Later today the United Nations will inaugurate International Earth Day with a debate headed by UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon, ministers from Ecuador and Bolivia, and North American academics. The event aims to explore and foment ideas about the relationships that exist between humanity and planet earth.

UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon
(Photo: Simone D. McCourtie / World Bank)

International Earth Day was conceived of in 2009 by the UN General Assembly as part of a resolution that aimed to promote harmony with nature and to “arrive at a balanced equilibrium between the economic, social, and environmental requirements of present and future generations”.

With a strong Latin American presence, the main speakers in the debate are María Belén Moncayo, minister for Coordination of Ecuadorian Heritage, Luis Acre, Bolivia’s minister for Economy and Public Finance, and Fander Falconí, Ecuador’s secretary for Planning and Development.

In addition, Ban Ki-moon has called the world’s attention to the potential devastating effects of climate change, the unsustainable exploitation of natural resources, and other key man made problems and has pledged to renew the UN’s promise to “honour and respect Mother Earth.” He averred that, “when we threaten our planet, we are not only endangering the only home that we have, but also our future survival.”

Despite the debate over the perceived versus actual risks and impacts of climate change, Earth Day 2013 is to focus the spotlight on the tangible effects of climate change thus far, including its effects on people, animals, and the natural landscape in the hopes of opening new exit routes and strategies with which to combat the phenomenon.

Ecuador is set to play a key role. In a speech titled ‘Nature as a constitutional rights holder in Ecuador and its ability to exercise [its rights] in the context of shared responsibility’, Falconí will address the assembly on natures’ rights, which are enshrined in the country’s constitution, and will present three of the country’s most recently debated environmental initiatives.

Children having a bowl of soup. Ecuador.
(Photo: Jamie Martin / World Bank)

One of these includes the creation of an eco tax, called Daly-Correa, whilst project Yasuní ITT aims to preserve Ecuador’s Amazon rainforest by fighting to keep millions of petrol reserves underground – and unexploited – in exchange for global economic support for Ecuador’s development. Leaving the oil where it is would reduce net emissions by an estimated 410 million tones of carbon dioxide.

Ecuador’s current administration under Rafeal Correa holds that: “the current world method of development, based on unlimited accumulation and consumption, is leading the planet towards an unprecedented environmental crisis.”

Its capital city, Quito, has proposed the indigenous model of development, “Sumak Kawsay” Quechua for “good living” (in harmony with our communities, ourselves, and most importantly our environment) as an alternative. It insists that all countries ought to commit themselves to an ethical way of living, and that they take concrete steps towards eradicating poverty and those mechanisms which destroy the environment.

Quinoa by Flickred!, on Flickr

Bolivia’s president Evo Morales and Peru’s first lady Nadine Heredia, will launch the 2013 International Year of Quinoa today; following their UN appointment as special ambassadors last year.

The International Year of Quinoa (IYQ) was proposed by the Bolivian government back in December 2011, and received the support of Argentina, Azerbaijan, Ecuador, Georgia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

The launch of the IYQ will be overseen by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, the president of the 67th Regular Session of the General Assembly, Vuk Jeremic, and managing director of the FAO José Graziano da Silva. Peru’s minister for Foreign Affairs, Rafael Roncangliolo Orbegosa, and Ecuador’s minister for Agriculture and Livestock, Javier Ponce Cevallos, will also be present.

Colloquially referred to as the “golden grain of the Andes”, it is highly prized in global markets thanks to its exceptional nutritional qualities, its adaptability to different agro-ecological floors, and its potential contribution in the fight against hunger and malnutrition.

Historically, the Incas used the pseudo-cereal in their ancient rites, but it was later banned by colonisers on the pretext that it was being used in ‘pagan’ rituals. Over the last few years, international prices have risen by 500%, due largely to Bolivia’s stalwart promotion of the grain.

TeleSUR’s Bolivia correspondent, Freddy Morales, affirmed that, “Bolivia will concentrate all its efforts so that all of humanity can consider this grain a leading alternative foodstuff”. Its rediscovery in recent years has sparked Bolivian hopes that the pseudo-cereal will become a globally consumed foodstuff.

Bolivia is currently the leading world producer of quinoa. Such is the grains nutritional value, NASA has included it in the diet of its astronauts. According to studies, quinoa is the only plant foodstuff to contain “all the essential amino acids”, as well as boasting a higher protein value than any other grain including “wheat, rice, maize and oats”.

Primary consumers of Peruvian and Bolivian quinoa include the US, Canada, Australia, Germany, and other European nations.

Bolivia won readmission to the United Nations Convention on Narcotic Drugs yesterday when the organisation voted to recognise the chewing of coca leaves as a legal, cultural practice in the Andean country.

President Evo Morales, himself head of the country’s largest coca-producing union, pulled Bolivia out of the organisation in June 2011 in protest against their 50-year classification of the plant as an illegal drug. He then asked for readmission six months later, under the condition that the chewing of coca leaves be recognised as legal within his country.

Bolivia’s constitution, sanctioned in 2009, protects the practice of chewing coca leaves, a mild stimulant which is used sometimes in religious ceremonies among Andean indigenous communities.

Bolivia’s readmission would have needed the veto of one third, or 62 of the organisation’s 184 member countries, to be blocked. Only 15 countries voted against the measure, among them the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, Canada, Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Portugal, Israel, Japan, and Mexico.

“This is the first time that a country has done this [left and been readmitted]”, said British ambassador to Bolivia Ross Denny. “It was successful for Bolivia because they will return under new conditions, which may ultimately weaken the 1961 convention and international conventions.”

Coca leaves were declared an illegal substance in the 1961 United Nations convention.

“This is a victory for our culture, our indigenous people and social movements”, said Bolivian Vice minister of Coca and Development Dionisio Núñez. “It corrects an historic error after nearly 50 years. Coca in its natural state isn’t a drug”.

The Bolivian government allows for 12,000 hectares of land to be used for the cultivation of coca leaves for chewing, infusion, and religious rituals. According to the 2011 report of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, however, as many as 27,200 hectares may be put towards coca production in Bolivia, much of which is destined for neighbouring countries Brazil and Argentina in the form of cocaine or “pasta básica”, more commonly known as “paco”.

Morales expelled U.S. antinarcotics agents from Bolivia shortly after assuming the presidency in 2006.

“The chewing of coca forms part of our identity, our culture, because it is not just producers who chew it, but truck drivers, students, and various sectors of society”, Morales said.

The Bolivian government announced celebratory gatherings of “acullicu”, or chewing, in La Paz and Cochabamba this Monday.

The United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (Cepal) predicted moderate growth of regional GDP followed by a recovery in 2013, the group announced Tuesday.

“The region will end 2012 with a 3.1% expansion of its GDP while the recovery of Argentina and Brazil will allow the region to grow around 3.8% in the next year,” according to a report by Cepal presented Tuesday at its headquarters in Santiago.

Cepal estimated last October that Latin America would grow 3.2% this year and it finished slightly lower, but still higher than the expected global growth of 2.2%. “This shows that the global economic crisis had a negative impact globally but not dramatically in this region,” Cepal officials said.

According to the institution chaired by Alicia Barcena, the 2012 global economy was affected by the recession in Europe resulting from financial imbalanes, fiscal and competitive, along with the slowdown to modest grown in China and the US.

Panama will remain the fastest growing economy in the region in 2012 (estimated 10.5%), followed by Peru (6.2%), Chile (5.5%) and Venezuela (5.3%) indicated Cepal. Paraguay remains at the bottom with a contraction of 1.8%, followed by Brazil where growth will reach 1.6%. Growth in Argentina for the year is estimated at 2.2%.

The estimated expansion of 3.8% in 2013, less than the 4% which Cepal estimated last October, will depend on the evolution of the world economy, particularly the economic difficulties to overcome in Europe, China and the US.

Yesterday in a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, 188 countries renewed their call for an end to the U.S. embargo against Cuba in a resolution urging “states that have and continue to apply such laws and measures to take the necessary steps to repeal or invalidate them as soon as possible”.

After nearly three hours of debate, the resolution received 188 votes in favour, three against, and two abstentions. The United States, Israel and Palau voted against the measure, while the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia abstained.

This marks the 21st consecutive year that a significant portion of the 193 UN member states have voted against the economic, commercial, and financial blockade against the socialist island nation. The first resolution, adopted in 1992, received 59 votes in favour, 3 against, and 71 abstentions.

Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla stated before the gathered delegates that “there is no legitimate or moral reason to maintain this blockade”, adding that “partial measures” taken by the Obama administration in the last four years have failed to alleviate the economic symptoms of the 50-year-old embargo.

The embargo has officially been in place since February 1962, although the United States imposed trade restrictions against Cuba immediately following the revolution of 1959. Under its stipulations, Cuba cannot import or export U.S. products, receive tourism from the U.S. (with exceptions for Cuban-Americans and those traveling as part of educational groups), or utilise the dollar in any foreign transaction.

Furthermore, Cuba is not eligible for credit from, and cannot perform financial operations with any regional or multilateral financial institutions pertaining to the United States. Cuban planes and ships are restricted from entering United States territory.

“The blockade is one of the main causes of the economic problems of our country and the major obstacle to its economic and social development”, Parrilla said. The Cuban government estimates that the embargo has cost the nation an estimated US$1.06tn in the last five decades.

US delegate Ronald Godard dismissed the resolution as an effort to “identify an external scapegoat” for Cuba’s economic problems, stating that it is the Cuban government’s own policies that should be reviewed. He added that, irrespective of US policy, Cuba would not thrive unless it opened its monopolies, respected international property rights, and allowed its population greater internet access.

Courtesy of Agencia Pulsar.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) announced today, that over 2 million people will suffer from food shortage, if immediate actions to fight the consequences of hurricane Sandy do not take place. OCHA called on all international countries to support Haiti.

Local authorities already expressed their concerns about widespread crop rotting a week ago. Latest reports from Haitian officials  confirmed 54 dead and 22 disappeared after the recent natural disaster, which is already the third in the last 2 years.

Around 17 thousand Haitians were evacuated from their homes, and over 21 thousand houses were destroyed by the hurricane. The Southern zone of the country remains inaccessible by land having suffered from heavy floods.

Local authorities also warn about the new cholera outbreak, that began in October 2010 after the powerful earthquake. The outbreak spread to all provinces of Haiti, killing 7,565 people by 4th October 2012 and hospitalizing a further 531,000 or 5% of the population. Specialists blame authorities for the poor distribution of health supplies and unsanitary conditions in the overcrowded hospitals. Neighbouring countries Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Cuba also reported a few cholera cases in 2010 and 2011.

The first round of meetings between Argentine and Iranian officials over the AMIA bombing finished yesterday, with no apparent results so far. The Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry stated that both countries have agreed to continue with the negotiations in the future.

A team of Argentine and Iranian officials held meetings on Monday and Tuesday at the UN headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss details of the AMIA case. Ramin Mehmanparast, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry, stated that the governments of both countries “have agreed to continue with the negotiations in the future”, and that the date and location of the next meeting will be decided “by diplomatic channels.”

Mehmanparast did not provide any information regarding the outcome of the first round of meetings, although he declared that “We (Iran) condemn terrorism, reject any accusation against our citizens, and are ready to carry out a detailed revision of who was responsible for [the AMIA bombing].”

AMIA president Guillermo Borger rejected Teheran’s statement, and considered the dialogue has no future if Iran keeps insisting on the innocence of its citizens. “Sitting on this negotiating table, in which we insist we don’t trust in Iran’s presence, and saying that their citizens have nothing to do is saying that the dialogue is over”, said Borger.

The Argentine government has not officially commented on the results of the meeting. However, La Nación reports that, according to unofficial sources, the Argentine delegation in Geneva remains sceptical about the negotiations and Mehmanparast’s words “did not go down well” with them.

The building of the Jewish organisation AMIA in Buenos Aires was destroyed in a terrorist attack in 1994, in which 85 people were killed and 300 wounded. Since 2006, the Argentine justice has been requesting the extradition of eight Iranian citizens accused of being part of the attack, including the current Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi and former vice-president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.

It’s Friday again!

And before I forget, I will be away for the next three weeks so expect a somewhat condensed version of the WNR. You hear me? I don’t want any of that “Why so short?” crap. You should be thankful I got to write anything. Got it?

Alright, like the Weekly News Roundup page on Facebook so you can keep up with updates and get out of here.

This is what you need to know:

• 

  Didn't you hear? Referring to the Brits as "pirates" is so 2011! It's all about the Ghanaians now. Pillagers! See these Ghanaian high school children? Future pirates, obviously. (Photo/Wikipedia)

  Horror! The frigate Libertad continues to be illegally seized by Ghana! But worry not, everyone. Because those Ghanaian pirates may have… whatever it is they have. But WE have the unwavering support of the most powerful organization on Earth: the United FUCKING Nations. That’s right! You don’t look so tough now, do you Ghana? After Foreign Minister Héctor Timerman flew to New York to beg for some help, the UN sent a strong, ominous message to the African nation: “Yeah, whatever. Figure it out yourselves.”

• In the meantime, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who probably hates Argentina anyway since in his last visit to the country he was stranded in some random gas station and forced to eat those horrible alfajores santafesinos (remember this awesome photo?), was busy doing this.

• And yes, that happened in real life.

• So what happened in the end? As the international discombobulation continued to expand, Cristina ordered the ship to be evacuated on humanitarian reasons and to have most of the crew flown back home. Problem is that no Argentine plane could go pick them up because it ran the risk of being impounded too, so they hired an Air France plane to bring them back. Then Cristina, after carefully deliberating her next move, said “Fuck it!” and went on national television to say “they may take our frigate, but they will never take… our freedom!“.

• Yes, in case you’re wondering, she totally stole that from Braveheart.

• Then, after endless weeks of mortification and despair because the air conditioning in the ship was not working at full capacity, the stranded sailors finally returned to their homeland on Wednesday night. The omnipresent media, always a pain in the ass, was obviously present at the time of their return and meddled as the sailors tried to hug their long-lost relatives. It was almost as if they were returning from a great war, only their plight involved being stranded in a tropical nation with lots of booze. Yeah, that sounds like an atrocious nightmare.

• Oh and to close this whodunit once and for all, the one responsible for losing the frigate wasn’t the butler. Turns out it was Defense Minister Arturo Puricelli, who this week admitted he was the one responsible for sending the frigate to Ghana.

•  The World Bank (headquarters pictured here) says that Argentina is apparently not the ideal country to do business. Really, Sherlock? Wow, you guys must be really smart.

• Also, I don’t mean to pile on but according to a new study, Buenos Aires is now as expensive as New York or London. Yay, first world! Ah, come on. Don’t be so fast to panic, salaries are pretty high here! Come on kids, let’s go somewhere expensive to celebrate! Let’s go to Mc Donald’s.

• How would you translate “forro” and “puto“? I’m assuming something like “dickhead” and “faggot”, correct? The reason I’m asking is because these were some of the insults spewed by Kirchnerite lawmaker Francisco “Tito” Nenna to another legislator during a budget meeting yesterday at the City Legislature. Of course there’s video! Here, enjoy our healthy democracy at work.

• Ah, this is more like it. You see, in the (probably irrelevant) town of Allen, in Rio Negro, differences are resolved the old fashion way. Forget about neanderthal behavior, uncivilized manners or politically incorrect insults. In Allen, when a lawmaker and a unionist clash in a radio show and realize they have no choice but to agree to disagree, they resolve their existing conflict like gentlemen: they take it outside and beat the shit out of each other.

• I specially love the ending, when the guy who’s been recording the whole dispute approaches one of the men and asks: “¿Qué pasó?” (“What happened?”). You know, as if he hasn’t been taping it all for the last two minutes without intervening. Reminded me of this for some reason.

• I know it feels like I say this every month… well, actually I do say it every month, but cab fare is going up again. The new flag fall will cost $9.10, up from $8.20. For every 60 seconds standing, or 200 meters in motion, the fare will go up to $0.91. Now, since this happens once a month I’ve officially run out of punchlines. How many times can I say “dust off your bike” or “dust off your running shoes”? Fuck it, I’m done.

• Here’s something that sounds like the script of a Steve Carell/Tina Fey film, but I swear is not: 28-year-old woman returns to her home in San Isidro after an exhausting day at work. As she gets out of her car, a couple of robbers intercept her at gunpoint and tell her to get back into the car. She tries to scream but they beat her up. They hop in the car and take her to an ATM. They can only get $1500 pesos so they decide to go “shopping”. Literally. They take her to an appliance store. Purchases exceeds her credit card limit. They try another store but this time they leave victim tied up in car. They try using her credit card again but when store owners ask for the card owner’s address these two geniuses realize they don’t know. The untie the victim and try a third time. It works. They buy a lot of stuff. They take the victim to the most dangerous neighborhood in the world and release her there, but because they are not all bad they give her $100 pesos for a cab. Which is kind of ridiculous because considering the new cab fares there’s no way you can get from Fuerte Apache to San Isidro on $100, but whatever, suspension of disbelief. The girl runs for help after being released and runs into a gang. They, obviously, rob her and take the $100 pesos she had for the cab. No, I swear, this all happened. Really, it’s even on tape.

• Oh and yeah, she eventually made it back home, so it’s all good.

• I know you are probably still reeling from Ricardo Fort’s departure from national television. But unfortunately, I have more bad news regarding our favorite posse of nouveau riche misfits. The more female version of Fort, the third-world version of Paris Hilton, Charlotte Chantal Caniggia, has been eliminated from Bailando por un Sueño. The good news is she’s become so irrelevant in just a few months that you probably don’t even remember who she was. So click here for a look back at some of her finest moments, which will surely leave an imprint on Argentine television forever until next month.

• “But Adrian, you forgot the link!”, you probably just said. No, I did not. I did not forget the link. That is a statement in itself, because there are no fine moments. See? I’m deep.

• Agh, whatever. Here she is trying mate for the first time.

• This week, in the sport commonly known as “the football“: I’m sure a lot of relevant stuff happened, but as usual I like to focus on the irrelevant, possibly denigrating parts, because let’s face it, I just hate that sport. Or as all you football lovers claim: “Adrian doesn’t like sports in general.” What’s that? I’m talking too much about my disdain for football and clearly I should try therapy? I tried it. Didn’t work. Deal with it.

• Anyway, as the countdown to the Superclasico begins, I must admit I enjoyed the last River Plate and Boca Juniors games this past weekend. Not because of the sport, of course. But because of a couple of disruptions in the games that had all the fans going “WTF!?” and me going “This is awesome!!!”.

• First, some of the bright, illuminated minds rooting for Quilmes while
  

  This weekend I'm hoping for a Tyrannosaurus Rex to show up at the Superclasico. Just for fun. (Image/Wikipedia)

  they were playing against River Plate, decided to release some chickens wearing the River shirt into the field because, how fun would that be, right? So here, look at the stadium staff trying to catch the feathered agitators before they start pooping and laying eggs all over the place, because that’s what they do, right?  Oh, and you may want to use the Benny Hill theme as soundtrack to make it funnier.

• Meanwhile, in the Boca vs. Estudiantes game, another visitor was entering the field and trying to catch the ball, which it probably thought was a yarn ball. Apparently cats, not content with being the undisputed attention whores of the Internet, are now trying to break into the football business because, why not? They are cats. The two million blood-thirsty hooligans watching the game were swiftly tamed by the feline intruder and let out a universal “awwwwwww look at the kitty!”. Then the cat got scared and left, and everyone just went back to their misanthropic activities as usual.

• Remember how the other day when there was a monkey loose in Palermo I said it was a jungle out there? I was wrong, it’s a petting zoo out there! Ha! Right? RIGHT!?

• Oh, fuck you.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Send Adrian your comments, thoughts or tips at adrbono@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter at @AdrianBono

And don’t forget to like the Weekly News Roundup on Facebook, so we don’t have to keep fucking reminding you about this every Friday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Héctor Timerman is due today to begin talks with the United Nations in New York with aims to release the frigate Libertad which is currently being held in Ghana in disputes over Argentina’s debt defaults.

The foreign affairs minister has been sent by President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner to meet with the president of the UN Security Council, Gert Rosenthal, to discuss the Argentine navy training frigate which has been seized in the port of Tema in the west African country.

Rosenthal made a statement earlier today on the meeting: “We had a conversation about this incident. I spoke to the minister and he also knows that the Security Council is concerned with the maintenance of world peace and security and that this case is not exactly threatening world peace.” However, he continued, “this is an issue which concerns us very much, not only as the Security Council but as a UN member country; clearly there is a problem of international law affecting and threatening not only Argentina but every country in the world.”

Timerman is also expected to meet with Ban-Ki Moon, Secretary General of the UN, and president of the UN General Assembly, Vuk Jeremić. In an effort to resolve the crisis, Argentina has also sent deputy ministers of defence and foreign affairs, Alfredo Forti and Eduardo Zain, to Ghana.

The Libertad, which was sent to Ghana on a training mission at the beginning of this month, was seized by port officials in Tema under a court order from an investment group from the Cayman Islands which claims that Buenos Aires owes more than US$370m. NML Capital Limited, the company in question, bought Argentine bonds at a discount during the economic crisis in the early 2000s, and Argentina later defaulted on those debts.

Although it has been claimed that a bond of US$20m would allow for the immediate release of the ship, Argentina claims that the vessel was protected by immunity that Ghana, being a signatory to international conventions, should have recognised.

Timerman claims that the capture of the ship was, “from an international law point of view, completely illegal”.

It was confirmed at midday that the majority of the 326 crew members, who are mostly Argentine but also from other Latin American nations and South Africa, will be allowed to return home, leaving just a skeleton crew including the ship’s captain. The sailors are expected to land in Buenos Aires on Wednesday.

Although the ship has been seized, the crew are reportedly permitted to leave the vessel, with frequent visits to nearby shopping malls and beach resorts. One crew member was allegedly injured while playing football and required hospital treatment.

Yesterday Argentina was elected by the United Nations General Assembly to the 15-member Security Council for the period 2013-2014. On 1 January 2013 it will replace Colombia as one of two representatives from Latin America and the Caribbean (Guatemala currently holds the second seat).

Argentina’s bid for the remaining Latin American and Caribbean seat went unopposed; however it still required a two-thirds majority vote from the 193-member General Assembly for approval. Its bid was approved with 182 votes, much more than the 129 necessary.

Argentina joins the Council along with Rwanda, Australia, Luxembourg, and South Korea for the upcoming two-year period. Azerbaijan, Guatemala, Morocco, Pakistan, and Togo, whose terms come to an end at the close of 2013, complete the rotational membership of ten nations.

France, the United States, Great Britain, Russia, and China enjoy status as permanent members of the Security Council with veto powers, a decision made based on their victory in the Second World War. The Council is charged with the establishment of peacekeeping operations, of international sanctions, and the authorisation of military action.

Questions of whether or not the Argentine government would use its position within the Council to promote its interests regarding the Falklands/Malvinas Islands were dismissed by Philip Parham, representative for the U.K.’s permanent mission to the U.N., who said “I believe that the Security Council has a broad agenda of serious and pressing issues of peace and international security and we see no desire among other members that the matter be dealt with within the Council.”

This marks the ninth time Argentina will sit on the Security Council; the first was from 1948 to 1949, and the most recent was from 2005 to 2006.