Latin America in Short: Crisis in Mercosur | Dina Boluarte, President of Peru

It has been a week of crisis for the region. On the one hand, there are disagreements in Mercosur that distance some governments from others. On the other, the president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, has been dismissed by Congress after what for some was an attempted coup. ECLAC also published a report this week indicating that hunger is 30% this year in the region. In more global news, Democrats reassert their majority in the Senate after the victory in Georgia as the COP15 on global biodiversity kicks off in Canada. This summarized here.

Dina Boluarte , the first female president in the history of Peru

After the failed attempt to dissolve Congress by today's former Peruvian president Pedro Castillo, Congress voted to remove him. What today is a new page in the history of the political crisis in Peru, leaves for the first time in the history of the country a woman president. This is Dina Boularte, who served as Castillo's vice president. At the time of his inauguration, Boularte called for a Government of National Unity with the participation of all the political forces of Peru. This will be the main political challenge for the former minister of development and social inclusion, since her predecessor had to govern for 18 months with a fragmented parliament that was looking for her head with 3 impeachment attempts and various accusations of corruption.

For his part, today Castillo is in prison as a preventive measure against the risk of flight. Meanwhile, the judiciary reports that it is preparing an indictment for the charges of sedition and rebellion, among other possible charges. Boularte is the sixth head of state in Peru in just over 6 years. In the recent history of the Andean country, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, Martín Vizcarra, Manuel Merino, Francisco Sagasti, Pedro Castillo, and now Dina Boularte, have not been able to govern a full presidential term.

Also read: What Options Does Pedro Castillo Have to Overcome the Political Crisis?

Crisis in Mercosur: Uruguay asks for changes but Argentina and Brazil refuse

The Uruguayan government of Luis Lacalle Pou sent a voice of alert and threat against the most important commercial group in South America. The delegate of the eastern president said, in the middle of the Mercosur summit, that the group is on the way to extinction, after a clear negativity was noted from the rest of the members (Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay) in the face of the changes that Uruguay sees as necessary.

The turning point among the members seems to be the intention of Uruguay to sign bilateral trade agreements and not through the group. He is aware of the talks that Uruguay is currently holding with Turkey and China, but he sees how it could collide with the obstacles that Mercosur may impose in the near future. Argentina, for its part, warned that the bilateral negotiations (and not the multilateral ones that are part of the group) were a "lack of political correspondence" and that it could lead to the end of the group.

Mercosur includes 2 of the main commercial markets of the entire continent (Brazil and Argentina). Together with the Pacific Alliance, it is the most important and ambitious integration project in the entire region.

Democrats reaffirm their majority in the Senate with victory in Georgia

The ruling party in the United States had come out of the mid-term elections in November well. Despite losing the House by a slim margin, he maintained control in the Senate and in several governorships throughout the country. It already had a tacit majority in the Upper House, by maintaining the 50 seats (out of a total of 100), since when there was a tie, the vice president always broke the tie. However, in the runoff elections for the Senate in Georgia that took place this week, incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock retained his seat and stands at a 51 majority in Congress. This not only guarantees Democratic power when choosing important posts (such as magistrates or prosecutors), but also reaffirms their advantage in the upcoming presidential elections.

COP15 on biodiversity begins

The Biodiversity Conference, better known as COP15, began on Tuesday, December 6 in Canada. In it, experts and representatives of States and civil associations from around the world meet to establish objectives around the protection of nature. The accelerated loss of biodiversity is one of the most serious problems facing humanity today, closely related to climate change. For this reason, agreements are expected to lead to a new Global Biodiversity Framework, which will strengthen the nature protection strategy and meet objectives by 2030. COP15 will end on December 19.

Hunger increased by 30% in Latin America and the Caribbean between 2019 and 2021

A new report from the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CELAC), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP) has revealed that hunger has grown at a fast pace in the region. He points out that there is a triple challenge that requires urgent measures: hunger, poverty and food production. Given this situation and facing 2023 with an economic and inflation crisis, the organizations recommend strengthening social protection systems. “In a regional scenario in which multidimensional poverty is increasingly linked to food and nutrition insecurity and where different crises are adding to deep structural inequities, social protection systems, including school meals, play a fundamental role ”, indicated Lola Castro, regional director of the WFP