
By Nadine Orme - As I walk to work this morning, I pause to allow a group of penguins the time to wander down the path in front of me. This may sound like a dream, but for me it is day to day reality, and it’s absolutely incredible. From the moment I arrived here I knew I had made the best decision of my life in coming to work on South Georgia as a government officer.

Uruguay’s 2025 municipal and departmental (provincial) elections concluded with results reinforcing the country’s traditional political landscape. The left-wing Frente Amplio retained its stronghold in Montevideo and Canelones, while the center-right National Party (Partido Nacional) maintained its dominance across most rural regions, securing a total of 13 departments.

Last week's death in Ezpeleta on he southern outskirts of Buenos Aires of 36-year-old Bolivian builder Richard Flores Mercado has sparked a diplomatic controversy between the two countries as the circumstances of the case would indicate a hate crime by reason of nationality.

Former Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014), sentenced to over 10 years in prison for money laundering and bribery in the Odebrecht case, was granted political asylum by Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Saturday.

Chilean President Gabriel Boric Font's disapproval has plunged to 70%, matching previous high records from Jan. 2023 and May 2024, while his approval stood at 27%, according to the latest Cadem Plaza Pública survey released in Santiago during the weekend.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is to meet Monday with executives from two major Chinese companies. Later in the day, he is to hold an encounter with representatives from the health sector and sign a series of agreements before closing the Brazil-China seminar. He is currently in Beijing on an official visit to strengthen business ties.

Sweden’s newly appointed national security adviser and former ambassador to Ukraine, Tobias Thyberg, resigned minutes after taking office following the leak of “sensitive” photos from an old Grindr same-sex dating app profile. “I should have informed [the government], but I didn’t,” Thyberg admitted.

The Governors of the Argentine provinces of Salta, Jujuy, Chaco, and San Luis were consolidating their grip on the local legislatures following Sunday's elections. However, President Javier Milei's La Libertad Avanza (LLA), a relatively new political formation, was making significant progress in some districts amid poor turnout. A key index of the country's political reshaping is expected at next Sunday's elections in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA).

Paraguay trade experts warned this weekend, citing official data from the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) that 37.6% of the country's imports in the first quarter of 2025 stemmed from China, where very little is placed: 0.3% of sales abroad, as a result of Asunción's stance towards Taiwan, which prevents any direct trade with Beijing.

Former Uruguayan President José “Pepe” Mujica, a global icon of humility and leftist politics, did not participate in Sunday’s municipal elections due to serious health issues. The 88-year-old former leader, known for his austere lifestyle and philosophical reflections, remained at his rural home west of Montevideo.