Stories about Latin America from March, 2009
Honduras: Linux Tour in San Pedro Sula
Norman summarizes the Linux Tour in San Pedro Sula, Honduras [es]. A team of open-source software users are traveling around Central America to provide workshops and lectures on the possible uses of this type of software.
Paraguay: A Possible Agrarian Reform
An agrarian reform in Paraguay is possible writes Liam of Políticamente Incorrecto [es], but will take a lot of work and if the state corrects its errors.
Cuba: Antúnez Surrounded
Uncommon Sense and Octavo Cerco share their thoughts on reports that the Cuban police “have surrounded the home of Cuban dissident Jorge Luis García Pérez (Antúnez), who for more than a month has [led] a hunger strike to protest abuses by the Castro dictatorship.”
Cuba: Detainees Freed
The previously detained Cuban photographer and musician have been released – Sunrise in Havana has the details.
Bolivia: Foreign Tourists Visiting San Pedro Prison
Foreign tourists had been visiting the inside of the San Pedro prison [es] in La Paz, Bolivia until an investigation put a stop to the unusual attraction writes Willy Jordan.
Colombia: Are Politicians Making the Most Out of Twitter?
In the last few weeks, as the race for the May 2010 presidential elections has started, two presidential candidates have decided to join the Colombian 'twittosphere'. But, after some initial skepticism, Colombian twitterers show that both candidates (or staffers within their campaigns) are failing to reach the intended audience correctly.
Cuba: Reports of Detainment
Both Uncommon Sense and Sunrise in Havana blog about reports that a photographer and a musician have been detained in Cuba “after offering their show of solidarity in Placetas for political activist Jorge Luis Garcia Perez (Antunez).”
Cuba: The Black Cuban Woman
Havana Times republishes a mainstream media news article on a black, female Cuban blogger who writes about gender, sexual diversity and racism.
Honduras: Personal Opinion on President Zelaya
Ardegas of Born in Honduras provides his personal overview of his “controversial” president, Manuel Zelaya.
Bolivia: Day of the Sea Remembrance
“One of the first things they teach you in school is that we lost the ocean on March 23, 1879. Well they don't they say we lost it, but they say the Chileans stole it,” writes Vania Balderrama of Capsula del Tiempo [es] about the reasons behind the Day of...
Brazil: A Private Nature Reserve – Is It Possible?
Society demands green action and Brazil’s policy that motivates land onwers to join the National Conservation Units Systems is having a great impact on society. Under the program known as RPPN, land onwers receive investments and credit too. Land use is restricted to research, environmental education and ecotourism. Blogs are one of the tools used to report experiences and document the work being carried out to keep Brazil green.
Cuba: Three Strikes
“The president of the Writers and Artists Union of Cuba…affirmed that all Cubans can travel, except those who have a debt to the justice system…I have never been charged in court yet I am condemned not to leave this Island”: Generation Y‘s exit permit has once again been denied.
Ecuador: Barcamp and Sunday Morning in Quito
The Ecuadorian digital community has been organizing and participating in various events in the capital city of Quito. On March 21, the first BarCamp took place, which followed a web entrepreneurial meeting called Sunday Morning held in February. Participants and organizers alike comment on the events and reflect on what they took away from meeting with like-minded people.
Cuba: Interview with Blogger Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo
Claudia Cadelo interviews blogger Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo about his participation in the Cuban blogging community, which came to his side when his book "Boring Home" had originally been accepted by the state publishing house, but later rejected. He believes that the decision was made partly by his blogging activity. Many of the island's bloggers supported him during this difficult time and even organized an alternate book launch.
El Salvador: Blogger and Twitter Gathering
Bloggers and users of Twitter from El Salvador are planning a get-together called Twittblogs on March 29 in El Salvador writes Queith [es]. The event strives to be inclusive of “those users of Twitter that don't have blogs and the bloggers that don't use Twitter.”
Brazil: The snake blogger
Amazonian blogger Altino Machado [pt] received an impromptu visitor last week: a snake came to see what he was blogging about. Check the pictures out.
Colombia: Against the Release of Guerrilla Fighters
Charly from Carlos Cuentero [es] and Alejogalvis from Censura20 [es] show their outrage for the release of two high profile FARC members from prison, who will become “promoters of peace”, according to the government. Charly says “it's a mockery for the victims of these criminals and those who have worked...
Cuba: Travel Permit
“I will sit in the crowded lobby of the mansion at 17th and K for only two reasons: to inconvenience them with my pigheadedness and to claim my rights. To show them the visa document that authorizes my entry to many parts of the world, while ‘they’ curb my travel”:...
Barbados: Tourism's Future
“A real need exists for tourism to have a clearer image and for it to be a beacon that pulls many parts of the economy along”: Living in Barbados wonders about the future of the island's tourism offering.
Honduras: President Zelaya Wants Referendum
Aaron Ortiz of Pensieve [es] catches a speech by Honduran President Mel Zelaya who said he would like a referendum to modify the Constitution allowing him to remain in power. However, he writes that chances are slim that it would pass.
Brazil: Controversial demarcation of indigenous land confirmed
Five indigenous tribes of Brazil have won a 30-year battle to reclaim 1.7 million hectares of their ancestral land in Roraima in the Amazon on the border to Venezuela and Guyana. On March 19, the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) ruled on the integrity of the Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land, keeping its size and borders intact as a continuous area, disappointing ranchers and rice farmers who coveted the land.
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