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Venezuela outraged by murder of a former beauty queen

By Nick Miroff, Wednesday, January 8, 5:55 PM

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelans kill each other by the tens of thousands every year, making this South American nation one of the world’s most violent.
But the slaying of former Miss Venezuela Monica Spear at the hands of roadside bandits Monday night has shaken this country like no other recent crime. Beauty queens are as revered here as top athletes and movie stars, and the government of President Nicolás Maduro is scrambling to contain the public outrage.
Disgusted Venezuelans berated the government on social media and in street protests Wednesday, while Maduro summoned the country’s governors and big-city mayors to an emergency meeting in the capital.

AMERICAS

Prison Violence Brings Scrutiny to State in Brazil

By SIMON ROMERO JAN. 8, 2014

SÃO PAULO, Brazil — A series of violent episodes at an overcrowded

prison, and video showing inmates gloating over three decapitation victims

during a riot there in December, are focusing scrutiny on the deteriorating

security situation in Maranhão State, the bastion of one of Brazil’s most

powerful political families.

Nearly 60 inmates were killed in 2013 at the Pedrinhas prison in

Maranhão, an impoverished state governed by Roseana Sarney, the

daughter of former President José Sarney. A judge investigating conditions

at Pedrinhas said in December that the leaders of criminal gangs operating

in the prison were raping inmates’ wives during conjugal visits.

Security forces tried to assert control at the end of December,

prompting a brutal response by some inmates, who apparently ordered

retaliatory attacks on Friday outside the prison walls. Gunfire was sprayed

at a police station and at least four buses were burned in the state capital,

São Luís. A 6-year-old girl who was aboard one of the buses died from

burn injuries.

LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN

4 January 2014 Last updated at 19:58 ET

Brazil: Criminal gangs set buses alight in Sao Luis

Criminal gangs in Brazil have set fire to four buses and attacked a police station in the north-eastern city of Sao Luis, authorities say.

They say the order for the attack came from gang leaders arrested at the notorious Pedrinhas penitentiary, where at least 59 inmates died last year.

"The attacks are in reaction to recent measures to curb jail violence," said the Maranhao state government.

A six-year-old girl who was inside one of the buses suffered severe burns.

December 14th, 2013

01:26 AM ET

Give capitalism a chance to change Cuba

By Fareed Zakaria

In the midst of the extraordinary spectacle of Nelson Mandela's funeral – in a stadium with some 90,000 mourners, including more than 90 heads of government – a small gesture caught the world's attention. President Barack Obama moved to greet Dilma Rousseff, the president of Brazil. On his way, he shook hands with the person to Rousseff’s right. The photograph of that handshake ricocheted around the world. Understandably, because the man Obama shook hands with was Raul Castro, president of Cuba.
Remember, the United States does not have diplomatic relations with Cuba, and has a tight trade embargo in place against the island nation. So, many wondered whether this handshake was the beginning of a great shift in policy.

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Uruguay votes to legalise marijuana production

By FRANCE 24 the 11/12/2013 - 07:03

Uruguay's Senate voted to legalise marijuana Tuesday, becoming the first nation in the world to oversee its production and sale. "The war against drugs has failed," said one senator, calling the bill an "unavoidable response" to that failure.

Uruguay's Senate approved legislation legalising marijuana on Tuesday, becoming the first nation in the world to oversee the production and sale of the drug with a law that ultimately aims to combat addiction and drug violence

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French police train Brazil for Olympic crowd control

By FRANCE 24 the 23/11/2013 - 17:14

French riot police, accustomed to managing up to 10 public demonstrations a day, are training their Brazilian counterparts in anticipation of widespread public protests at the 2014 World Cup and the Olympics in 2016.

French anti-riot police have begun training their Brazilian counterparts ahead of the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games, both of which are expected to provoke large demonstrations like those during the Confederation Cup held in Brazil in June, when millions protested against corruption and poor public services in the country.
“We are preparing ourselves early,” said Marcos Palermo, a Brazilian anti-riot police officer.
The Brazilian police force has come under criticism in the past for its violent handling of riots. With an average of up to 10 demonstrations a day in France, the French police are well positioned to run the training.
During Friday’s drills, FRANCE 24’s correspondent Delano D’Souza watched as several people posed as protesters, throwing tennis balls and coconuts at Rio’s anti-riot police  who, in turn, fired on the rioters with tear gas and rubber bullets.
French Police Captain Jean-Louis Savet explained that while Brazilian police did have experience working with security issues in the favelas, Rio de Janeiro’s crime-infested slums, the World Cup and the Olympics would present a different set of challenges.
“The way you work in the favelas is different from the way you work in large events,” Savet said.
 

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Source URL: http://www.france24.com/en/20131123-brazil-world-cup-olympics-french-police-train-riot

Latin America & Caribbean

18 November 2013 Last updated at 18:12 ET

Haiti clashes as protesters demand President Martelly resign

Protesters in Haiti have clashed with police as thousands rallied to demand the resignation of President Michel Martelly.

The police fired tear gas to try to disperse stone-throwing protesters in the capital, Port-au-Prince.
Haiti has recently seen a series of protest marches amid growing public anger over the cost of living and claims of high levels of corruption.
Meanwhile, Mr Martelly appealed for unity in the impoverished nation.
He took office two years ago promising a fresh start for Haiti, devastated by an earthquake in 2010.
But Haiti - which shares the Caribbean island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic - remains one of the poorest countries in the western hemisphere.
'Gunshots' On Monday, the protesters set up burning barricades of discarded tyres as they marched in the capital, demanding that Mr Martelly stand down immediately.

"We are moving forward to removing him from power and won't stop until he leaves," demonstrator Jean Daniel was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

A number of demonstrators hurled stones at the police, who responded with tear gas.
There were also reports that gunshots were fired in Port-au-Prince, but it was not immediately known whether there were any injuries.
A rival pro-Martelly rally was also held in the capital, and two sides later confronted each other by throwing rocks.
In the northern city of Cap-Haitien, a smaller opposition demonstration was organised.
Monday's protests were among the biggest since Mr Martelly took office two years ago.
Speaking in Cap-Haitien during a ceremony to mark Haiti's final battle before it secured independence from France in 1804, the president made an impassionate plea for political unity.
"If we didn't put our heads together, we wouldn't have had the Battle of Vertieres," he said.
"`If we didn't have our heads together, we wouldn't have a Haitian state.''
The former pop star vowed after his election victory to bridge the gap between Haiti's tragic past with the aspirations of a new generation.
But the opposition accuses him of wasting public money in luxury vehicles and international trips.
It also says the government has failed to hold legislative and local elections.
Mr Martelly denies the allegations, saying his government is addressing economic and political problems.

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Rival candidates both claim Honduras presidential win

By FRANCE 24 the 25/11/2013 - 12:21

The leading candidates in Honduras’ presidential election, conservative Juan Orlando Hernandez and leftist Xiomara Castro, both claimed victory late Sunday, risking a wave of new unrest in the impoverished nation.

Both leading candidates running for Honduras president late on Sunday declared victory, a move that observers fear could trigger new unrest in the impoverished Central American country.
After more than half the votes were counted, conservative Juan Orlando Hernandez held the lead with 34 percent, against 29 percent for leftist Xiomara Castro.
After the polls closed, however, both candidates rejoiced in their individual “wins”.
Castro, the wife of former president Manuel Zelaya who was ousted in a 2009 coup, said in a tweet, "based on exit polls that I have received from around the country, I can tell you: I am the president of Honduras."
In contrast, Hernandez on his end declared, "I will be the next president of Honduras.”
“I am going to do everything it takes to bring peace back to the people," he told reporters.
Candidates want to fight crime and poverty
Hernandez and Castro are vying to succeed President Porfirio Lobo, who was elected following a coup in a controversial poll boycotted by Zelaya's leftist allies.
Castro, 54, with the Libre Party, hopes to become the first female president of Honduras, the poorest country in the Americas after Haiti. An estimated 71 percent of the population lives in poverty.
Hernandez, the 45-year-old head of congress from the ruling National Party, is a law-and-order conservative who has vowed to use soldiers to control crime.
Honduras, with a population of 8.5 million, records some 20 murders a day -- the highest rate in the world, according to UN figures.
After declaring victory, Hernandez extended an olive branch to Castro, inviting her and Zelaya to work on a "national pact to improve life."
Hernandez said that he would also reach out to the other six presidential candidates so that "we can all work together" for the benefit of Honduras.
Claims of foul play
But ex-president Zelaya, who commands a strong following among labor and farmer groups, described it as a "theft" at the ballot box, claiming there had been "serious inconsistencies" in 20 percent of the polling stations and that "Xiomara [Castro] won the presidency."
"They are stealing the election from us," he said, adding his party would not recognise the official results and would announce a course of action on Monday.
Similarly, Libre vice-presidential candidate Enrique Reina claimed the results were "being manipulated" to favour Hernandez.
Salvador Nasrallah, a popular sportscaster and candidate of the Anticorruption Party who was in fourth place, also questioned the official returns.
“Our data do not match the official data that the system is transmitting,” he said.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP)
 

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Source URL: http://www.france24.com/en/20131125-honduras-vote-election-president-castro-hernandez

LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN

15 November 2013 Last updated at 06:40 ET

Brazil says Amazon deforestation rose 28% in a year

Brazil says the rate of deforestation in the Amazon increased by 28% between August 2012 and last July, after years of decline.

The government is working to reverse this "crime", Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira said.

Activists have blamed the increase in destruction on a controversial reform to Brazil's forest protection law.

Last year Brazil reported the lowest rate of deforestation in the Amazon since monitoring began.

The child soldiers who escaped Colombia's guerrilla groups

By Tom EsslemontBBC News, Colombia

Reporter Tom Esslemont met young boys trained by the Farc - Colombia's largest guerrilla group.

Continue reading the main story

Related Stories

• Colombia 'can reintegrate rebels'
• Q&A: Colombia peace talks
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The faded photograph on Yineth Trujillo's book case tells the whole story.

She stands at the back, looking tall and broad-shouldered next to her younger brothers and sisters.

In the photo she is 17 and has long dark hair. She's muscular, unsmiling, almost masculine. Her eyes are swollen.

"I had been crying all day," she tells me. "It was the first time I had seen my family in years. They had given me up for dead."

She is one of thousands of child soldiers to have demobilised in the last 15 years.

Most of them were recruited by Colombia's biggest left-wing guerrilla groups - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) and the National Liberation Army (ELN).

Two years before the picture was taken, Ms Trujillo had ceased to be a child soldier with the Farc, the largest of Colombia's left-wing guerrilla groups

LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN

16 November 2013 Last updated at 15:07 ET

Brazil banker Henrique Pizzolato flees to escape jail

An ex-director of the Brazilian state-run bank Banco do Brasil who has been convicted in a major corruption trial has fled the country to avoid jail.

Henrique Pizzolato, who also has an Italian passport, said in a letter he had fled to seek a fair trial in Italy.

On Friday the Brazilian Supreme Court issued 12 arrest warrants in connection with the case.

Eleven defendants have surrendered, including the chief of staff of ex-President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Last year, the Supreme Court convicted 25 politicians, businessmen and bankers over the "Mensalao" (big monthly allowance) case.

The scheme that used public funds to pay coalition parties for political support during the government of President Lula came to light in 2005.

President Lula was not implicated in the case.

'Media-free trial'

The first sentences were only handed down at the end of 2012.

Nearly a year later, on Friday, the Supreme Court issued the first 12 arrest warrants.

Pizzolato, an ex-marketing director of Banco do Brasil, was the only one who did not turn himself in.

He was sentenced to more than 12 years in jail for money laundering, embezzlement and active corruption.

His lawyer released a letter from Pizzolato and said he hoped to get another trial, free of media pressure in Italy.

"Unable to see a chance of having a trial free of political-electoral motivations... I have decided consciously and voluntarily to use my legitimate right to freedom to have a new trial in Italy, in a court that does not submit itself to corporate media impositions," the letter said.

Jose Genoino, a former president of the governing Workers' Party (PT), was the first to hand himself in to police.

He also released an open letter protesting his innocence and saying he considers himself a "political prisoner".

"With indignation, I abide by the decisions of the Supreme Court. What do the accuse me of? There is no evidence," Mr Genoino wrote.

Lula's former chief of staff, Jose Dirceu, who was sentenced to 10 years and 10 months, also surrendered in Sao Paulo.

Other high-profile convicted, such as the PT ex-treasurer Delubio Soares also handed themselves across the country.

All of the arrested were flown to Brasilia on Saturday.

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Toronto mayor vows to fight on despite stripped powers

By FRANCE 24 the 16/11/2013 - 06:27

Toronto city councillors voted to limit Rob Ford's powers on Friday but failed to subdue the defiant mayor, who refused to stand down from his post despite a string of sordid misdeeds, as his extraordinary saga continued to fuel worldwide interest.

Toronto city council voted to strip scandal-plagued Mayor Rob Ford of some of his powers on Friday but the embattled mayor, who has admitted to smoking crack cocaine while in office, promised to challenge the move in court as his extraordinary tale continues to garner worldwide attention.
With few legal mechanisms available to remove Ford from office, Toronto city councillors across the political spectrum have been searching for ways to curb the power of the populist mayor, who was elected in 2010 on a promise to save taxpayers' money but has since become a laughingstock.
Ford said he understood why councillors were voting to reduce his powers, but said he will nonetheless launch a legal challenge, even though it will waste the city's money in legal fees.
"If I would have had a mayor acting the way I've conducted myself, I would have done the exact same thing," he said of the council's vote.
"Obviously, in my situation I have to support myself, and I think anybody in my position would have done the same."

Latin America & Caribbean

3 November 2013 Last updated at 19:59 ET

Colombian navy in huge Caribbean cocaine haul

The Colombian navy has seized 1,450 kg (3,200 lb) of cocaine from a speedboat in the Caribbean, following a tip off by US anti-drugs agents.

Colombian officials say the boat had left the northern town of Manaure and was heading towards the Dominican Republic.
It was intercepted in international waters
Four Venezuelans and a Colombian have been detained and are being held in custody in Tampa, Florida.
They are expected to be charged with drug trafficking, Colombian police said.
The drugs allegedly belonged to Los Urabenos, which operates in northern Colombia.
Los Urabenos is one of the groups the Colombian government calls Bacrim, short for bandas criminales (criminal gangs).
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has made the fight against the Bacrim one of his government's priorities.
Speedboats are used by gangs trying to avoid surveillance as they transport illegal drugs produced in South America to Central America, Mexico and the United States.
In two joint operations last month, agents from the US, Colombia, Panama and the Dominican Republican seized 2,500 kg of cocaine in the region.

Latin America & Caribbean

7 November 2013 Last updated at 17:43 ET

Brazil wants answers about Google Street View programme

Brazil has demanded an explanation from internet giant Google about private wi-fi data allegedly collected while photographing for its Street View maps.

A court told the firm to present a reply by Saturday or face a daily fine of about $45,000 (£28,000) a day - up to a maximum of $450,000.
US and European courts have already fined Google for illegally harvesting data through the Street View programme.
Google says it has removed the data collection facility from the vehicles.
The decision by a court in the capital, Brasilia follows a complaint lodged by the Brazilian Institute of Computer Policy and Rights.
It based the allegation on similar cases in other countries and demanded that Google reveal if it also collected data in Brazil.
The Street View project cars are equipped with cameras and antennas to take 360-degree photos of streets and houses, which are later stitched up and posted as online maps.
Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte and other major Brazilian cities have been photographed by Google.
Earlier this year, Google agreed to pay a $7m (£4.3m) fine for collecting people's personal data without authorisation in the US.
In a settlement with 38 US states, the internet giant agreed to destroy emails, passwords, and web histories collected by Street View cars between 2008 and 2010.
Germany also fined the company 145,000 euros (£125,000) for illegally recording information.
The country's data chief called it "one of the biggest known data protection violations in history".

BBC © 2013 The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.

Insight: Chinese investors sour on Brazil, and projects melt away

 

 

 

 Fri, Nov 1 2013

 By Brian Winter and Caroline Stauffer
SAO PAULO (Reuters) - For Chinese investors, Brazil is no longer the promised land.
After making a big push into the South American giant in search of raw materials such as iron ore, as well as a promising market for their consumer goods, Chinese executives have grown frustrated with stagnant economic growth, heavy costs and what they see as a political and popular backlash against their presence.
As a result, Chinese investment is falling, and as much as two-thirds of the roughly $70 billion in projects announced since 2007 is either on hold or has been canceled, according to recent studies and interviews with Chinese and Brazilian officials.
The unexpected decline, which investors and analysts say has little hope of reversing itself anytime soon, will deprive Brazil's struggling economy of what once seemed like a sure-fire source of growth for years to come.
"The ardor for investment in Brazil is fading. Operating in Brazil is a huge challenge," said Zhang Dongxiang, chief executive of the Brazilian unit of Bank of China Ltd, one of China's four largest state-owned commercial banks.
In a rare interview in his Sao Paulo office that included some of the sharpest criticism of Brazil by any Chinese business leader to date, Zhang complained of growing hostility from the Brazilian public as well as "protectionist" policies passed by President Dilma Rousseff's left-leaning government.
"Public opinion sometimes seems to be against foreign investment ... as if it makes local industry less competitive," he said. "There are some antiquated ideas."
While some Chinese companies are succeeding in Brazil, he said, "many are having doubts."

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US ferrets out cross-border smuggling 'super tunnel'

By FRANCE 24 the 01/11/2013 - 12:10

A highly sophisticated tunnel linking warehouses in the Mexican city of Tijuana and the US city of San Diego has been discovered by authorities as part of efforts to crack down on underground drug smuggling.

Equipped with lighting, a ventilation system and hydraulically controlled steel doors, a tunnel built to smuggle drugs between the Mexican border town of Tijuana and the neighbouring US city of San Diego was no ordinary find for US drug enforcement and border security agencies this week.
The highly sophisticated drug-trafficking “super tunnel” was shut down Wednesday night by US federal authorities, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency announced on its website.
The passageway, linking a warehouse in southern San Diego to a Tijuana building about 80 metres from the border fence, zigzagged underground for about 500 metres and included an electric rail system, authorities revealed.
“It is the largest, most sophisticated tunnel uncovered along the southern border in two years,” ICE said in a news release with accompanying photos and a video.
The year-long work of “engineers and architects,” according to ICE special agent Derick Benner, the tunnel was built at an average depth of 10 metres, and was 120 centimetres high by 90 centimetres wide.
Eight tons of marijuana seized
In an enforcement operation related to the tunnel’s discovery and shutdown, San Diego Tunnel Task Force agents and local authorities seized more than eight tons of marijuana and 325 pounds of cocaine, marking the first time cocaine has been recovered in connection with a local drug tunnel.
ICE said the seized narcotics had an estimated street value of nearly US$12 million (8.9 million euros). Three people were also arrested along with the drug grab.
“This action is another huge setback for the Mexican cartels, which invest vast amounts of time and money to build them,” John Sandweg, ICE’s acting director said in a statement. The tunnel was dismantled before it was operational.
“[Cartels’] traditional routes are failing at this point. They're very desperate. They'll do anything they can to get into the US,” Bill Sherman, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)'s San Diego office, told the AFP news agency.
It was the eighth large-scale drug-smuggling tunnel discovered in the San Diego area since 2006. In the last five years, federal authorities have detected more than 75 cross-border smuggling tunnels, most of them in California and Arizona.

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Source URL: http://www.france24.com/en/20131101-drug-super-narco-tunnel-usa-mexico-san-diego-tijuana-marijuana