La Moncloa vs. La Casa Rosada
Unfortunate statements made by an anodyne Spanish minister disqualifying Javier Milei generated a diplomatic crisis that blew up some political bridges between Buenos Aires and Madrid. It was to be expected considering the personality of—or the character created by—the Argentine president in terms of communication, with a language without filters, disregarding all "political correctness". At an internal event of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility of Pedro Sánchez's government suggested that Milei had appeared on TV after the ingestion of a certain [drug].
He said also that "[there are] very bad people who, being themselves, have reached the top", with direct references to the Argentine and Donald Trump. From the Casa Rosada, they sent fire back through the Atlantic Ocean. "[Pedro Sánchez] has more important problems to deal with, such as the corruption accusations falling on his wife, a matter that led him to even evaluate his resignation", the Argentine government stated.
— Oficina del Presidente (@OPRArgentina) May 3, 2024
But the liberal leader went much further, exposing that Sánchez "has endangered the unity of the Kingdom, making pacts with separatists and leading to the dissolution of Spain; he has endangered Spanish women by allowing illegal immigration by those who threaten their physical integrity; and he has endangered the middle class with his socialist policies that only bring poverty and death". The Argentine libertarians even went so far as to "implicitly" take sides with Vox in the electoral bid.
"We Argentines chose to change the model that brought us misery and decadence. The same model applied by the Spanish Socialist Workers Party. We hope that the Spanish people soon will choose again to live in freedom" (the emphasis is mine). From La Moncloa they responded without adding fuel to the fire: "The Government of Spain categorically rejects the unfounded terms of the communiqué issued by the Office of the President of the Argentine Republic, which do not correspond to the relations of two brotherly countries and peoples".
El Gobierno de España rechaza rotundamente los términos infundados del comunicado emitido por la Oficina del Presidente de la República Argentina, que no se corresponden con las relaciones de dos países y pueblos hermanos.https://t.co/sT8AmwDUPr pic.twitter.com/aWRc51xaVt
— Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores, UE y Cooperación (@MAECgob) May 4, 2024
Evo Morales summons his electoral base
From his stronghold in Cochabamba, the former Bolivian president has said that "by hook or by crook" he will run for the party "Movimiento al Socialismo" in the next presidential elections. MAS is split in two, with one faction supporting current president Luis Arce, and another group supporting Morales. However, the latter has another problem because in his case there is a sentence of the highest judicial authority that stated that indefinite reelection is not a human right, an argument that Evo appealed to bypass the country's Magna Carta. These days Arce's bloc is holding a conclave to cement the position of the current head of the Great House of the People. Morales called his followers to take to the streets and demonstrate against the President's followers and the judicial structures that attempt against his electoral effort.
Evo Morales (source).Mexico
The state prosecutor's office in Baja California said there was a "high degree of probability" that three bodies in an "advanced state of decomposition" found in a 15-meter-deep correspond to three tourists—two Australians and an American surfing enthusiasts—who have been missing since April 27. Authorities base the assessments on "their clothing and some characteristics such as long hair and some specific physical descriptions". The FBI and the Australian consulate are supporting the operations of the Mexican authorities in the case.
Authorities recovering the bodies (source).At the site, which is difficult to access due to its rugged nature, another body was found "that had been [there] for some time". Just over eight years ago two other Australian surfers were murdered in Baja California, while last year a criminal organization kidnapped four Americans, killing two of them. In the last few hours, there has also been a strong debate over the denunciation by social activists that they found a clandestine cemetery in the Aztec capital itself, which was later disqualified by the state authorities. The latter defended—acting with controversy and dubious speed—that the remains were not human. Meanwhile, in Chiapas—again Chiapas—an attack against a mayoral candidate left two dead, one of them the candidate's son, and some wounded.
Here and there
Further south, in Guatemala, four people in a motorcycle cab were killed this Saturday. The bodies were left strewn on the pavement near the means of transport they were using. Last year there were around 4,360 murders in the Central American country, where impunity reigns.
In the northwestern city of Port-de-Paix, Haiti, four prisoners died and eight escaped. One prisoner pretended to be unwell and after his "recovery" refused to return to his cell. While the officers were managing the event, some inmates invaded the exit door. "Faced with this incident, the police are not standing idly by... All police stations are mobilized," said the authorities.
Three Colombian Army soldiers were killed in clashes with a division of the Central General Staff, a splinter group of the FARC-EP that continued to rise in rejection of the historic guerrilla's Peace Accord signed in Havana some eight years ago. They are not fools at all, observing the record.
And this is all for our report today. I have referenced the sources dynamically in the text, and remember you can learn how and where to follow the LATAM trail news by reading my work here. Have a nice day.
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