Percussionists play candombe during parade Las Llamadas (The Callings). Picture taken by Flickr user ERBR and used under a Creative Commons license.

Carnival in Uruguay includes parades similar to those seen in Carnivals around the world, with queens, percussionists and colorful costumes taking over the streets, dancing to the beat of national rhythms. One of the most important events of the Uruguayan Carnival is the contest [es], where performers compete in their chosen category representing Uruguay’s distinctive musical and artistic richness: murga, negros y lubolos (playing candombe), parodistas [es], humoristas [es], and revista [es].

Carnival can be a melancholic and nostalgic time for Uruguayans living abroad, but thanks to the blog [es] and Twitter page [es] Todo el Carnaval, Uruguayans all over the world can download audio and videos of the day’s performances. Todo el Carnaval also provides Carnival music year round; its creator, Yuri, is backing up personal Carnival VHS videos and cassettes going back to the 1970s:

Todo el carnaval, es algo asi como un lugar donde decidi compartir todo el material audio visual que dispongo sobre carnaval. La idea original fue la de hacer un respaldo sobre este material y se convirtió en este blog, para compartirlo con todo el mundo.

Murga ensemble Los Curtidores de Hongos performing at 2009 carnival. Photo taken by Raúl Antoine, Flickr user rantoine2008, and used under a Creative Commons license.

Listening to the Carnival live is also an option. The popular site for Carnival information, Carnaval del Futuro [es], created a radio [es] which tunes listeners live into festivities, and promises 24 hours of streaming coverage.

Video by Eduardo Gamero:

Journalist and blogger Enrique Filguerias [es] explains that this radio will broadcast throughout the year:

Los carnavaleros estarán de fiesta con esta novedad, impulsada por Carnaval del Futuro: Disponer de una emisora a través de la cual poder difundir el Carnaval, en forma continuada y sin interrupciones, durante los doce meses del año […] De abril a diciembre, en la grilla se encontrarán con espacios dedicados a difundir el Carnaval del Interior, con la totalidad del Regional de San José y ya se están gestionando otros certámenes representativos.
También se apostará a una producción de programas originales que combinarán lo periodístico y lo musical, transmisiones de eventos en directo, grabaciones de los espectáculos que se ofrecen en las salas montevideanas y se contará con enviados especiales en las giras que se realicen.

Another online radio broadcasting live during the festivities is Radio Yorugua [es], from Los Yoruguas [es], a blog for and about Uruguayans living abroad. Los Yoruguas also offers a multimedia section dedicated to this year’s Carnival with information, videos, and pictures of the festivities.

El Pedregullo [es], also part of Carnaval del Futuro, calls itself “the online community of the Uruguayan Carnival.” This small online community acts like a social network where users can discuss events, post pictures and videos, and create groups:

El sitio está pensado para compartir todo lo referente a nuestro Carnaval. El Pedregullo, el lugar donde se cocina el Concurso. Ingresa y comparte tus fotos, videos, ideas.

Uruguayans can confidently say they have the longest carnival in the world; not only because of its forty days of official festivities, but because the internet and social media are spreading its influence during the remaining 325 days.

Botnia Pulp Mill. Picture taken by Flickr user Gonzak and used under a Creative Commons license.

Blogger and industrial designer Julián Ballesteros Riveros [es] spent recent Carnival celebrations in Gualeguaychú where he witnessed firsthand the activism against Botnia:

Una bella ciudad con gente muy amable, vale la pena conocerla si se tiene la oportunidad; tiene termales, zonas para acampar y playas a lo largo de la costanera del río Gualeguaychú. Sin embargo, aunque lo más atractivo resulta ser los recursos naturales de la zona, es llamativa la constante exposición de avisos en las casas, en los establecimientos comerciales y hasta en los automóviles oponiéndose al unísono a la amenaza contra el medio ambiente que supone la instalación de “papeleras” y de Botnia en particular en límites con Uruguay

Skepticism about the plant posing an actual environmental or health hazard opposes the claims made by environmentalists, as various organizations have denied that the mill contaminates the air. According to local news organization from Entre Rios, Agencia de Noticias de Entre Rios APFD [es] , Marisa Arienza from Green Cross reported that the there have not been any changes in the levels of sulfur dioxide in the air since the plant began operations.

Still, the strongest and most established protest came from the “piqueteros” who are discontent with the pulp mill and have used protest tactics like the takeover and blockade of bridges that act as important passage ways between the two countries for tourism and commercial purposes.

‘I Said No!' Blockade from Fray Bentos, Uruguay and anti-Botnia slogans. Picture taken by Flickr user sebaperez and used under a Creative Commons license.

Mujica, who will not be sworn into office until March, has paid special attention to this conflict and wants the blockades lifted before he takes office. Mujica met with Cristina Kirchner, president of Argentina, and with the governor of the Argentinean region Entre Rios, Sergio Urribarri, where Gualeguaychú is located. However, environmentalist Lilian Melnik sees no progress in these meetings, as reported by local Uruguay River newspaper Rio Uruguay Digital [es]:

[Mujica y Urribarri] son ‘traidores a una causa noble’ hacia quienes ‘defienden el levantamiento del corte sin argumentos y sin querer verdaderamente que se vaya Botnia’

Melnik also said that environmentalist will have to defend the blockade even harder, now that Mujica has tried to mediate.

In an editorial, Ignacio de Posadas [es] criticizes these attempts made by the president-elect to reach out to the Argentinean side:

El Presidente electo, por sus gestos (sobre todo la visita a los piqueteros) y por sus palabras (describiendo la violación de tratados y de normas y usos, como “un asunto interno” de la Argentina), dio razón al gobierno Kirchner y a los patoteros de Gualeguaychú, banalizando el asunto, debilitando la posición jurídica y de principios del Uruguay y enviando a La Haya el peor mensaje posible (¿qué juez se parará en los pedales si la parte agraviada dice que todo es negociable?).

Shortly after taking office, Mujica will have to face the verdict from the International Court of Justice at The Hague, where Argentina issued a formal case against Uruguay in 2006. Mujica’s close relationship with Kirchner and his recent attempt to reach out to governor Urrubarru will also be tested when he becomes the official president.

Argentinean journalist and blogger Pepe Eliaschev [es] condemns the blockades as useless and contrasts Mujica’s close connection to the Kirchners with the current Uruguayan president Vázquez' tumultuous relationship with the neighboring government:

En pocas palabras, el corte de la frontera con Uruguay no sirve para nada y es un pastiche siniestro que solo ha provocado daño. La planta de Botnia, inaugurada hace ya dos años, trabaja y produce con absoluta y total normalidad, y lo hace en toda su capacidad. El corte no solo no redujo el flujo de turistas, sino que lo incremento, demostrando la pasmosa estupidez de la medida. De la famosa “contaminación” nada significativo ha vuelto a aportarse, mientras que en el inicio del conflicto la llamada asamblea “ambientalista” de Gualeguaychú llegó a decir que la fabrica instalada en Uruguay era equivalente al Auschwitz, el campo de exterminio que los nazis instalaron en esa ciudad polaca durante la Segunda Guerra y donde fueron aniquilados centenares de miles de judíos. […] Operativo seducción: el viejo guerrillero quiere engullirse a la pareja presidencial argentina para que levanten el corte de la frontera. El septuagenario tupamaro imagina que podrá extraer de los post montoneros argentinos lo que le severidad del oncólogo socialista Vázquez no pudo.

Mujica has said he will not negotiate with “piqueteros,” and the “piqueteros” in turn, say they will not take action until the Hague pronounces its verdict.

Photo of José Mujica by Agência Brasil. Taken from Wikipedia, using a Creative Commons License: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Mujica

According to Portal 180 [es], Mujica is the first former guerrilla member that reaches the presidential chair of Uruguay. He was part of the Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros (National Liberation Movement-Tupamaros) during the 60s and fought the government of Jorge Pacheco Areco. He was involved in armed actions such as Toma de Pando [es] (Pando takeover) and Fuga de Punta Carretas (Punta Carretas escape, an epic prison break recently featured on a documentary by History Channel [es]).

Mujica also founded the Movimiento de Participación Popular [es] (Movement of Popular Participation), which led him to hold assigments as deputy, senator and more recently as Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries minister.

“Ni vencidos, ni vencedores” (”Neither losers nor winners”) was the phrase that the president-elect used to sum up his victory.

Strong opinions about the result of the election can be read on the blogosphere. The reaction of the anonymous author of the leisure-oriented blog Ociomentario [es] can be understood as disappointment:

URUGUAY ELIGIÓ POR PRIMERA VEZ EN SU HISTORIA UN PRESIDENTE ASESINO

To the author of the political-oriented blog ElPolvorin [es], the elected president represents a fake change:

como el nuevo portavoz del neo liberalismo en Uruguay disfrazado de Izquierdista, continua la política digitada por el FMI [Fondo Monetario Internacional], con dos caras y dos discursos, uno cuando viaje a Venezuela y el otro cuando viaje a EEUU, como Tabare .
Nada habrá que esperar de estos nuevos neo liberales, “vuelve el pobre a su pobreza, vuelve el rico a su riqueza”.

On the side that celebrates the president-elect, blogger Antonio Giossa, who is uruguayan but lives in Argentina, explains [es] that Mujica won the election because of three main points:

Primero y principal, será la continuidad del actual gobierno frenteamplista. Si bien su estilo lo diferencia un poco de Tabaré Vázquez, Mujica cumplirá a rajatabla el lineamiento planteado por el Programa Político del Frente Amplio.
Segundo, su personalidad y su carisma. Campechano, frontal, honesto, sin pelos en la lengua. Algo que a veces puede jugar en contra y cosechar rechazos, pero que también ha logrado generar una confianza casi absoluta de parte de los votantes y simpatizantes.
Tercero, el Frente Amplio logró demostrar, a partir del año 2004, que es una fuerza política que sabe ejercer el gobierno en forma responsable, efectiva y con un solo objetivo en mente: el bienestar del pueblo.

Mujica will be sworn in as president on March 2010 for a 5-year term.

Translated by Issa Villarreal

At the website Voto x Uruguay [es] (I Vote for Uruguay), there are many videos with messages of support for this motion by Uruguayans living abroad. who want the right to vote. There were videos submitted from Canada, Spain, France, and the United States. This video created in the Spanish city of Ferrol shows a group of Uruguayan ex-pats, who gathered to simulate a vote, as a way to show their support for their right to vote.

However, the result on election day was “No,” with only 36.93% voting “Yes.”

The other plebiscite that attracted more attention and caused more sad and surprise reactions, was the question that attempted to annul the Law of Expiration [es]. This current Uruguayan law establishes that the crimes committed by the military and the police during the last civic-military dictatorship, which included multiple violations of human rights, would remain with amnesty.

The United Nations has observed the law, and it has also been repudiated by the Organization of American States [es]. However, in the end the vote results to annul the law reached 47.36%, and it did not reach the necessary 50% + 1.

This result caused strong and sad reactions from the various online communities. In Facebook, for example, in the two days following the vote, there were a large number of groups created, such as Parliament Should Annul the Law of Expiration [es], I Cannot Believe that the Law was not Annulled [es], National Mourning [es], and I Will Never Forget [es].

For some, like 19-year-old Mauricio P. Milano of the blog Montevideo Blogger [es] writes why he neither voted “no,” nor “yes” in the question:

Aunque ya saben que afortunadamente no me tocó vivir la época de la dictadura en Uruguay, con los pocos años que tengo ya he vivido lo suficiente como para escuchar cientos de relatos sobre esta historia, a favor de los militares y a favor de los tupamaros. Quizás el eclecticismo que me caracteriza sea propio de una generación que vino después que se calmaron las aguas, como la mía; pero la opinión que he venido a formar de todo esto es que ambos grupos estuvieron mal, hubo crímenes (secuestros, asesinatos) de los dos lados y en realidad ninguno de ellos puede lavarse las manos de lo que han hecho. Esto es históricamente innegable. Y no voy a volver a comentar lo hipócrita que es el simple hecho de que, ante tal evidencia, uno de los presidenciables en estas elecciones nacionales pertenezca al grupo de los tupamaros, porque ya me expresé sobre esto en la primera parte de este post (click acá para leer).

Lo que quiero decir hoy, a favor de la justicia y del derecho de elección que tienen quienes estuvieron involucrados en esta historia, es que considero inaceptable que mi generación deba cargar con la decisión de anular o no la Ley de Caducidad. Por el simple hecho de que no lo vivimos y nunca vamos a entender la verdadera profundidad de los conceptos que encierra, porque no tenemos nada que ver con eso. En pocas palabras, no tenemos por qué asumir las cagadas que hicieron los que vinieron antes que nosotros. Y decir esto no es mirar para el costado. En todo caso, es mirar para adelante. La sociedad, como cada una de las personas que la compone, tiene heridas. Y como heridas que son, es obvio que arden. Pero como heridas que son, cuanto más se las revuelva, más van a tardar en cerrar. No voy a dejar que lo que pasó antes contamine a mi generación, no quiero esa enfermedad social.

Finally, in Asi Ta'l Mundo, Botija [es], there are thoughts on why the law was not annulled. He writes that these plebiscites should not be conducted on the same day as elections because too many are overwhelmed and that the information does not arrive as it should.

The Broad Front candidate, Senator José Mujica, was the closest to the majority needed receiving 48.16% of the votes. In second place, the National Party candidate Luis A. Lacalle, received 28.9% of the vote, still giving him a chance to win and who will face Mujica in the run-off election. In third place, the Colored Party received 16.66% of the vote, considered to be an internal victory for its followers. This party had fallen in past elections, after being the governing party for many years. Now, under the leadership of Pedro Bordaberry, the son of ex-dictator Juan M. Bordaberry, the party has grown more than expected as indicated in earlier surveys.

Graphic by Jorge Oyhenard and used with permission.

The 4th political party, the Independent Party, did not achieve the necessary percentage to obtain a Senate seat, receiving only 2.47% of the vote. It did, however, manage to elect two deputies to Parliament.

The reactions from the various parties were surprising, as noted by the blog Asi Ta'l Mundo Botija [es], who makes references to the contradictions. The party that celebrated the most was the one that received the least number of votes, and on the contrary, those who received the highest percentage appeared to be sad:

Muchos se lo tomaron como sorpresa o como triunfo, y no fue, a mi entender, “ni chicha ni limonada”. Por lo menos para mi no fue sorpresa. Que había quienes pensaban (o soñaban) que el Frente Amplio ganaba en primera vuelta, cierto. Pero no creo que esa gente deba estar triste. Por otro lado, el Partido Nacional logró menos del 30% que estimaban las encuestadoras; sin embargo el festejo de muchos de sus simpatizantes fue como si hubieran ganado la copa del mundo. Y los del Partido Colorado también festejaron y mucho. Fue el tercero en el conteo de votos, pero así es este país.

He also provides some thoughts on why the Broad Front did not win outright in the first round:

Bueh, aunque se me enojen algunos lectores, pienso que uno de los factores es que la fórmula debió ser al revés. O sea, Astori a Presidente y Mujica a Vice. Mujica es un tipo al que admiro. Dice las cosas de frente, no es políticamente correcto, no es tan hipócrita o falluto, como venimos acostumbrados por estos lares. Pero … La gente lo eligió, por encima de Astori, quien tiene lo dicho por Mujica, más que es el tipo que más sabe de economía en este país, reconocido por gente de la oposición. Esto le hubiese bastado para atraer gente de otros sectores políticos.

However, another blogger known as La Ciudadana (The Citizen) wrote in her blog Qué pasa Uruguay? [es] that the Broad Front should think about what went wrong:

El Frente Amplio, sin embargo, deberá tener autocrítica, deberán pensar un poco dónde se equivocaron, porque contaban con el 60% de aprobación al presidente (cosa que dudo y dudaré), contaron con todo el aparato propagandístico del gobierno que hasta el día antes, estuvo poniendo su cuota de apoyo, contaron con mucho dinero para la propaganda, con la salida de los ministros haciendo también lo suyo, en fin, contaban con un aparato importante en su beneficio, pero igualmente no llegaron, fue un día negro si se quiere, porque aparentemente no lograron mayorías parlamentarias, no se si se confirmó ya o aún no, no lograron sacar los pleibiscitos adelante, y no ganaron en primera vuelta que era su principal objetivo.

Graphic by Jorge Oyhenard and used with permission.

In Parliament, there was suspense from the public whether any party would obtain the majority of the seats. The Broad Front Party will have 16 seats in the Senate, while the National Party and Colored Party gained 9 seats and 5 seats, respectively. In the Chamber of Deputies, there will be 50 representatives from the Broad Front Party, 30 National Party members, 17 Colored Party members, and 2 from the Independent Party.

The blog Mujeres y Elecciones 2009 en Uruguay [es] (Women and Elections 2009 in Uruguay) has been providing coverage about issues affecting Uruguayan women throughout the campaign, and notes that 6 women Senators had been elected from the Broad Front party.

The strategies for the next round [es] has already started. According to surveys, it is expected that the Broad Front Party will continue to govern the country and that Mujica will win the run-off election. The Colored Party candidate, Bordaberry, has already said publicly that he will support Lacalle [es]. The blog Visión Universitaria [es] alludes to this union of the Colorado and National Parties, calling them the “Rosados” (the Pinks). However, even with this support, it does not appear that the National Party candidate will have enough votes to beat Mujica.

There are many political parties in contention, but the list is reduced when referring to the parties that really have the chance to gain, at least one, parliamentary seat. These parties include the National Party (White Party), considered to be one of the traditional parties and is the main opponent of the current government. Others include the Broad Front, which is the current government, and is considered to left-leaning and can also be considered to be a “traditional” party, despite being a young party.

Photo of campaign propaganda in Colonia de Sacramento, Uruguay taken by Marisali and used under a Creative Commons license.

The major contenders for the presidential seat are considered to be the Broad Front and the National Party. One of the major candidates is already well-known to Uruguayans. Dr. Luis A. Lacalle, the National Party candidate, was President of Uruguay from 1999-2004 and is considered to be a major rival for the Broad Front.

On the other hand, their candidate is a very colorful figure, who is often seen far from typical political protocol or convention. José “El Pepe” Mujica has had a history with the National Liberation Movement “Tupamaros” in the 1960s, where he participated in guerrilla operations, arrested 4 times, and twice escaped from the Punta Carretas prison. In all, Mujica spent 15 years of his life in jail, with his last period of detention being between 1972-1985. When the military dictatorship ended, and democracy returned to the country, Mujica changed his weapons, and has been a deputy and a senator. In the current government, he was the Minister of Livestock and Agriculture.

The blogger Jorge Oyhenard takes a look at how various candidates are using the internet to spread their campaign [es]. He notes that most parties and candidates have their own website, but they have yet to maximize the use of web 2.0 and social networking sites.

With the stage set, there are few topics of discussion. Public security is a concern due to the wave of crime over the past few years, as well as the issue of taxes. However, the current campaign is already filled with usual campaign rhetoric as the blog Uy Elecciones [es] describes:

Si un marciano encayara en Uruguay (podría ser en otros muchos países) y lee los programas de gobierno de los (o escucha a los) diferentes partidos políticos se encontraría con una grata sorpresa: a todos ahora les importa la justicia social (planes para ayudar a los más desfavorecidos, educación y salud más equitativas, etc.), alguna que otra cosa del medio ambiente, los beneficios para los pasivos (y si, hay que nombrarlos que cada vez son más), la transparencia (a esta altura ésta podría ser ya una política de Estado, todos la apoyan (que bueno, no?)).
Y así estamos; esas “semejanzas” condimentadas con la publicidad medio-masiva moderna electoral crean como una nube gris, en la cual es comprensible caer en la de “son todo lo mismo”.

Thanks to @damianemanuel1 on twitter we discovered this video site, when he posted:

Cine virtual desde Uruguay para combatir la chatarra de YouTube http://bit.ly/V39pT

puede ser vista en http://www.cip.com.uy/

In the words of the creators of the site, Andrés Nicolón and José Luis Elizalde, their website answers to the needs of film-makers who want their work to get known:

¿Dónde puedo exhibir seriamente mis obras en un medio tan masivo, económico y accesible como Internet? ¿Cómo puede ser reconocida mi labor (actriz, actor, guionista, director, camarógrafo, productor, músico, etc.) en cine? ¿No tengo alternativa y debo publicar mi trabajo junto con los top 10 de mejores bloopers de gente montando a caballo? ¿Siempre los más conocidos son los que ocupan el lugar más importante?

Cip not only provides the possibility to showcase short films on their site, they also provide other services: they can help film-makers with post-production and editing, effects and presentation. They can also make all the promotional and marketing material for films such as posters, trailers and advertising in general, or promote a film as a starred movie for more exposure.

Currently they have 7 films in their site, 4 of them from Spain, one a collaborative effort, and 2 Uruguayan shorts, one fiction and one a documentary. All of the films can be downloaded in an iPod compatible format. Sadly, the site doesn't allow for embedding, but you can view their movies by heading over to their site,http://www.cip.com.uy/.