In yet another worrying development, Russia
has flown two nuclear-capable Tu-160 bombers to Venezuela while Maduro spouts nonsense about defence and what-not. Of course, Venezuela suddenly
does have money to sign an agreement. I suppose that the agreement is that Venezuela allows Russia to use its air bases and naval bases (as Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu says) in exchange for Russia blocking anything that other countries might attempt in Venezuela via the UN or any other association or forum of which they might be members. After all, they are preparing some
joint exercises already.
Year-on-year inflation in Venezuela currently stands at 1.3 million %, but that is a minor concern compared to staying in power.
Meanwhile, in Bolivia, Evo Morales has once again managed to get the Supreme Court to make up an excuse for why re-election is illegal in everyone's case but his and there are ongoing violent protests with a few injured and one dead already (as of Monday night).
Nicaragua's government has
refused permission for a demonstration to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Jair Bolsonaro goes on in wrecking-ball mode.
First he denounced the fact that Cuba always retains its doctors' wages and holds their relatives hostage to prevent defection and called it a political stunt, in answer to which the Cuban government, ever helpful to the people, decided to withdraw its doctors from Brazil.
Now he's allowing his future Foreign Minister to
state that under his leadership Brazil will withdraw from the Global Compact for Migration (presumably to suck up to Donald Trump?)
It seems as if the man really is an epic-scale troll as I've always believed and will stop at nothing to score points.
But of course, a man like him building on a campaign against ‘corruption’ will, suddenly, have his son, state senator Flavio Bolsonaro, have
a driver who has unjustifiable amounts of money just sitting in his bank account, and the incoming first lady Michelle Bolsonaro also apparently under investigation.
If what Dilma Rousseff did is enough to have her removed from office then the same should apply to the current culprit.
Peru has had a referendum!
There were four proposals:
- reform of the hyper-corrupt judiciary (passed, 87.1%)
- campaign finance control (passed, 85%)
- limits on reelection of legislators at the national level (passed, 85.2%)
- parliamentary reform, going for bicameralism (rejected, 14.9%)
(the results aren't definitive; they're from exit polls, but with such a slant they are irreversible)
Logically, the judiciary and political reform were all opposed by Fujimori's followers in parliament so president Vizcarra had to force their hand and have a referendum.
