International
Bolsonaro welfare plan shakes Brazil markets, sparks resignations
AFP
A proposal by Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro to dramatically increase welfare payments to the country’s underprivileged groups a year ahead of elections shook markets Thursday and triggered resignations at the Ministry of Economy.
The program could cost the government an extra 30 billion reais ($5.3 billion dollars) at a time when inflation is already high and exceed the government spending ceiling established by law.
The government announced earlier this week that it was setting up a new social welfare program to replace the “Bolsa Familia” system created by the leftist administration of former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
The new program would start in November with a 20 percent increase in benefits paid to nearly 17 million Brazilians in need.
Coming just a year before a presidential election in which Bolsonaro is widely expected to be defeated by Lula da Silva, the move was seen by several analysts as a pre-election sweetener.
The measure rattled investors. The Sao Paulo stock market fell 2.75 percent, while the price of the US dollar rose to 5.65 reais, its highest level in six months.
Concerned by the plan, several economic officials quit their posts, including top treasury officials Bruno Funchal and Jeferson Bittencourt, authorities said.
Bolsonaro denied that his project, whose source of funding has not been specified, is against the law.
“There are around 16 million people registered with the ‘Bolsa familia’, and though the financial aid reaches an average of 192 reais, many people receive 40, 50, 60 reais. What we are saying is: 400 reais for all,” he said Thursday.
Bolsonaro also offered to “help” 750,000 truckers with compensation for increases in the price of diesel.
The president made the announcements at a time when his popularity is at its lowest level since he took office in 2019, and amid high inflation and high unemployment.
International
Federal immigration agents kill man in Minneapolis, sparking protests and outrage
Federal immigration agents shot and killed a 37-year-old Minneapolis man during an operation on Saturday, authorities confirmed, sparking new protests and deepening outrage over federal immigration enforcement in the city.
The victim, identified as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, was a U.S. citizen and intensive care nurse who worked at a Veterans Affairs hospital and was widely respected in his community, according to colleagues and news reports.
Officials said the shooting occurred during a targeted immigration raid in south Minneapolis. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) described the incident as an act of self-defense by agents who believed the man posed a threat.
However, videos reviewed by multiple outlets and eyewitnesses show Pretti holding a phone and not displaying a weapon before being pepper-sprayed, tackled by agents and then shot multiple times, raising serious questions about the official account.
The killing comes amid a broader federal immigration enforcement operation in the city and follows another controversial shooting in early January in which Renée Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, was fatally shot by an ICE agent, leading to widespread protests and criticism of federal tactics.
International
Delcy Rodríguez seeks political agreements after Maduro’s ouster
Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, on Saturday called for “reaching agreements” with the opposition to achieve “peace” in the country, which the United States says it now controls following the military operation that removed President Nicolás Maduro from power.
Rodríguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president, assumed interim leadership after the leftist leader was captured on January 3 during a military incursion that left nearly 100 people dead.
In her first public statements since taking office, Rodríguez signaled a shift in the strained relationship between Caracas and Washington, while also committing to the release of a “significant number” of political prisoners.
“There can be no political or partisan differences when it comes to the peace of Venezuela,” Rodríguez said during an address in the coastal state of La Guaira, broadcast on state television VTV.
“From our differences, we must speak to one another with respect. From our differences, we must meet and reach agreements,” she added.
The day before, Rodríguez instructed the head of Parliament — her brother Jorge Rodríguez — to convene talks with various political sectors in the country aimed at achieving “concrete and immediate results.”
International
Bogotá and Quito Seek Dialogue After Tariffs and Power Cut Escalate Tensions
Bogotá and Quito will hold an emergency bilateral summit next week amid recent developments that have strained relations between the two countries.
Tensions escalated this week after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa unexpectedly announced a 30% tariff on Colombian imports. Colombia responded with a reciprocal measure, imposing the same tariff on around 20 Ecuadorian products and suspending electricity exports to Ecuador.
Aware that electricity imports are critical to easing Ecuador’s recent energy crises, Quito further imposed a 30% tariff on the transportation of Colombian oil through its territory.
However, recent statements from the Ecuadorian government suggest that dialogue between the two sides has intensified in recent hours. Ecuador’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gabriela Sommerfeld, confirmed that active conversations are under way.
In Colombia, segments of the business sector have welcomed the prospect of negotiations. The National Business Council (Consejo Gremial Nacional, CGN), for instance, urged both governments to restore commercial relations, warning that the dispute “puts jobs and regional economic stability at risk.”
Federal immigration agents kill man in Minneapolis, sparking protests and outrage
Delcy Rodríguez seeks political agreements after Maduro’s ouster
Bogotá and Quito Seek Dialogue After Tariffs and Power Cut Escalate Tensions
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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