ARGENTINA
AMIA prosecutors file request letter to US on Stiuso’s whereabouts
The persistence of Peronism: Argentina’s dominant political brand is defined by power, not ideology.
To the extent that it has an ideology it is a vague blend of nationalism and labourism, expressed in the PJ’s founding “three banners” of political sovereignty, economic independence and social justice.
Power as an end in itself,
Rather than ideas, Peronism embodies a consistent set of political emotions and practices. Perón declared in 1951: “The masses don’t think, the masses feel and they have more or less intuitive and organised reactions. Who produces those reactions? Their leader.” His second wife, Eva Duarte, touched the hearts of the masses. Ms Fernández has proved to be an accomplished disciple: she has ruthlessly pursued popularity by postponing inevitable economic belt-tightening, by exploiting her widowhood and by associating herself with Pope Francis, an Argentine who has Peronist roots.
Argentinian artists risk religious wrath with ‘Barbie, The Plastic Religion’
BAHAMAS
Bahamas Reports More Than $60 Million in Damage from Hurricane Joaquin
BOLIVIA
Commodity Price Decline to Cost Bolivia $3 Billion, Government Says
BRAZIL
Brazil Police Launch Preliminary Probe into Rousseff’s Re-Election Campaign
COLOMBIA
Ex-president Pastrana resigns from ‘Super Commission’ for peace
However, on Thursday he resigned from the commission citing his disappointment in the transitional justice deal which he claims was “the biggest concession achieved by the FARC after the acceptance of drug-trafficking as a crime connected to their ideals.”
COSTA RICA
Drug Raids Reveal Italian Mafia Presence in Costa Rica
CUBA
Within the Past Year: Assad, Putin and Castro Ties
ECUADOR
Ecuador’s Rafael Correa pushes for foreign investment
But with an unfriendly business environment, Correa may find it hard to entice the private sector to pick up the slack.
EL SALVADOR
A murder every hour: How gang warfare has turned El Salvador into the world’s most violent nation
In August alone there were 911 murders – an average of nearly 30 a day.
In one incident, 14 members of one of the country’s most powerful street gangs were killed in a prison.
The dead were said to have belonged to ‘Barrio 18’ gang ‘Faccion Revolucionarios’, or Revolutionaries’ Faction.
Normally at war with rival gang ‘Mara Salvatrucha’, an internal power struggle between Revolucionarios and Surenos (Southerners) has seen the violence – and death toll – soar.
HAITI
Life miserable for Haitians expelled from Dominican Republic
MEXICO
ebook: The Wounded Eagle: Three years in the Mexican drug war, 2010-2012.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
EXCLUSIVE: ARREST OF GULF CARTEL BOSS TRIGGERS CHAOS NEAR TEXAS BORDER
PANAMA
Over 10 tonnes of drugs go up in smoke in Panama