Latin America

• Tuesday, December 2nd 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Suitcase scandal Venezuelan lawyer sentenced to jail

  

  A Venezuelan lawyer who worked with his government's intelligence services to cover up an 800,000 US dollars cash campaign donation to Argentina's president was sentenced Monday afternoon in a Miami federal court to two years in prison on charges of being an illegal foreign agent.

• Monday, December 1st 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Following visit Russian leader calls for bigger Latam role

  

  Russian president Dmitri Medvedev said he was very satisfied with his Latinamerican tour which took him to Peru, Brazil, Venezuela and Cuba because it enabled to re-establish strong links with the region.

• Monday, December 1st 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Chavez re-launches presidential indefinite re-election project

  

  President Hugo Chavez is asking his party and supporters to propose a constitutional reform that would allow him to seek indefinite re-election while claiming his political adversaries are trying to bring down his elected government.

• Monday, December 1st 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Uruguay, Colombia, Peru won't support Kirchner in Unasur

  

  Peru and Colombia don't support former Argentine president Nestor Kirchner for the job of Unasur (Union of South American Nations) secretary general, according to reports from Lima and Bogotá.

• Monday, December 1st 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Fiscal deficit no longer a “dirty word” for Chilean gov.

  

  Chile's Finance minister said one month's fiscal deficit is “no problem” and minimized the impact of the strong increase in government expenditure in October as in most of the other nine months.

• Sunday, November 30th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Extreme south of Chile prepared to weather global crisis

  

  Magallanes Region in the extreme south of Chile seems prepared to endure the effects of the coming global recession according to a report published Sunday by the country's main daily in Santiago, El Mercurio.

• Sunday, November 30th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Bottle with message to dead officer of Falklands' conflict

  

  A Chilean fisherman from Puerto Williams in Tierra del Fuego found a bottle with a message to an Argentine combatant who died when the sinking of the cruiser “General Belgrano” in May 1982 during the South Atlantic conflict over the Falkland Islands.

• Sunday, November 30th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Anniversary of papal action that stopped Argentina-Chile war

  Brazilian cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer will represent Pope Benedict XVI in the ceremony honouring the 30th anniversary of the Vatican's mediation between Chile and Argentina which avoided a full fledged war over the Beagle channel and adjoining islands in the extreme south of the continent.

• Saturday, November 29th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Lan confident it can cope the coming air industry turbulence

  

  LAN Chile is reviewing its investment plans given the expected deceleration in world air traffic next year, although the company remains particularly strong and resilient to outside turbulences, according to Enrique Cueto, executive vice-president of Chile's flan carrier.

• Friday, November 28th 2008 - 20:00 UTC

  Listeriosis outbreak in Chile: 91 cases, 5 deaths in 11 months

  

  Chilean health authorities admitted this week for the first time that they have an outbreak of listeirosis which so far this year has caused five deaths out of 91 cases reported cases in metropolitan Santiago.