Politics

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 13:11 UTC

  Chile’s presidential January 17 run-off in its decisive leg

  

  On Sunday evening Chile’s two presidential hopefuls – billionaire businessman Sebastian Piñera and Senator Eduardo Frei – began airing five-minute TV spots designed to win votes for the January 17 run-off presidential election. The spots will run through January 14.

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 13:06 UTC

  Argentina’s inflation third highest in the world, say private consultants

  

  Private consultants estimate that Argentina’s inflation in 2009 and in spite of the devalued government statistics was the third highest in the world behind the Democratic Republic of Congo and Venezuela.

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 12:56 UTC

  PM Brown admits he is the underdog in the forthcoming general election

  

  UK Gordon Brown has admitted he is the underdog in the forthcoming general election battle - but insisted he is ready to “fight” for Britain. The Prime Minister said voters faced a “big choice” between the Tories promise of “austerity” and Labour's plans to encourage “aspiration”.

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 12:37 UTC

  Chile: Final Mistake

  

  The Concertación’s leaders don’t understand the country they helped create.
  By Andrés Allamand

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 12:31 UTC

  President Chavez imposes draconian power saving program

  

  Venezuelans have received 2010 with the announcement of an extremely severe power-saving program forcing all shopping malls, bars, restaurants, discos and cinemas to close business several hours a day.

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 12:24 UTC

  Argentine General: demining a humanitarian and ethical imperative

  

  ”Argentina is free of all type of mines, with the exception of those planted in the Malvinas Islands which motivated Argentina to request and obtain a ten year de-mining extension, because Argentina currently does not have access to the Islands illegitimately occupied by the United Kingdom”.

• Tuesday, January 5th 2010 - 12:19 UTC

  Illegal immigrants working for British government sensitive offices

  

  Hundreds of illegal immigrants have been working for the British Government in some of the country's most sensitive offices. Some 349 illegal foreign staff have been given jobs with Whitehall departments, councils and NHS Trusts over the past four years.

• Monday, January 4th 2010 - 07:56 UTC

  Argentina recalls events of 1833 and reiterates Malvinas claim

  

  On the 177th anniversary of the “illegitimate occupation” by the United Kingdom of the Malvinas Islands, Argentina “repudiates” events of 3 January 1833 and calls on the UK to comply with the mandate of the international community and find a peaceful solution to the conflict.

• Thursday, December 31st 2009 - 12:18 UTC

  Dear MercoPress subscribers and readers:

  

  MercoPress wishes all subscribers and readers a very prosperous New Year, hoping 2010 will definitively help to lift the world out of global recession.

• Thursday, December 31st 2009 - 12:08 UTC

  Lula da Silva ends 2009 with a military crisis over reviewing the past

  

  Brazilian president Lula da Silva praised as one of the most influential leaders of the world ends 2009 with a serious political crisis: the Minister of Defence and the commanders on the three services have threatened to resign over the creation of a “truth commission” to investigate human rights abuses during the military dictatorship that extended from 1964 to 1985.