Punk rock CD cover graphic deemed "subversive" in Venezuela (Sept. 20, 2019)

News Briefs

Venezuela

• An employee of the Programa Venezolano de Educación y Acción (Provea) was detained yesterday for transporting "subsersive" print material -- a punk rock CD cover graphic. José Guillermo Mendoza was taken to the infamous intelligence agency headquarters in El Helicoide. Provea head Rafael Uzcátegui tweeted yesterday that organization representatives would be going to report to the Sebin. (Efecto Cocuyo, Infobae, El Comercio)

• Mexico and Uruguay hailed the Venezuelan government's release of opposition leader Edgar Zambrano this week, and emphasized that negotiations are the only acceptable solution to Venezuela's crisis. In a joint statement both countries called for the release of all political prisoners, reports Reuters.

• Maduro's government is likely angling for domestic stability with new negotiations with a minority group of opposition parties, having failed at obtaining relief from international sanctions via the Barbados dialogue, argues the International Crisis Group's Phil Gunson.

• Russia expressed concern over the activation of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, saying it could be used to promote military action against Venezuela, reports Efecto Cocuyo. (See yesterday's briefs.)

• The Kremlin also said that Maduro is due in Moscow soon for talks, reports Reuters.

• The Lima Group will propose an investigation to investigate human rights violations in Venezuela in the U.N. (Infobae)

• Venezuela’s opposition is preparing to seek an asset protection program from the United Nations to prevent creditors from seizing U.S. refiner Citgo, reports Reuters.

• Unicef warned that 1 million children are out of school in Venezuela. (EFE)

• The Washington Post portrays the extent of Venezuela's crisis that plagues citizens past death in Maracaibo.

Haiti

• Haiti has been brought to a virtual standstill by protests and fuel shortages, reports Al Jazeera. Opposition groups called for a massive demonstration today demanding the ouster of President Jovenel Moïse. Among the opposition’s demands are the establishment of a transitional government, trials for all those implicated in the PetroCaribe corruption scandal, and prosecution of public officials accused of corruption, reports Voice of America.

Migration

• The U.S. justice department appealed a federal judgement that blocked the termination of a temporary protection program for Haitians. The Trump administration is seeking to move forward with the policy change that could force 50,000 to 60,000 Haitians living in the U.S. to return to their country. (Miami Herald)

• The Trump administration's near-total ban on asylum seekers at the southern border is illegal and immoral, writes Lauren Carasik at Al Jazeera.

Brazil

• The Intercept reports on the Brazilian military's secret plan to carry out large-scale development projects in the interior of the Amazon. "... The Rio Branco Project would exploit resources; build large-scale bridges, dams, and highways; and attract non-Indigenous citizens to settle the northern region, the sparsely populated Brazilian hinterlands. Each project would inevitably create ripple waves of secondary deforestation and disrupt local communities."

• A group of more than 200 investment funds urged businesses to take an active role in halting the destruction of the Amazon. The funds called on companies to reduce their supply chains’ reliance on deforestation, citing operational, regulatory and reputational risks, reports the Washington Post.

Honduras

• Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández is accused of accepting drug proceeds for his political campaigns, in exchange for protecting drug traffickers. A U.S. case against his brother Tony Hernández that is set to start next month will likely add to the allegations. InSight Crime examines the Hernández allegedly used drug funds to build up his political power -- four part series.

• Ousted Honduran president Manuel Zelaya returned to Honduras ten years ago, in Sept. 2009, and spent months holed up in the Brazilian embassy in a surreal standoff with the regime that led a coup against him -- BBC.

• Dengue outbreaks have been particularly deadly in Central America and Mexico this year -- but Honduran children have been especially affected, reports the Associated Press.

• Coffee exports from Honduras will likely drop next year -- affected by lower bean prices and climate change, reports Reuters.

Regional Relations

• The U.S. expelled two Cuban diplomats to the UN in New York, accusing them of conducting "activities harmful to US national security," reports the BBC.

Cuba

• A study by Canadian scientists argues that mosquito fumigation may have caused the mysterious "Havana Syndrome" that affected diplomats in recent years. (Reuters)

Argentina

• Argentina's unemployment rate rose to 10 percent and the GDP shrank for the fourth time in five quarters, reports the Wall Street Journal.

El Salvador

• Former Salvadoran president Elias Antonio Saca, who is serving a 10-year prison term for corruption, has been sentenced to another two years for bribery, reports AFP.

Did I miss something, get something wrong, or do you have a different take? Let me know ...

Latin America Daily Briefing