Opposition On Shaky Ground As Piñera Assumes Chile’s Presidency

A series of powerful aftershocks, the largest measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale, rolled through central Chile March 11, putting a natural exclamation point on what was already a historical event for the South American country – the swearing in of billionaire business Sebastian Piñera as president.

Pinera Takes The Helm Of Quake-Rattled Chile

Two decades of leadership by the center-left Concertacion coalition came to an official end March 11, when Sebastian Pinera, a conservative billionaire businessman and onetime senator, donned Chile’s presidential sash for the first time in what turned out to be a literally earth shaking event.

Ortega Government Firm On Total Abortion Ban

The Nicaraguan government continues to back a total ban on abortion despite routine complaints from human rights groups that say the policy–updated in 2006 to eliminate all exceptions–is discriminatory and unnecessarily puts the lives of women and girls in jeopardy.

Energy Hungry Nicaragua Opts For Big Hydro Dam

In an effort to diversify its heavily fossil-fuel-dependent electricity sector and at the same time meet rising demand, Nicaragua is putting its eggs in the hydroelectricity basket, opting for conventional large-scale dams despite growing international awareness about their social and environmental drawbacks.

Chile’s Billionaire President Gets A Raise

Mo money mo money: new president gives himeself a pay boost

Chile’s billion dollar man, Sebastian Piñera, has a US$30 billion dollar problem on his hands. That’s the estimated price tag of damage caused by the monster 8.8-magnitude earthquake that wreaked havoc on Chile Feb. 27, less than two weeks before Piñera was inaugurated president.

El Salvador: President Funes To Fight Crime With Guns, More Cops And Phone Taps

When former television journalist Mauricio Funes assumed El Salvador’s presidency last June (see NotiCen, 2009-06-04), he inherited responsibility for what was already one of the country’s most violent nations. Since then, the killings have only increased, forcing the leftist leader–the first for El Salvador in two decades–to employ a series of strong-arm tactics that include more police, more guns, and telephone eavesdropping.

Massive Quake Strikes Chile Just Ahead Of Presidential Handoff

Earthquake devastated coastal towns like Constitucion

As Chile digs out from the massive Feb. 27 earthquake, the largest to hit the South American country in a half century, political divisions exacerbated by the recent elections continue to lurk just below the surface.

Chile’s Bachelet Bows Out

Adoring supporters bid the popular president farewell

Following an inauguration ceremony Thursday that was marked by a quick and almost theatrical succession of powerful aftershocks – the largest measuring 7.2 on the Richter – new Chilean President Sebastian Piñera jumped immediately into action.

“We Need Food. We Need Diapers”

The shoreline in Constitucion after Chile's Feb. 27 earthquake and tsunami

The damaged highway connecting Santiago to the south-central regions hardest hit by Saturday’s monster 8.8-magnitude earthquake in Chile is now open, but help is slow to arrive for the disaster zone’s desperate survivors.

The Balcony On Barroso

A view from the balcony, October 2006

By the time I’d Greyhounded, hiked and chicken-bussed my way to Santiago, my backpack was down to about half-full. The few belongings I’d started the two-month journey with had since dwindled to a couple of T-shirts, a pair of jeans, some horribly ugly basketball shoes and a handful of books.