Blog entries

Power sharing, coalition, divided, or minority government are usually terms associated with democracies in Europe or Asia.  Left- or right-wing coalitions usually dominate the political alignments in those countries.  In North America, political parties are usually broad-based coalitions with progressive, moderate and conservative wings.  Even the Conservative Party and Liberal Party in Canada represent a … Read more

Venezuela’s National Assembly announced this morning that it is prepared to pass the Enabling Law, (Ley Habilitante) that will award President Hugo Chávez the power to legislate by executive decree once the new Congress convenes on January 5. The Assembly’s declaration is a nod to Chávez’ stated intention to seek such authority. President Chávez insists … Read more

From the 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. Come Again: Recount or Revote in Haiti? With concerns running high about … Read more

With the House passing the DREAM (Development Relief and Education for Alien Minors) Act last Wednesday and the Senate set to vote on it as soon as this Friday, now is a good time for a personal account of what’s at stake with DREAM.  Gaby Pacheco, a 25 year-old undocumented immigrant whose parents brought her … Read more

The Brazilian health ministry announced on Tuesday that the country’s drop in childhood malnutrition, coupled with other social progress initiatives, meet the criteria for eradication of extreme poverty under the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).  Health Minister José Gomes Temporão pointed out that the proportion of underweight Brazilian children under 5 years fell to … Read more

The Cuban government unveiled EcuRed.cu—its version of Wikipedia—on Tuesday, but its debut was complicated by connectivity issues. Only about 1.6 million Cubans have Internet access, out of a population of 11.2 million, and many found it difficult to navigate away from the site’s homepage. The website has over 19,600 entries, and claims to provide visitors … Read more

Cinco años después de la declaración de inconstitucionalidad de las leyes de Obediencia Debida y Punto Final que reabrió los Juicios por crímenes de lesa humanidad cometidos en la dictadura argentina, son gratificantes los avances para las víctimas que de a poco van encontrando las anheladas justicia y verdad, pero también muchos los retos que … Read more

On Saturday, world leaders hailed a breakthrough in the latest round of UN-sponsored talks on climate change. At the summit in Cancún, Mexico, the parties reached an agreement that mandates developed countries to allocate $100 billion to help developing countries combat global warming and high emissions. Mexican President Felipe Calderón hailed the deal as the … Read more

Last week, immigration reform advocates cheered as the DREAM (Development Relief and Education for Alien Minors) Act passed the House of Representatives. DREAM, which would provide a path to citizenship to undocumented youths brought to the U.S. by their parents conditional upon them attending college for two years or serving in the military, was all … Read more

Over the last two weeks in Cancún, some Latin American countries have shown openness to exploring private funding sources and market mechanisms to address climate change, while a small number of others have staked an ideological opposition to market-based climate solutions with little interest in compromise. Those that are more flexible in their approach will … Read more

For a country fiercely protective of its access to the ocean, Chile is not taking full advantage of its access to abundant seafood—which, it turns out, is one cause of poor nutrition among a majority of its population. According to a new study by the Catholic University of Chile and Banmedical Foundation, 62 percent of … Read more

On Tuesday, Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) announced former first lady Mirlande Manigat had won 31.4 percent of the November 28 presidential vote and that construction company chief Jude Célestin had earned 22.5 percent. The two candidates will compete in a runoff election on January 16. Third-place finisher Michel Martelly, a popular singer who is … Read more

Reactions to the WikiLeaks revelations have ranged from dismissal (Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva), to outrage (Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez) to “I told you so” (Bolivian President Evo Morales). In Ecuador, President Rafael Correa and his administration instead seem to be walking a fine line between outrage and acquiescence. Early last week Ecuador’s … Read more

From the 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. Haitian Presidential Election Outcome Sparks Riots Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council announced late … Read more

According to 2010 U.S. Census projections released this week, Hispanics under the age of 20 make up between 21.8 percent and 25 percent of the total youth population in the U.S.—a significant increase over the 17 percent calculations derived from the 2000 U.S. Census.  The 2010 figures are based on birth, death, Medicare registrations, and … Read more