detonated, causing three windows to shatter, police said.

Witnesses saw a potential suspect on a bike near the consulate, which is located on 39th Street between Madison and Park avenues, at about the time of the explosion, Mr. Kelly said.

Kelly added the today’s incident was similar to one at New York’s British Consulate in 2005 when two grenades were thrown by a person on a bike.

We recommend you check out Guanabee which has an excellent post on the incident including news video.

Sources- Reuters, UPI, BBC News, New York Sun, NY1, Guanabee

Image- Reuters

Brazil: 27 years prison for U.S. nun killer

A Brazilian jury upheld the conviction of the gunmen who murdered nun and activist Dorothy Stang in 2005. Rayfran das Neves argued in his retrial that he shot Stang in self-defense, yet prosecutor Edson Cardoso said that das Neves’ alibi was a weak attempt to absolve the intellectual masterminds behind her death:

"No half-way intelligent person is going to believe that an elderly person -- and (das Neves) confessed she reached into her bag for a bible -- could have threatened him," said Cardoso.

Stang spent the previous four decades of her life defending the rights of poor settlers in Brazil’s rainforest area from wealthy landowners. Prosecutors have linked two ranchers who paid das Neves $25,000 to kill Stang yet it's believed that there was a wider conspiracy against her.

Sources- BBC News, ABC News, Associated Press, The Latin Americanist, Reuters

Image- BBC News

Ecuador returning to OPEC; Mexico running out of oil?

Ecuador will be rejoining global oil cartel OPEC as an active member according to the country’s government. Ecuador has been a member of the organization despite not paying its dues for 25 years yet that will change next month during an OPEC summit.

According to the Associated Press, Ecuador's president is anticipating vital gains from active participation in OPEC:

The Correa administration has said several times it wants to rejoin OPEC for strategic reasons, ranging from technology support to access to loans from other member countries.

On a related note, Mexican President Felipe Calderon declared that his country is running out of oil. "Our oil reserves have been consistently falling," said Calderon during a September speech that was reported on this week by the International Herald Tribune.

Sources- International Herald Tribune, Xinhua, Bloomberg

Image- MercoPress

Video of the Day: Phil Collins is a "naco"?

It's hard to figure out what's worse:

• Phil Collins' heinous Latino accent which is worse than Frank Zappa's on "Miami Vice."
  
• The Yirah Aparicio look-alike at the beginning of the video.
• The band wearing sombreros and huaraches.
• Lyrics like "I've got a sister who'd be willing to oblige/
  She will do anything now to help me get to the outside"
• The cheezy 80's synth in the backgrround.
• The infantile comments made on YouTube.
  
• All of the above.

Presenting for your ear-shattering enjoyment: Genesis' "Illegal Alien"

(Video link):

Daily Headlines: October 25, 2007

* Could the price of a barrel of oil surpass the $100 threshold? Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez thinks so.

* The massive wildfires that have ravaged through Southern California may have claimed the lives of four people at a migrant camp near the U.S.-Mexico border.

* Salvadoran president Tony Saca continues backing his country’s deployment of troops in Iraq, according to this insightful interview with Univision’s Jorge Ramos.

* FIFA inspectors have given their stamp of approval for Brazil to host the 2014 soccer World Cup.

* Follow-up: The man accused in a heinous assault of an Ecuadorian girl in the Barcelona metro was released yesterday after being arrested for a second time over the incident.

Sources (English)- The Latin Americanist, International Herald Tribune, Guardian UK, Voice of America

Sources (Spanish)- El Diario/La Prensa

Image- CTV.ca

CFR: Debate over “Plan Mexico”

Yesterday’s Video of the Day looked at a debate over the “war on drugs” between two policy wonks.

Today we want to clue you in to a discussion over at the Council on Foreign Relations’ website on “Plan Mexico”. Armand Peschard-Sverdrup- senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies- and Jorge Chabat- professor at the Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas- delve into the pros and cons of the multi-billion dollar U.S. counternarcotics package to Mexico nicknamed “Plan Mexico”.

Image- Metafilter.com

Sources- The Latin Americanist, Council on Foreign Relations

Ché Guevara’s hair up at auction

Got several hundred thousands dollars to spare? Want to woo guests at your next cocktail party or itching to buy an early holiday gift? Then why not buy a lock of Ché Guevara’s hair (image).

A Dallas, Texas auction house is going to sell tonight a 3-inch snippet of the famed revolutionary’s hair which was supposedly cut just before he was buried in 1967. Extra security will be on hand due to harassing e-mails from individuals of “a left-leaning political persuasion”, according to a spokesman for Heritage Auction Galleries.

Politics is the alleged reason behind the auction of the piece of hair along with other artifacts that belonged to the collection of Gustavo Villoldo- a Cuban-born former CIA operative:

“(Villoldo) doesn't like the way Che has become a political icon, so he's anxious to get the whole story out,” (Heritage Auction Galleries’ Tom) Slater told AFP. “He feels that Che was a murderer and a bandit and it was appropriate to hunt him down.”

Previous posts on Guevara's legacy have looked at the revolutionary’s connection to his image in Iraq and Benicio del Toro’s portrayal of Guevara in an upcoming movie.

Sources- BBC News, The Latin Americanist, International Herald Tribune, Tehran Times

Image- Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Quote of the Day: Kirchner’s her own woman

“I don't want to be compared with Hillary Clinton, nor with Evita Peron, nor with anybody…There's nothing better than being yourself.”

--Argentine first lady and presidential candidate Cristina Kirchner tried her best in a radio interview to brush off comparisons between her and the Senator Clinton. As we noted in July, some political commentators have even gone so far as to compare the jewelry worn by Kirchner and Clinton.

The latest polls indicate that Kirchner will easily win in the first round of elections this Sunday. In an encouraging sign for female politicians in the region, opposition politician Elisa Carrio runs second in the polls.

Sources (English)- CNN, Bloomberg, Reuters, The Latin Americanist,

Sources (Spanish)- Clarin

Image- USA TODAY

Bolivia: Prostitutes on hunger strike

Prostitutes in a city near the Bolivian capital of La Paz have sown their lips shut as part of a hunger strike. Though prostitution is legal in the Andean country, sex workers in El Alto are protesting at a health center against the closing of bars and brothels by the city’s government:

"We are fighting for the right to work and for our families' survival," Lily Cortez, leader of the El Alto Association of Nighttime Workers, told local television.
"Tomorrow we will bury ourselves alive if we are not immediately heard. The mayor will have his conscience to answer to if there are any grave consequences, such as the death of my comrades," she said, surrounded by about 10 prostitutes who had sewn their lips together with thread.

The shutdown of El Alto’s bars and brothels came about after those businesses were ransacked and destroyed by an “angry mob” last week.

Sources- news.com.au, Reuters, AFP

Image- Canada.com (“Sex workers cover their faces in a health center, where they are holding a hunger strike in El Alto, October 22, 2007”)