Left-wing presidents have come to power across Latin America, but while they all promise change, they face major hurdles. Inequality levels remain high, and growth has stagnated, with the annual GDP growth averaging 3.4% between 2011 and 2013 and just 0.9% from 2013 to 2019. Twelve of 19 Latin American countries are run by left-wing governments, but despite this, inequality remains a problem, with what Chile’s interior minister called levels of inequality that would never have been possible in Europe. According to a recent Ipsos Mori survey, many in the region remained fond of globalisation as countries in the area shift their attitudes to democracy.
The social and economic situation in Latin America is spurring a shift to the right. Brazil’s recent left-wing turn has been reversed by Jair Bolsonaro, El Salvador’s right-wing leader Nayib Bukele is popular, and a recent election for a body to rewrite the constitution in Chile was dominated by a far-right party. Nonetheless, the new glimmer of hope brought forth by newly elected left-wing presidents from Mexico to Brazil has an enviable environmental stance and wants bigger government. They have promised to reduce inequality through higher taxes on the rich, bigger welfare systems, and more state-funded healthcare.
These left-wing governments are becoming more protectionist and more determined to stop foreign exploitation of green resources, such as lithium. However, there are many differences between the left-wing governments, with some officials displaying concerns over climate change. The region needs higher growth, investment flows are tepid, and inconsistent policies have been driving off investors. There are major concerns about the region’s ability to fulfil the promises it makes.
Shelters in Chicago are struggling to house hundreds of migrants arriving on buses from the US-Mexico border, after it was revealed the city cannot afford to rent hotel rooms for all arriving immigrants and are pressing for more federal funding. The city's new Mayor, Brandon Johnson, reaffirmed a commitment to welcoming asylum seekers in his inauguration speech saying “there’s enough room for everyone." The scramble for housing in Chicago follows the end of COVID-19 border restrictions and a campaign of busing migrants to Democratic strongholds further north, including New York City.
US tells UN it will shield Venezuela humanitarian fund from creditors -sources
Reuters
23-05-18 20:00
The US has informed the UN that it will protect a proposed UN-run $3bn Venezuela humanitarian fund from creditors, removing a hindrance to getting the money flowing. The funds had been delayed as questions arose over whether donations were at risk of being seized by lenders to repay debt. The Biden administration clarified recently that the fund could operate within the US financial system and survive without fear of such action. The people familiar with the matter did not specify whether the assurance was communicated orally or in writing.
Mighty Heart's victory in the Prince of Wales Stakes yesterday kept the possibility of a rare three-year-old Canadian Triple Crown alive. The colt won the first leg, the Queen's Plate, on 29 August and can complete the job in the Breeders' Stakes at Woodbine on 24 October. In recent years, two fillies have won two of the three, but neither was able to cap the feat in the final leg. Mighty Heart was named after his owner/breeder Denny Andrews' charity which helps underprivileged children.
China is reportedly clamping down on the use of old vessels to ferry oil into the country. Both Titan, a 20 year-old tanker, and Ocean Peri, another ageing ship carrying Russian oil, were unable to unload cargoes in the Chinese port of Qingdao due to the stricter checks being implemented in Shandong province. Industry experts warn that there has been a surge in purchases of old tankers to transport sanctioned oil from areas like Iran, Venezuela, and Russia in recent times, with China's crackdown on these measures believed to have prompted greater scrutiny of older vessels.
Australian NBA player Dyson Daniels expects competition from veteran teammate Matthew Dellavedova to make the Boomers' team for the FIBA World Cup. Daniels joins a pool of elite guards, each with a chance of missing out on one of the 12 lucrative spots in the team. Despite the difficulty Daniels faces, the Coach of the side, Brian Goorjian, said the team could be the most talented Australian team ever assembled.
The connection between police defunding and anti-capitalist environmentalism has become apparent in the US after the deadly beating of a black man by five black police officers and the shooting death of an environmental activist in Atlanta. Numerous protests have been sparked across several cities with the overarching theme of systemic disruption in policing and environmentalism. Political ideology campaigns in these instances illustrate the desire for the elimination of the current systems that govern American society and the global economy. For instance, Defend the Atlanta Forest, a group that set up the “autonomous zone,” tweeted, “Police work for capitalism, to protect profit and bottom lines, not for us. It’s no coincidence that the funders of #CopCity (a new police training centre) are the major corporations & wealthy families of Atlanta.”
The connection between environmentalists and the free market is of a long pedigree, yet often overlooked. Capitalism’s notion of constant need for growth coupled with socialism’s poor track record for environmental management creates a stable ground for both ideologies to coexist. Indeed, common antagonism towards capitalism runs through both defunding the police and environmental movements.
It is key for the US to recognise that it is currently under attack at a systemic level. Until a peaceful and unified resolution can be reached, the American society will continue to face social and economic challenges stemming from standoffs between different political ideologies.
The US is set to end the Title 42 policy, which allows for the immediate expulsion of those considered to have crossed the southern border illegally (1 May 2022). Critics warn this could worsen the country's border crisis with some suggesting opening more legal pathways for migration, while others have argued the Biden administration should pass new laws similar to Title 42 to allow for the expedited expulsion of illegal migrants, particularly in the absence of significant reforms to the ailing immigration system.
Legislation seeking to address the national security threats of Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok has flaws that risk leaving the app's dangers unresolved, according to Will Hurd, a cybersecurity consultant and former US congressman. The Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology Act provides the commerce secretary with extensive powers to tackle cyber risks posed by transactions with China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, Cuba and Venezuela. While supporting the act, Hurd said that it could create problems working alongside the authority of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
More migrants were released into the U.S. over the past week than deported or sent back home, according to unpublished data obtained by The Washington Post. While the DHS said that it sent more than 11,000 migrants, including families with children, to more than 30 countries during the past week, which was accompanied by daily news releases describing increased deportations, US border authorities were also making efforts to stem crowding inside detention cells and ease pressure on agents and overcrowded holding facilities, by releasing thousands of migrants while their immigration claims are pending in courts. In the week since the Biden administration lifted pandemic restrictions at the southern border, the number of migrants crossing illegally has dropped significantly. However, migrants are now being released into the country, to await a court date, as the average time someone spends in Border Patrol custody is three to four days at busy crossing points.
Mexico is temporarily keeping migrants from the US border and transferring people from its boundary with Guatemala to relieve the pressure at its border cities, following the US’s decision to drop restrictions on seeking asylum at its Mexican border last week. Efforts to move people away from the country’s horizon with the US reportedly left shelters in northern border cities below capacity, while facilities were full or overstretched in southern Mexico. Although migrants face transportation problems with “lateral movements to other parts of the country” in some cases, transfers are being made “to relieve local shelter saturation”, according to an internal government presentation that was obtained by Reuters. Some migrants reported that new measures reduced their options to seek international protection, however, and the UN Refugee Agency expressed concern last week about the impact on facilities in Mexico City and southern Mexico.
The Houston Astros beat the Oakland Athletics 5-1 for their fifth straight victory, with Kyle Tucker hitting a two-run homer in the sixth inning and José Altuve making his season debut. The Astros have won eight of their last nine games and Altuve went 0 for 4 with a walk. The defeat sees the A's with a 10-36 record - their worst start through 46 games since Baltimore began 1988 at 9-37.
China's Russian oil imports rise in April but Saudi is top supplier
Reuters
23-05-20 06:29
China's crude oil imports from Russia rose 8.6% from a year earlier in April. Deliveries from Russia, including seaborne shipments and supplies via pipelines, totalled 7.1 million tonnes or 1.73 million barrels per day, according to customs data. While large private integrated refiners have joined smaller independent plants in snapping up cheaper Russian oil, overall crude oil imports in China have dropped 16% from March due to weaker orders from smaller importers affected by Beijing's measures to stem the coronavirus outbreak.
Anti-regime activists in Canada accuse Cuba of using YouTube channel to intimidate them
CBC
23-05-21 08:00
Thirteen Montrealers have claimed that the Cuban government has started a campaign of harassment to prevent them from protesting against one-party rule on the island. A social media account – operating under Col. Pedro Orlando Martínez, head of the political wing of Cuba's National Revolutionary Police, according to a Cuban defector – is spreading detailed allegations against the 13 men, accusing them of trafficking cocaine from Colombia to Canada. Critics of the government have argued that this is a tactic employed by the Cuban regime as a way of attacking the reputation of Cuban-Canadian protestors. Online criticism is banned in Cuba, with government officials able to prosecute cyber-terrorism.
The allegations have already resulted in one individual being called for an interview with the Cuban Ministry of the Interior, where he was filmed being interrogated by a Colonel Luis Morales. Morales and his men suggested that the interviewee was involved in drug trafficking and financing anti-government YouTubers. Canada was perceived as unable to protect the individuals named in the campaign. Critics argue that the campaign is an attempt to discredit Cuban-Canadian protestors by "attacking your reputation any way they can".
Chinese citizens living in Florida have sued the state over a new law blocking citizens of China and several other countries from owning homes and land. The lawsuit stated that the state law, which comes into effect July 1, is unconstitutional and violates a federal law prohibiting discrimination in housing. The Florida legislation also prohibits most citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Iran, Russia and North Korea from owning property within 10 miles of any military installation or "critical infrastructure facility" such as a power plant, airport or refinery.
A group of Chinese nationals in Florida has filed a lawsuit against the state over a law which bans Chinese citizens from purchasing property around military installations or "critical" infrastructure sites. The American Civil Liberties Union is supporting the legal challenge, saying the law violates the US Constitution and the Fair Housing Act and will have a disproportionately negative impact on Asian buyers. The move is part of a wider concern around foreign investment in US agricultural land, with six states enacting restrictive laws this year alone.
