BBC: Two former military leaders have gone on trial in Argentina, accused of overseeing the systematic theft of babies from political prisoners. Jorge Videla and Reynaldo Bignone are accused of kidnapping some 30 children whose parents died or disappeared during the 1976-83 military rule.

BBC Thousands of people in Honduras have joined a demonstration against rising criminal violence. Dressed in white as a symbol of peace, the protesters marched in silence through the northern city of San Pedro Sula.

CSM, (Nicaragua): Despite an outcry over the allegedly fraudulent presidential bid, early polls show Mr. Ortega is favored to win the November election. And given Nicaragua's bleak political panorama, the Sandinista strongman is increasingly considered the least-bad option here - at least by the country's sizable poor population that has benefited from new social programs and government handouts.

The Fundamentals of ALBA: Interview with Executive Secretary Amenothep Zambrano:  There are statistics that say that ALBA countries have eliminated poverty for 11 million people and have gotten 3.5 million people out of illiteracy. How is that statistic distributed amongst the various countries?...

Colombia Reports: Colombia's State Council condemned state intelligence agency DAS on Tuesday for the 1994 abduction and murder of five former M-19 guerrillas. The high court ordered the state to pay $233,600 and integral reparations out of court to the families of murdered M-19 rebels Julio Edgar Galvis Quimbay, Raul Gutierrez Guarin, Enan Rafael Lora Mendoza, Fredy Humberto Guerrero and Aide Malaver.

Look at this crap!  Whatever one's opinion of former Brasilian President Lula Da'Silva, you get the distinct impression from US bureaucrats and pundits that they deeply dislike him; I would even venture to call it a RACIST attitude:

IAD: "Brazil's OUTSIZED global aspirations and its newly acquired diplomatic weight were on full view in Tehran last May."

Outsized!?  I mean really!  You can almost imagine the dude muttering in the background to "put that ni**er back in his place!"

File the following under "You just can't make this stuff up!"

Colombia Reports: The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) removes Colombia from its watch list of countries with a drug trafficking problem, El Espectador reported Tuesday.

...and in case you actually believe it:

Washington Post Foreign Service , Saturday, January 22, 2011:  Colombia is still the No. 1 producer of cocaine, much of which passes through Mexico en route to American consumers. Colombian drug gangs still battle it out over cocaine routes while guerrillas engage security forces in a conflict now in its 47th year.

...or can you say the following two sentences in the same breath?

BBC: The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) has dropped Colombia from its list of countries requiring special observation.  It said Colombia remained the world's biggest producer of cocaine but had made progress in its war on drugs.

Bloomberg: H yundai Motor Co. will begin construction of its first plant in Brazil as South Korea's largest carmaker expands factories in emerging markets to meet rising demand. Hyundai is investing $600 million in the factory in Piracicaba, Brazil, which will have an annual capacity to build 150,000 vehicles, the company said in a statement today. Production of a small car will start in November 2012, it said.

LIMA (Dow Jones)--Officials from Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru said in Lima Friday they would work to advance electricity interconnection between their countries. At a press conference they said steps would include identifying and developing the infrastructure necessary to establish an "electricity corridor," as well as beefing up bilateral accords for electricity interchanges.

Americas Society's Weekly Roundup: Calderón Visits DC, Cuba Delays Layoffs, Ortega Nominated Again.


"Beware of the man who does not talk, and the dog that does not bark." Cheyenne