Fausta's Blog

ARGENTINA
Argentina’s debt default
The noose tightens

Argentina rejects US ruling over foreign debt repayment
Argentina will appeal against a US ruling ordering it to pay $1.3bn (£800m) to foreign creditors holding bonds that it defaulted on in 2001.

I was in Buenos Aires the day Kirchner died, and the graffiti read, “Evita and Nestor, together in heaven”; Make room, Evita: Argentine leader seeks to put late husband Nestor Kirchner on Peron pedestal. The only surprising thing is that it’s taken Cristina two years.

BRAZIL
Brazil busts corruption ring

CHILE
Chile Faces Hurdles to Sustain Robust Economic Growth

COLOMBIA
Land reform in Colombia
Peace, land and bread
The hard bargaining start

FARC rebels release 4 Chinese oil workers

Colombia Farc rebels optimistic about Cuba peace talks
Negotiators from Colombia’s largest rebel group, the Farc, say they are highly optimistic about peace talks currently under way in the Cuban capital, Havana.

From Colombian evangelicals to Jews in region with a hidden Jewish past

CUBA
As predictable as a soiled diaper on a newborn baby

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
The Dominican Republic’s Taxing Turn
Servicing its debt will take 44% of government revenue by 2015, despite steep new taxes.

A rum do
The new president faces a tax revolt

HAITI
Haitian ex-soldiers in hiding renew call for president to restore disbanded military

MEXICO
Lame-duck lameness: Mexico’s President Calderon seeks to change country’s name
Profile: Felipe Calderon
Mexican President Felipe Calderon has sent a bill to congress to change the official name of the country.

Chinese-Mexicans expelled during xenophobic period celebrate anniversary of repatriation

From darkness, dawn
After years of underachievement and rising violence, Mexico is at last beginning to realise its potential, says Tom Wainwright

1 of FBI’s 10 most wanted arrested in Mexico

NICARAGUA
Colombia awaits government´s San Andrés reaction (h/t Silvio Canto)

PANAMA
Angry Panama
The earthbound bite back
Why is Latin America’s fastest-growing country so furious?

PUERTO RICO
The 51st state?
America may not want what its Caribbean outpost now does

Ex-boxer Hector ‘Macho’ Camacho dies after shot

TURKS & CAICOS
The Turks and Caicos Islands
Paradise interrupted
A troubled Caribbean territory tries to turn over a new leaf

VENEZUELA
Breaking Bad? Venezuela National Guard finds buried stash of cash
Security forces in Venezuela have found $550,000 (£343,000) buried near the border with Colombia, interior ministry spokesman Jorge Galindo said.

The building up of a FARC/drug corridor in Venezuela

Accomplices Galore

The week’s posts:
Venezuelan immigration to the USA quadrupled over the past 15 years

Argentina: Now on general strike

Mexico: No Iran or Hezbollah here

ARGENTINA
Argentina Runs Out of Other People’s Money
The demonstration in Buenos Aires this month was the largest since Argentines restored democracy in 1983.

In the second quarter, the economy contracted by 1.4%. The Buenos Aires-based think tank Foundation for Latin American Economic Research (known by its Spanish initials FIEL) is forecasting 2012 GDP growth of only 1.5%. Inflation is estimated by independent economists at almost 25% annually. As salaries are adjusted upward to compensate for the loss of purchasing power, workers are being pushed into higher tax brackets. Argentines traveling abroad now have to explain their plans to government bureaucrats if they want to buy hard currency.

Add these pocketbook issues to the rising rate of violent crime, recurring corruption scandals, increasing antidemocratic efforts to silence independent media outlets and pronouncements from Mrs. Kirchner’s inner circle that it wants to amend the constitution to allow her to run for a third term. The Kirchner government has also angered labor leaders by letting it be known that it plans to shift union control of hundreds of millions of dollars in health-care premiums to the government.

Turkey in November in Argentina

BELIZE
Software founder McAfee denies killing neighbor

BOLIVIA & CHILE
Trickle-down diplomacy
Evo Morales tries to swap a stream for a piece of Chilean seafront

BRAZIL
In sign of growing clout, Brazil’s corn helps hold up U.S. market

As the result of a 2009 WTO ruling, Brazil now receives about $17 million in monthly payments from U.S. taxpayers — money being used to advance the Brazilian cotton industry with research on best practices, pest management and other issues. The Obama administration agreed to the payments as an alternative to either curbing government support for U.S. cotton growers or having Brazil slap import taxes on American goods to compensate for the loss to its farmers.

Oil in Brazil
The perils of Petrobras
How Graça Foster plans to get Brazil’s oil giant back on track

COLOMBIA
Colombia Peace Talk Negotiators Meet Again

COSTA RICA
Students protest Costa Rica’s information crimes law

CUBA
IKEA: No deep business contacts with Cuban suppliers
Test sofa sets were of such poor quality that no orders were placed, IKEA says.

Cuban health care
Nip and tuck in
Medicine is big business in Cuba

Can I Wake Up?

Reporters Without Borders condemns Castro regime’s increasing harassment of Cuban independent journalists

ECUADOR
Los fabricantes de burbujas

EL SALVADOR
Holding Salvadoran War Criminals Accountable: The Massacre at University of Central America, San Salvador, 1989

MEXICO
Mexico ex-mayor killed after surviving two attacks
The former mayor of a town in western Mexico, who had survived two earlier assassination attempts, has been beaten to death

Mexican Economy Slows on Weak Exports

PANAMA
Panama Canal’s $5 billion makeover could be boon for South Florida
The $5.25 billion makeover of this century-old engineering marvel could be a boon for South Florida.

Make this a Koki Day!

PUERTO RICO
Puerto Rico Statehood: Luis Fortuño Pushes Bid To Become 51st State After Status Vote

VENEZUELA
The GREAT devaluation robbery coming to Venezuela

Of Virtual Ice Cream Plants And Ministers In The Chávez Revolution

Fake Venezuelan Olympians held
Ten Venezuelans who falsely claimed to be Olympic weightlifters are arrested in Buenos Aires after scans show drug capsules in their stomachs.

The week’s posts:
More #post-election info: 28% Latino poverty rate

Argentina: Broadcast licenses, cable TV and fiber-optic Internet networks to be auctioned off

China & Brazil: Striking out while the iron’s hot

Belize: McAfee goes bonkers, UPDATED

ARGENTINA
Argentina’s president rocked by biggest protest for a decade

Argentines flood the streets to protest against President Cristina Fernandez
Brandishing banners and banging on pots and pans, thousands of Argentines take to streets of Buenos Aires to protest against President Cristina Fernandez.

Argentina Puts Pressure on Media Firm

Argentina: Chevron’s Assets Are Frozen

Tango Therapy: A Fun, New Way to Treat Parkinson’s Disease

BOLIVIA
This is what can happen when you are the most interesting man in the world

BRAZIL
Brazil in Africa
A new Atlantic alliance
Brazilian companies are heading for Africa, laden with capital and expertise

Brazil: 13 new deaths in Sao Paulo’s gang battle
More than 90 police officers have been killed this year in the city
At least 13 people have died in fresh violence between police and a gang in Brazil’s largest city, Sao Paulo

CAYMAN ISLANDS
Cayman allows boat with Cuban migrants to continue to Honduras

COLOMBIA
Colombia President Interrupts Speech for Phone Call from Obama

CUBA
Cuban dissidents detained; Yoani Sánchez released
A group of political dissidents were detained near a Havana police station. Among them: blogger Yoani Sánchez, who was later released.

Whose Brain Is It?

Yaremis Flores, Cuban Political Prisoner of the Week, 11/11/12

GUATEMALA
Guatemala Suffers a Major Quake

JAMAICA
Jamaica approves laws to allow for casino gambling

MEXICO
The Real Victims of Mexico’s Drug War
Not all who die at the hands of the cartels are criminals—and not all who work for them do so willingly.

Mexico moves away from secret military tribunals

Mexico to reconsider joint policies with U.S. amid new state marijuana laws

Organised crime in Mexico
The stakes of marijuana legalisation
Could Mexico’s bandits find themselves undercut by “El Cártel de Seattle”?

PANAMA
Potrerillos Neighborhood Watch Criminal Actively Report: November 7, 2012

PERU
Obama gets endorsement from self-described Peruvian medicine men

Mayor and mafias
A referendum too far

Peruvian Ambassador Resigns After Meeting with Rebel Supporters

PUERTO RICO
Puerto Rico’s vote for US statehood signals dissatisfaction with status quo
The pro-statehood plebiscite is unlikely to bear fruit, but it does express Puerto Ricans’ anger at being second-class Americans

VENEZUELA
Lying As A Way Of Life In The Chavez Revolution

Miss Venezuela Playboy Bunny Held in Drug Lord Case

ARGENTINA
Argentina supermarket roof collapse kills at least two

Ruling Hits Argentina Bonds

BAHAMAS
Hurricane Sandy Makes Landfall in The Bahamas

BOLIVIA
Bolivia vs. Venezuela’s Debt: What Are Investors Smoking (or Chewing)?

BRAZIL
Brazil’s north-east
The Pernambuco model
Eduardo Campos is both modern manager and old-fashioned political boss. His success in developing his state may make him his country’s next president

Brazil Hit By New Blackout

Boycott on Google News leads to 5% loss in web traffic: Brazilian newspapers

COLOMBIA
Cuba-supported Terror Group, FARC, Speaks with a Forked Tongue

Colombia to Develop Its Own Drone Program to Combat Drug-Trafficking

Financing the Colombian War

CUBA
THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS @50: A RECONSIDERATION

How Castro Held the World Hostage

Seven Proposals After Hurricane Sandy

Peter Hitchens: The Guardian interviews me. And some Thoughts in Passing on Cuba and DNA, via Carlos Eire.

Fidel Castro reflections fade to a shadow

ECUADOR
Reporter threatened in Ecuador after airing report on drugs and guns in schools

MEXICO
Pocket Litter: The Evidence That Criminals Carry

Mexico’s Drug Lords Ramp Up Their Arsenals with RPGs

Mexican Drug Gangs on “Verge of Collapse”?

The global Mexican
Mexico is open for business

Case of blonde girl beggar rescued from streets strikes nerve in Mexico; activists see racism, via Gates of Vienna.

PANAMA
Colon Free Zone: Panama debates land sale law repeal

Security Message for U.S. Citizens: Ongoing protests in Panama with possible violence

Day Two of dealing with hospitals in Panama.

PERU
Tense calm follows Peru market clashes

PUERTO RICO
These Bond Portfolios Invest 25% Or More In Puerto Rico

Humor: No Habrá Más Preguntas En Debates; Candidatos Solo Hablarán M**rda Por Dos Horas

VENEZUELA
Venezuela’s Future Up in the Air

The Venezuelan brand of democracy

The week’s posts:
Is the Obama administration planning to release two more convicted terrorists?

The WaPo finds 900,000 Puerto Ricans in Florida

Argentina: High-end retailers leave the country

No doubt Fidel Castro will die, and keeping track of the rumors has become a pastime not only for all Cubans but also for all Latin America watchers – including the ones, like myself, who bring up the Zombie Fidel. And Cubans are restless.

Mary O’Grady writes, The Castros in Winter
Cuba will soon make it easier for some to legally travel abroad. This is not a sign of liberalization.

This at first sounds like progress. But it doesn’t come close to setting Cubans free to roam the world. Citizens will still be required to secure a passport validation stamp, and for many Cubans the costs will add up to more than the fee for the white card. The stamp can also be withheld at the discretion of the regime.

As spelled out in the law, scientists, doctors and anyone deemed to be of high value to the state will have a hard time getting permission to travel—and even if they get it, they will have to wait five years between filing an application and actually boarding a plane. An editorial in the Cuban state newspaper last week said that the regime intends to protect itself from “the theft of talent applied by the powerful,” i.e., the U.S. The law also stipulates a catchall rejection category marked “defense and national security interests.” Translation: Nobody gets out without the dictator’s blessing.

Video:

Meanwhile, you can’t make this up: Hotel official: Fidel Castro appears in public

HAVANA — Fidel Castro has appeared in public for the first time in months, a top hotel executive told The Associated Press on Sunday, challenging persistent rumors that the aging revolutionary is near death.

The 86-year-old leader dropped off a Venezuelan guest at the Hotel Nacional on Saturday afternoon, then stayed for about half an hour to chat with hotel staff, commercial director Yamila Fuster said.

The “guest” is supposedly former Venezuelan vice-president Elías Jaua, who showed (but didn’t release) to the media a snapshot (h/t Miguel) of the blessed event:

Así fue la reunión de Elías Jaua con Fidel Castro by Globovision

Here’s the photo (Jaua’s finger holding it),

ARGENTINA
Argentine politics
Young guns

Colombia, Argentina Trade Barbs on Economic Might
Colombia is bragging that its economy has surpassed Argentina to become is the third-largest in Latin America, marking a turnaround for a country that until a few years ago had its reputation mauled by violence.

Free Postage! Mail your Ballot!

BOLIVIA
Justicia para Juan Kudelka . Learn more about him in Silvio Canto’s podcast.

BRAZIL
Brazilian newspapers pull out of Google News
Brazilian newspapers decide to pull out of Google News, saying the search engine refuses to pay for content and takes traffic away from their websites.

Con L de Lumbre en los aparejos

este sábado, la influyente revista Veja publicó que uno de los condenados, el publicista Marcos Valerio Fernandes (cuyo grupo publicitario pagaba a los diputados y a la tesorería del partido de Lula con prestamos fraudulentos de bancos estatales), ha dicho que “Lula era el jefe” de toda la trama que juzga el STF. “Todo lo que hacía era del conocimiento de Lula”, lanzó. Aunque el abogado de Valerio negó la declaración (una aparente amenaza cifrada), ésta podría ser la primera acusación directa en contra del ex presidente.

CHILE
Chile will request the United States extradite an ex-military commander over the killings of two U.S. reporters

COLOMBIA
Security in Colombia
This time is different
A promising new round of peace talks with the FARC begins

Colombia Peace Talks Have Bumpy Kickoff
Colombia’s main guerrilla army used the opening salvo of peace talks to attack some of the country’s most prominent oil and mining firms, suggesting the Marxist group will try to use the meetings to assail Colombia’s market-friendly economic policies.

CUBA
All will be revealed…

The very, very slow thaw of the half-century U.S.-Cuba standoff

Travel from Cuba
Let my people go

Travel and Immigration Reform: Happy or Satisfied

Cuban Regime Will Open it Doors, To Its Own People

In the short-term, the Party is trying playing the immigration card a few weeks before the U.S. presidential election. Why? In part, because it can. They think they can influence votes in South Florida’s large Cuban-American community by using the immigration/family reunification talisman to divide voters in Miami. I can think of at least one Congressional race where this could become an minor issue, but it is mostly quixotic.

Feds: Remittance firm at center of Medicare-Cuba laundering scam
Federal prosecutors named Caribbean Transfers as the financial backer that sent millions of dollars to Cuba as part of a Medicare-fraud scheme.

An offshore remittance company called Caribbean Transfers financed a complex money-laundering ring that moved more than $30 million in stolen Medicare money from South Florida into Cuba’s banking system, federal authorities said Thursday.

The revelation surfaced in the widening case of a now-convicted check-cashing store owner who was first believed to be at the center of the federal case. It marked the first time that investigators traced tainted Medicare proceeds to Cuba’s state-controlled bank.

Rafael Matos Montes de Oca, Cuban Political Prisoner of the Week, 10/21/12

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Two more Germans held over Dominican Republic ‘sect’ shootout
The Dominican Republic authorities have arrested two more German suspected doomsday cult members over a deadly shootout earlier this week.

HONDURAS
Heist in Honduras leaves 4 dead

MEXICO

Mexico’s drug lords
Kingpin bowling
The most wanted men in Mexico are tumbling. Will crime follow suit?

Mexico goes to the opera, and likes what it hears

Breaking Mexico out of middle income trap
Telecom systems reform a good first step

PANAMA
Protests in Panama duty-free zone
Demonstrators in Panama clash with police after a new law is approved allowing the sale of state-owned land in the free trade zone of Colon.

1 Dead, 9 wounded in Panama protests

Security Message for U.S. Citizens

PERU
Fujimori wants a pardon: Pardon me
A request for clemency puts the president in a bind

PUERTO RICO
La Comay makes the news: Puerto Rico enthralled by cheeky newscaster puppet

Madre Naturaleza Decide Que Hombre Que Saltó De La Estratósfera Es El Único Macho En El Mundo

URUGUAY
Abortion in Uruguay
Still leading the way

VENEZUELA
What Chávez inherits from Chávez

If only we could be as efficient as the soviets…

Now what? The society we have

How The Venezuelan Presidential Vote Was Won

Capriles: Tuvimos que luchar contra el gasto público más alto de la historia de Venezuela

The week’s posts,
Cuba: FIDEL CASTRO DEAD?

Bring out Zombie Fidel, again!

Cuba: If it’s October, the rumors must be flying

Cuba: Fidel and the Nazis

[Opening paragraph re-redacted for clarity.]

ARGENTINA
Argentine Death Spiral Watch

Argentine leader defies her critics

Cristina Fernandez ruffling feathers with the Falklands to mask domestic failings
Several British newspapers have turned their eyes on Argentina arguing that the challenging situation faced by President Cristina Fernandez both domestically and internationally is making her increasingly take advantage of the Falkland Islands dispute as a smokescreen to mask domestic failings.

Ghana court refuses to free Argentine warship Libertad
A Ghanaian court has refused to free an Argentine warship seized in a debt dispute involving the South American nation’s creditors. At The Economist, Argentina’s debt default
Caught napping
Hold-out creditors seize an Argentine ship in Ghana. WSJ: Chasing Deadbeat Argentina
A U.S. investor tries to get its money back from Buenos Aires.

BRAZIL
Barbosa made first black head of Brazil’s Supreme Court

Massive Corruption Scandal Is Victory for Brazilian Courts, via Instapundit.

Brazilian politics
Local action
Voters ignore the Workers’ Party’s troubles

Shots fired as police swoop 10 minutes before 100 followers of Brazilian doomsday cult were due to commit mass suicide over end of the world
Authorities believed the group were preparing to drink soup laced with poison
They had barricaded themselves inside house after leader convinced them apocalypse would happen at 8pm yesterday
Luis Pereira dos Santos held as ‘toxic’ fruit tub is found… he claimed angel told him when the world would end
Police removed 19 children after ‘credible’ information about suicide pact (h/t GoV)

CAYMAN ISLANDS
Is Cayman committing economic suicide? (H/T Instapundit)

CHILE
Entrepreneurs in Latin America
The lure of Chilecon Valley
As America shuts out immigrant entrepreneurs, Chile welcomes them

COLOMBIA
Colombia’s Military to Play Crucial Role in Peace Talks

CUBA
Cuba Almost Became a Nuclear Power in 1962
The scariest moment in history was even scarier than we thought.

Three Elections, One Country

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Dominicans march against proposed tax hikes

ECUADOR
High Court Rejects Chevron Challenge in Ecuador Case

ENERGY
Which Biofuels Hold the Most Promise for the Future – Interview with Jim Lane, along with US Imports from Venezuela of Crude Oil and Petroleum Products, from K.

LATIN AMERICA
Gini back in the bottle
An unequal continent is becoming less so

NICARAGUA
Nicaraguan businessman sentenced to 30 years on drug charges

PANAMA
Message for US Citizens – US Ambassador to hold Town Hall in Panama City

PERU
Journalist working for human rights commission in Peru is threatened and extorted

PUERTO RICO
Puerto Rico drops plan to build natural gas pipeline that was opposed by many islanders

TRINIDAD
Jack Warner bans Trinidad and Tobago murder figures
Police in Trinidad and Tobago have been ordered to stop releasing murder statistics.

VENEZUELA
Hugo Chávez accused of spying on rival in runup to presidential election

Impacts of the Venezuelan Crude Oil Production Loss

Venezuela’s presidential election
Stuck with him
After a surprisingly comfortable re-election, Hugo Chávez will have to surmount a shaky economy and the risk his cancer will return

Venezuela’s Chavez hails ‘perfect’ democracy, mocks tyrant image
* Socialist leader re-elected with 55 pct of vote
* Opposition’s Henrique Capriles contemplates future
* Bonds fall on investor gloom at Chavez victory

Venezuela’s Farce Election

Chavez’s Win Proves ‘Elected Autocrat’ Isn’t an Oxymoron

El club de admiradores de Chávez
Las elecciones en Venezuela tendrán repercusiones en toda América Latina y aun más allá

Chávez Taps His Possible Successor

The Devil, The Future, The Past and The Present

Otto Reich: What Happened in Venezuela?

NORIEGA: Chavez victory may be short-lived
Democratic base motivated against ailing dictator

Jaime Bayly’s take (in Spanish),

The week’s posts and podcast,
Sin Zeta*

Venezuela: How Chavez won

Venezuela: Election aftermath

Podcast: Silvio Canto‘s

ARGENTINA
The president and the potbangers
Times are getting tougher for Cristina Fernández, but she is not beaten yet

Wall Street Billionaire Battles Argentina, Has Ship Detained Over $1.6B Bond

BRAZIL
Brazil judges split on Lula aide
Supreme Court judges delivering their findings on a big corruption case disagree whether former chief of staff Jose Dirceu led scheme to buy opposition support.

Vigil Held on Carandiru Massacre Anniversary

CHILE
Slow-Burning Challenge to Chile on Easter Island

COLOMBIA
Colombian President in Recovery

Colombian band Bomba Estéreo’s “El Alma Y El Cuerpo” (Soul and Body) Updated 2X

CUBA
The sacrificial lamb has been shorn and taken to the altar. Immolation postponed.

Rumplestiltskin, Cuba detains anti-Castro blogger for 30 hours
Yoani Sanchez, a social media maven, and her husband are detained while en route to a politically sensitive trial.

ECUADOR
Ecuador president says he’ll advise Tunisia on debt renegotiations

EL SALVADOR
Gangs’ Truce Buys El Salvador a Tenuous Peace

GUATEMALA
Guatemalan Protests Leave At Least Six Dead as Police Clash with Demonstrator

MEXICO
Univision: Juarez drug cartel leader ‘El Diego’ was captured with Fast and Furious weapons

Ho hum: Mexican teenagers slaughtered with Fast and Furious guns

Mexico’s Cartels Increase Their Muscle In The U.S.

PANAMA
Makes One Think

PARAGUAY
Paraguay post-impeachment
A Liberal spring
The interim president enacts reforms

PERU
Peru rebels burn down helicopters at jungle airfield
Three helicopters were destroyed in the attack on the airfield in Cusco province
Left-wing Shining Path rebels in Peru have burned three helicopters used by a private gas consortium, officials say.

PUERTO RICO
Humor: Estudiantes Universitarios Molestos Que No Pudieron Abuchear A Fortuño En Persona

Puerto Rican Identity, In and Out of Focus

VENEZUELA
The Other Election: Venezuela

Hugo Chavez Might Actually Lose His Election on Sunday

Venezuela’s presidential election
The autocrat and the ballot box
A united opposition and discontent over government mismanagement mean a genuine electoral challenge for Hugo Chávez

Chávez’s Foreign Fan Club
The Venezuelan election will have ramifications throughout Latin America and beyond

Will Hugo Chavez lose the election tomorrow?

How Hugo Chávez Became Irrelevant

Chávez’s Stamp Most Keenly Felt on Farms

The week’s posts:
Venezuela: “God’s timing is perfect”

#Venezuela: The results – it’s Chavez

#Venezuela election: Live coverage on line

Venezuela: Election results “between 9-10PM tonight”

Venezuela: Tupamaros threaten death to opposition

Watch now: @Univision’s Operation ‘Fast and Furious’: Arming the enemy (English subtitles, complete show)

Colombia: President Santos has prostate cancer

ARGENTINA
With Argentina reeling from economic downturn, the government is recruiting migrant workers and kids to stay in power

Argentine leader’s image falls as inflation soars

Tango world cup slide show at the WSJ

BRAZIL
Electricity taxes in Brazil
Untangling the custo Brasil

Olympic flag taken up to Rio’s Christ Statue
The Olympic flag receives a special blessing from seven different religions at Rio de Janeiro’s Christ the Redeemer Statue. (h/t Gates of Vienna)

CHILE
In Chile, Jews face new dangers and old fears
President of Chile’s Jewish community tells ‘Post’ neo-Nazi violence, Palestinian anti-Israelism, Islamism on the rise (h/t Gates of Vienna), and Police in Chile guard Jews after anti-Semitic attacks
Many leftists in Latin America have become more vocal in their criticism of Israel.

CUBA
What Castro Does to Peaceful Women

A glimpse behind the curtain

“Boo-Hoo” for Diana Nyad

Terabytes

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Medina’s turn
New rum in old bottles

ECUADOR
Morning Bell: WikiLeaks’ Anti-Americanism Now Backed by Ecuador

THE ASSANGE CASE AND ECUADOR: CORREA POSITIONS HIMSELF AS CHAVEZ’S INTERNATIONAL SUCCESSOR

Ecuador and Julian Assange
An Ecuadorean history of the world
Rafael Correa is using the Assange case to stake a claim to leadership of the Latin American far-left. He may find the spotlight uncomfortable; a seldom-noticed fact,

The right to grant asylum in embassies is not recognised by international law or the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961. Latin America is the only region in the world where this practice is established—a consequence of the region’s history of political repression.

How Julian Assange can still outfox Britain

EL SALVADOR
Strong Quake Hits Off El Salvador Coast

MEXICO
The Mexican Press Under Fire
Dozens of journalists have been murdered and media properties attacked in the past six years.

The ‘journalists’ with a cool $7 million

One can only surmise without proof. But don’t be surprised if it turns out that the group was part of a cartel squad sent to strong-arm judges, prosecutors, witnesses and others related to the case.

Related story also in the Nicaragua section below.

Mexico replaces all federal police at key airport (h/t Gates of Vienna).

Mexico Says Police Shot U.S. Officials
Federal Officers Were Among Gunmen Who Pursued, Injured Two Diplomats, Ministry Says; Incident Under Investigation

Mexico’s stock exchange
Elektric shock
Magic realism in Mexico’s stockmarket

NICARAGUA
Nicaragua Seizes $7 Million from Fake Journalists

PANAMA
10,000 Positions Available At “Mega Job Fair” in San Miguelito

This is actually a “bad news” article. There are 10,000 openings available just at this job fair. Only 2,334 people showed up, and most of them are already working somewhere else. They just wanted to see what was available, to see if they could jump from one company to another to improve their position, pay, benefits, or what have you. So, there are still many more jobs available than there are people to fill them. This is not good for a hot and growing economy. It’s nice that there’s now practically zero unemployment (or full employment) in Panama, however if there there no more people, then the economy cannot continue to expand. Need more warm bodies, quickly…

PERU
Peru Protests Slow Mine Plan, Growth

PUERTO RICO
Puerto Ricans reject constitutional changes in upset vote

URUGUAY
Uruguay’s plan to sell pot may not be that crazy

VENEZUELA
Explosion at Venezuela Refinery Kills 19

Another Terrible Tragedy Due To Chavista Mismanagement

Venezuela’s presidential campaign
Gaining ground

The week’s posts:
Venezuela: Refinery explosion

No more “Coca-Cola, Cawy, Materva and Ironbeer”

Isaac? No problem!

The border conspiracy: PJM Videos Show How One Texas County Fakes Crime Statistics to Make the Border Look Safe

Argentina: tango festival in full swing

Venezuela: Protestors charge Chavez’s stage

Puerto Rico: The night of the iguana

ARGENTINA
Argentina will plant 22 percent less wheat this season

BRAZIL

Brazil’s Crisis—and Opportunity
The breakdown of the customs union with Argentina could free it to seek better trade opportunities elsewhere.

Mystery of 500 penguins washed up on beach in Brazil
The bodies of more than 500 penguins have washed up on beaches in southern Brazil over the past week.

Corruption Case Roils Brazil
Allegations against political staff in imminent supreme court case raise concerns in ruling party.

CHILE
The Remarkable Story of Chile’s Economic Renaissance, via Instapundit.

Chile child sex abuse to be investigated at 61 schools
Prosecutors in Chile are investigating about 60 schools in the capital, Santiago, over allegations that pupils were sexually abused.

CUBA
Breaking: Sources from Cuba report Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas killed

No More Statues of Che

Silicone Island

ECUADOR
Ecuadorian banks shield Iran’s money

Ecuador’s embassy hires PR firm

JAMAICA
Jamaica at 50
On your marks, get set…oh
Half a century after Jamaica’s independence from Britain, its economy is struggling to get out of the starting blocks (subscription only)

LATIN AMERICA
Latin America’s new authoritarians

More than two decades after Latin America’s last right-wing dictatorships dissolved, a new kind of authoritarian leader is rising in several countries: democratically elected presidents who are ruling in increasingly undemocratic ways.

Unlike the iron-fisted juntas of a generation ago, these leaders do not assassinate opposition figures or declare martial law.

But in a handful of countries, charismatic populists are posing the most serious challenge to democratic institutions in Latin America since the 1980s, when rebel wars and dictators were the norm. In Venezuela, Ecuador, Nicaragua and other countries, leaders have amassed vast powers that they use to control courts while marginalizing their opponents and the media, human rights groups and analysts say.

MEXICO
Mexican president to US: You know, you guys should really review your gun laws

HSBC let drug gangs launder millions: First Barclays, now Britain’s biggest bank is shamed – and faces a £640million fine
HSBC moved huge sum from Mexico into the U.S. between 2007 and 2008

In Mexico, Gold Mines Beckon Once More

Fat And Furious: Obama Pushes Food Stamps In Mexico

PANAMA
Boeing Nears Aircraft Deals with Copa Airlines, Aeromexico and Gol.

PARAGUAY
Old article, but still a must-read, In the Party of God
Hezbollah sets up operations in South America and the United States.

PUERTO RICO
Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands to partner, manage ocean resources

Puerto Rico Governor Signs Package For Tax Breaks Hoping To Lure Hollywood

VENEZUELA
CARLOS ALBERTO MONTANER: Los tres misterios de Hugo Chávez

Read more here: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/2012/07/22/1255871/carlos-alberto-montaner-los-tres.html#storylink=cpy
THE PRESIDENT’S DENIAL OF VENEZUELA’S NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT: WILL THE U.S EVER GET IT RIGHT IN LATIN AMERICA?

The week’s posts,
The taxman cometh, at Hot Air.

Silvio Canto’s podcast (auto start).

Ecuador to channel financial operations with Iran through third parties

Colombia: “What do you believe?”

ARGENTINA
Cause: Argentina Bans Dollar Purchases For Savings, Infobae Says (h/t Clark). Effect: Making The Euro Zone Look Good

Argentina convicts 2 dictators of stealing babies

BOLIVIA
La República de la cocaína

Bolivian farmer dies in protests against Canadian mine

CHILE
Star Gazers
Way out in a barren Chilean desert, the biggest telescope ever made is taking shape, via Instapundit.

CUBA
The Self-Employed and the “Mules”

The Truth About Cuba, via Babalu.

Raul Castro’s long trip to China raises questions about a secret stopover
A trip that takes one day on commercial jetliners took more than two, raising questions about a secret stopover

ECUADOR
Ecuador Seeks Liquidity Loan As Correa Loses Oil Funding

Pide a EEUU no renovar Atpdea con Ecuador
Chevron descarta cualquier acuerdo extrajudicial con demandantes ecuatorianos

GUATEMALA
U.S. soldier killed on humanitarian mission in Guatemala

HONDURAS
Xiomara Castro Urges Hondurans to Retake Power

MEXICO
Remember Fast and Furious’s Mexican Victims.

Mexico destroys 1 million chickens for bird flu

Mexico’s Leader Seeks to Shed the Past

Mexico’s election
The PRI’s qualified comeback
The former ruling party triumphs, but without the majority it had hoped for

OLIVER STONE: MEXICO NEEDS DRUG WAR FOR ECONOMIC SURVIVAL

MEXICO ELECTION REPORTEDLY CORRUPT

PANAMA
Castro & Co. Are Best Kept at Arm’s Length
Economic growth in Latin America is at risk if tyrants are welcomed as legitimate leaders. As my family learned in Panama, poverty and tyranny go hand in hand.

PARAGUAY
Mercosur Shows Lack Of Ethics

The Paraguay MERCOSUR fiasco: the loser list

PERU
Peru: Three die in clashes over Conga gold mine project
Clashes in northern Peru between police and demonstrators opposing a multi-million dollar gold mining project have left at least three people dead.

PUERTO RICO
Our American Dream: Bobby Sanabria, the Voice of Afro-Cuban Jazz

URUGUAY
Uruguay president: Only pot will be legal

VENEZUELA
Chavez Promotes to Minister Military Officer designated by the U.S Treasury as Drug Kingpin

Venezuelan Officials Acting on Behalf of the FARC

Chávez: into Mercosur by a side door

Venezuela’s presidential campaign
Tilting the pitch
The opposition faces some extraordinary obstacles

Mitt Romney: We Stand With Venezuelans Fighting For Democracy And Freedom

The week’s posts:
Cuba: $1.55 billion, gone!

MoDo did well!