Latin America

• Thursday, May 19th 2011 - 07:24 UTC

  Unasur defence council working on methodology to compare military expenditure

  

  The Union of South American Nations, Unasur, defence ministers sponsored in Peru a declaration confirming the region as a “peace zone” and agreed to continue advancing in developing a “common methodology” to compare defence expenditure among member countries.

• Wednesday, May 18th 2011 - 16:46 UTC

  Argentina’s poor cousin? Not Uruguay

  

  The following piece by Jude Webber writing for the Financial Times explains the different approach by the two neighboring countries to the windfall earnings of the commodities boom.

• Tuesday, May 17th 2011 - 23:16 UTC

  Latin America has 45% of under 18, equivalent to 81 million living in poverty

  

  Almost 81 million children under 18 suffer from poverty in Latin America which is equivalent to 45% of that age group according to a study by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).

• Tuesday, May 17th 2011 - 17:13 UTC

  Humala or Keiko, they will have to work hard for parliamentary support

  

  Whatever happens next June 5 when the Peruvian presidential run-off between Ollanta Humala and Keiko Fujimori, none of them will have a clear support in the 130 seats Congress which will force alliances as has been the recent legislative history of the Andean country.

• Tuesday, May 17th 2011 - 06:05 UTC

  Cuba announces small private businesses can hire and fire labour

  

  Cuba has given all small businesses the authority to hire (and fire) labour and will loosen other regulations governing private enterprise as part of the broader measures to reform the island’s economy and boost production, the government said in a statement.

• Tuesday, May 17th 2011 - 00:53 UTC

  South Korea and Brazilian lawmakers committed to expand links with Mercosur

  

  Parliamentary leaders of South Korea and Brazil agreed Monday in Seoul to put forth efforts to promote economic ties between the two nations in the framework of Mercosur, through closer interactions at the parliamentary level.

• Tuesday, May 17th 2011 - 00:38 UTC

  Overwhelming majority of Chileans reject hydroelectric project in Patagonia

  

  Opposition to the HydroAysén dam and power line project grew throughout Chile this past week in the wake of massive demonstrations protesting the project’s approval on Monday May 9 in southern Chile.

• Tuesday, May 17th 2011 - 00:30 UTC

  Food inflation in Latam eased during the first quarter, says FAO

  

  Food inflation in Latin America and the Caribbean decreased to 1.9% during the first quarter of this year according to a report from the regional office from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, FAO, released Monday.

• Friday, May 13th 2011 - 14:53 UTC

  Police with clubs is not the answer to Chile’s HidroAysén debate

  

  Following Monday’s questionable approval of Chile’s major HidroAysén dam project - a jerry-rigged vote if there ever was one - the administration of President Sebastian Piñera turned police loose on thousands of demonstrators protesting the Patagonia dam project later that evening.

• Friday, May 13th 2011 - 05:22 UTC

  Correa heading for referendum victory but with a lesser margin than expected

  

  Vote count in Ecuador showed President Rafael Correa heading for a referendum victory on Thursday after he accused electoral officials of delaying the tally in pro-government regions.