Politics

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:53 UTC

  Cristina Kirchner signs bill legalizing same-sex couples’ marriage

  

  President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner signed a new law Wednesday making Argentina the first country in Latin America to legalize marriage for same-sex couples. Civil registries across the nation will now begin processing long lists of marriage applications from gay couples. The first such ceremony in Buenos Aires is set for August 13.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:47 UTC

  Travel conference to promote gay tourism takes off in Buenos Aires

  

  A marketing and travel conference aimed at promoting tourism for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community was opened Wednesday by Argentina’s new tourism minister Enrique Meyer.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:44 UTC

  Santiago de Chile shows strong divide between the rich and poor

  

  The Chilean national CASEN Survey revealed last week that even though poverty in the capital Santiago is below the national poverty rate of 15.1%, the city’s poverty levels grew from 10.6 to 11.5% in the last three years.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:36 UTC

  Ecuador leader will be in Bogotá when Colombian president-elect takes office

  

  Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa announced Wednesday he would be attending Colombian president-elect Juan Manuel Santos taking-office ceremony next August 7, according to a report from the government news agency ‘Andes’.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:32 UTC

  IMF warns Europe must address “underlying problems”

  

  A government debt crisis that has engulfed the Euro-zone should serve as a “wake-up call” for European governments to keep a more watchful eye on their budgets, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Wednesday.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:30 UTC

  Human Rights Watch calls on Chavez to eliminate office to control public debate

  

  Venezuela should close a recently created office that grants President Hugo Chávez administration broad powers to limit public debate, Human Rights Watch said Wednesday in a release. The government should also stop seeking to discredit human rights defenders and prosecuting critics.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:22 UTC

  Eleven countries condemn Arizona’s controversial immigration law

  

  Eleven countries mostly from Latinamerica on Wednesday signed a declaration condemning the US state of Arizona's controversial immigration law, describing it as “racist and xenophobic.”

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:19 UTC

  Former president Bachelet joint Inter-American Dialogue think-tank

  

  Former president of Chile Michelle Bachelet has joined the Inter-American Dialogue’s Board of Directors to serve as its Latin American Co-Chair.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 09:05 UTC

  Uruguay/Argentina on 48 hours ‘reflection period’ before retaking negotiations

  

  Uruguay and Argentina agreed Wednesday on a 48 hours “reflection period” before retaking formal negotiations for the joint monitoring of the River Uruguay, which is at the heart of the pulp mills dispute, and alleged contamination, between the neighbouring countries.

• Thursday, July 22nd 2010 - 02:31 UTC

  Mercosur driving the strong recovery in Latam and Caribbean, says UN

  

  Latin America and the Caribbean is consolidating its recovery from the global economic slowdown, posting higher-than-expected growth in recent months. Although some countries in the region face serious pitfalls, according to a new United Nations report, Mercosur stands out as driving the revival.