Politics, Business & Culture in the Americas

Southern Cone & Brazil

 

Chilean Government Rejects HidroAysén Dam Project in Patagonia

After a three hour meeting on Tuesday, a committee of five ministers in Michelle Bachelet’s cabinet has rejected the HidroAysén project–a hydroelectric plan to build five dams in two rivers in Patagonia that would have generated 2,750-megawatts of energy and increased power generation in Chile by 10 percent. The project, backed by the companies Endesa … Read more

 

Argentine Vice President to Appear in Court

Yesterday, Federal judge Ariel Lijo changed Argentine Vice President Amado Boudou’s court date from July 15 to June 9. Boudou will face charges of corruption, illegal negotiations as a public employee, and illegal profiteering related to his purchase of the Ciccone Calcográfica printing company with a partner in 2010. Boudou allegedly planned to use the … Read more

 

Dilma Defends Brazil’s World Cup Preparations

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said on Wednesday that the host nation’s trouble with World Cup preparations are normal. “Everywhere in the world these big engineering projects always go down to the wire,” she told reporters at the presidential palace. Responding to criticism about unfinished stadiums and delayed infrastructure projects, including transport systems in Cuiabá, Salvador … Read more

 

Monday Memo: OAS General Assembly – Brazil World Cup Preparations – Sánchez Cerén – Leopoldo López Hearing – Uruguayan Primaries

OAS General Assembly in Paraguay:  The Organization of American States (OAS) will hold its General Assembly in Asunción, Paraguay from June 3 to 5. At least 29 foreign ministers have confirmed their attendance—the highest number to do so since the 2009 General Assembly in Honduras, following the coup that removed former President Manuel Zelaya from … Read more

 

Rumble in the Jungle: Manaus Tackles World Cup Logistics

This article is part of “Connecting the Americas,” a collaborative project of Americas Quarterly and Zócalo Public Square. In a competition for most improbable place to host the World Cup, the city of Manaus would surely make the finals.  Its Arena da Amazônia sits in the middle of the Amazon Rainforest, 900 miles up the … Read more

 

Striking in Brazil Continues

With 21 days left before the World Cup begins, Brazilian bus drivers have gone on strike—shutting down terminals across São Paulo—while thousands of police are striking in 14 of Brazil’s 26 states and smaller protests are cropping up across the country. In São Paulo, Brazil’s most populous city with over 20 million inhabitants, over half … Read more

 

Two-Day Rio Bus Strike Ends

Buses in Rio de Janeiro returned to normal operations today after a strike immobilized the city for two days. The strike began Tuesday and left hundreds of thousands of commuters without transportation. According to Alexandre Almeida, the Rio Onibus press officer, at the start of the strike over 7,500 buses—comprising 84 percent of the city’s … Read more

 

Argentina Creates Culture Ministry

Argentina’s official government gazette announced yesterday the creation of a cultural ministry department to be headed by folk singer and composer Teresa Adelina Sellares, also known by her stage name, Teresa Parodi.                     Prior to the creation of the Cultural Ministry, the government cultural department was run through the Secretary of Culture, Jorge Coscia, who resigned … Read more

 

Monday Memo: Panama Elections – Haiti and the Dominican Republic – Uruguayan Marijuana – Colombian Mine Collapse – Brazil Soccer Death

This week’s likely top stories: Juan Carlos Varela will be Panama’s next president; talks between Haiti and the Dominican Republic are postponed; marijuana legalization goes into effect in Uruguay; a Colombian mine collapse kills at least 12 people; a Brazilian soccer fan is killed in Recife. Juan Carlos Varela Wins Panamanian Election: Juan Carlos Varela … Read more

 

While Brazil Sambas with Cuba, the U.S. Dances Alone

Brazil is betting on an eventual opening in Cuba. The bet is more than economic; it’s linked directly to a larger geopolitical project intended to draw Cuba toward its own model of economic and political organization as Cuba wakes up from its 55-year slumber under the Castro regime. The process has already started with a … Read more

 

Monday Memo: Panama Elections – Colombian Farmers – Venezuela – Mexico Telecom Reform – Brazilian Colonel’s Death

This week’s likely top stories:  Panamanian voters go to the polls on Sunday; Colombian farmers launch another strike; Venezuelan dialogue enters its third week; protesters demonstrate against Mexican telecom reform; the murder of a former colonel could challenge Brazil’s truth commission. Panama Prepares for Presidential Election: Panamanians will go to the polls on Sunday, May … Read more

 

Argentina to Pay Repsol for YPF Nationalization

The lower house of Argentina’s congress agreed to pay Spanish oil company Repsol $5 billion in bonds in compensation for its expropriation of the company’s 51 percent share of Argentine oil company Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales (Treasury Petroleum Fields—YPF). After YPF was nationalized in 2012, Repsol’s share in the company was seized and reduced to 12 … Read more

 

Brazil Signs Internet Bill of Rights into Law

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff signed an Internet Bill of Rights into law yesterday—the first of its kind  in the world. The new bill ensures the privacy of its users by restricting the amount of metadata that can be collected and also prohibits companies from restricting certain services by requiring the user to pay more, such … Read more

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