2020-02-22: News Headlines

Ben Norton (2020-02-22). Bloomberg surrogate was PR guru for Brazil's Bolsonaro. zcomm.org Former Michael Bloomberg aide Arick Wierson, who is pushing the billionaire's 2020 presidential campaign and attacking Bernie Sanders, helped elect far-right demagogue Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil…

Eds. (2020-02-22). Politicizing water in Chile. mronline.org Chile is today in the midst of an unprecedented constituent process 30 years after the return of democracy, where the possibility of a new constitution has opened a discussion about what sort of country we want, and which rights should be enshrined in the drafting of this fundamental document. |

Vijay Prashad (2020-02-21). You write injustice on the Earth; we will write revolution in the skies. mronline.org 'Scientists are wrong', the Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano said with a warm smile on his face. 'Human beings are not made of atoms; they are made of stories'. It is why we want to sing and draw, tell each other about our lives and our hopes, talk about the wonders in our lives and the […] |

Alan Macleod (2020-02-21). As Media Amplifies Unrest in Venezuela and Beyond, Millions Are Quietly Revolting in Colombia. mintpressnews.com Despite protests of historic proportions fueled by anger over corruption and a brutal right-wing crackdown, the unrest in Colombia has garnered remarkably little international media attention compared to Venezuela.

Lucas Koerner (2020-02-21). EXCHANGE: Left Media and Venezuela. mronline.org The sociologist never levels the "authoritarian" charge against his own government, despite the United States' murderous lawlessness at home and abroad—mass deportations, illegal wars, serial police killings, etc.—all in the absence of any credible external threat. |

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Femicide of Peruvian Activist Solsiret Rodriguez Still Unsolved. telesurenglish.net Three years and a half after the feminist activist Solsiret Rodriguez' femicide, the Prosecutor's Office of Peru asked for preventive detention against the confessed authors Andrea Aguirre and Kevin Villanueva, her friend and ex-brother-in-law, respectively. | RELATED: | Callao provincial prosecutor Jimmy Mansilla announced Thursday that he will request nine months of pretrial detention against Aguirre and Villanueva as alleged co-authors of the qualified…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Colombia: Teachers, Students, Truck Drivers on Demonstrations. telesurenglish.net Colombia's largest cities Friday are the scene of protests against RELATED: | Initially, truck drivers' claims were motivated by restrictions on vehicular traffic in Bogota, a city that limited the circulation of tr…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Bolsonaro Administration Claims Murder Reduction Rate in Brazil. telesurenglish.net The G1 website, in association with the Public Security Forum and the Center for the Study of Violence at the University of Sà£o Paulo (NEV-USP), published statistical information about a lower homicide rate in Brazil. Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil's president, and Minister Sergio Moro are now presenting this statistic variation as an accomplishment of their administration. | RELATED: | These results correspond with…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Brazilian Landless Rural Workers Mov.: Our Hope Is on Lula. telesurenglish.net Rosana Fernandes, head of the Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST) in Brazil, acknowledged that former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is the only one who "has the leadership" to stand up to the current administration of Jair Bolsonaro. | RELATED: | Fernandes declared to the EFE news agency that the movement lives a moment of active resistance to the threats and attacks made by Bolsonaro in an in…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). 'Fare Hikes Are Not on the Agenda', Argentina's Fernandez Says. telesurenglish.net Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez Thursday said that raising public services' fares is not currently a policy option to overcome the country's economic crisis. | RELATED: | "Increasing fares is not on the current agenda," Fernandez said regarding possible options to pay the country's debt. | "I'm going to take care of the Argentines' pockets until the last minute I am in government," he added. | Previously,…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Uruguay: Lacalle's Investiture Ceremony Alined With US Biases. telesurenglish.net Uruguay's President-elect Luis Lacalle decided not to invite the diplomatic representatives of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua to his investiture ceremony on March 1rst. | RELATED: | "We have taken the decision not to invite the governments of Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua to my inaugural ceremony. It's my decision," Lacalle said. | He alleged that those countries violate the Charter of the Organization of American States (OAS), which…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Technology Kicks China-LatAm Cooperation Into High Gear. telesurenglish.net "I was surprised by the service," Chilean Cristobal Velasquez recently said of Chinese ride-hailing app Didi, which in a short time has gained a firm foothold in Latin America. | "While it's a relatively new app (here), it has spread quickly in (Chile's capital) Santiago and throughout the whole country," offering a "safe and economical" alternative to standard ride-sharing services, said Velasquez. | RELATED: | <...

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Correa Returns To Ecuador To Register His Candidacy. telesurenglish.net The former president of Ecuador, RELATED: | "We intend for his return to Ecuador; once he registers his candidacy, he would immediately be protected by elect…

teleSUR (2020-02-21). Venezuelan Parliament Reinstates Committee to Choose New CNE. telesurenglish.net The deputies of the Bloque de la Patria and of the Venezuelan opposition in the National Assembly announced that the period of nominations for the Preliminary Commission that will choose the members of the new National Electoral Council (CNE) will soon be over. | RELATED: | The preliminary committee was installed last December, but the elections of the new directive of the National Assembly on January 5th and the refu…

Alan Macleod (2020-02-21). Venezuelan Embassy in Washington Reopens Under Watch of Anti-Maduro Thugs. mintpressnews.com The new embassy is a microcosm of Juan Guaidó's attempted premiership; backed by the U.S. but existing only in theory, with the Maduro government still holding office.

Ben Norton (2020-02-20). Bloomberg surrogate was PR guru for Brazil's extreme-right leader Bolsonaro. thegrayzone.com Former Michael Bloomberg aide Arick Wierson, who is pushing the billionaire's 2020 presidential campaign and attacking Bernie Sanders, helped elect…

teleSUR (2020-02-20). Oil Workers Temporarily Suspend Strike in Brazil. telesurenglish.net In Brazil, oil workers suspended their strike Thursday after 19 days, while state oil company Petrobras promised to start a round of negotiations with the unions. | RELATED: | The decision was taken after a council of the Single Federation of Oil Tankers (FUP) meeting and they warned that if negotiations with the state oil company do not meet the demands of the workers, the union will resume the strike again. | T…

teleSUR (2020-02-20). Bolivia's Electoral Body Disqualifies Evo Morales' Candidacy. telesurenglish.net The president of the Supreme Electoral Court of Bolivia (TSE) Salvador Romero informed that the former President Evo Morales will not be able to participate in the 2020 general elections, which will be held on May 3. | RELATED: | During a press conference, Romero told reporters that Morales did not meet the permanent residency requirements to be a Senate candidate for his Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) p…

Susan Price (2020-02-20). Venezuela files ICC lawsuit over US sanctions. greenleft.org.au

Fight Back (2020-02-18). Afro-Venezuelan socialist youth leader's message to the people of the U.S. fightbacknews.org In January, Fight Back! reporters participated in the World Anti-Imperialist Gathering in Caracas, Venezuela. While there, they interviewed delegates from Venezuela and from several other countries. In this interview, Ender Sabalsa, a leader of the youth sector and the Afro-descendent sector of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), gives his message to the people of the United States. | Ender Sabalsa: Revolutionary greetings to everyone reading this and to all the peoples of the world. My name is Ender Sabalsa. I'm a member of the youth sector of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV). I'm also…

Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers (2020-02-17). Mistrial Is Another Blow to US Coup In Venezuela. dissidentvoice.org Last week we, along with Adrienne Pine and David Paul, were unsuccessfully prosecuted by the Trump administration for our protection of the Venezuelan embassy in Washington, DC from April 10 to May 16, 2019. The jury was unable to reach a unanimous decision and so we remain innocent of the charge of interfering with the …

Fight Back (2020-02-17). Un mensaje al pueblo estadounidense de un joven venezolano afrodescendiente socialista. fightbacknews.org En enero unos periodistas de °Lucha y Resiste! participaron en el Encuentro Mundial Antiimperialista en Caracas, Venezuela. Allí hicieron entrevistas con delegados de Venezuela y de varios otros países. Esta es una entrevista con Ender Sabalsa, un líder de la Juventud PSUV (Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela) y del sector afrodescendiente en que él comparte un mensaje al pueblo de los Estados Unidos. | Ender: Un saludo revolucionario a todos los que nos están viendo y a todos los pueblos del mundo. Mi nombre es Ender Sabalsa, milito en la juventud del Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela, del sector afro…

Leonardo Flores (2020-02-15). Mistrial in Trump admin's biased case against Venezuelan embassy protectors is win for sovereignty. thegrayzone.com The Trump administration's case against Venezuelan embassy protectors was severely biased, but ended up with a hung jury. The mistrial…

Staff (2020-02-14). One Billion Rising: Eve Ensler & Taína Asili Mark V-Day and Campaign to End Sexual Violence. democracynow.org This Valentine's Day, people around the world are taking to the streets to protest violence against women and girls. From the Philippines to India to Italy to Bolivia, thousands of women in more than 100 countries will reclaim public space through dance and performance as part of a global movement called One Billion Rising. The movement takes its name from the shocking statistic that one in three women across the planet will be beaten or raped during her lifetime. One Billion Rising started on Valentine's Day 2012 and has continued to grow every year since. Participants say they won't stop dancing until violence…

Anya Parampil (2020-02-12). Did Venezuelan coup leader Ricardo Hausmann stage fake IDB resignation to keep cushy Harvard job? thegrayzone.com Caught in a conflict of interest with his employer at Harvard, Ricardo Hausmann publicly resigned his job as Guaido's Inter-American…

Venezuela Analysis (2020-02-06). Embassy Protection Collective: "We Are Not the Ones Who Violated the Law" theantimedia.com In this exclusive interview, VA talks to the activists who defended the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington DC ahead of their trial.

Medea Benjamin (2020-02-02). Why aren't Americans rising up like the people of Chile and Lebanon? zcomm.org The tinder for a revolutionary movement is everywhere…

Joe Emersberger (2019-12-20). Notes on a private TV newscast in Bolivia. The contrast with Venezuela is clear as day. zcomm.org In August, I took detailed notes a news broadcast on one of Venezuela's largest TV networks. I summarized these notes in an interview I did with the Real News Network making the point that Venezuela's private media (which reaches 60-90% of households) is remarkably free — most especially when you consider the US is openly

Joe Emersberger (2019-12-16). Francisco Rodriguez answers some questions I asked about Venezuela. zcomm.org Venezuelan economist Francisco Rodriguez, formerly of Torino Economics, answered a few questions of mine about his country. He was the economic adviser to Henri Falcon, the second place finisher in the May 2018 presidential election. His updated estimate for 2019 is that Venezuela's real GDP will contract by 25% . That's horrific, but less severe

Joe Emersberger (2019-12-15). 128 Reuters articles on Bolivia since October 20, 2019 election with no mention of expert criticism of OAS audit UPDATED. zcomm.org Bolivia ¥s foreign minister says Mexico appeal to International Court 'a mistake' Bolivia's YPFB strikes transition deal with Petrobras to extend natural gas exports Bolivia is not a Mexican colony, acting foreign minister Longaric tells El Pais Mexico says Spanish diplomats' cars blocked by Bolivia at La Paz embassy Mexico appeals to international court as diplomatic