Venezuela buys Chinese jets for drug war

Venezuela tested six training and light attack jets bought from China for defense and anti-drug flights in a deal that dodges an embargo banning sales of US weapons parts.

Colombia: transport strike paralyzes Bogotá

Bogotá’s Small Transport Providers Association (APETRANS) pulled some 16,400 buses and collective taxis out of service to protest plans for modernizing the city’s transit system.

Peru: five killed in market vendor protest

A confrontation between police agents and market vendors in Piura, capital of Peru’s northwestern Piura province, resulted in the deaths of at least five civilians.

Ecuador: indigenous movement calls national uprising

Following an “extraordinary assembly,” the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) called for an “uprising” to press demands for a “pluri-national state.”

Spain: judge accuses Venezuela in FARC-ETA assassination plot

A Spanish judge accused the Venezuelan government of aiding two rebel groups—Spain’s ETA and Colombia’s FARC—in a plot to assassinate Colombia’s president in Spain.

China enters free trade deal with Peru

The China-Peru FTA took effect, calling for phasing out tariffs on 90% of goods exchanged between the two nations. Peruvian minerals are critical to the pact.

Colombian re-election referendum unconstitutional: court

Colombia’s Constitutional Court voted down the proposed referendum to allow President Alvaro Uribe to run for a third term, calling the idea “unconstitutional in its entirety.”

Venezuela: rights chief disputes critical OAS report

Venezuela’s top human rights official criticized a new OAS report which is harshly critical of the Hugo Chávez government. Gabriela Ramírez said rights have actually improved.

Coca production down in South America, up in Peru: UN

The UN International Narcotics Control Board finds an 8% decrease in overall coca production in South America last year—but a 45% increase in Peru.

Colombia: indigenous communities targeted in war —again

Indigenous peoples are once again caught in the middle as the Colombian army launches a major offensive against the FARC guerillas in the southern Andean department of Cauca.

Venezuela: Chávez unveils Campesino Militia

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez announced the creation of a new Campesino Militia, which will be under the command of the national Bolivarian Armed Forces (FAB).

Bolivia: Evo Morales launches “decolonization of judiciary”

Bolivian President Evo Morales appointed 18 judges ahead of the country’s judicial elections, calling the move “the beginning of the decolonization of the judiciary.”