Latin America

30 August 2007 -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has pardoned 41 Colombians imprisoned in Venezuela on charges of involvement in an alleged plot against his government in 2004.

The order to free the prisoners appeared Thursday in the government's official journal.

The Colombians imprisoned were suspected of belonging to a paramilitary group.

The order comes one day before President Chavez is scheduled to travel to Colombia to try to jumpstart talks aimed at freeing about 45 hostages held by leftist rebels for years in Colombian jungles.    » read more »

28 August 2007 -- A new report shows rapid urbanization is leading to more crime and armed violence. The Small Arms Survey says the consequences of urbanization are especially dramatic in Africa, South East Asia and Latin America. The report finds that murder rates in some cities surpass that of some countries at war.    » read more »

26 August 2007 -- A Cuban newspaper has published an article with the signature of Fidel Castro whose health has been a matter of rumor and speculation.

Mr. Castro's column on the history of Cuba's revolution appeared Sunday in the Communist Youth newspaper Juventud Rebelde.

He was last seen in public in July of 2006 when he provisionally handed power to his younger brother, Raul, due to intestinal surgery.

Cuban state television has not aired video of Mr. Castro since June 5. On August 13, his 81st birthday, Mr. Castro remained out of public view.    » read more »

23 August 2007 -- Mexico has reopened two of its three main oil ports following Hurricane Dean, but officials say production remains suspended as they assess the storm's impact on the industry.

The storm slammed into Mexico's Gulf coast Wednesday, but has weakened to a tropical depression since moving inland. Prior to the storm's arrival, tens of thousands of oil workers were evacuated from the region, as were residents in low-lying areas.    » read more »

Bangalore, India, Aug. 21, 2007: Infosys Technologies Limited (NASDAQ: INFY) today announced the creation of the company’s first Latin American subsidiary, and the opening of the development center and office for the region based in Monterrey, Mexico.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, August 21, 2007 - The World Bank’s Board of Directors today approved a US$30 million loan to support Colombia’s efforts to increase rural competitiveness and build up entrepreneurship in poor rural communities through partnership schemes with the commercial private sector.    » read more »

10 August 2007 -- The presidents of Venezuela, Bolivia, and Argentina met Friday in the southern Bolivian town of Tarija.

Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, Bolivia's Evo Morales, and Argentina's Nestor Kirchner signed agreements to share the costs of energy production. They agreed to fund the construction of a gas-separation plant near Bolivia's border with Argentina.

Mr. Chavez has been campaigning for more integration of the energy industry in South America. Bolivia is his last stop on a four-nation tour meant to promote South American energy production.    » read more »

09 August 2007 -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is in Uruguay as part of a regional tour aimed at helping his country's bid for admission to the South American trade bloc Mercosur.

Mr. Chavez says he will guarantee Uruguay access to Venezuelan oil for decades. The Venezuelan leader also says his country will help increase the capacity of Uruguay's only oil refinery.

Mr. Chavez discussed the energy plans with Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez and other top officials late Wednesday. He plans to travel to Ecuador Thursday, then head to Bolivia.    » read more »

August 8, 2007 -- Mr. Alejandro Santos, mission chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Paraguay, issued the following statement today in Asunción:

"A mission from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) visited Asunción during the last two weeks for discussions in the context of the fourth review under the Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), approved by the IMF Executive Board in May 2006. The mission met with Finance Minister César Barreto, Central Bank President German Rojas, other members of the Cabinet of Ministers, and senior government officials.    » read more »

07 August 2007 -- The head of Amnesty International, Irene Khan, who ended a week-long visit here, told Mexican officials fighting organized crime must be tempered with strict observance of human rights.

Irene Khan came to Mexico on a fact-finding mission. While here, she met with President Felipe Calderon, the foreign minister, minister of the interior, among others.

She described Mexico's approach to human rights as "schizophrenic" -- advocating an ambitious plan on a global scale, all the while carrying out a haphazard program at home.    » read more »

July 10, 2007 -- The following statement was released today by an International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission that visited Managua during June 25-July 6:    » read more »

BOGOTA, July 10, 2007 – Investing today in youth –especially those considered “at risk”– in Latin America and the Caribbean will be much more beneficial both socially and financially than facing the consequences of not investing, concludes a new World Bank report. The report states that over half of youth between ages 12 and 24 in the region are considered at risk.

The report, entitled The Promise of Youth: Policy for Youth at-Risk in Latin America and the Caribbean, recommends developing specific programs for these groups.    » read more »

10 July 2007 -- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has announced plans to revive the country's long-stalled nuclear program.

President da Silva told reporters in Sao Paulo state Tuesday that funds will be allocated for completion of another nuclear power plant and construction of a nuclear-powered submarine.

Mr. da Silva also said Brazil could become one of the few countries in the world to control the entire uranium enrichment cycle.    » read more »

MEXICO CITY - Washington Governor Chris Gregoire and her business delegation today promoted Washington apples, cherries, wine, beef, and other food and agricultural products in Mexico on a visit to a Costco in Mexico City.

“Costco is an example of strengthened economic ties between Mexico and Washington - they import many of our high quality food products including apples, cherries, wine, seafood and berries,” said Governor Gregoire. “I am proud that this homegrown company has become such a good employer in Mexico.”    » read more »

3 July 2007 -- With easy access to oil unlikely to last much longer, ethanol has the potential to replace a significant part of the world's petroleum-based fuels, says a leader of the push for energy sustainability in Brazil. But José Goldemberg, a physicist at the University of São Paulo, told a 27 June seminar at AAAS that there is considerable "hype" surrounding the recent popularity of ethanol.    » read more »