Uruguay in representation of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean countries (GRULAC) will occupy for the next twelve months the rotating presidency of the United Nations Human Rights Council which is seated in Geneva.
Uruguayan exporters and government officials clashed over the (depressed) value of the US dollar in the local market and its impact on overseas sales competitiveness and profits. The differences surfaced during the celebration of “Exporters Day”.
The Uruguayan economy expanded 2.3% in January-March over the previous quarter, which has elevated forecasts for the twelve months of 2011 to a floor of 6.5%. However the Uruguayan government is concerned that consumption again expanded at a higher rate than GDP.
The construction of Uruguay’s second pulp mill, which includes a power plant and port facilities have been authorized following the approval of the Montes del Plata environment policies.
A group of Uruguayan lawmakers have written a letter to Peruvian president-elect Ollanta Humala requesting a more humane treatment for Victor Polay Campos, head of the guerrilla Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement, MRTA, jailed since 1992.
The recent discovery of dead Magellan penguins in several beaches of Uruguay’s eastern coast can’t be attributed to intoxication, “but rather natural causes”, said Daniel Gilardoni head of the Uruguay’s Natural Aquatic Resources Administration, Dinara.
The approval of Uruguayan president Jose Mujica in Montevideo continues to slide and has plummeted eight points between February and May according to a Mori public opinion poll released this week.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon thanked Uruguay for being one of the largest contributors to United Nations peacekeeping worldwide. Ban Ki-moon is currently on a South American round of visits that included Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil.
Uruguay’s support for the re-election of Mr Ban Ki-moon as Secretary General is based on his decisive efforts to impulse multilateralism since taking office in 2007, said Uruguayan Foreign Affairs minister Luis Almagro.
An eight metre long humpback whale with a big gash close to the mouth appeared dead in the port of Montevideo. According to local marine biologists the cetacean most probably collided with a vessel.