2020-06-21: News Headlines

Ricardo Vaz (2020-06-20). Venezuelan oil output continues decline as refinery resumes operations. mronline.org Venezuelan crude exports on track for 70 year low as Washington continues to target tankers and shipping companies.

teleSUR (2020-06-20). Bolivia Reaches New Infection Record as Health System Collapses. telesurenglish.net Bolivia's Health Ministry reported 977 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, bringing the total number of infections to 22,476 in a country whose death toll has reached 715 so far. | RELATED: | The situation is especially worrying in Santa Cruz, the most populated region of Bolivia with just over three million inhabitants, which concentrates the majority of cases (13,539) and the highest number of deaths (319). | The epidemiologic…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-20). Colombia's president urges "that we shouldn't talk about who's to blame' for his mistakes. colombiareports.com Colombia's President Ivan Duque admitted his idea to organize a tax-free shopping day in the midst of a pandemic was a mistake, but stressed "we shouldn't ask ourselves who's to…

_____ (2020-06-19). 'Black Lives Matter' Is International. popularresistance.org Corte Madera, California – The police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25th was the spark that ignited the tinder of accrued injustice throughout the US and globally. This injustice has deep antecedents in the US and indeed in much of what is now called the Global South. There is a shared history of colonial conquest of the Indigenous and the abominable institution of the enslavement of African peoples. | What happened has its roots in systemic oppression that has resonated internationally. Just as the police suffocated George Floyd, US unilateral coercive measures against Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua,…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-19). Colombia's 21st century social cleansing: saving money on chainsaws. colombiareports.com Colombia's president Ivan Duque must be proud of himself. He enriched his allies by killing countless people without using a single chainsaw. One may argue that killing Colombians for profit…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-19). Colombia's 21st century social cleaning: saving money on chainsaws. colombiareports.com Colombia's president Ivan Duque must be proud of himself. He enriched his allies by killing countless people without using a single chainsaw. One may argue that killing Colombians for profit…

teleSUR (2020-06-19). Brazil: Virus Unleashes, Contagion Tally Surpasses One Million. telesurenglish.net Brazil registered a new record daily number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and passed 1 million, the Ministry of Health said on Friday. | RELATED: | In the last 24 hours, this South American country recorded 54,771 new infections and reached a figure of 1,032,913. This way, only the U.S tally is higher with 2.2 million. | The number of deaths reached 48,954. Brazil has exceeded 1,000 deaths per day since Thursday, accordi…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-06-19). Taxing large fortunes in Argentina: Who will be affected? peoplesdispatch.org The bill that seeks to charge an extraordinary tax on the richest people in Argentina advances in the Chamber of Deputies. Only a very small percentage of Argentine society will have to pay it.

Peoples Dispatch (2020-06-19). Bolivians demand freedom for female political prisoners and immediate general elections. peoplesdispatch.org A large group of Bolivians, mostly women, demonstrated in the capital, La Paz, on June 17. They demanded freedom for all female political prisoners, who have been arrested on false charges by the de-facto government led by far-right Jeanine àÅñez, after the coup against President Evo Morales in November 2019. In addition to the liberation of the political prisoners, they also called for immediate general elections in the country. àÅñez has been trying to delay the elections using the COVID-19 pandemic as a pretext, in pursuit of her imperialist and neoliberal policies. | At around 10 am, wearing face…

teleSUR (2020-06-19). Brazil's Education Minister Quits Amid Political Crisis. telesurenglish.net Brazil's Education Minister Abraham Weintraub Thursday announced his resignation from office amid the political crisis that confronts the far-right President Jair Bolsonaro with the Supreme Federal Court (STF) and the National Congress. | RELATED: | "I'll leave the country as soon as possible, I don't want to fight," tweeted Weintraub, who had been considered by local analysts as one of Bolsonaro's closest collaborator…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-19). Colombia's military investigated over arms trafficking for illegal armed groups. colombiareports.com Top officials of Colombia's security forces are suspected of arms trafficking for organized crime groups, weekly Semana reported on Thursday. A network within the 4th Brigade in Medellin, the Arms…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-19). Congress approves controversial bill allowing life imprisonment for child rapists. colombiareports.com Colombia's congress approved a constitutional amendment to sentence convicted child rapists and killers to life in prison amid a major controversy. The constitutional amendment proposed by the government of President…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-19). Colombia's economic reactivation: 'Black Friday' in midst of pandemic. colombiareports.com A plan of Colombia's President Ivan Duque to reactivate the economy turned into an epidemiological nightmare as crowds gathered at large retailers in the midst of a pandemic on Friday,…

teleSUR (2020-06-19). Pope Francis Beatifies Venezuela's Dr. Jose Gregorio Hernandez. telesurenglish.net Pope Francis Friday authorized the decrees that will allow the canonization of three Latin American blessed who lived in the 19th century and to whom the Congregation for the Causes of Saints recognizes the miracles people attribute to them. | RELATED: | The first of them is the Venezuelan physician Jose Gregorio Hernandez, who died in 1919 in Caracas after a car accident. Known as "the doctor of the poor," he studied in Paris, Berlin, M…

teleSUR (2020-06-19). The Venezuelan "Poor People's Doctor" to Become a New Saint. telesurenglish.net José Gregorio Hernández, a physician known as the "Poor People's Doctor," and revered by his people as a holy figure, is now closer to becoming a new saint of Catholicism and the first Venezuelan in history to hold such status. This after Pope Francis signed the beatification on Friday. | RELATED: | On June 18, after a unanimous vote in a plenary of Cardinals held in Rome, the beatification of the iconic doctor was…

yenisafak (2020-06-19). Bolsonaro in China shop: Spats worsen Brazil's pandemic. yenisafak.com Eleven tons of urgently needed medical equipment donated to combat COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil has been stuck in China since the beginning of April due to diplomatic issues, according to Brazilian news outlet Folha De S. Paulo.It is one of the many shipments awaiting bureaucratic clearance, it said, at a time when Brazil desperately needs ventilators and personal protective equipment to fight a skyrocketing number of coronavirus infections and deaths.In a matter of weeks, confirmed cases of infection in the South American nation soared to nearly one million, with the death toll expected to top 50,000 in a day or…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-06-19). Arara People of Brazilian Amazon 'Very Worried' as Vulnerable Tribe Faces Highest Known Covid-19 Infection Rate in Region. commondreams.org As criticism of far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's response to the coronavirus pandemic continues to stack up, global Indigenous rights advocates and the Arara people are raising new concerns that the crisis could devastate the recently-contacted tribe in the Xingu basin of the Amazon rainforest. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/arara.jpg

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Amazonian Indigenous Chief Paulinho Paiakan Dies of COVID-19. telesurenglish.net Chief Paulinho Paiakan, one of the most internationally recognized defenders of the Amazon rainforest died Wednesday of COVID-19, activists informed. | RELATED: | The founder of Amazon Planet Gert-Peter Bruch said the leader died at a hospital in the northern locality of Redenàßao, in the state of Para, Brazil after 19 days of having caught the coronavirus, adding that he "worked all his life to build worldwide a…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Chile: Human Rights Defenders Claim Justice for Blind Student. telesurenglish.net In Chile, human rights defenders asked the Prosecutors' Office to carry out investigations into police brutality in the case of Gustavo Gatica, who lost his sight in the 2019 protests.. | RELATED: | "Initially the Police's investigation concluded that those responsible cannot be identified but, according to the Prosecutor's Office's investigation, bullets extracted from Gustavo coincide with the ammunition used by the Police," Amnesty Int…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Venezuela Intensifies Quarantine to Fight COVID-19 Upsurge. telesurenglish.net Several Venezuelan states will radicalize quarantine measures due to an increase in COVID-19 cases, President Nicolas Maduro informed Thursday. | RELATED: | Capital District, Miranda, Aragua, La Guaira, Zulia, and Bolivar will increase restrictions in a bid to halt further spread of the pandemic. The president said that in the next few hours, specific measures will be announced to implement those restrictions. | Beside…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). President Maduro Condemns Trump's Intention to Invade Venezuela. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro Wednesday rejected President Donald Trump's attempts to intervene in his country, which was revealed by the U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton in his unpublished book. | RELATED: | In the book "The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir" Bolton reveals Trump's threats, which include making Venezuela part of the U.S. territory. | According to excerpts from the bo…

A Guest Author (2020-06-18). Bolivia. Morales alerta a comunidad internacional: àÅñez se aferra al poder. workers.org Por Resumen Latinoamericano Según concluyó una investigación independiente, el informe hecho por la misión de observación electoral de la OEA a las elecciones del 20 de octubre de 2019 en Bolivia, y que sirvió a la oposición para generar un golpe de Estado contra el presidente Evo Morales, tenía serias . . . |

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-18). Alleged election fraudster to preside Colombia's senate while in court. colombiareports.com Controversial Senator Arturo Char will have a tough year presiding over Colombia's senate while trying to prevent the Supreme Court from destroying President Ivan Duque's coalition. The conservative Radical Change…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Venezuela Unveils Plot to Plunder Its Nation's Oil Wealth. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodriguez Thursday showed strong evidence against opposition lawmaker Juan Guaido and Jose Ignacio Hernandez, both of whom sought to plunder Venezuela's oil wealth abroad with U.S. government's complicity. | RELATED: | "The facade that lawmaker Juan Guaido and false prosecutor Jose Ignacio Hernandez have tried to present as a political project is, in reality, a criminal corporati…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Uruguay: Pandemic Pushes Economy Into Recession. telesurenglish.net Uruguay's economy went into recession after registering a severe drop in its gross domestic product (GDP), the Central Bank (UCB) announced Thursday. | RELATED: | The South American nation's GDP dropped by 1.4 percent in comparison with 2019, and 1.6 percent respect to last trimester, mainly because of a 5.8 percent shrinking of exports and a 9.2 percent increase of imports. | According to the report, "these results were influenced by measures imple…

Jacob Sugarman (2020-06-18). Jair Bolsonaro Isn't Just a Hazard to Brazil's Health. thenation.com Jair Bolsonaro Isn't Just a Hazard to Brazil's Health…

Brasil de Fato (2020-06-18). Brazil: Minister of Education announces his departure from Bolsonaro government. peoplesdispatch.org Brazil's Minister of Education, Abraham Weintraub, announced on the afternoon of Thursday June 18 that he is stepping down from the government of Jair Bolsonaro. He made the announcement through His fall comes after the minister participated in a series of anti democracy rallies principally against the Supreme Federal Court (STF). According to sources from the Planalto Palace, his…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-18). Colombia's coronavirus aid used to pay pack election contributions? colombiareports.com Colombia's Inspector General said Tuesday he was investigating $12.5 million (COP47 billion) in coronavirus aid funds ended up in the pockets of elections campaigns sponsors. The granting of government contracts…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-18). Colombia's coronavirus aid used to pay back election contributions? colombiareports.com Colombia's Inspector General said Tuesday he was investigating how $12.5 million (COP47 billion) in coronavirus aid funds ended up in the pockets of elections campaigns sponsors. The granting of government…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-18). Colombia's potential cocaine production reached all-time high in 2019: UN. colombiareports.com Colombia's potential cocaine production reached a new high in 2019 despite a drop in registered hectares of coca, the base ingredient of the illicit drug, according to the United Nations….

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-18). Open letter to Colombia's press freedom foundation on promoting free press. colombiareports.com Dear Fernando et al, I am writing to express my surprise that the Assembly of the Foundation for the Freedom of the Press (FLIP) has not taken action, i.e. sanctions,…

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-18). Pablo Escobar's involvement in 1985 palace of justice siege another urban myth? colombiareports.com The popular belief that late drug lord Pablo Escobar ordered and financed the 1985 guerrilla attack on Colombia's Palace of Justice increasingly appears to be a far-right urban myth. The…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Ecuador's Waorani People Win Another Victory Against Government. telesurenglish.net Indigenous Waorani People of Ecuador's Amazon won Wednesday in an Ecuadorean court precautionary measures requiring the government to take urgent actions against the spread of the new coronavirus in Waorani territory, NGO Amazon Frontlines has reported. | RELATED: | "Today, Ecuadorean justice ruled in favor of our request for precautionary measures in the face of government inaction during this pandemic," President of…

teleSUR (2020-06-18). Guyana: Announcement of Election Results Remains Uncertain. telesurenglish.net The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) chairperson Justice Claudette Singh has not yet officially announced the results of the presidential elections held on March 2. | RELATED: | On Thursday morning, the Guyana Court of Appeal would have asked the GECOM not to make such an announcement because someone named Eslyn David filed a notice arguing that the country's electoral authorities had failed to obtain a credible result. | GEOCO…

yenisafak (2020-06-18). NGO sounds alarm on use of wild plants to cure COVID-19. yenisafak.com Wild plant species are under pressure due to its usage to treat COVID-19 and make money, according to the report published by the international wildlife watchdog TRAFFIC on Thursday."Wild plant species used in herbal treatments of COVID-19 are set to come under heightened harvesting pressure, both as a result of increased demand and because of more people turning to wild harvesting as an alternative source of income during times of high unemployment and economic crisis," TRAFFIC said.The report asserted that herbal products containing wild plant ingredients are used to prevent and treat COVID-19 in South America,…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-18). Iran-Venezuela alliance a glorious example for nations to follow: American analyst. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 17 (MNA) — An American columnist and political author says the Iran-Venezuela alliance against the US is a glorious model for other nations to stand against Washington's hegemonic policies.

Adriaan Alsema (2020-06-17). US monitors urge Colombia to accelerate slowed down peace process. colombiareports.com Scholars monitoring Colombia's peace process urged the government of President Ivan Duque to accelerate the country's peace process that has slowed down under his watch. The Kroc Institute of the…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-17). Maudro warns EU not to interfere in Venezuela's internal affairs. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 17 (MNA) — President Nicolas Maduro has warned the European Union (EU) against interfering in Venezuela's domestic affairs.

WSWS (2020-06-17). Outbreaks of COVID-19 in Brazil's meat processing plants and mines. wsws.org Clusters of coronavirus at large companies across the country threaten the lives of thousands of workers.