Weekly Roundup: Cuba's Missile Incident, Brazil's Social Network, Colombia's Most Influential People

In Chile, Opposition Candidate Gives up Presidential Bid

With four months remaining in Chile’s presidential race, conservative candidate Pablo Longueira stepped out of the running on July 17. Though the former economy minister won a June 30 primary for the center-right Alliance for Chile bloc, Longueira dropped his bid due to mental health reasons. Left-leaning Concertación nominee and former President Michelle Bachelet—who is already leading the polls—now has an “important electoral advantage,” Chilean political scientist Guillermo Holzmann told The Washington Post.

As the Alliance scrambles to appoint a new nominee, La Tercera evaluates three possible candidates: Andrés Allamand, who lost to Longueira in the primaries; Laurence Golborne, an independent candidate who dropped out of the race in April; and Evelyn Matthei, who many see as the right-wing’s competitive female counterpart to Bachelet.

Piñera Announces Another Political Reform Bill

After being taken by surprise by a congressional bill on electoral reform last week, Chilean President Sebastian Piñera announced July 12 that he would introduce his own reform proposal. Unlike the bill introduced in Congress, Piñera’s legislation would not increase the number of representatives and senators, but instead would redistribute congressional districts.

North Korea-Cuba Ties in Spotlight after Missile Incident

On July 16, Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli revealed that a North Korean ship traveling from Cuba was stopped in the Panama Canal with missile equipment found hidden inside sugar containers. The next day, Cuban officials said the ship was carrying obsolete Cuban missiles to be repaired in North Korea. UN investigators are due to inspect the ship in August. AS/COA’s Christopher Sabatini outlines what the incident means for Cuban-North Korean ties, as well as for U.S. policy toward Havana.

After Zetas’ Leader Captured, What’s Next?

Following the July 15 capture of Miguel Angel Treviño Morales—head of the notorious Zetas drug cartel—security expert Alejandro Hope outlines seven points on the arrest. While the government should be applauded for the capture, the Zetas violent methods are unlikely to end, he writes, and notes that the capture signals the Peña Nieto government is following a similar security strategy to that of prior administrations. Moreover, Hope suggests that the U.S. intelligence may have had a role in the Treviño’s capture, and he recommends that the kingpin should be extradited to the United States.

On July 16, a U.S. State Department spokesperson said that it has not yet determined if someone will receive the $5 million reward for Treviño’s capture.

In Mexico, Opposition Senators Discuss Electoral Reforms

On July 18, senators from the National Action Party and the Party of the Democratic Revolution introduced a political reform bill that seeks to limit powers of the executive branch and change electoral laws. The legislation would end presidential immunity, create a new position to head the president’s cabinet, and would require Congress to ratify members of the president’s team. The proposal also suggests alterations to electoral laws, such as implementing runoffs for presidential and gubernatorial elections and allowing for reelection of legislators and mayors.

Brazilian Government Creates Its Own Facebook

On July 17, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s administration launched a new social network in an effort to appeal to young people between the ages of 15 and 30. The site, called the Participatory Observatory for Youth, has been under development since 2011 but was launched just weeks after a wave of protests rocked Brazil. The network is inspired by Facebook, but will also include a data bank on education, social mobility, and other topics in order to inspire discussions on policy.    

Mending Fences: Santos and Maduro to Meet on the Border

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolás Maduro are scheduled to meet on their countries’ shared border on July 22, reports El Tiempo. The meeting comes after tensions arising from a May meeting between Santos and Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles. Colombia’s Semana outlines a number of issues the leaders will likely discuss, including the Colombian peace process, border trade, and increasing amounts of contraband flowing between the two countries.

Ranking Colombia's Most Influential People

Colombian news site La Silla Vacia published a list of the country’s top 10 most influential people, placing former President Álvaro Uribe at the top of it. President Juan Manuel Santos came in at spot number five, while journalists and media owners dominated much of the list. (H/T Pan American Post.)

Venezuelan Administration Admits to Withholding Crime Numbers

Venezuela’s government admitted to withholding crime statistics from the public, as Interior Minister Miguel Rodríguez says in an interview with El Nacional this month. Rodríguez explained he advocated for releasing figures—weekly crime numbers stopped being published in 2005—because homicide rates are declining. However, murder estimates from watchdogs and the UN suggest otherwise. “Any given year if you add up the percent reduction in crime that the government claims, you would end up with zero crime at the end of the year," security analyst David Smilde told InSight Crime. "They give very ethereal figures."

Peruvian Doctors and Sanitation Workers Strike amid Swine Flu Outbreak

Amid a swine flu outbreak that has claimed three lives, approximately 15,000 Peruvian medical professionals went on strike July 16 to demand pay increases. Sanitation workers have also taken to the streets, where 400 tons of trash a day could pile up during the strike.

Mercosur: Paraguay Approved to Regain Membership

On July 14, heads of state from the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) bloc met in Montevideo, Uruguay. At the summit, Venezuela assumed presidency of the group for the next six months. Leaders agreed to readmit Paraguay as a member on August 15, after President-elect Horacio Cartes takes office. Paraguay’s membership was suspended after the impeachment of former President Fernando Lugo in June 2012. Heads of state also decided that Paraguay will be granted Mercosur presidency next year. On July 16, Venezuela’s National Assembly approved Bolivia to join as the sixth member of the bloc.

LatAm in Focus in Rule of Law Ranking

The World Justice Project released its annual rule of law ranking this month, analyzing factors such as corruption, civil justice, and open government in 97 countries. In terms of criminal justice, Chile ranked highest in Latin America, while Venezuela ranked lowest globally. Chile and Uruguay had the highest numbers for order and security in the region. Bolivia ranked second-to-last of the countries ranked in terms of corruption levels.

U.S.-Cuba Migration Dialogue Resumes

In the first discussions of their kind in two years, a meeting between U.S. and Cuban officials took place July 17 to examine migration policies. The talks are also the first to take place after Cuba’s new migratory policies went into effect this year. One of the sticking points between the two countries is the U.S. “wet foot, dry foot” policy, which the Cuban government opposes. This policy allows Cubans who make it to U.S. soil to apply for residency, but requires deportations of Cuban migrants found in U.S. waters.

Changes on the Horizon for PetroCaribe?

In an article for Caribbean Journal, Latin American analyst Michael Edghill looks at the future of Petrocaribe, a Venezuelan energy bloc that provides preferential oil agreements to 17 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. The group held its eighth summit in late June, but focused largely on economic integration and poverty issues. “The omission of any details concerning the future of PetroCaribe should serve as a warning sign to those that have benefited from it that changes will be coming in the future,” writes Edghill.