Over the past few weeks, some silly ideas have circulated on the impact of the financial crisis on Latin America. The most dangerous was that Latin America would be largely impervious to a debacle that was, as Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
Categoría: Newsweek
Overthrowing Pinochet
Chileans have a lot on their minds these days. Last week they recalled, regretted or celebrated the 35th anniversary of the Sept. 11 military coup that overthrew their democratically elected Socialist president, Salvador Allende. Later this year, the citi
United Nations: A Bitter Defeat for Chávez
Three things are clear regarding Venezuela’s campaign to land a seat on the United Nations Security Council. First and foremost, flamboyant President Hugo Chávez has lost: after dropping 34 out of 35 votes in a head-to-head match against Guatemala (only t
Russian Moves in the Americas
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s surprising announcement in early August that his country would seek to “re-establish” ties with the Soviet Union’s old allies in Havana stirred up excitement in many foreign newsrooms, and raised eyebrows in a few f
Between Hanoi And Havana
At a recent meeting in Hanoi of a new global outfit called the Emerging Markets Forum, a group that is positioning itself as an emerging-economy, though business-oriented, alternative to Davos, participants were exposed to a fascinating perspective on the
A Bunch Of Crooks On The Run
Early in 1964, a group active during La Violencia—a period of extreme violence and turmoil that wracked Colombia during the 1950s—launched a peasant uprising in what became known as the “Republic of Marquetalia,” a rough-and-tumble backwater of western Co
Ending The Cuban Exception
The resignation of Fidel Castro from two of his three jobs in Cuba, together with the appointment of his brother as his successor, marks the end of an era—sort of. Raúl Castro replaced the elder Castro as president of the Councils of Ministers and of Stat
A ‘Cinnamon-Skinned’ President
The news about Hillary Clinton’s collapse in the U.S. Democratic Party primaries was premature, to put it mildly. And Barack Obama’s apparent coronation will also have to wait a while, a few weeks or even a few years. But the Illinois senator’s impressive
Attempted Theft
Most of Latin America’s leaders breathed a sigh of relief earlier this week, after Venezuelan voters rejected President Hugo Chávez’s constitutional amendment referendum.
Nerves
President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela is not exactly on a roll. Yes, oil prices remain close to $100 per barrel, and there are worse things that can happen than receiving tax-free revenues of up to $300 million every day. But on the eve of a Dec. 2 referendu