The Haitian Senate voted on July 31 to ratify the appointment of economist Michele Duvivier Pierre-Louis as prime minister. Twelve of the 18 senators present voted in favor, and five abstained; as required by the regulations, Senate president Kelly Bastien… Read moreHaiti finally gets a prime minister
A mission representing several Brazilian government ministries arrived in Haiti on July 19 for a two-week visit aimed at developing a plan for combatting hunger in the country. A pilot project will be modeled on Brazil’s Program of Acquisition of… Read moreHaiti: Brazil offers food program
Computers confiscated by US customs agents in Texas at the beginning of July finally arrived in Cuba on Aug. 1 in a cargo of 100 tons of humanitarian aid raised by the New York-based group Pastors for Peace in its… Read moreCuba: US computers reach Havana
From the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), July 29: As student groups prepare to commemorate the anniversary of an infamous massacre of students by government forces on July 30, 1975, political violence continues in El… Read morePolitical violence increases in El Salvador
Retired Colombian army colonel Guillermo Armando Gordillo confessed to the Fiscalía (attorney general) his participation in the slaying of eight people, including three children, at the Peace Community of San José de Apartadó on Feb. 21, 2005. The Fiscalía said… Read moreColombia: army colonel admits participation in Peace Community massacre
Raúl Hasbún, alias Pedro Bonito, a banana plantation owner turned paramilitary chieftain, gave preliminary testimony in Medellín about his participation in several massacres, including against the Peace Community [of San José de Apartadó]. Massacres were a practice to ensure control… Read moreColombia: banana executive admits participation in Peace Community massacres
Two more Colombian paramilitary commanders pleaded guilty July 29 in US federal court to drug conspiracy charges. Ramiro Vanoy Murillo, 60, and Francisco Javier Zuluaga Lindo, 38, entered their pleas before US District Judge K. Michael Moore in Miami. Under… Read moreColombian paras cop plea in Miami; “New Generation” wreaks terror in Nariño
No, it’s not a football match. Our July issue featured the story “Shake Djibouti: Eritrea Crisis Destabilizes Imperialism’s Horn of Africa Beachhead” by Sarkis Pogossian, on the brief war between the two states in June. Pogossian writes: “While Eritrea increasingly… Read moreEritrea vs. Djibouti: our readers write
Seattle Post-Intelligencer blogger Monica Guzman writes that local voices are calling for the Seattle Critical Mass to be banned following a violent incident at the last ride. For a study in contrasts, let’s compare corporate and alternative media accounts of… Read moreSeattle: curtains for Critical Mass after cyclists bash back?
A glimmer of hope that this has, at least, sparked an outcry—thanks to a tourist with a video-camera, and YouTube. From the New York Times, July 29: Officer Investigated in Toppling of Cyclist A New York City police officer was… Read moreNYC: police assault of Critical Mass cyclist probed
On July 27 voters in Mexico’s Federal District (DF, Mexico City) and nine states were scheduled to vote in a non-binding referendum on President Felipe Calderón Hinojosa’s proposals to allow more involvement the state oil monopoly, Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX), by… Read moreMexico: Pemex referendum starts
The body of Colombian unionist Guillermo Rivera Fuquene was found buried in a garbage dump in a rural area of Ibague, Tolima department, on July 15. Rivera Fuquene, an economist in the Bogotá Controller’s Office and the president of the… Read moreColombia: Bogotá unionist found dead
