Latin America

• Tuesday, October 6th 2009 - 11:29 UTC

  Torres del Paine Park officials get tough: ticket increase and stricter access

  

  Foreign tourists visiting the world famous Torres del Paine national park in Chilean Patagonia will have to pay a 15.000 Chilean pesos ticket, (approx 30 US dollars) each time they walk into the grounds. The fee for local guides and transport staff is 4.000 Chilean pesos (8 USD).

• Tuesday, October 6th 2009 - 06:49 UTC

  Micheletti lifts emergency decree; IMF promises aid to Zelaya

  

  Honduras' de facto leader Roberto Micheletti lifted Monday an emergency decree that suspended some civil liberties and shut two media outlets loyal to ousted President Manuel Zelaya. Micheletti had come under pressure to end the emergency measures as the Organization of American States, OAS, tried to negotiate an end to a crisis triggered when Zelaya was toppled in a June coup.

• Monday, October 5th 2009 - 13:50 UTC

  Micheletti admits it was “a mistake” the way Zelaya was ousted

  

  Honduran de facto president Roberto Micheletti admitted that the way elected President Manuel Zelaya was ousted by the military last June 28th and flown out of the country, “was a mistake”.

• Monday, October 5th 2009 - 13:41 UTC

  Unesco safeguard for Andean Aymara cultural heritage

  

  Unesco’s support for the project to safeguard the intangible cultural heritage of the Aymara communities of Bolivia, Chile and Peru should be seen as an example for Latinamerica, according to Peruvian anthropologist Soledad Mujica.

• Monday, October 5th 2009 - 13:15 UTC

  Patagonian fiords cruise season launched in Punta Arenas

  

  Chile’s Cruceros Australis and Comapa tourist agency officially launched last Friday the 2009/2010 Patagonian fiords cruise season in a ceremony held in Punta Arenas, reports La Prensa Austral.

• Monday, October 5th 2009 - 13:10 UTC

  Bolivia faces critics over purchase of aircrafts from China

  

  Bolivia said on Sunday that it’s the South American country which least invests in military hardware and ratified it is not involved in any arms race. Defence minister Walker San Miguel statement follow the Bolivian decision to purchase six aircrafts from China which come on top of an open credit line for military hardware extended by Russia.

• Monday, October 5th 2009 - 13:08 UTC

  Uribe asks for more time to consolidate his “democratic security” policy

  

  Colombian president Alvaro Uribe asked for more time to defeat the terrorism that scourges his country and underlined that his “democratic security” policy needs a ‘little while’ longer”.

• Saturday, October 3rd 2009 - 12:21 UTC

  Honduras sides on conflict agree to a tentative dialogue under OAS

  

  Ousted Honduran president Manuel Zelaya and the de facto government headed by Roberto Micheletti have agreed to begin talks next week under the auspices of the OAS (Organization of American States) in an attempt to find a way out to the institutional crisis.

• Saturday, October 3rd 2009 - 06:21 UTC

  Have you ever tried the “Devil Duck” hunting combo of Black River Outfitters in Uruguay?

  

  May 1st through September 15th is duck season in Uruguay.
  With the Portela Brothers, owners and managers of Black River Outfitters, duck hunters from all over the world have an excellent opportunity to game at one of the finest duck breeding destinations imaginable.

• Saturday, October 3rd 2009 - 00:42 UTC

  Chile’s 2010 budget reinforces social assistance programs and education

  

  While other nations are struggling to cut costs and sacrificing social programs to combat the worldwide economic crisis, Chile´s 2010 budget will grow by 4.3% next year and includes a 5.8% increase in social assistance programs, Finance Minister Andrés Velasco announced this week.