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Chile blacklists child support defaulters

Photo: Martin Bernetti / AFP

| By AFP | Miguel Sanchez |

Chile, where 84 percent of child support goes unpaid, on Friday introduced a national register of defaulters who now risk losing out on public sector promotions or loans or having funds frozen.

On the electronic register will appear the names of parents who have owed alimony for three consecutive months or five in total — a reality that affects an estimated 72,000 children in Chile, according to justice department data.

Women are the main breadwinners in nearly half of households in the South American country, and nine out of 10 unpaid support claims are filed by women.

In one notorious case, presidential candidate Franco Parisi, the third-place finisher in last November’s first round vote, campaigned long-distance from the United States, unwilling to risk returning home due to a lawsuit for unpaid alimony.

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Inscription on the register must be ordered by a family court.

Defaulters who are on it may be denied applications for a loan, according to family law expert Leonor Etcheberry.

A debtor selling a car or property will not be entitled to the proceeds, and can have money frozen in their bank accounts.

If it is a civil servant, the money owed can be taken off their salary and promotions will be frozen.

“The debtor will face serious financial consequences. If the person listed in the registry is going to get a driver’s license, the municipality official must consult this record and if their name is on it, it cannot be issued,” Supreme Court judge Gloria Ana Chevesich told reporters.

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Until now, collecting unpaid child support has been “an ordeal,” said Etcheberry. Many debtors avoided responsibility by selling their assets or putting them in someone else’s name.

To be removed from the register, a defaulter would have to pay off the debt or sign an agreement to do so.

International

Paraguay summons Brazilian ambassador over Itaipú espionage scandal

Paraguay summoned the Brazilian ambassador in Asunción on Tuesday to demand “explanations” and called its own representative in Brasília for consultations following Brazil’s acknowledgment of an espionage operation. The Brazilian government, led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, attributed the operation to the previous administration.

The surveillance effort aimed to uncover Paraguay’s position in now-suspended negotiations with Brazil regarding the pricing of electricity from the binational Itaipú hydroelectric plant, according to reports in the Brazilian press.

The Brazilian government “categorically denied any involvement in the intelligence operation,” stating in a Foreign Ministry communiqué on Monday that the espionage was carried out under former President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2023).

“The operation was authorized by the previous government in June 2022 and was annulled by the interim director of the (state intelligence agency) ABIN on March 27, 2023, as soon as the current administration became aware of it,” Brazil’s government asserted.

Paraguay’s Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Brazilian Ambassador José Antonio Marcondes de Carvalho was summoned “to provide detailed explanations” regarding the operation. Additionally, Paraguay recalled its diplomatic representative in Brasília “to report on aspects related to the intelligence activity conducted by Brazil regarding Paraguay’s government affairs.”

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Elon Musk to step down as government advisor, per Trump insiders

President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping down from his role as a government advisor, according to a report by Politico today.

Citing three individuals close to Trump, Politico states that the president is pleased with Musk’s leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he has implemented significant budget cuts. However, both have agreed that it is time for Musk to return to his businesses and support Trump from a different position outside the government.

A senior administration official told Politico that Musk will likely maintain an informal advisory role and continue to be an occasional visitor to the White House. Another source warned that anyone thinking Musk will completely disappear from Trump’s circle is “deluding themselves.”

According to the sources, this transition is expected to coincide with the end of Musk’s tenure as a “special government employee,” a temporary status that exempts him from certain ethics and conflict-of-interest regulations. This 130-day period is set to expire in late May or early June.

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International

Milei vows to make Argentina so strong that Falkland Islanders “choose” to join

Argentine President Javier Milei reaffirmed his country’s claim over the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina) and praised the role of the nation’s armed forces during a ceremony marking the “Veterans and Fallen Soldiers of the Malvinas War Day,” commemorating 43 years since the 1982 conflict with the United Kingdom.

Argentina continues to assert sovereignty over the islands, arguing that Britain unlawfully seized them in 1833.

“If sovereignty over the Malvinas is the issue, we have always made it clear that the most important vote is the one cast with one’s feet. We hope that one day, the Malvinas residents will choose to vote with their feet and join us,” Milei stated.

“That is why we aim to become a global power—so much so that they would prefer to be Argentine, making deterrence or persuasion unnecessary. This is why we have embarked on a path of liberation, working to make Argentina the freest country in the world and once again the nation with the highest GDP per capita on the planet,” he added.

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