Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez has tried for 10 months to conceal the fact that he is losing his bout with cancer, determined to appear in command of his revolutionary regime and the nation’s future. This past Holy Week, however, television cameras captured him pleading for his life before a crucifix in his hometown church, his mother looking on without the slightest glint of hope on her face. Chávez’s raw emotion startled his inner circle and led some to question...

The characteristically pompous announcement last week by Ecuador ’s president Rafael Correa that he would boycott the upcoming Summit of the Americas to protest the continued exclusion of the Cuban dictatorship reveals his vain hope of inheriting the mantle of the dying Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chávez. Since assuming office in 2007, Correa has followed Chávez’s playbook, which was inspired by the master tyrant, Fidel Castro. Former Washington Post reporter Douglas...

After a decade of silence and an apologetic attitude towards the countries of the Bolivarian alliance (ALBA), the international community finally protested attacks against freedom of the press in Ecuador, forcing the Ecuadorian president to back off. For years the Organization of American States and countries of the region have been enablers and thus passive accomplices of the anti-democratic wave that has penetrated Latin America. Under the pretext of helping the poor and the...

If a narco-state or violent crackdown emerges in Venezuela, the White House will no longer be able to avert its attention from the mess or to ‘lead from behind.’ Contrary to statements by Venezuelan caudillo Hugo Chávez, a cancerous tumor discovered in his colon late last month has not been removed, according to my sources. Heeding the self-serving advice of Cuban doctors, Chávez has rejected surgery so that he can return to his public duties as soon as possible and...

At the time of writing this article, it is unclear if the Environmental Criminal Bill (the "Bill") had been published in the Venezuelan Official Gazette. However, everyone should know some of its implications and impact on human rights. Foremost, it is a superfluous initiative. A Criminal Law of the Environment has been in force since 1992. It has been regarded by the best experts as an excellent legal instrument. It is clear, very well written, with proportionate penalties and...

Challenges to U.S. international broadcasting and public diplomacy continue to mount. Iran, joining China and Russia, also nourishes ambitions as a global power and is moving forward with soft-power advances in Latin America. (Not that there is anything “soft” about Iranian soft power.) Part of the explanation is that Iran is desperate to boost its image and economy as it faces broader sanctions and a potential European oil embargo. Iran may also be focusing its propaganda efforts...

Iran and Middle East-based extremist groups are stepping up their activities in South America, aiming to make friends and score cash, a senior U.S. military official says.

In recent months the government of Argentina has launched a new political and public relations campaign aimed at putting pressure on Great Britain to negotiate the future of the Falkland/Malvinas Islands. The islands constitute an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean 300 miles from the Argentinean coast. These islands have been ruled by Great Britain since 1833 except for a short period in April 1982 after the Argentinean navy invaded and conquered the islands. Argentina has continued to...

I was expelled from Venezuela several years ago as a result of my political activism against the abusive rule of the Chavez government. Therefore, in the primary elections that took place on Sunday February 12, I was not allowed to register as a voter like a regular Venezuelan citizen living abroad. What happened to me reflects one among many aspects of Chavez’s despotic regime. However, my personal story of exclusion does not prevent me from seeing that something important has just...

Latin America rarely comes up as a major issue in U.S. presidential races, but this time it will: There are growing signs that Iran's rising presence in the region will become a contentious election topic. Republican hopeful Mitt Romney and leading Republicans in Congress are stepping up their attacks on President Barack Obama for allegedly not doing enough to stop what they see as Iran's intention to use Latin America as a launching pad for terrorist attacks against the United States. The...