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Ibero-American Business Meeting to begin this Thursday

Ibero-American Business Meeting to begin this Thursday
Photo: Ibero-American General Secretariat

March 23 |

The XIV Ibero-American Business Meeting, which is organized in the framework of the XXVIII Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government, will begin this Thursday afternoon at the Sansouci Convention Center in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

According to its organizers, the event will have the slogan “Together for a fair and sustainable Iberoamerica” and will be held until Friday. On this day, several heads of State and Government are expected to participate, who will discuss the topics on the agenda, in addition to awarding the Ibero-American Quality Award and handing over the Presidency of the Council to Ecuador.

The topics to be discussed will be investment, sustainability, climate action, social commitment and new financing models, and connectivity and digital transformation. Tourism, infrastructure, energy and ecological transition and gender equality will also be discussed.

At this meeting, the report “Latin America Economic Outlook 2022” will be presented and five panels will be held, led by ministers from the Dominican Republic and other personalities from the region.

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The activities will be led by the Vice President of the Dominican Republic, Raquel Peña, and the Ibero-American Secretary General, Andres Allamand. The event will be attended by more than one thousand businessmen from the region.

Meanwhile, the Ibero-American Summit will be inaugurated this Friday and is expected to be attended by 14 presidents, two vice presidents, two prime ministers and 22 foreign ministers, who will adopt important instruments aimed at guaranteeing the development of the region.

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International

Spanish Government Targets ‘Big Tech Impunity’ in AI Image Scandal

The Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, announced Tuesday that his government will ask prosecutors to investigate X, Meta and TikTok over the alleged creation and distribution of sexually explicit images involving minors generated through artificial intelligence.

In a post on X, Sánchez said the government would formally request that the Public Prosecutor’s Office examine potential crimes that these platforms may have committed by allowing or facilitating the use of AI tools to generate such content.

“These platforms are harming the mental health, dignity and rights of our children,” Sánchez wrote, adding that “the impunity of the giants must end.”

In recent weeks, the Spanish leader has publicly clashed with tech figures such as Elon Musk and Pavel Durov after announcing on February 3 his intention to ban social media access for minors under the age of 16.

Sánchez also signaled plans to amend legislation so that platform executives could be held legally responsible for certain violations committed on their websites.

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According to figures released Tuesday by the government, one in five young people in Spain — particularly girls and teenage minors — say they have experienced the circulation of AI-generated fake nude images of themselves while underage.

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International

Father Faces Murder Charges in Georgia School Shooting Case

Colin Gray, 55, appeared in court Monday facing charges of murder and involuntary manslaughter in connection with the September 4, 2024, shooting at Apalachee High School, carried out by his son, Colt.

Two 14-year-old students and two teachers were killed, and nine others were injured in the shooting in Winder, Georgia. Colt Gray, who was 14 at the time and is now 16, has been charged as an adult and is awaiting a trial date.

During opening statements, prosecutors alleged that Gray gave his son the AR-15-style rifle used in the attack as a Christmas gift in 2023, despite prior warnings that the teenager had threatened to carry out a school shooting.

According to the FBI, local authorities interviewed Colt and his father in May 2023 after receiving anonymous reports about online threats made by the teen.

“This case is about this defendant and his actions—allowing a minor in his custody to have access to a firearm and ammunition after being warned that the minor intended to harm others,” said Brad Smith, the Barrow County prosecutor.

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Defense attorney Brian Hobbs told jurors that Colin Gray was unaware of his son’s intentions and had sought help for the teenager’s declining mental health.

School shootings remain a recurring issue in the United States, where firearms outnumber people and regulations governing the purchase of even high-powered, military-style rifles are relatively permissive.

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Central America

Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat

Guatemala’s attorney general, Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States over corruption allegations, lost a key vote on Monday in which a public university selected two of the 10 magistrates for the country’s highest constitutional court. However, she could still seek a seat through another nominating body.

The election of five full magistrates and five alternates to the Corte de Constitucionalidad (CC) is taking place gradually over more than two months and is considered crucial in the ongoing struggle for control of Guatemala’s judiciary, which critics say has long been influenced by a political and economic elite accused of corruption.

According to results announced at a press conference, the governing council of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC) rejected Porras, who had applied as either a full or alternate magistrate, and instead chose two candidates aligned with the university rector. The vote was held at a hotel in Antigua, about 35 kilometers from the capital.

Despite the setback, Porras — whose term as attorney general ends on May 16 — could still be nominated to the Constitutional Court by the Corte Suprema de Justicia, which appoints two magistrates. The remaining six are selected by the president, the bar association and Congress.

“It’s always a possibility,” the 72-year-old lawyer said days earlier when asked by reporters whether she would seek nomination through another institution if she lost the USAC vote.

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Porras has been sanctioned by Washington and the European Union for allegedly attempting two years ago to block the inauguration of President Bernardo Arévalo and for pursuing legal actions against anti-corruption prosecutors, judges, journalists and social leaders since taking office in 2018.

The USAC vote was controversial because most members of the university’s governing council are serving beyond the expiration of their terms. Students, academics and social activists staged protests against Porras’ candidacy.

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