Maduro welcomes papal interest in Venezuela mediation

Yahoo – AFP, April 30, 2017

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro welcomes Pope Francis' offer for
Vatican mediation (AFP Photo/Juan BARRETO)

Caracas (AFP) - President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday welcomed an offer by Pope Francis for Vatican mediation in crisis-torn Venezuela but opposition leaders rebuffed the overture.

The pope's call for a "negotiated solution" came in response to waves of protests by Venezuelans demanding new elections to pull the country out of a downward spiral.

At least 28 people have died in protests since they began April, and hundreds have been arrested.

"Dramatic news on the worsening of the situation in Venezuela keeps coming in with numerous deaths, injuries and prisoners," the pontiff said before a crowd of 70,000 attending weekly prayers in Saint Peter's Square.

"United in sorrow with the families of the victims... I issue a sincere appeal to the government and all sectors of Venezuelan society to avoid all forms of violence henceforward," said the pontiff.

Urging respect for human rights, Francis said the Vatican was willing to act as a mediator under "clear conditions."

Maduro responded on his weekly program on state VTV television, pointing a finger of blame at the opposition.

"If I say dialogue, they flee in horror. They don't want dialogue. Yesterday they lashed out at Pope Francis. I respect what Pope Francis is saying," Maduro said.

He charged that the protests were an attempt to plunge the country into chaos, take over power and "impose a counter-revolution on Venezuela."

"There are no words for what they have done since April," he said.

The opposition walked away from talks in December, accusing the government of failing to fulfill promises to set up a timetable for elections and free political prisoners.

Julio Borges, president of the opposition controlled National Assembly, said Sunday he would send a document to Pope Francis reaffirming the opposition's demands centered on general elections.

"The pope says some very interesting things. In the first place that, if there are no guarantees, there is no possibility of moving forward here," he said.

Saturday, former presidential candidate Henrique Capriles said dialogue might be nice but not involving Spanish ex prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. The former PM, who took part in an earlier mediating team, was not neutral, according to Capriles.

Sunday, a day before Workers' Day, Maduro increased the minimum monthly wage by 60 percent to the equivalent of 90 dollars at the official exchange rate; or 15 at the black market rate.

Venezuela suffers from one of the world's highest rates of inflation -- forecast by the IMF to come in at 720 percent this year.

Mexican lawmakers OK marijuana for medicinal purposes

Yahoo – AFP, April 29, 2017

A man smokes marijuana during a demonstration in front of the Mexican
Senate building in Mexico City on September 28, 2016

Mexican lawmakers gave final and overwhelming approval Friday to a bill legalizing medical marijuana after a national debate on narcotics policy in a country mired in brutal drug violence.

The legislation also allows use of marijuana for scientific research, as well as production and distribution of pot for those two stated purposes.

The vote in the Chamber of Deputies was 371 in favor and seven against with 11 abstentions.

The bill will now go to President Enrique Pena Nieto for his signature and then publication in the official government gazette, the lower house said in a statement.

The Senate approved the bill by a wide margin in December.

With Friday's vote, Mexico will join several US states and other nations in Latin America that allow cannabis for medical uses.

Pena Nieto proposed legalizing medical marijuana in a major policy shift in April after his government organized forums to discuss changes to the laws.

The bill fell short of demands from some lawmakers and civil groups that argue that a wider legalization of marijuana use could help the country reduce drug-related violence.

But proponents said it was a major step that will address Mexicans' need of an alternative medical treatment.

The bill authorizes the Health Ministry to design regulations for the use, import and production of pharmaceutical products made from cannabis or marijuana, including tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the plant's main psychoactive ingredient. Products with one percent concentration of THC will be allowed.

Growing marijuana for medical and scientific purposes will not be punishable.

A family in northern Mexico became a symbol of the push to legalize medical marijuana last year when the parents of a young epileptic girl won a court battle to import a cannabis-based treatment to stop her daily seizures.

The girl's father, Raul Elizalde, told AFP then that the legislation represented "great progress," but that it should make it easier for patients to acquire THC by letting them buy it without a prescription.

In a separate major case in November 2015, the Supreme Court authorized four people to grow and smoke pot for recreational purposes.

Although Pena Nieto is opposed to a broader legalization of marijuana, he has proposed increasing the amount of the drug that can legally be possessed for personal consumption to 28 grams (one ounce) from five grams.

Dutch boat 'Women on Waves' in Mexico to offer women legal terminations

A Dutch sailing boat offering legal abortions has taken up a position off the west coast of Mexico. It is offering free, legal medical terminations for the victims of sexual violence.

Deutsche Welle, 23 April 2017

The Women on Waves boat arrived off the coast of Guerrero state last week on the invitation of more than 40 women's organizations who are campaigning for abortion to be legalized throughout the country.

On Thursday the ship sailed out to international waters where two women received safe, medical abortions. The women were given abortion pills and remained under observation for several hours before returning to shore. The female crew does not perform surgical abortions.

#MujeresEnLasOlas en #Guerrero!! Linea Aborto 755 9800548
#HagamosOlas
#WomenOnWaves pic.twitter.com/ep6iGFPsCQ

— Women on Waves (@WomenOnWaves_) April 22, 2017

Speaking in Ixtapa on Friday, President of the Women on Waves group, Rebecca Gomperts said access to safe abortions was a matter of "social justice" in Latin America.

Abortion has been legal in the capital of Mexico for the last ten years. "It's absurd that according to geography, where women live in Mexico determines ... if they can access a legal and safe abortion," said Regina Tames, head of Information Group on Reproductive Choice (GIRE), a Mexican women's rights group.

"Access to abortion in cases of rape is really quite limited," Tames said.

The Women on Waves boat was cleared by Mexican authorities to stay offshore, registered as a private vessel. During the boat's last voyage to Guatemala it was detained by the army and expelled. It was unable to carry out any terminations at that time.

The ship has previously been to Ireland, Morocco, Poland, Portugal and Spain.

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Clashes at Venezuela protest against 'dictatorship'

Yahoo – AFP, Javier TOVAR, April 6, 2017

Venezuelan opposition activists react to tear gas shot by the police during
protests against the government of President Nicolas Maduro on April 6,
2017 in Caracas (AFP Photo/JUAN BARRETO)

Caracas (AFP) - Violence erupted for a third straight day at protests against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday, escalating tension over moves to keep the leftist leader in power.

Opposition protesters chanting "No more dictatorship!" hurled stones at National Guard riot police who blocked them from marching on central Caracas.

The police responded with tear gas and water cannon, prompting chaos on the eight-lane highway where some 5,000 protesters had tried to break through army barricades.

There were no immediate reports of injuries.

Scores of protesters were wounded at violent protests on Tuesday and Wednesday in the volatile oil-exporting country, where a political crisis is raising concerns about democracy and stability.

Street protests are among the few options left for the center-right opposition to increase pressure on Maduro, whom they blame for the country's descent into economic calamity.

Negotiations have failed and he has resisted international pressure, while retaining backing from the military and control over most state institutions.

The opposition has taken to the streets accusing pro-Maduro Supreme Court judges of attempting an internal "coup d'etat" for attempting to take over the legislature's powers last week.

The socialist president's supporters held counter-demonstrations on Thursday, condemning Maduro's opponents as "imperialists" plotting with the United States to oust him.

Maduro's camp accused the leading opposition figure Henrique Capriles of changing the route of the protest march toward the city center in order to provoke the security forces.

"Capriles is seeking a few deaths to set the country on fire," Maduro ally Freddy Bernal said.

The president himself has accused the opposition of seeking to "fill the streets with blood" to destabilize his government.

Genreal view of the Venezuelan National Assembly during the discussion on 

Supreme Court judges removal process, at the National Assembly in Caracas 

on April 5, 2017 (AFP Photo/FEDERICO PARRA)

'Coup' charge

Last week, Venezuela's Supreme Court -- which has staunchly backed Maduro through the crisis -- issued rulings transferring the opposition-majority National Assembly's legislative powers to the court and revoking lawmakers' immunity from prosecution.

The court later reversed the rulings after an international outcry, but kept in place other measures limiting the assembly's powers.

Opposition lawmakers launched an effort to impeach the judges on Wednesday.

But it looks unlikely to succeed since removing the judges depends on other state institutions loyal to the government.

"They have carried out an ongoing internal coup," senior opposition deputy Henry Ramos Allup told the assembly.

On the streets, protesters said they want to get rid of Maduro.

"We're tired of this dictatorship," said Yoleidy Rodriguez, a 22-year-old university student. "We're not afraid."

Protests, injuries

Scores of people were hurt on Tuesday when riot police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse a protest march in Caracas, opposition groups said.

On Wednesday, similar clashes broke out in the western city of San Cristobal, the scene of deadly riots and looting last year, and in the city of Valencia.

The wave of protests has revived fears of broader unrest in Venezuela, where 43 people were killed during riots in 2014.

The country has undergone three attempted military coups since 1992.

Venezuelan opposition activists receive assistance after clahing with the police

 during protests against the government of President Nicolas Maduro on 

April 6, 2017 in Caracas (AFP Photo/FEDERICO PARRA)

Election pressure

Maduro is resisting opposition efforts to hold an early vote on removing him from power.

Venezuela's next general election is due in December 2018. Regional elections last December were postponed indefinitely, and no date has been set for local polls due this year.

The collapse in energy prices has sapped the country's revenues, prompting shortages of food, medicine and basic goods along with a surge in violent crime.

The opposition blames Maduro for the economic crisis. He says it is due to a capitalist conspiracy.

Although he has retained the crucial support of the army so far, that could be changing, political analyst Luis Salamanca said.

"At this point, Maduro can't say he's sure of anyone's support," he said, "including the armed forces."

Related Article:

"The End of History" -  Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll)

" ... South America and the New Energy

South America is starting to consider the same thing. My partner was just there and I allowed him to see the energy of the potential future in that land.

I would like to paint history for you regarding South America. There was a time when every single country had a dictator. Less than 15 years ago, they had failing economies and currencies that were worthless. Trouble and strife and killings were the norm. Marauding drug lords openly killed in the streets and corruption was everywhere. Even the politicians created fear and many disappeared overnight, never to be seen again. Today it isn't that way. Today, there is an ongoing stability as one country after another brings a new, positive, stable energy to their cultures. So, without a concentrated effort by any kind of multi-national leadership or direction, how could this have changed in only 15 years?

Within the entire continent, there's only one dictator left. What's happening? If you think that's amazing, there is a move afoot that you're not going to hear about yet. But they're discussing it right now, so let me tell you what they're thinking. "What would happen if we took these countries and eliminated the borders?" Sound familiar? They're talking about it. In back rooms where nobody is reporting it, they're saying, "What about a plan of eventually having one currency from the top of Columbia to the bottom of Chile? And we would be strong and we would be unified." And dear ones, I'm here to tell you, that it's going to work, and it might not take 50 years. Soon the one dictator will be gone, and the unification can begin.

There's a shift happening on this planet ...."

Paraguayan activist killed in a night of political riots

Yahoo – AFP, 1 April 2017

Paraguay's riot police clash with protesters against the Congress building in
Asuncion, on March 31, 2017

Police apparently shot dead a Paraguayan opposition political activist Saturday in a raid after rioters stormed Congress in anger at a contested electoral reform, officials said.

Authorities said 30 people, including some opposition leaders, were injured in unrest in the capital after senators approved the bill in a secretive vote.

Opposition leaders denounced the vote Friday as a "parliamentary coup," saying it could clear the way for a return to dictatorship in the landlocked South American nation of 6.8 million people.

Riots, fires, arrests

Furious protesters broke into the Congress late Friday, ransacking lawmakers' offices and starting fires after senators approved a proposal to allow the president to run for re-election.

Right-wing President Horacio Cartes is seeking to amend the constitution to enable himself to run for office again in 2018 after his current term ends.

The measure requires approval in the lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, which delayed a vote originally set for Saturday.

Paraguayan protesters set fire to offices as they stormed the Congress

building in Asuncion, on March 31, 2017

Rodrigo Quintana, 25, leader of the opposition Liberal Party's youth branch, was shot and killed as police searched the party's premises in Asuncion, party leader Efrain Alegre said.

The interior ministry said in a statement that "the authorities are investigating the circumstances of the death, which is presumed to have occurred at the hands of a member of the National Police."

It added: "We are going to establish fully what happened, and those responsible will be brought to justice."

Police raided the party offices after activists took refuge there during a night of riots, Alegre said.

The injured included three lawmakers, according to firefighters and an opposition senator. Police said 211 people were arrested, some of them minors.

To chants of "Dictatorship never again!" hundreds of protesters clashed with riot police, who used mounted units and water cannon to disperse them.

Calm was restored around 0400 GMT Saturday. Large numbers of police remained on alert.

Protesters rally outside the Paraguayan Congress in Asuncion, on March 31, 2017

Rubber bullets

Cartes's allies in the upper house of the legislature passed the bill on Friday, sidestepping resistance from opponents.

The vote took place in Senate offices as the main assembly hall was occupied by senators from the Liberal Party, opposed to the reforms.

Opposition senator Luis Wagner said those injured included Senate speaker Roberto Acevedo, lawmaker Edgar Ortiz, who was hit in the mouth by a rubber bullet fired by police, and Liberal leader Alegre, who lost to Cartes in the 2013 presidential elections.

Acevedo has challenged the bill in the Supreme Court, arguing it is unconstitutional.

The measure was scheduled to be considered Saturday in the Chamber of Deputies, where the president has a majority.

But after the rioting, the president of the lower house, Hugo Velazquez, announced the vote was postponed, saying he was shocked by the violence.

"I hope that calm and harmony will return," Velazquez said in a televised message.

Paraguay's President Horacio Cartes has been in office

since 2013

History of dictatorship

Paraguay has banned presidents from re-election since 1992 to avoid a return to dictatorships like that of General Alfredo Stroessner, who ruled from 1954 to 1989.

Removing the ban would also allow left-wing former president Fernando Lugo to run again. He held power from 2008 to 2012, when he was removed after an impeachment trial.

If the latest measure is approved by the two houses, it is expected to be put to a referendum within three months.

The opposition condemned the move as a "parliamentary coup" and called for resistance.

"It is a dictatorial plan by Horacio Cartes with the complicity of Ferdinand Lugo," said Senator Carlos Amarilla.

'Barbarians'

Cartes blamed the violence on "a group of Paraguayans embedded in politics and the media aimed at destroying democracy and political and economic stability."

"Democracy is not won or defended by violence," he said on his Twitter account.

"We must not allow barbarians to destroy the peace, tranquility and welfare of the people."

Related Article:

"The End of History" -  Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll)

" ... South America and the New Energy

South America is starting to consider the same thing. My partner was just there and I allowed him to see the energy of the potential future in that land.

I would like to paint history for you regarding South America. There was a time when every single country had a dictator. Less than 15 years ago, they had failing economies and currencies that were worthless. Trouble and strife and killings were the norm. Marauding drug lords openly killed in the streets and corruption was everywhere. Even the politicians created fear and many disappeared overnight, never to be seen again. Today it isn't that way. Today, there is an ongoing stability as one country after another brings a new, positive, stable energy to their cultures. So, without a concentrated effort by any kind of multi-national leadership or direction, how could this have changed in only 15 years?

Within the entire continent, there's only one dictator left. What's happening? If you think that's amazing, there is a move afoot that you're not going to hear about yet. But they're discussing it right now, so let me tell you what they're thinking. "What would happen if we took these countries and eliminated the borders?" Sound familiar? They're talking about it. In back rooms where nobody is reporting it, they're saying, "What about a plan of eventually having one currency from the top of Columbia to the bottom of Chile? And we would be strong and we would be unified." And dear ones, I'm here to tell you, that it's going to work, and it might not take 50 years. Soon the one dictator will be gone, and the unification can begin.

There's a shift happening on this planet ...."