by the El Reportero’s news services
Evo Morales
“A wake-up call”. This was the succinct assessment of Bolivia’s President Evo Morales of nationwide protests in response to a police crackdown on indigenous supporters objecting to the construction of a road through the indigenous territory (Tioc) and national park, Isiboro Sécure (Tipnis).
Yet the political crisis triggered by the show of police repression and Tipnis dispute in general is arguably the biggest to face Morales and his Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) government since taking office in 2006.
Latin America’s new economic vision
The US’s economic problems have undermined its distinctive spin on capitalism. In the US, the “bottom line” has long been seen as the be-all-and-end-all of economic activity. How the “bottom line” was achieved was much less important, as the Enron saga showed, than the size of the figures in it. There are, however, other ways to use the information markets offer.
Calderón demands reduction of drug use by the US — or else, legalization
Close to six years after launching a military-backed drive against Mexico’s drug gangs, themselves engaged in a savage turf war, with both developments having jointly claimed more than 40,000 lives, President Felipe Calderón has joined the ranks of those proposing what he calls ‘market alternatives’ to the ‘war on drugs’ — in other words, legalisation. He wants the consumer countries to start.
Few certainties as Guatemala heads for second round
As expected, former General Otto Pérez Molina of the main opposition Partido Patriota (PP) will face populist Manuel Baldizón of Libertad Democrática Renovada (Líder) in the Nov. 6 second round. Less expected was Pérez Molina’s relatively poor performance in the Sept. 11 first round, given what the poll had predicted.
This, together with Baldizón’s subsequent procurement of a multi-party alliance, which includes the ruling Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza (UNE), whose strong performance in the concurrent legislative and municipal vote was another surprise, suggests the run-off is a far from foregone conclusion.
Cuba Willing to Dialogue with USA
Havana._ Cuban government officials reaffirmed Havana’s willingness to engage in political dialogue with the United States on the basis of reciprocal respect, and despite Washington’s continuing and relentless blockade of the island for the last half century.
“Cuba reaffirms its traditional position of holding a respectful dialogue with the United States government to resolve pending problems, our only requirements are that the meeting take place on the basis of equality, reciprocity and equality,” AcJosefina Vidal, director of the Foreign Ministry’s North America department, told The Havana Reporter.
These talks, when held, should take place without any intervention or interference in Cuba’s internal affairs and with absolute respect for its sovereignty, which are the minimal and elemental principles established by international law for normal, civilized relations between states, Vidal said.
She gave an extensive overview of the historically complex relations between Cuba and the United States, including Washington’s foreign policy on Cuba from the time of George W. Bush to today’s Democratic administration.
In the United States, a law passed in 2000 forbids the Office of Foreign Assets Control from granting licenses for tourist activity in Cuba. In January 2011, a resolution of Obama’s eased some regulations, but significant restrictions remain on travel to Cuba.
These minor changes only benefit academic, religious, cultural or sports-related travel that meets certain guidelines, above all a policy that Washington calls “promotion of person-to-person contact.”
