Latin America

• Thursday, January 14th 2010 - 03:03 UTC

  Toxic red tide emergency in Punta Arenas: ban on all sea food

  

  Chilean Health Minister Alvaro Erazo arrived this week in Punta Arenas, extreme south of the country to head an emergency meeting with local officials given the extent of the “toxic red tide” which can be lethal for humans but also threatens the whole sea-food industry along the Magellan Strait coastline.

• Thursday, January 14th 2010 - 02:57 UTC

  Piñera leads with a slight margin in Chile’s presidential run-off next Sunday

  

  Chilean opposition conservative candidate Sebastián Piñera is poised to win, albeit by a slight margin, on next Sunday’s (Jan. 17) presidential run-off with the incumbent candidate former president Eduardo Frei, according to the latest public opinion poll released Wednesday in Santiago.

• Wednesday, January 13th 2010 - 21:38 UTC

  Falkland Islands: Ocean Watch ‘Around the Americas’ scientists moor in Stanley

  

  AROUND the Americas yacht Ocean Watch moored in Stanley on Monday as part of its 24,000 nautical mile journey aimed at collecting data sets in a bid to raise global awareness of the oceans.

• Wednesday, January 13th 2010 - 10:53 UTC

  Uribe’s re-election bid for a third term supported by Colombia’s ombudsman

  

  Colombia's Constitutional Court should approve a referendum to allow President Alvaro Uribe to run for re-election, the country's ombudsman said on Tuesday, which could open the way for a third consecutive mandate bid in the coming May presidential elections.

• Wednesday, January 13th 2010 - 08:26 UTC

  Chavez keeps his word and closes shops for price rises following devaluation

  

  Venezuelan government inspectors backed by soldiers have shut more than 70 shops in Caracas and other cities accused of trying to cash in on last week's currency devaluation. Soldiers have been on the streets to check prices as people queue to buy imports, fearing prices could rise.

• Wednesday, January 13th 2010 - 08:07 UTC

  Power debacle in Venezuela: four-hours rotating black outs in major cities

  

  Venezuela announced electricity cuts on a rotating basis to sections of the country’s capital Caracas and major cities as the government deepens energy rationing amid a drought. In December major industries were forced to limit production.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2010 - 17:33 UTC

  FT: In the path to prosperity Argentina tripped with the Kirchners

  

  The Financial Times, a reference for global finances, has published an editorial comment highly critical of Argentina’s presidential Kirchner couple and their latest attempt to keep their cash-strapped administration afloat: getting hold of Central Bank reserves to pay debts and recover long lost international creditworthiness.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2010 - 04:19 UTC

  Vargas Llosa: OAS is “useless, inefficient and at times dangerous”

  

  “If there is an organization in Latinamerica which is inefficient, useless and at times dangerous precisely because of its inefficiency, it’s the Organization of American States, OAS”, said Peruvian author Mario Vargas Llosa.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2010 - 03:57 UTC

  Uruguay's leader may join “responsible left” bloc

  

  Mr. Oppenheimer is an Argentine born columnist from The Miami Herald who writes regularly about Latinamerican affairs. His opinions and comments, well supported with data and quotes, are taken into account by corporations and businesses with interests in the region.
  One of his latest contributions refers to Uruguay and its recently elected president, a former left wing guerrilla leader. The heading is not necessarily that informative since Uruguay already belongs to the group identified as “responsible left”.

• Tuesday, January 12th 2010 - 01:36 UTC

  Crucial debate for the Chilean presidential run-off between Piñera and Frei

  

  Chilean Conservative billionaire businessman Sebastián Piñera and centre-left candidate (and former president) Senator Eduardo Frei face-off this Monday evening in their first and only national debate since the December 13 first-round vote eliminated Communist Party candidate Jorge Arrate and independent candidate Marco Enriquez Ominami (MEO).