Noboa calls for foreign military bases
Sept. 17, 2024
Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa promised to seek changes to the constitution to allow foreign military bases to be established in the country. Ecuador's constitution has prohibited the presence of foreign military bases or installations for military purposes on Ecuadorean territory since 2008, reports Reuters.
“In a transnational conflict we need a national and international response," Noboa said n a video recorded at a Manta military base formerly operated by the U.S. In January, in the midst of a surge in criminal violence, Noboa declared Ecuador was fighting an internal war against drug trafficking gangs.
Noboa is running for reelection in February (he won a truncated term last year following snap elections) and yesterday’s announcement is seen as an attempt to be seen as a decisive and active leader, despite the ongoing gang violence in Ecuador, according to the BBC.
Noboa submitted the proposed constitutional amendment to the Constitutional Court, which must approve the change before it can be voted on by the National Assembly, reports Infobae.
More Ecuador
Ecuador's government announced a series of eight-hour nightly power cuts, citing a severe drought which has caused water levels to plunge, affecting hydroelectric plants. (Reuters)
Venezuela
A fact-finding mission on Venezuela, commissioned by the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council, flagged an unprecedented wave of repression in Venezuela following the disputed July presidential election. The response of the authorities has thrown the country into one of its most “acute human rights crises in recent history” warned the report released yesterday. (Al Jazeera, Associated Press)
Press watchdog groups describe an unprecedented government crackdown on the Venezuelan media, reports the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Maduro has retained his grip on power — if he succeeds in starting a new mandate in January, “the result will be a radicalized government with a smaller, tighter-knit core that seeks consolidation as a new hegemonic authoritarianism in the region. … The scenario poses a dilemma to Venezuela’s opposition: Persist in the electoral struggle or consider new ways of confronting the regime,” writes Benigno Alarcón Deza in Americas Quarterly.
Venezuela’s main opposition coalition called on the U.S. to cancel the licenses that allow Chevron and other energy companies to operate in Venezuela — hoping to pressure President Nicolás Maduro to negotiate a transition from power, reports the Associated Press.
Brazil
A mayoral candidate for São Paulo, José Luiz Datena, attacked his opponent, Pablo Marçal, with a metal chair during a televised debate, reports the Washington Post.
Marçal, a right-wing influencer, had referred to allegations of sexual misconduct against Datena, a former TV presenter, saying was “not even man enough” to follow through on a supposed threat to slap Marçal, reports the Associated Press.
Marçal is locked in a three-way tie for first place in the polls to lead São Paulo. The first round of voting is scheduled for Oct. 6, reports the New York Times.
Brazil is going through a wave of “climate terrorism,” which capitalizes on the high temperatures and low humidity to set large areas on fire damaging people's health, biodiversity and destroying forests, according to Climate Change Minister Marina Silva. (Mercopress)
Fires
Brazilian firefighters battled flames spreading through Brasilia National Park, yesterday. The blazes have enveloped the Brazilian capital in flames, the latest wildfire in a country experiencing an historic drought, reports the Associated Press.
At least fifteen people have been killed by wildfires in Peru since July and more than 3,000 hectares of cultivated land and natural areas have been scorched, reports the Associated Press.
Peruvian Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzen called on farming communities to stop burning grasslands in Andean and Amazonian areas that have sparked deadly wildfires, reports Reuters.
Cuba
Cuba's government slashed by a quarter the weight of its subsidized ration of daily bread. It’s the latest scarcity the midst of extreme shortages of food, fuel and medicine, shortfalls that have pushed a record-breaking exodus of Cuba’s citizens, reports Reuters.
Regional
The International Monetary Fund is aiming to make a decision on whether to change its policy of charging big borrowers extra fees — called surcharges — by next month, reports Bloomberg. The burden, which has topped about $6 billion, is being carried mainly by a handful of countries including Argentina, Egypt and Ukraine, according to IMF data compiled by the Center for Economic and Policy Research.
Argentina
In the midst of growing clashes with airline unions, Argentine President Javier Milei decreed the aviation sector an "essential service" and ordered that airlines maintain at least 50 percent of flights in the event of work stoppages, reports AFP.
Currency woes are hindering Argentine scientists’ efforts to develop key isotope Lithium-6, which could have nuclear applications, reports the Buenos Aires Times.
Migration
Mexico has ramped up a policy of bussing migrants to the south of the country, temporarily thwarting their path north. This year officials have bused around 10,000 migrants a month to the south, roughly double the figure last year, reports the Washington Post.
El Salvador
A journalistic investigation published by Prensa Comunitaria details a plan by El Salvadoran government officials to mount an espionage operation against journalists, news outlets, and political opponents. Journalist Héctor Silva Ávalos said he obtained access to eight hours of recorded conversations between Alejandro Muyshondt, a former national security advisor to President Nayib Bukele, in meetings with senior administration officials, reports El Faro.
Coca
An Indigenous business in Colombia, acting, it says, “in defense of the coca leaf,” is asking the country’s government to revoke Coca-Cola’s century-old trademark on the word “coca.” The mechanism has been used “abusively” by the Coca-Cola Co., it said in a statement, and should be rescinded. (Washington Post)
A WOLA podcast features Kendra McSweeney and Fritz Pinnow, part of a team investigating a new trend: the emergence of coca cultivation in Central America. They discuss the environmental and market conditions driving coca cultivation in Honduras and Guatemala and find that the region competitive advantages over Colombian coca growers, such as more favorable growing conditions.
Bolivia
Former Bolivian president Evo Morales called on supporters to take to the streets in protest against his political rival and former ally, current President Luis Arce, who hours earlier accused Morales on national TV of trying to overthrow him. (Associated Press)