Stories for May 2009

Monday, May 25th 2009 - 17:41 UTC
Celibacy is an “imperfect issue” says Paraguayan president

Paraguayan president and former Catholic bishop Fernando Lugo described celibacy as an “imperfect issue” and said the paternity scandal in which he has been involved has not subtracted popular support, rather the contrary.
Monday, May 25th 2009 - 17:39 UTC
Latinamerica’s bicentennial independence festivities begin in Bolivia

Bolivia’s commemoration on Monday May 25th of the 200th anniversary of the first uprising in Latinamerica against the Spanish colonial empire will also mark the beginning of similar independence celebrations along the continent which will peak in 2010.
Monday, May 25th 2009 - 17:36 UTC
Energy efficiency cooperation agreement signed in Rome

Countries accounting for 80% of energy supply and demand worldwide, including Brazil and Mexico, signed Sunday in Rome, in the framework of the G8 Energy summit, an international partnership energy efficiency cooperation agreement, IPEEC.
Monday, May 25th 2009 - 17:34 UTC
Ecuador’s Correa promises radical measures to implement “citizens’ revolution”

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, flanked by his Venezuelan and Bolivian counterparts, Hugo Chávez and Evo Morales, on Sunday commemorated the 187th anniversary of the Battle Pichincha, whereby Ecuador assured its independence, and said that he will take even more radical measures to implement his “citizen’s revolution.” Correa also reiterated his commitment to Latinamerican integration.
Monday, May 25th 2009 - 17:31 UTC
EU fisheries policy up for review; 80% Europe’s stocks overfished

European Union fisheries ministers are in Brussels to review rules on how much fish can be caught in EU waters. The EU's executive, the European Commission, says more than 80% of Europe's fish stocks are now overfished. The global average is 28%.
Sunday, May 24th 2009 - 06:27 UTC
Latinamerica divided on procedure to lift OAS ban on Cuba

Political divergences impeded the Organization of American States, (OAS) Permanent Council from officially debating for the first time since 1962, the possible re-entry of Cuba to the inter-American system.
Sunday, May 24th 2009 - 06:24 UTC
Ex-SAS officer leaked the MPs “expenses scandal” information

The man who gave details of Britain’s Members of Parliament expenses to the Daily Telegraph has insisted that Parliament will benefit from their publication. Ex-SAS officer John Wick, who passed the data on from an anonymous source, said he had “no regrets” about exposing the expenses system's “rotten core”.
Saturday, May 23rd 2009 - 15:37 UTC
Influenza virus “inter mingling” strong warning to Southern Hemisphere

The director-general of the World Health Organization, Margaret Chan, closed Friday the agency's annual conference with a warning that nations, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere with the winter season on, must remain vigilant and be prepared for a possible swine influenza A-H1N1 virus pandemic.
Saturday, May 23rd 2009 - 15:32 UTC
Brazil concerned with the appreciation of its currency against the US dollar

The current appreciation of the Brazilian currency, Real, is a “cause for concern,” but also reflect international investors' growing interest in the nation's assets, Finance Minister Guido Mantega said on Friday.
Saturday, May 23rd 2009 - 15:29 UTC
Cash short Venezuela negotiating loans from Brazil

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, whose administration is facing cash shortages as oil revenues plunge, is negotiating loans from Brazil's development bank to fund infrastructure projects, revealed the Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo.