Stories about Spanish from January, 2009
Chile: Review of the Opera Viento Blanco al Municipal
Marcelo Aliaga of Bloggeando la Vida [es] reviews the opera Viento Blanco al Municipal, which is based on the tragedy suffered by Chilean soldiers because of harsh weather conditions in...
Mexico: Payment for Favorable Press Coverage
The Mexican press is in crisis, according to JC Cortés Cordoba of Cargamento [es]. In addition to security concerns, he laments the fact that many journalists are receiving money to...
Mexico: Monterrey Bands at SXSW
Bands from the city of Monterrey, Mexico will be well represented at the annual South by Southwest music festival to be held in Austin, Texas, writes Issa Villarreal of We...
Bolivia: Convincing Others to Vote “No” on New Constitution
Bolivians will head to the polls on January 25 to decide whether or not to approve the draft of the new Constitution. With ten days go, early polling indicates that the "Yes" side will emerge victorious, partly because it has the full weight of the national government. However, the opposition, led by the governors of 4 states, as well as some other unlikely opponents, are doing everything they can to convince others to vote "No."
Peru: Changing Indigenous Last Names to Avoid Discrimination
In Peru, some citizens see the necessity to change their last names, especially those that are typically indigenous, such as from “Quispe” to “Quimper,” as a way to avoid discrimination...
Guatemala: More Cell Phones Because of Deregulation
Luis Figueroa of Carpe Diem [es] writes that more Guatemalans, especially the poor, have cell phones now because “the deregulation and privatization of the telecommunciations industry democratized telelphone services.”
El Salvador: Metrobus Proposal by ARENA Mayoral Candidate
Rafael Monge is very intrigued by the Metrobus program proposed by ARENA mayoral candidate Norman Quijano in San Salvador [es], which would help alleviate traffic issues in the capital.
Dominican Republic: Far Behind Other Latin American Countries
Even though the Dominican government is implementing 536 informational technology training centers across the country for those citizens who have little knowledge of computers, Joan Guerrero writes that the country...
Costa Rica: Taking Advantage of Disasters to Make Money
During the recent earthquake in Costa Rica, a helicopter company charged 1700 dollars to rescue trapped tourists. Juan Carlos Hidalgo writes that at first he was disgusted by high fee,...
Costa Rica: Cancelling the Palmares Festival
Fusil de Chispas [es] asks whether the famous Palmares Festival in Costa Rica should be cancelled because of national mourning for the victims of the recent earthquake.
Colombia: No Smoking in Closed Public Spaces in Bogotá
It's been more than a month since a law went into effect that prohibited smoking in closed public spaces in Bogotá, Colombia and Diana of La Urbi y El Orbe...
Colombia: President Uribe to Receive US Medal of Freedom
Outgoing U.S. president George W. Bush plans to award Colombian president Álvaro Uribe with the Medal of Freedom. Adam Isacson of Plan Colombia and Beyond criticizes the selection and wishes...
Spain: Global Voices Lingua Partner Nominated for Web Award
Many of the Global Voices Lingua sites have been partnering with other media websites to exchange RSS headlines as a way to reach more readers in more languages. Recently, Global Voices in Spanish has collaborated with Periodismo Ciudadano, which was nominated as "Best Internet Project" in the Las Mejores Miradas competition sponsored by Spanish television.
Dominican Republic: Remembering Eduardo Brito
Eduardo Brito was a famous baritone from the Dominican Republic, who passed away in 1946, and even the National Theater bears his name. However, Roció Díaz of Monaco [es] writes...
Ecuador: The Women's Network of Loja
Voces Lojanas [es] describes the work of the Women's Network of Loja, which has been working for the past ten years with housewives to teach them skills, as well as...
Venezuela: Do the Actions of the Chávez Government in Support of Palestine Reflect the Views of the People?
In Venezuela, the conflict in the Middle East is a little closer to home due to the actions of the government of President Hugo Chávez. In addition to the explusion of the Israeli ambassador in Caracas, there have been other moves by the government and its supporters indicating that Chávez has come out strongly in favor of Palestine and against the actions of Israel. However, some bloggers' opinions indicate that the government's point of view may not speak for the entire country.
Guatemala: Powerful Images of War Victims Leave Some Uncomfortable
Capturing images on film is one way to ensure that the collective memory does not forget about a country's history. When that country's history includes grusome events, those images can become powerful, yet uncomfortable reminders of the past. In Guatemala, a couple of photographers have become involved in documenting and representing images from the armed conflict that took place for 36 years.
Costa Rica: 6.2 Earthquake leaves nationals and tourists stranded
A 6.2 Earthquake that was felt throughout Costa Rica, with the epicenter in Vara Blanca only 35 Km. away from the capital city of San José. In the Central Valley, damages consist of cracks and damaged goods fallen from shelves, however, the situation near the epicenter is devastating, as mountainsides collapsed and landslides caused flooding. It has yet to be estimated how many possible victims, although 3 deaths have been confirmed.
Bolivia: Reduction of Gas Sales to Brazil
The Brazilian government has reduced the volume of gas purchased from Bolivia Mario Durán of Palabras Libres [es] thinks that this may cause the government to dip into the international...
Costa Rica: Map Indicating Damaged Areas by Recent Earthquake
A 6.2 Richter scale earthquake has hit Costa Rica. Jaguar del Platanar [es] posts a Google mashup map indicating sites that have suffered damage.
Cuba: Interview with Blogger Miriam Celaya
Miriam Celaya is a Cuban blogger, whose blog Sin Evasión [es] is celebrating its one year anniversary. She started writing under the pseudonym "Eva González," but six months later she decided to use her real name. In this interview with Claudia Cadelo, she talks about how she started blogging, the decision to leave her pseudonym behind, and about her participation in the recent blogger gatherings on the island.