Hemisphere Highlights, Volume VIII Issue 10 - December 2009

Concerns over drug violence in Ciudad Jaúarez led businessmen from Mexico to appeal to the United Nations. Officials in Mexico are concerned about a possible outbreak of dengue fever. Haiti picks its sixth prime minister since 2004. Overcrowded shelters for flood victims in El Salvador have officials fretting an epidemic. A controversial ruling by the Supreme Court will permit Daniel Ortega to run for another term as president in Nicaragua. Peru has accused Chile of espionage after its arrest of an alleged spy. A drought in Venezuela has exposed deficiencies in its infrastructure leading to shortages of water and electricity. Chile has authorized the duty-free sale of liquid natural gas to Argentina and other Latin American countries. Mapuche leaders in the south of Chile have proposed a plan to increase socioeconomic development in Araucanía.