Likely top stories this week: Independent forensic team deems Mexico’s 43 missing students case inconclusive; Cuban authorities to expand Internet centers in 2015; archaeological relics uncovered along Nicaragua Canal route; a general strike in Haiti on eve of Carnival; Unasur seeks to facilitate U.S.-Venezuela dialogue.
Independent Forensic Team Deems Mexico’s 43 Missing Students Case Inconclusive: A forensic report conducted by a team of Argentine experts was released on Saturday, questioning the Mexican government’s announcement last month that the 43 missing students in Iguala were definitively murdered. Hired by the students’ families to conduct an independent investigation, the Argentine Forensic Anthropologists concluded that Mexico’s official statement does not provide sufficient evidence to close the case. The report also issued a list of discrepancies in the Mexican attorney general’s investigation, including mistakes in the collection of 20 genetic profiles from family members that rendered them unusable, and allowing the trash dump—a key crime scene—to be unguarded for weeks. The Argentine team insists that investigations into the students’ disappearances should continue. The attorney general’s office has not responded to the statement.
Cuba to have 300 Internet Centers by Late 2015: Cuban authorities plan to create more than 300 Internet centers by the end of 2015, according to the state-run telecommunications company, Etecsa. There are currently 155 public “cyber points,” established by Etecsa in June 2013, that provide restricted access to the Internet at the steep cost of $4.50 per hour—as much as 20 percent of the minimum monthly wage. Etecsa also announced the possibility of creating Wi-Fi networks in hotels. Currently, only certain professionals have access to the internet—with government authorization. In January, the U.S. eased export restrictions on IT equipment to improve telecommunications and Internet access in Cuba, a market of 11 million people.
15,000 Pre-Columbian Artifacts Discovered along Nicaragua Canal Route: Nicaragua Canal developers have discovered 15,000 pre-Columbian artifacts—mainly shards of pottery and obsidian—along the interoceanic canal’s proposed 173-mile route. The relics were found above ground, but archaeologists expect to unearth more artifacts once digging officially begins. Environmental Resources Management (ERM), a British consulting firm, and Jorge Espinoza, a Nicaraguan archaeologist, plan to work with the Nicaraguan government and the Chinese development firm HKND to conduct a number of specific archaeological excavations along the route. “Due to the quantity, it would be impossible to preserve every last relic,” says ERM. The $50 billion project is estimated to take five years and has faced significant pushback from Nicaraguan farmers citing social and environmental concerns.
General Strike in Haiti on Eve of Carnival: The three-month-long protests against Haitian President Michel Martelly are expected to continue today, with a two-day general strike planned in the capital city of Port-au-Prince over the high cost of gasoline. While the global price of crude oil continues to fall, and is currently at about $53 per barrel, the Haitian government has emphasized that it cannot lower the price of gasoline—currently at $4.50 a gallon after a recent $0.25 reduction—due to its PetroCaribe debt. Haiti’s debt to Venezuela’s preferential fuel program is currently at about $1.5 billion. Protestors have threatened to disrupt Haiti’s Carnival, set to begin on February 15, if the prices aren’t lowered further. Haiti’s long-delayed elections originally sparked the anti-government protests in December, and President Martelly continues to rule by decree. Despite threats of violence during the strike, protests against the high cost of fuel that drew about 6,000 people over the weekend were largely peaceful.
Unasur Seeks to Facilitate U.S.-Venezuela Dialogue: As the meeting of the foreign affairs ministers of the Unión de Naciones Suramericanas (Union of South American Nations—Unasur) requested by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro drew to a close in Uruguay today, Ricardo Patiño, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ecuador, expressed Unasur’s concerns over U.S. sanctions against Venezuela. Patiño emphasized the committee’s interest in opening up direct channels of communication between the U.S. and the South American nation after receiving a report on the potential impact of recent U.S. sanctions against Venezuelan government officials, which stem from charges of corruption and human rights violations following mass protests in Venezuela last year. The U.S. sanctions have frozen assets and restricted travel visas for former and current government officials who are believed to have taken part in human rights abuses, and were expanded to include their immediate family members last week after the Venezuelan government ignored “repeated calls for change,” and “continued to demonstrate a lack of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms,” according to U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki.
