August 1, 2008 www.LatinEPR.com
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LATIN AMERICA - NEWS BRIEFS
Media and technology
Terra Wins Olympic Internet Rights
Reports indicating that two of the nine people involved in this past month’s rescue of 15 hostages in Colombia pretended to be television reporters have led various journalist groups, including Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists, to level criticism against the Colombian government, according to CNN. Although the rescue was a daring operation and brought about the liberation of former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, the means by which this was achieved is now being questioned. Impersonating any member of the media choir endangers the lives of actual reporters working in the field, said Joel Simon, executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists. Furthermore, President Alvaro Uribe has had to apologize for one soldier’s use of the Red Cross symbol during the operation, a violation of the Geneva Conventions, as it endangers the lives of humanitarian workers. TeleSur, the Venezuelan television company used as a cover during the July rescue, is still preparing a response.
TRAVEL
US to Ease Cuba Travel Restrictions
The US Senate voted this past month to expand Cuban travel and ease the restrictions that have been in place since 2004, the Associated Press reported. The new legislations, which could still face opposition in Congress, would allow US citizens with Cuban descent to travel to the island once a year to visit relatives. The current law restricts this visit to once every three years and for a maximum duration of 14 days. The money visitors can spend would also rise, from $50 a day to $160. The changes, if ratified, would not take place until after this presidential term.
El Salvador Hosts Ibero-American Ministers of Tourism Conference
El Salvador became the focus of the region’s travel industry when it hosted the 8th Ibero-American Ministers of Tourism Conference, July 17-1, 2008. The main theme of the annual conference, attended by 17 Latin American and Iberian countries, as well as the World Tourism Organization and the Ibero-American General Secretariat, was “Tourism, Youth, and Development.” According to a government release, the conference analyzed youth trends and strategies for tourism developments, and organized various youth-targeted seminars. To that end, El Salvador presented its own project aimed at promoting a culture of peace through youthful entrepreneurship in the tourism industry. Hosting this event, as well as the 28th Ibero-American Summit in October, should help raise El Salvador’s profile in the region. A more prominent regional position is among the targets of the country’s 2014 National Tourism Plan.
Aerolineas Argentinas Renationalized
This July, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner announced the renationalization of Aerolineas Argentinas, nearly 20 years after it was privatized, following the airline’s mounting debt, reported BBC News. According to the news source, Aerolineas Argentinas has been losing as much as $1 million a day, and making the airline profitable will not be easy in the face of rising fuel costs, existing debt, an aging grounded fleet, and internal structure problems, not to mention a low customer opinion as a result of delays and cancellations. However, analysts reminded that the airline was not much better 18 years ago when it was first sold. Regardless of the obstacles, rebuilding the airline is a question of national pride. Said Fernandez de Kircher, “…this government was obliged to make a decision…to guarantee a service, communication, and to guarantee the survival of our flag-carrying national airline.”
Mexico Top Destination for American Tourists
Mexico and Canada were top destinations for Americans traveling abroad in a recent study conducted by Visa. The survey, which polled US cardholders who had traveled outside the country in the past three years and were planning a trip abroad in 2008, found that 46% were headed to Canada and 45% to Mexico. Apparently Americans have not let the dollar’s decline dampen their enthusiasm for travel; it has just shortened the distance they are willing to go. Says Vicente Echeveste of Global Travel and Tourism Lead at Visa Inc., “even though Americans aren’t going as far this year, the fact that they continue to exhibit a strong willingness to travel overseas reinforces international tourism as a strong driver of global economic growth.” Another finding of the survey shows that the majority of respondents are using credit and debit cards as their preferred payment method overseas ahead of cash and travelers checks.
Economy and Politics
Strong Economy Propels Brazil to World Stage
A New York Times article has touted Brazil’s impending status as a major player on the international stage, citing a strong economy and its strides in eradicating poverty. According to the July article, Brazil’s clout in recent global trade talks indicates the country is riding the wave of its biggest economic expansion in three decades. A diversified industrial base, huge potential in its agricultural sectors, and untapped natural resources, including oil, should ensure that this trend lasts. Unlike the US and Europe, both of which are struggling with recession and falling housing markets, Brazil is being buoyed by its exports and a billowing domestic market.
In fact, Brazil is on a spending spree as its 185 million people get wealthier and the middle class expands. World Bank figures show Brazil’s income gap has shrunk by six percentage points since 2001, and a study from the Center for Social Policies at the Getulio Vargas Foundation found that the bottom ten percent of Brazil’s earners saw their income rise by 58% between 2001 and 2006. The number of people living below the poverty line fell by 32% between 2004 and 2006.
All these changes are giving consumer spending a major boost and making the economy, which grew by 5.4% last year, less dependent on foreign markets. The government is contributing to the poverty fight by investing heavily in social programs, like Bolsa Familia, which distributes over $5 billion a year to poor families. Brazil’s public spending is one of the highest in the region and four times that of Mexico, which is currently feeling its dependency on the US market – the US receives 25% of Mexico’s exports, compared to Brazil’s 2.5%. Some experts are speculating that a global slowdown, especially in Asia, could put a damper on Brazil’s expansion, but a senior economist for Moody’s Economy.com tells the newspaper, “that probability is small.”
Latam Migrants Helped by New Electronic Money Transfer Service
This July, Chile, Spain, and Uruguay launched a new electronic money transfer service that links their countries and provides safe and fast transfer in 15 minutes, according to Mercopress. The new service relies on the International Financial System (IFS) application developed by the United Nations Universal Postal Union (UPU), which saw the need for improved modes of sending money in the face of rising international migration. World Bank figures show that more than 220 million migrant workers around the world send over US$300 billion in remittances annually through formal channels, but that just as much may be sent informally, promoting money laundering and other illegal activities. The IFS allows migrants access to safe means, like the 660,000 post offices worldwide. In Spain, there are 2300 post offices alone that will feature the IFS service, while in Chile and Uruguay there will be 110 and 60, respectively. Chile, Uruguay, and Spain, which has 1.6 million Latin American migrant workers who send nearly US$10 billion home each year, are among the first 36 countries to enter into an IFS partnership. 60 more countries are also considering joining the network.
General Interest
Santiago Subway Goddess Arrested
The ‘Subway Goddess’, a woman who had been stripping on Santiago trains to challenge the prudishness of Chilean society, was arrested this past month during one of her flash performances, according to Reuters. The professional pole dancer had spent the week prior to her arrest slipping from one train to another, finding subway cars with no children on it and stripping to her underwear until her exit at the next station. Speaking to Reuters, Monserrat Morilles, 26, said she was protesting the lack of tolerance in Chile and called her performances “happy minutes.”
Ecuador Pardons Drug Mules
Ecuador's constitutional assembly has pardoned hundreds of small-time drug couriers presently in Ecuadorian prisons, after President Rafael Correa proposed the pardons last year as part of a drug sentencing reform, according to the Drug War Chronicle. Prisoners are eligible if they were convicted of carrying less than 4.4 lbs, had served at least 10% of their sentences or one year in prison, and were not repeat offenders. As many as 1,200 prisoners could be eligible. A great number are currently serving ten years or more for their crime. Although Ecuador is not a major coca producer, it is located between Colombia and Peru, meaning its citizens are often targeted as drug mules for bringing cocaine into North America.
Argentine Gas Cows
Argentine researchers studying the effects of cows on global warming have found that methane from Argentina’s 55 million cows accounts for more than 30% of the country’s total greenhouse emissions, according to a Reuters report. Strapping pink backpack-like plastic tanks on the animals in order to collect the gas from their stomachs, researchers at the National Institute of Agricultural Technology have concluded that a cow can produce between 800 and 1,000 liters of emissions a day. This can have a staggering affect on global warming when one considers that methane is 23 to 50 times more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon monoxide. As it stands, the world’s 1.5 billion cows are responsible for 18% of total greenhouse gases. These findings are leading Argentine researchers to carry out trials in new diets for improving cows digestions, such as replacing grain feed with alfalfa and clover, which can reduce emissions by 25%.
