Presidents to Converge in Cartagena for Sixth Summit

Democratically elected leaders from throughout the hemisphere will convene in Cartagena, Colombia this weekend to attend the Sixth Summit of the Americas. The summit's theme is “Connecting the Americas,” and will focus on hemispheric integration and cooperation. “What is less clear, however, is whether the agenda that has been agreed to in advance by regional governments will have a meaningful impact on the hemispheric trajectory in the twenty-first century,” writes COA’s Eric Farnsworth for Poder. The Financial Times’s beyondbrics blog says the real issues on the radar will be the expected debate on the pros and cons of drug legalization, Argentina’s claims on the Falkland Islands, and Cuba’s continued exclusion from the summits—an issue that prompted Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa to boycott this summit. Speaking to Colombia's El Tiempo¸ Colombian President and summit host Juan Manuel Santos said he would be willing to mediate between the United States and Cuba, and voices support for the debate on drug legalization.

A report by AS/COA’s Summit of the Americas Working Group offers recommendations for job-creation initiatives in the Western Hemisphere.

Read an AS/COA Online Explainer about the origins and operations of the Summit of the Americas.

Obama Could Green-Light Colombia FTA Implementation

Colombia Reports writes that, while in Cartagena for the Summit of the Americas this weekend, President Barack Obama is expected to announce that Colombia has met the labor conditions necessary for implementation of the U.S.-Colombia trade pact. The U.S. Congress approved the Colombia free-trade agreement in October 2011, but implementation had been delayed pending fulfillment of an April 2011 plan requiring Colombia’s protection of worker rights. 

Will Obama's LatAm Focus Extend beyond April?

With April being touted as U.S. President Barack Obama's "Latin American month," New York University Political Science Professor Patricio Nava asks if the United States will continue paying attention when the month is over. Navia is skeptical, warning: "By failing to take advantage of the opportunities Latin America offers, the U.S. will further erode its declining economic and political power in the world and Latin America will find partners for development elsewhere." 

Brazilian President Focuses on Investments in Cuba, Haiti

President Dilma Rousseff visited Cuba on January 30 and flew to Haiti on February 1 in a bid to expand economic ties with the two Caribbean countries. In Cuba, she discussed an $800 million renovation project of Havana’s Mariel port, largely funded by Brazil’s development bank and Brazilian company Odebrecht, as well as signing a number of science and technology agreements. Rousseff rejected invitations to meet with Cuban dissidents and human rights groups, despite requests that she address the issue, given international condemnation after the death of dissident hunger striker Wilman Villar last week. She did not meet with blogger Yoani Sánchez, who pleaded with Rousseff via a YouTube video to intervene on her behalf regarding an exit permit from Cuba. Sánchez received a visa to travel to Brazil but is still awaiting an exit permit from the Cuban government. While Rousseff did criticize the U.S. prison base at Guantanamo and the U.S. trade embargo against the island, she said human rights are a universal problem that need to be debated on a multilateral basis.

Hackers Attack Brazilian Banks' Websites

The Brazilian arm of international hacker group Anonymous brought down several banks’ websites this week, including those of Bank of Brazil, Bradesco, and Itaú Unibanco. Hackers say the weeklong cyberattacks intend to protest Brazil’s social inequality. On January 30, Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court announced a new round of public “hacking” in March to test the security of the country’s electronic voting system.

Rio’s Building Collapses Linked to Lax Inspections

Rio Real Blog looks at the collapse of a 20-storey building in Rio last week and reports on the surprising lack of building-code infrastructure in Brazil. The collapse of the building was apparently due to unreported renovations. The blog notes that while inspections are de rigueur in many countries, Brazil only inspects new constructions, placing responsibility for compliance during renovations with building owners and project engineers.

Dilma First Woman Ever to Open UNGA

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff became the first woman in history to open the UN General Assembly. “It is with personal humility, but with my justified pride as a woman, that I meet this historic moment,” said Rousseff as she opened the general debate. “I share this feeling with over half of the human beings on this planet who, like myself, were born women and who, with tenacity, are occupying the place they deserve in the world. I am certain that this will be the century of women.” Rousseff can also be found on the cover of this week’s Newsweek, with a profile by Mac Margolis.

In conjunction with the opening of the 66th Session of the UN General Assembly, Americas Society and Council of the Americas are hosting multiple Latin American heads of state. Go to AS/COA Online for livestreams and a schedule of events.

LatAm Countries to Join U.S.-Brazilian Governance Partnership

Presidents Dilma Rousseff of Brazil and Barack Obama of the United States officially launched the Open Government Partnership (OGP) while in New York on Tuesday. The OGP’s goal is to give citizens tools to monitor elected leaders and achieve more transparent governance. Mexico is one of the six founding members and other Latin American countries that have pledged to sign on to the partnership are: Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru, and Uruguay. “This is a smart program for U.S. policy in the hemisphere and a great leadership role for Brazil to play,” reports Bloggings by Boz, who links to commitments and plans from Brazil, Mexico, and the United States.

Palestine Can Expect Heavy LatAm Support at UN

Nearly every country in Latin America is set to support a vote for Palestinian statehood, which is anticipated at this week’s UN General Assembly. The only holdouts appear to be Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, and Panama. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas toured Latin America in 2009.

With inflation this month reaching a projected 6.3 percent per year and a currency that has increased 47 percent against the dollar since the end of 2008, could the Brazilian economic miracle be just a bubble? Though there are warning signs, there are also positive signals that indicate Brazil be able to power through--though at significant cost.

First the negative signals.   Chief among these is the signs of an overheating economy. In June the Central Bank’s adjusted, upward, the rate of inflation to 6.3 percent--slightly over its target.  Add to this near full employment, the limited efforts to reduce the Brazilian government’s stimulus (through BNDES and federal spending--especially in preparation for the World Cup and Olympics), and the promise to increase the minimum wage by 14.5 percent next year and it looks like a pressure cooker.  Granted it doesn’t approach Argentina or Venezuela, but 6 percent-plus inflation touches the upper limits of the government’s comfort level and is Brazil’s highest rate since 2005.

Second is the overvalued Brazilian real.  High interest rates (an effort by the Central Bank to contain inflation), record high commodity exports, and a flood of foreign investment have swollen the value of the real.  The appreciated value of Brazilian currency against the U.S. dollar and the renminbi has hurt exports and undercut domestic manufacturing.  And in an economy in which corporations have come to rely on foreign credit, the appreciated exchange rate has led many to take out dollar-denominated loans.  A drop in the value of the real relative to the dollar would place a serious crimp on those corporations.  Any sort of devaluation in Brazil’s floating exchange rate will be tough on the economy.

The Brazilian Senate approved an agreement late Wednesday night to triple the amount Brazil pays for surplus electric energy from Paraguay's share of the joint Itaipu hydroelectric dam. Brazil’s annual payments jumped from $120 million to $360 million due to growing concerns that Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo could get a better price for its surplus energy from Argentina or Uruguay or on Brazil's unregulated energy market. Brazil’s state-controlled utility company, Eletrobras, will be responsible for payment.

Under the 1973 Itaipu Treaty, both countries have rights to 50 percent of the electric energy from the 14,000 megawatt dam—the second largest hydroelectric dam in the world. Yet Paraguay’s total population is only 3 percent that of Brazil’s and therefore sells 95 percent of its electricity share to its larger neighbor.

The agreement was originally proposed by former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. It was approved by the lower House in April, and now that it has passed the Senate, it does not need President Dilma Rousseff’s signature to go into effect. Wednesday’s Senate vote comes two days after southern Chile’s Environmental Assessment Commission of Coyhaique approved the $3.2 billion HidroAysen hydroelectric project in the Patagonia region. Brazil also plans to develop the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam in the Amazon, costing between $11 billion and $17 billion.

To date, the Itaipu project has displaced over 10,000 families living beside the Paraná River and flooded the Guaíra Falls National Park. Chile’s HidroAysen is projected to flood 5,900 ha (14,580 acres) along the Baker and Pascua Rivers. Environmental groups claim that Belo Monte could displace up to 50,000 indigenous Brazilians. Despite controversy, all three projects represent a larger movement in Latin America to invest in renewable energy and lessen the regions dependence on oil and coal.