Blog entries

In a symbolic display of solidarity, roughly 12,000 Guatemalan citizens formed a human chain on Saturday around Volcán de Agua, one of Guatemala’s 37 volcanoes, to protest the high level of domestic violence throughout the country. This volcano, referred to as Hunapú by the Indigenous Mayan population, is extinct and its peak stands at 3,765 … Read more

Another Cuban, Wilmar Villar, died in a hunger strike on the island last week protesting the abuses of the Castro regime.  His wife was not permitted to see his body.  Yoani Sanchez, the Cuban blogger who has received several international awards and who is not permitted to travel abroad, reported his death on the Internet. … Read more

With an emphatic, “I swear,” last weekend Otto Pérez Molina became the first former soldier to be democratically elected as president of Guatemala since the 1996 Peace Accords. By his side was Roxana Baldetti, who was sworn in as the first woman to hold the title of vice-president in the country’s history. The inauguration, attended … Read more

President Barack Obama announced yesterday in Orlando, Florida, a new strategy to boost tourism, including special provisions to make it easier for Brazilian and Chinese citizens to acquire tourist visas at U.S. consulates overseas. In the 2011 fiscal year alone, more than 800,000 Brazilians received tourist visas. Given the increasing importance of tourists from Brazil … Read more

From 1931-1932, Mexican muralist Diego Rivera created eight large-scale, “portable” murals for a solo exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). Eighty years later, five of these works—freestanding murals as large as six by eight feet, made of steel armature, reinforced concrete and frescoed plaster— have been reunited in “Diego Rivera: Murals for the … Read more

Guatemala Inaugurates New President Otto Pérez Molina was sworn in as president of Guatemala on January 14 after winning a November runoff vote. In his inaugural address he promised a “total transformation of society.” Among recent indications of policy shifts, Pérez Molina indicated in a recent interview with Mexican channel Televisa that he would be … Read more

Today’s rejection by the White House of the proposal to build the Keystone XL Pipeline is neither surprising nor terminal. Pressure from anti-Keystone activists on the Left has been high and, in an election year, President Obama doesn’t want to risk alienating his base. And by requiring the administration to make a decision on Keystone … Read more

Omar Chehade, Peru’s second vice president, resigned from his post on Monday evening in the midst of questions over his role in an influence-peddling scheme. The move, coming the night before a congressional vote on whether to suspend him from political office for five years, may have been a calculated attempt to keep his congressional … Read more

Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramírez this weekend announced his country’s intention to withdraw from the World Bank’s Washington DC-based International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). If carried out, Venezuela’s decision will affect the claims of nearly 20 foreign firms with cases pending before the ICSID worth an estimated total of $40 billion. Ramírez’ … Read more

On July 1, Mexicans will choose their president for the next six years. This will be the fourth time the electoral process is not organized by the government but by a supposedly non-biased institution, the Instituto Federal Electoral or IFE. Mexico likes to boast (especially since 2000) that we hold free, fair and transparent elections. … Read more

Unemployment in Latin America and the Caribbean dropped to 6.8 percent in 2011 from 7.3 percent in 2010 and reached its lowest levels in most countries since the mid-1990s, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO) recent report Panorama Laboral 2011. The report also projects unemployment numbers to remain stable in much of the region … Read more

With the expiration of the U.S. tariff on ethanol imports at the end of 2011, this year marks a potential watershed in U.S.–Brazil trade ties.  For three decades, Washington protected corn-based ethanol producers from Brazil’s more environmentally-friendly and economically-efficient sugar-based ethanol.  Now, without the 54-cent-per-gallon tariff on imported ethanol or the corresponding 45-cent-per-gallon tax credit, … Read more

From Americas Society/Council of the Americas. AS/COA Online’s news brief examines the major—as well as some of the overlooked—events and stories occurring across the Americas. Check back every Wednesday for the weekly roundup. Sign up to receive the Weekly Roundup via email. Ahmadinejad Tours Latin America Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began a tour of four Latin … Read more

Following victories in the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary, GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney is increasingly seeking to broaden his appeal with Spanish-language voters. Yesterday he launched “Nosotros,” a Spanish-language ad narrated by his son Craig that prominently features the endorsement of three Cuban-born Floridian lawmakers. The 31-second ad, which includes shots of the … Read more

Mexican public opinion research company Consulta Mitofsky released a new poll on Tuesday indicating that Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) presidential candidate Enrique Peña Nieto’s support among likely voters has dropped from 44.6 percent in November 2011 to 42 percent. Although Peña Nieto is still considered the strong favorite in July’s presidential elections, likely rival Josefina … Read more