Silvia Viñas · April, 2012

Latest posts by Silvia Viñas from April, 2012

Argentina: The ‘Mothers of Plaza de Mayo’ Turn 35

  30 April 2012

Lillie Langtry from the blog Memory in Latin America writes about the 35th anniversary of the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo in Argentina: “On Thursday, 30 April 1977, a small group of women met in the Plaza de Mayo with the aim of handing over a letter to then-president Jorge...

Colombia: “San Andrés belongs to Colombia”

  26 April 2012

Nicaragua has presented a claim [es] in the International Court of Justice over the sovereignty of the Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina, which is currently part of Colombia's political map after a treaty signed by both countries in 1928. Many in Colombia have expressed their desire for San...

Chile: Erasing Graffiti from Historic Valparaíso

  25 April 2012

In online citizen newspaper El Martutino [es], Paula Pérez reports that every Saturday until May 26 citizens and various institutions will come together to clean graffiti from the walls of the historic quarter of Valparaíso, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Mexico: Journalists Speak Up in Documentary ‘Forced Silence’

  24 April 2012

Artículo 19, an organization that defends the right to freedom of expression, launched the documentary "Forced Silence, the State Accomplice to Violence against Journalists." The documentary recounts testimonies from journalists, as well as relatives of journalists who have been assassinated or have disappeared.

Panama: Poor But Not Forgotten Thanks to Online Videos

  23 April 2012

Coco Solo was once a United States Navy submarine base on the Panama Canal Zone, near Colón, Panama. Today, Coco Solo is the home of some of the poorest, most marginalized Panamanians. Online videos are a few of the available online media that show life in this community.

Chile: The Role of Municipalities in Promoting Reading

  23 April 2012

Enzo Abbagliati in his blog Cadaunadas [es] asks, “What is the relationship between promoting reading in Chile and municipal elections?” He says that two main tools that impact what and how much Chileans read depend on Municipalities: public libraries and municipal schools. Enzo asked three candidates for mayor of Providencia...

Uruguayan Journalism in the Age of Twitter

  20 April 2012

In the blog El informante [es] (“The informant”), journalist Leonardo Haberkorn looks at how his colleagues are using Twitter and other social networks to report and present their investigations. He looks at a couple of specific examples where Uruguayan journalists failed to cover an investigation in depth and instead focused...

Colombia: Closing of Community Radio Station Sparks Debate

  18 April 2012

Community radio station Café Líbano, from Líbano [es] in the Tolima department, denounces its closing by the government, pointing out that it was carried out arbitrarily. According to Cesáreo Gálvez, one of its founders, the closing is “an affront to the right to information and communication embodied in community radio.”...

Ecuador: New “Conectándonos” Blog Announces Gathering in May

  16 April 2012

The Ecuadorian version of the blog Conectándonos [es] (“getting connected”) announces the upcoming gathering in Loja, Ecuador on May 24-26. Rising Voices and a local university -the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja [es] (UTPL).- are co-organizing this event which aims “to promote [digital] integration and participation of groups and individuals...

Honduras: Report Highlights Country's Human Rights Situation

  12 April 2012

The Organization of American States (OAS) human rights commission (CIDH for its initials in Spanish) has released its 2011 annual report on human rights, highlighting the situation in Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, and Venezuela. RNS from Honduras Culture and Politics looks at the report's findings on Honduras and how it has...

El Salvador: Photos of Holy Week Carpets

  9 April 2012

Hunnapuh shares photos [es] of the carpets (“alfombras” in Spanish) made for this year's Holy Week in El Salvador. Tim explained more about these carpets in his blog back in 2008: “The alfombras are made by families, groups or organizations with salt and sand and make intricate, and temporary, works...

Honduras: Celebrating Growth, Because “Blogging is Hard”

  3 April 2012

Blogger Edwin Francisco Herrera Paz from the blog La Honduras Valiente [es] (“The Brave Honduras”) celebrates 23,000 visits in 30 days and admits that blogging is hard. Edwin originally created La Honduras Valiente to record his thoughts on the June 2009 coup against Manuel Zelaya; now he also discusses other...