Monthly Archives: March 2019

Brazil Policy Statement

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The economy of Brazil is based on farming and other resources. However, the issue of whether to protect the environment or economy is immensely debated. The amount of farmland is deteriorating so therefore the Amazon basin seems more attractive. The President of Brazil is for exploiting the natural resources and the space that the Amazon provides. Ironically, the country that… Read more »

Cesare Battisti: Italian ex-militant admits to murders

Former communist militant Cesare Battisti has admitted to four murders in Italy during the 1970s, according local press. Battisti, 64, spent decades on the run and previously denied any involvement. He was arrested in Bolivia in January after living in Brazil, and later extradited to Italy. Milan’s prosecutor, Alberto Nobili, said Battisti confessed during questioning in prison, where he is serving… Read more »

Pope accepts abuse resignation of Chile Cardinal Ezzati

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Cardinal Ricardo Ezzati, the archbishop of Santiago and the highest-ranking member of the Catholic Church in Chile, who has been caught up in the country’s sex abuse scandal. A Vatican statement on Saturday said the pope had named Bishop Celestino Aos Braco of the Chilean city of Copiapo, as “apostolic administrator” to run the Santiago… Read more »

Syrian Civil War-Belgium

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The Syrian Civil war is a conflict between the dictator, President Al-Assad and his forces, and rebel groups who want him out of power. This causes many issues globally from the factor of refugees. Issues arise with where to send and disperse, cost which includes employment and training, political which includes rise of nationalism, anti-muslim. Many countries around the globe… Read more »

Mexican writers, journalists, actors denounce abuse against women

What started as one woman in Mexico‘s literary world sharing experiences of sexual abuse, has since grown into a online campaign against sexual harassment and other forms of assault in several industries in the country.   The social movement started on Thursday after Ana Ge, a political commentator, tweeted that “a powerful man within the literary circle” had beaten, manipulated and abandoned… Read more »

Cuba’s New Figurehead

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On April 18, Cuba’s National Assembly of People’s Power will announce the country’s new leader. President Raul Castro is not seeking re-election, but this does not herald a historic transfer of power. According to Cuba’s complex electoral system, there are no direct presidential elections and thus the public have not and will not been consulted. There is only one formal… Read more »

IWPR Fights Gender Violence Online

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A new IWPR booklet aims to provide advice for activists and human rights defenders at risk of suffering gender-based violence in often hostile online environments. Life Hacks also presents tools to help digital security trainers identify and assist victims of online harassment. Currently available in Spanish, it is aimed at a Latin American audience and is  based on the testimonies of… Read more »

Brazil’s ex-president Temer released from jail

Brazil’s ex-president and alleged head of a graft ring, Michel Temer, was freed from jail Monday after a judge said there were no legal grounds for his detention. Temer, accused of leading a sophisticated embezzlement and money laundering scheme, was the second ex-president of the Latin American country to be caught up in a sprawling anti-corruption probe called Car Wash… Read more »

Why Aren’t Women Protesting in Cuba?

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Travel is sometimes the way you get to understand what is happening back home. When I travelled from Cuba to visit Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, I found a city centre filled with women’s stories, distributed on flyers and posters.  Activism seemed alive here. Dozens of women were camping out at the Congressional Plaza demanding the decriminalisation of abortion…. Read more »

Why Did the Cuban Regime Jail an Environmentalist?

On the morning of May 3 this year, environmentalist Ariel Ruiz Urquiola was working on his ranch in Viñales, western Cuba, when two forest rangers approached him. Sirilo Seara Carrasco and Alexander Blanco Calzadilla asked to see his permits for cutting down trees and erecting fences on his farm, El Infierno; in turn, Urquiola asked to see their IDs. “One… Read more »