Author: Ariela Ruiz Caro

Barbados agreement and U.S. meddling in Venezuela

March 20, 2024

The confirmation by the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) on January 16 of the disqualification of the candidacy of the media leader of the opposition in Venezuela, María Corina Machado, for the 2024 presidential elections, has been presented by the U.S. government -and the press that echoes it- as the cause of a strong shake-up in the agreement reached at the dialogue table between the government of Nicolás Maduro and part of the opposition, grouped in the Unitary Platform, last October 18 in Barbados. The ruling of the TSJ does not violate the Barbados Agreement at all.

Acuerdo de Barbados e intromisión de Estados Unidos en Venezuela

February 19, 2024

La confirmación del Tribunal Supremo de Justicia (TSJ) de inhabilitar la candidatura de la mediática lideresa de la oposición en Venezuela, María Corina Machado, para las elecciones presidenciales de 2024, ha sido presentada por el gobierno estadounidense como causante de un fuerte remezón en el acuerdo alcanzado en la mesa de diálogo entre el gobierno de Nicolás Maduro y una parte de la oposición, agrupada en la Plataforma Unitaria en Barbados. El fallo del TSJ no viola en absoluto el Acuerdo de Barbados.

Chile: Handing over power to those who defend Pinochet’s constitution

June 3, 2023

The results of the election on May 7th to form the 51 members of the Constitutional Council who will finalize the drafting of the new Constitution represent a defeat for the government of President Gabriel Boric and for all those, not necessarily identified with left-wing parties, who believe that the 1980 Constitution should be replaced.

Chile: La entrega del poder a quienes defienden la Constitución de Pinochet

May 26, 2023

Los resultados de la elección el 7 de mayo para conformar a los 51 miembros del Consejo Constitucional que culminarán la redacción de la nueva Constitución, representan una derrota para el gobierno del presidente Gabriel Boric y para todos aquellos, no necesariamente identificados con partidos de izquierda

CHILE: WHAT COMES AFTER THE REJECTION?

March 8, 2023

One week after the Chilean citizens overwhelmingly voted to reject the text of the new Magna Carta in the plebiscite on September 4 (62% to 38%), the leaders of the political parties in Chile, with the exception of the far-right Republican Party of Sebastián Katz, met to outline a new constitutional process. They agreed to designate a completely new body, elected by popular vote, in charge of drafting the new text, although the number of people that will integrate it is not yet known.

The Removal of Pedro Castillo, Repression and Political Crisis in Peru

January 31, 2023

After being besieged relentlessly throughout his 16 months in office, Pedro Castillo was removed from the presidency on December 7 by Peru’s national Congress after he announced a gutting of the institutional order. Castillo’s attempt to dissolve Congress was followed just hours later by the move to “vacate” him, the third attempt during his term, and the first successful one.

If Biden Isn’t All That Great for Latin America, Trump is Far Worse

January 6, 2023

Two major developments can be inferred from the results of the November 8, 2022 mid-term elections in the United States. First, the voters did not punish Joe Biden after his first two years as president as the pre-election polls had predicted they would.  Consequently, Donald Trump’s political standing has diminished along with the legitimacy of his leadership role in the Republican Party.