Daily Headlines: November 7, 2016

* Nicaragua: President Daniel Ortega easily won a third straight term during an election marred by the lack of international observers and accusations of fraud by the opposition.

* Puerto Rico: Ricardo Rossello, the odds-on favorite to become Puerto Rico’s next governor, has pushed for statehood in order to pull the commonwealth out of its economic crisis and “finally finish the 500-year debacle that has been colonialism.”

* Bolivia: The presidents of Bolivia and Peru agreed on a comprehensive plan that would provide landlocked Bolivia access to the ocean.

* Ecuador: Diplomatic authorities gave Swedish investigators permission to question Wikilieaks founder Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy in London next week.

YouTube Source – France 24 English (“Former Marxist guerrilla leader Daniel Ortega is expected to easily clinch a third consecutive term as president of Nicaragua on Sunday, buoyed by steady economic growth that has trumped fears he is trying to install autocratic family rule.”)

Online Sources – Los Angeles Times, Fox News Latino, UPI, Mashable

Daily Headlines: October 17, 2016

* United States: A poll of likely Latino voters conducted last week has respondents giving Hillary Clinton a fifty point cushion over Donald Trump in a four-way race for the United States presidency.

* Honduras: The White House gave the green light for $55 million in aid to Honduras despite reservations by the Obama administration over rampant corruption and narcotrafficking.

* Ecuador: “I cannot disclose any information,” said a contact at the Ecuadoran embassy in London when asked if internet access to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange was purportedly cut off.

* Puerto Rico: A new federal oversight board monitoring Puerto Rico’s public finances granted themselves more powers, while outgoing governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla warned that the commonwealth could face a $59 billion public debt over the next ten years.

YouTube Source – PBS NewsHour 

Online Sources – Bloomberg, Fox News Latino, BBC News, Politico

Daily Headlines: October 4, 2016

* Honduras: The case file focused on the murder of prominent Honduran human rights activist Berta Cáceres was stolen last week, which will likely impede efforts to identify the masterminds behind her death.

* Latin America: At least three people died on the island of Hispaniola as Hurricane Matthew continued its northward path through the Caribbean, while Bolivia is facing its worst drought in a quarter century.

* Argentina: Researchers in Argentina believe the first people to reach the southern area of the American continent may have occurred thousands of years than initially believed.

* Puerto Rico: A seven-member panel appointed by the United States government began its oversight of Puerto Rico’s public finances in an effort to prevent worsening the estimated $70 billion debt on the commonwealth.

YouTube Source – euronews (Video uploaded in March 2016). 

Online Sources – Fusion, Reuters, Smithsonian, Christian Science Monitor

Daily Headlines: September 28, 2016

* Peru: Vladimiro Montesinos, the shady former Peruvian intelligence chief who was instrumental in the rise and fall of Alberto Fujimori from the presidency, was sentenced to twenty-two years in prison for the kidnapping and burning of three people.

* Panama: Panamanian officials formally sought the extradition from the United States (US) of ex-President Ricardo Martinelli who is accused of using public funds for illegal surveillance.

* Puerto Rico: US Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen warned that Puerto Rico is facing a fiscal crisis and claimed it’s up to Congress or the White House to formulate an adequate solution.

* Latin America: The Pan American Health Organization declared the Americas are free from all endemic cases of measles “after years of intense efforts to vaccinate children under the age of five.”

YouTube Source – Journeyman Pictures (Documentary from December 2003.)

Online Sources – UPI, Reuters, Voice of America

Daily Headlines: September 22, 2016

* Puerto Rico: An estimated 1.5 million Puerto Rican customers remain without power following a blackout that first began on Wednesday afternoon.

* Venezuela: Venezuelan electoral officials announced that the recall referendum of President Nicolas Maduro would likely be held sometime in the first three months of next year.

* Brazil: Andrew Mackenzie, the CEO of BHP Billiton, had his salary slashed in half after the mining giant suffered a massive annual loss partly due to the Samarco dam disaster in Brazil.

* Chile: Chile could become the next Latin American country to legalize same-sex marriage.

YouTube Source – euronews 

Online Sources – CNN, Reuters, The Independent, Bloomberg

Daily Headlines: September 5, 2016

* Argentina: The indigenous Mapuche community in Argentina is campaigning against fracking at one of the world’s top shale gas producing sites that has caused environmental damage including groundwater pollution.

* South America: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was reportedly chased by demonstrators during a visit to Margarita Island, while tens of thousands of anti-government protesters took to the streets of several major Brazilian cities yesterday.

* Ecuador: A 4.8 magnitude earthquake shook the Ecuadoran capital city of Quito nearly five months after a stronger tremor killed at least 700 people and caused some $2 billion in damages.

* Puerto Rico: Now that Congress returned today from its summer recess, will federal legislators soon back a plan to combat the spread of the Zika virus in Puerto Rico?

YouTube Source – AJ+ (“From September 2014: “The Mapuche (people indigenous to Argentina's Patagonia region) have long fought for their land and rights. Now they're witnessing the side effects of fracking, and taking action to keep oil companies off the land.”)

Online Sources – UPI, Fox News Latino, BBC News, Reuters, teleSUR English

Daily Headlines: August 30, 2016

* Brazil: A defiant suspended President Dilma Rousseff defended herself during a marathon session of Brazil’s Senate but it may not be enough to prevent her from being ousted as soon as later today.

* Puerto Rico: Monica Puig made made history this month by earning Puerto Rico’s first ever gold medal but the tennis star was shockingly eliminated in the first round of the U.S. Open.

* United States: A federal appeals court upheld an order denying asylum to twenty-eight immigrant mothers and their children who claimed they would face danger if deported to their Latin American countries of origin.

* Mexico: Federal police chief Enrique Galindo was fired from his post over denunciations against officers accused of the extrajudicial killings of twenty-two suspected drug gang members last year.

YouTube Source – euronews (“Brazil's suspended President Dilma Rousseff has accused her critics of using trumped charges against her to trample on the country's democracy.”)

Online Sources – Daily Telegraph, ABC News, Reuters, USA TODAY

Daily Headlines: August 17, 2016

* Bolivia: Landlocked Bolivia took a big step towards being the world’s largest exporter of lithium following its first shipment of the metal to China.

* Brazil: Suspended President Dilma Rousseff proposed early elections though that may not be enough to prevent her from possibly being removed from office by the Brazilian Senate later this month.

* Puerto Rico: At least 500 passengers were evacuated from a ferry that caught fire off the Puerto Rican coast this morning.

* Nicaragua: Opposition parties have called for a boycott of Nicaragua’s upcoming presidential elections that critics claim are rigged to create a “dynastic dictatorship” for current leader Daniel Ortega.

* Mexico: Is the kidnapping of six people including the son of imprisoned capo Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman a sign of increased violence between Mexican drug gangs?

Daily Headlines: August 15, 2016

* Argentina: Human rights group the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo held their 2000th weekly march in Buenos Aires days after the United States (US) declassified hundreds of documents related to actions during the “Dirty War” era.

* Cuba: Former Cuban president Fidel Castro made a rare public appearance to celebrate his 90th birthday and also penned a letter thanking his compatriots “for the signs of respect, greetings, and gifts” he has recently received.

* Puerto Rico: The US government declared a public health emergency in Puerto Rico due to the spread of the Zika virus that has infected at least 10,000 people there.

* Guatemala: A Canadian legal aid group has called on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to probe a local mining firm accused of allegedly using legal chicanery to prevent a referendum over a Guatemalan mine.

YouTube Source – teleSUR English

Online Sources – BBC News, The Bubble, Vice News, The Toronto Star, The Atlantic

Daily Headlines: August 10, 2016

* Brazil: Amid the fervor of the Rio Games, Brazil’s Senate voted in favor of holding an impeachment trial against suspended President Dilma Rousseff.

* Puerto Rico: Tourism in Puerto Rico has weakened over the past few months reportedly as a result of the Zika virus outbreak that has affected most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

* Chile: President Michelle Bachelet in a televised address proposed reforming the private pension system created under the rule of former dictator Gen. Augusto Pinochet.

* Venezuela: Opposition politicos are none too pleased with the Venezuelan electoral commission’s decision to likely hold a possible recall referendum against President Nicolas Maduro in 2017 instead of later this year.

YouTube Source – AFP

Online Sources – euronews, Travel Weekly, Deutsche Welle, Yahoo News

Daily Headlines: August 4, 2016

* Colombia: The neoconservative Democratic Center political party announced their opposition to a peace plebiscite regarding the FARC even though nearly three out of four Colombians in a recent poll would vote for the “Yes” option,

* Venezuela: In what seems to be the latest concession by the Venezuelan government to the military, a general accused by the United States for drug trafficking was named as interior and justice minister for the South American state.

* Panama: The newest batch of documents uncovered via the Panama Papers leak has implicated businesses in at least fifty-two African countries including Egypt, Nigeria, and Algeria.

* Puerto Rico: Pedro Pierluisi, Puerto Rico’s lone member of Congress, suggested that genetically modified mosquitoes could be used to combat the spread of the Zika virus on the commonwealth.

YouTube Source – euronews (From June 2016: “Three years of historic peace talks between Colombian government and FARC negotiators have resulted in a ceasefire agreement.”)

Online Sources – Reuters, teleSUR English, Business Insider, allAfrica.com, ABC News

Daily Headlines: August 1, 2016

* Poland: Pope Francis spent several days in Poland that included a visit to the former Nazi death camp at Auschwitz and also declaring Panama as the site of the next World Youth Day.

* Puerto Rico: Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla signed into a law a proposal allowing municipalities to share administrative services in order to cut costs at the heavily indebted commonwealth.

* Nicaragua: Nicaraguan electoral officials unseated twenty-eight opposition members of the federal legislature in a move critics view as consolidating the power of President Daniel Ortega.

* Cuba: JetBlue could become the first air carrier to regular schedule commercial flights to Cuba but the move first requires permission from the island’s government.

YouTube Source – France 24 English 
 
Online Sources – Refinery29, NPR, Vatican Radio, Business Insider, Yahoo7 News

Daily Headlines: July 21, 2016

* South America: The Copa Libertadores title is up for grabs and will be decided in Medellin next Wednesday as Independiente del Valle of Ecuador and Colombia’s Atletico Nacional tied 1-1 in the first leg of the finals.

* United States: A federal appeals court ruled that that the voter ID restrictions in Texas violated the federal Voting Rights Act by discriminating against the poor and minorities like Latinos.

* Mexico: Pedro Rosas Tamayo, a Mexican journalist who received death threats and was purportedly under police protection, was shot and killed at his home in Veracruz.

* Puerto Rico: Several hedge funds who are bondholders of Puerto Rico’s multi-billion dollar debt filed a lawsuit against the Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla and the government of the commonwealth.

YouTube Source – Fox Deportes

Online Sources – SBS, Fox News Latino, teleSUR English, Bloomberg

Daily Headlines: July 13, 2016

* Paraguay: A Paraguayan court sentenced eleven farmers to a maximum of thirty years in prison for the deaths of policemen during land rights protests that were the catalyst for the ouster of ex-President Fernando Lugo.

* Ecuador: Human rights groups criticized the Ecaudoran government’s decision last week to deport 75 Cuban migrants arrested for protesting outside the Mexican embassy in Quito.

* Puerto Rico: Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla of Puerto Rico warned that the commonwealth still faces major fiscal challenges despite the recent approval of a law providing relief to the $70 billion public debt.

* Latin America: Officials from Mexico and the United States agreed on a plan to improve access to asylum for Central American migrants seeking to escape rampant violence and economic hardship in their respective countries.

YouTube Source – Al Jazeera English (From March 2014: “Thousands of Paraguayan farmers have gathered outside the country's Congress in Asuncion to vent their frustration at (then) President Horacio Cartes, who they say has failed to deliver on land reform promises.”)
 
Online Sources – BBC News, ABC News, Reuters, The Guardian

Daily Headlines: June 28, 2016

* Brazil: Rio 2016 Committee CEO Sidney Levy tried to downplay worries over the Zika virus and economic problems in Brazil as top ranked men’s golfer Jason Day became the latest high-profile athlete to skip the upcoming Olympics.

* Chile: Former Chilean military soldier Pedro Barrientos could be extradited to his homeland and face a criminal trial after a U.S. court found him liable for the torture and death of folk singer Victor Jara in 1973.

* Puerto Rico: Time is running short for the U.S. Congress to approve a debt relief package for Puerto Rico before a July 1st deadline to pay $2 billion of its $70 billion debt.

* Venezuela: The opposition coalition claimed to have sufficient signatures to commence a recall referendum process against President Nicolás Maduro.

YouTube Source – CCTV News (From May 31, 2016: “Despite scientists' calls for the Games to be moved or postponed over fears of the Zika virus, the World Health Organization insists that the Olympics and Paralympics ‘will take place during Brazil's wintertime when there are fewer active mosquitoes and the risk of being bitten is lower.’”)
 
Online Sources – ABC News, Reuters, BBC News, Latin American Herald Tribune, The Age

Daily Headlines: June 22, 2016

* Colombia: The Colombian government and FARC rebels will reportedly agree to a bilateral ceasefire, which could serve as a precursor to a final peace deal that might be reached in about one month from now.

* U.S.: Lionel Messi broke the record of most goals for a player on the Argentine men’s national team as the albiceleste had little trouble beating the U.S. by a score of 4-0 in a Copa America Centenario semifinal.

* Mexico: Tensions continue in the Mexican state of Oaxaca following clashes between striking teachers and police that left at least eight people dead.

* Puerto Rico: Debt negotiations between Puerto Rican officials and bondholders ended without a resolution despite a July 1st deadline to avoid falling into a major default.

YouTube Source – euronews (Last month “the Colombian government agreed on a plan to reintegrate child soldiers from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, into society”.)
 
Online Sources – BBC News, UPI, Bloomberg, CNN, Reuters

Daily Headlines: June 15, 2016

* Latin America: The U. N. Development Programme warned that 25 million Latin Americas that escaped poverty could soon fall back into serious financial hardship due to a “lengthy economic crisis and social exclusion in the region.”

* U.S.: The Latino community in Orlando, Florida tries to recover from the massacre of forty-nine people at a local nightclub including twenty-three Puerto Ricans as well as victims from Mexico as well as Venezuela.

* Argentina: Argentina’s foreign minister reiterated her county’s sovereignty claims over the Falklands but called on an “open dialogue” and better relations with the U.K.

* Puerto Rico: U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the upper house will debate a debt relief bill for Puerto Rico later this month yet very close to a July 1st deadline for the island to pay $1.9 billion.

YouTube Source – DW (English) (From September 2015: “Agriculture is helping Paraguay's economy expand fast. Growth came in at about 5 percent last year. But many people still live in extreme poverty.”)
 
Online Sources – NBC News, ABC News, El Pais, Reuters, MercoPress

Daily Headlines: June 13, 2016

* U.S.: LGBT centers in the area of Orlando, Florida are working to offer Spanish-speaking grief counselors in light of the massacre of at least fifty people during an “Upscale Latin Saturday” party at the Pulse nightclub.

* Puerto Rico: U.S. President Barack Obama in his weekly address urged the Senate to quickly approve a plan that would help alleviate Puerto Rico’s $70 billion debt.

* Brazil: According to “two unpublished academic studies” researchers have detected a “super bacteria” present in the waters of several venues of the upcoming Rio Olympics.

* Guatemala: Three former ministers who served under disgraced ex-President Otto Perez Molina were arrested on corruption charges while around 2000 protesters in Guatemala City rallied in favor of greater political transparency.

YouTube Source – Jornalistas Livres (Vigils were held in several Latin American cities including Sao Paulo in solidarity with the victims of the mass shooting of at least fifty people in Orlando on Saturday).
 
Online Sources – PBS NewsHour, Fox News Latino, Reuters, Deutsche Welle

Daily Headlines: June 10, 2016

* Brazil: Prosecutors in Brazil might press criminal charges against eight employees of Samarco, Vale, and VogBR in relation to a dam collapse that killed at least seventeen people last November.

* Puerto Rico: The Supreme Court in a 6-2 decision ruled that charging a suspect with a crime in the U.S. and Puerto Rico is “double jeopardy” and, thus, unconstitutional.

* Colombia: Colombian health officials are expected to break Novartis’ monopoly over popular leukemia drug Gleevec by forcing the firm to lower prices but might stop short of permitting generic production.

* Venezuela: The Venezuelan government’s new food distribution program is not settling well with some consumers seeking basic items and critics who believe the plan is unfairly rewarding ruling party loyalists.

YouTube Source – Associated Press

Online Sources – Fox News Latino, The Washington Post, The Hill, Reuters

Daily Headlines: June 7, 2016

* Panama: Suez Canal operators are offering discounts to container lines in an attempt to stem an expected increase of traffic on the soon to be reopened and expanded Panama Canal.

* Puerto Rico: A bill to provide relief for Puerto Rico’s $70 billion public debt moves gradually through the U.S. House of Representatives but that didn’t stop Boricuas from selecting an opponent of the proposal as the gubernatorial candidate representing the pro-statehood party.

* South America: In the latest chapter of the decades-long dispute between Chile and Bolivia over coastal access, the former sued the landlocked state over rights to the Silala River.

* Ecuador: The U.S. Supreme Court rejected hearing an appeal by the Ecuadoran government to avoid paying $96 million in arbitration to Chevron.

YouTube Source – Financial Times (Video uploaded in March 2015).
 
Online Sources – GlobalPost, The Street, Reuters, JOC.com, NBC News