Blog entries

Fifty years ago, a young senator, John F. Kennedy was elected the 35th president of the United States of America. Winning a close victory against his opponent, then-Vice President Richard M. Nixon, Senator Kennedy made history by becoming the first Roman Catholic president. As the years pass by, the memory of President John F. Kennedy … Read more

Brazilian Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) presidential candidate Dilma Rousseff handily beat Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira (PSDB) candidate José Serra on Sunday in the second-round of voting to become Brazil’s first female president-elect. The final tally gave her 56.05 percent support (55.7 million votes) to 43.95 percent (43.7 million votes) for Mr. Serra. The outcome … Read more

According to the terms of an agreement signed last week, Peru will allow Bolivia to build a port on its territory. Chile defeated Bolivia and Peru in the War of the Pacific (1879-1884) and Bolivia has been landlocked ever since. In 1992, Peru and Bolivia signed an agreement granting the latter token access to a … Read more

La muerte del ex-Presidente Néstor Kirchner no pudo ser mejor descrita en su dictamen médico: Súbita. De la misma forma como recibió la noticia el pueblo argentino: súbitamente. De manera repentina e inesperada. Tomó por sorpresa a millones de ciudadanos de este país austral que el miércoles 27 aguardaban en sus casas a que se … Read more

Former Argentina President Néstor Kirchner’s sudden death on October 27 is the biggest shake up for Argentina’s Peronists since the death of Juan Domingo Peron on July 1, 1974. And a crisis in the Peronist movement—the powerful yet amorphous, catch-all party—tends to translate to the whole of Argentine society. Many analysts in the country are … Read more

Los argentinos amanecimos ayer—27 de octubre—con una noticia que nos dejó conmocionados, el ex-Presidente Néstor Kirchner había muerto. Era un día feriado por el censo de población, lo que hizo darle un marco más enrarecido a un día que cambió la política Argentina. Néstor Kirchner murió a los 60 años, victima de una afección cardíaca … Read more

Doubts have begun surfacing this week in Haiti about the viability of holding national elections on schedule on November 28 as the country grapples with an ongoing cholera epidemic, which has already claimed over 300 lives. While electoral officials including Pierre-Louis Opont, director general of Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council, insist that polls will open as … 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. Former President of Argentina Dies Suddenly Néstor Kirchner, who served as the … Read more

AQ regrets to share the news that former President of Argentina Néstor Kirchner passed away at his home in the southern Argentine town of El Calafate in Patagonia early this morning after suffering an apparent heart attack, the government reports.  Kirchner, Argentina’s president from 2003-2007, and husband to current President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, had … Read more

The Cuban Government published a series of small business reforms in the state-run newspaper Gaceta Oficial on Monday, that allow for the recruitment of salaried employees in several key industries. The state plans to issue 250,000 self-employment licenses, and made public a list of 178 activities that qualify as legal private-sector ventures, including private restaurants … Read more

When Governor Jan Brewer became vocal about and stood by Arizona Senate Bill 1070 (referred to as the “Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act” after its approval), she catapulted her way into the Republican candidacy for the 2010 gubernatorial election, and most likely, an incumbent landslide victory over Democratic candidate Terry Goddard. I … Read more

The 12.7 million Peruvian voters who voted for mayors and regional government officials on October 3, 2010, continue to wait for official results from the Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (ONPE) on who will be Lima’s next mayor. According to the latest tally, released today, with 95.8 percent of votes counted, Susana Villarán of the … Read more

Health officials in Haiti today confirmed that a first-in-decades outbreak of cholera has struck in the Lower Artibonite region just north of Port-au-Prince. So far doctors report the disease has killed around 140 people, and another 1,526 people are infected. Imogen Wall, the UN humanitarian spokeswoman in Haiti said this morning that “This is a … Read more

The European Parliament has awarded Cuba’s Guillermo Fariñas—psychologist, journalist and political dissident—the 2010 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in recognition of his defense of human rights. Fariñas is well-known in the international arena for staging more than 20 hunger strikes, leading to prison sentences totaling 11 years. In announcing the awarding of this year’s … Read more

Estabilidad. When I speak with Ecuadoreans about their opinions regarding the occurrences of September 30, 2010, I am amazed by the consistency of the responses. From Otavalo in the northern highlands to Puyo in the Southern Amazonas, every person I have spoken with has stated that their main concern is stability. Perhaps this is not … Read more