Stories for December 2009

Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 13:36 UTC
Peru begins to discuss political reform to make Congress more accountable

Peruvian president Alan García said he had no intention of perpetuating in office but openly supported the proposal to have the one house Congress renewed by halves, “so people in mid term can decide if lawmakers are making a good job or not, as happens in most developed presidential countries”.
Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 13:30 UTC
Ecuador begins legal actions against Air Comet; thousands still stranded

The Ecuadorian government filed an appeal against Spain's Air Comet for alleged fraud and requested board directors be put under preventive custody, announced Migration Ministry Alexis Rivas during a press conference in Quito.
Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 13:27 UTC
Low cost, no frills ceremony planned for Mujica’s March inauguration

Uruguayan president elect Jose Mujica anticipated that the inauguration ceremony next March first will be in the open, paid by “friends” with no military parade, but with numerous music and dance groups playing to make it a real popular celebration, according to several reports in the Montevideo press.
Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 13:23 UTC
FARC linked news agency justifies kidnapping and killing of Colombian governor

A news agency close to FARC Colombian rebels justified the recent killing of provincial governor Luis Francisco Cuellar although it did not fully attribute responsibility of the abduction and murder to the Revolutionary Colombian Armed Forces.
Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 13:13 UTC
Royal Christmas speech dedicated to troops serving in Afghanistan

Queen Elizabeth II used her Christmas speech to express sadness at the death toll among British troops in Afghanistan. The monarch offered her sympathy to the families of the 106 service personnel who have died this year.
Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 13:05 UTC
Major UK warfare exercise in the Falklands to repel “enemy invasion”

British forces have been taking part in a major warfare exercise in the Falkland Islands, where hundreds of servicemen died during the 1982 conflict. The Highlanders (4 Scots) joined the Royal Navy and RAF in a two-day operation after an “enemy invasion” on the islands, 8,000 miles from the UK, in the South Atlantic.
Saturday, December 26th 2009 - 12:44 UTC
Hectic Chile: newborns given single names, forget the saint’s day

Breaking from Chile’s tradition of giving babies a compound name - i.e. Juan Pablo, Maria Isabel - more and more parents are opting for single names.
Friday, December 25th 2009 - 16:40 UTC
US Senate confirms ambassadors: Shannon to Brazil and Nelson to Uruguay

United States Senate confirmed Thomas Shannon as the newly appointed US Ambassador to Brazil, after a long delay due to the veto of Republican national deputies, who have showed discontent towards US President Barack Obama's policies as regards Latin America.
Friday, December 25th 2009 - 16:34 UTC
Obama closer to achieving the most important piece of social legislation since 1930

US senators have passed the final Senate version of a historic healthcare reform bill. The bill aims to cover 31million uninsured Americans and could lead to the biggest change in US healthcare in decades.
Friday, December 25th 2009 - 16:27 UTC
Uruguay expects record harvest of wheat; soybean becomes the main crop

Uruguay’s is expecting a record wheat crop for the second year running in 2009 while the barley harvest is forecasted as the largest in the last ten years according to the Statistics Office from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries.