The Battle of Copenhagen

An alternate English translation of President Hugo Chávez’s speech about the climate summit in Copenhagen, by the wonderfully talented translator & Tlaxcala member, David Brookbank.

“The Battle of Copenhagen” - Español

Copenhagen was the scene of a historic battle in the context of the 15^th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.  Better said: In the beautiful and snow-covered capital of Denmark, a battle began which did not end on December 18, 2009.  I want to reiterate: Copenhagen was only the beginning of the decisive battle for the salvation of the planet.  A battle on the field of ideas and of praxis.

The Brazilian Leonardo Boff, the great liberation theologian and one of the most authoritative voices on the subject of ecology, in an essential article entitled, What is at stake in Copenhagen, penned these insightful and courageous words:  “What can we hope for from Copenhagen?  Perhaps just this simple confession: We cannot continue the way we are going.  And this simple proposition:  We are going to change course.”

Aminetu Haidar – In Spite of Everything

Aminetu Haidar by Juan Kavellido

Aminetu Haidar – In Spite of Everything - Español

By Atenea Acevedo

Translated by Manuel Talens, edited by Machetera

Our senses, habituated to a never innocent violence – normalized through lingering media bombardment – only react when the scandalous aspect of news reaches the border between reality and fiction. Once in a while, almost always later than sooner, the violence that mercilessly strikes women appears in mass media headlines: women retained in Serbian rape camps, young working women slaughtered in Ciudad Juárez, women murdered by either romantic or sexual partners. Less frequently, a specific face repeats itself on the television screens and a name struggles to conquer a corner of our memory. Today such a face belongs to Saharawi activist Aminetu Haidar, a peaceful defender of human rights and international humanitarian rights whose case began to filter out through tiny snippets of information and now expands like a pool of uncontainable blood.

Aminetu – a former detainee in Moroccan secret jails, where she “disappeared” for years – has the willpower that we usually find in those who have lived and suffered enough to thoroughly know both the strength and fragility of the human spirit.

El Salvador’s Funes moves his chips to the dark side

Torn between two Models – Funes follows Obama

By Diana Barahona – http://dianabarahona.blogspot.com

[Español abajo]

Salvadoran President Mauricio Funes, who was carried to power by the FMLN this past March but quickly jettisoned the party from his government, has obliquely recognized the results of yesterday’s electoral farce in neighboring Honduras.

During his presidential campaign Funes rejected any affinity for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and the Bolivarian Alternative for Latin America and instead insisted that his models were Brazilian President Inacio Lula da Silva and Barack Obama. But those models are bitterly split over Obama’s support for the June 28 coup in Honduras and its subsequent legitimation by sham elections carried out yesterday. The United States followed up on its commitment to recognize the elections no matter what, but Lula has resisted pressure to do the same.