Latin America

Massive Protests Break Out in Brazil

"Going completely unreported in the US mainstream media are the massive nationwide protests occurring right now in Brazil. In all the major population centers, including Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, the capital of Brasilia, and 8 other cities, 10s of thousands, possibly 100s of thousands of people are marching in the streets and taking over government buildings. The reasons given for the protests vary, but from what I’ve heard from my contacts the most significant reasons are economic malaise, high inflation, and a culture of corruption." Continue reading →

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Rio police tear gas thousands at protest demanding health care and education

"Police deployed tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse around 3,000 protestors from outside Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana stadium ahead of the Confederations Cup match between Italy and Mexico on Sunday. The demonstrators were attempting to enter the stadium in protest at the vast sums of money spent on the organisation of the tournament and next year’s World Cup, which Brazil is also hosting. 'I don’t care about the World Cup — I want health and education!' chanted protestors. The start of the competition has been marked by protests over the huge cost of preparations to host the World Cup, which is expected to reach $15 million (11 billion euros)." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRio police tear gas thousands at protest demanding health care and education

Costa Rica Probes Liberty Reserve Founder Marriage

"The man who allegedly founded currency transfer firm Liberty Reserve may have paid a Costa Rican woman to marry him so he could get citizenship in this country, which lacks an extradition treaty with the United States, authorities said Wednesday. Deputy director of judicial investigations Gustavo Vega said officials were still investigating the 2010 marriage between millionaire Arthur Budovsky and a woman who local media identified only by her last names of Valerio Vargas." Continue reading →

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Cuba plans to expand public Internet access

"Cuba will expand limited public access to the Internet next month by opening up another 118 places where people on this communist-run island can surf the Web for a fee, authorities said Tuesday. Set to start June 4, the extension takes advantage of an undersea fiber-optic cable from Venezuela and will gradually be rolled out further — but not to homes, according to a Communications Ministry resolution published in the Official Gazette and local media. There are now more than 200 public Internet rooms in hotels on the island that sell connection cards that cost between $7 and $10. Post offices also provide access to email." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCuba plans to expand public Internet access

Google no longer able to pay Android developers in Argentina, pulling apps on July 27th

"Developers in Argentina have begun receiving letters from Google informing them that 'Google Play will no longer be able to accept payments on behalf of developers registered in Argentina starting June 27, 2013.' The change applies to both paid apps and apps that use in-app purchases. The move appears to be related to new, restrictive regulations the Argentine government has imposed on currency exchanges, which The Telegraph detailed this past September. Twitter has quite a few developers complaining about the changes, but it's not clear how many people will be affected." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle no longer able to pay Android developers in Argentina, pulling apps on July 27th

Honduran victims of US drug war still await justice

"In the increasingly militarised drug war, suspects are sometimes killed in the field; suspicion of involvement in drug trafficking warrants a death sentence. Government drug warriors on the scene play the role of judge, jury and executioner. This May 11 marked one year since the tragic killing of four indigenous villagers in Ahuas, in Honduras' Moskitia region. The victims, who included a pregnant woman and a 14-year-old boy, were killed in a joint US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)/Honduran police counter-narcotics operation. Three other villagers were shot and wounded." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHonduran victims of US drug war still await justice

Maligned dollar flourishes in Venezuela

"Black-market dealers operating on the thriving underground market sell greenbacks at more than four times the official, government-set rate of 6.3 bolivars to the dollar. And the price they’re getting these days — 28 per dollar — is more than three times what it was just eight months ago. Because the bolivar is artificially overvalued and practically worthless outside Venezuela, everyone here is desperate for dollars, from auto-part importers to supermarkets to ordinary Venezuelans planning to travel abroad. Even government officials and the politically connected businessmen who have made fortunes off the free-spending state search out and trade in dollars." Continue reading →

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Rumors Of Social Security Collapse Spark Bank Run, Break-Ins in Brazil

"Rumors that Brazil's social security fund called Bolsa Familia was to be cancelled led thousands of people to rush to withdraw money from a Brazilian bank over the weekend. Customers lined up at ATMs at dozens of bank branches of Caixa Economica Federal, a government-owned bank, which pays the social security subsidy on Saturday and Sunday. Brazilian newspaper Estado de Sao Paulo reported that at five branches in the northeastern city of Sao Luiz and four others in the state of Maranhao, depositors broke into branches." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRumors Of Social Security Collapse Spark Bank Run, Break-Ins in Brazil

In Argentina, there’s a gorgeous apartment for sale and it only costs 409 Bitcoins

"Argentina is dangerously nearing another economic collapse, and few have forgotten the country’s crippling default in 2001 that prompted a flash devaluation of the Argentine peso, which effectively halved the country’s wealth. If Argentina defaults on its debt again, which could happen very soon, no one wants to be caught off-guard. So, Argentines are scrambling to store their wealth in anything but the volatile Argentine peso. That’s where Bitcoin comes in." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIn Argentina, there’s a gorgeous apartment for sale and it only costs 409 Bitcoins

David Galland: The Other Side of the Wall

"When we arrived in Cafayate, it was with some entirely natural trepidation. After all, not only were we going to be living in a remote corner of Argentina, we were bringing along our teenage kids with all that that implies. We pondered all manner of questions and concerns. Would our stumbling knowledge of the local lingo prove a hamper? Would the highly dysfunctional government hereabouts be an impediment at every turn, the bureaucracy frustrating? Would the kids adapt to the new environment and be able to get a good education? Yet, never ones to worry ourselves into inaction, we plowed ahead and on October 22 set down our bags in Cafayate." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDavid Galland: The Other Side of the Wall