International
Partner of Chile’s president-elect draws feminist ire over first lady role
AFP
Irina Karamanos, an avowed feminist and partner of Chile’s leftist president-elect Gabriel Boric, has drawn fire from women’s groups for her decision to accept the “anachronistic” role of first lady.
Feminist groups derided Karamanos for accepting a post they say is not awarded on merit but obtained through a woman’s private relationship with the president.
Boric, who was elected Chile’s youngest-ever president aged 35 in December, is due to assume office on March 11.
Karamanos, a social scientist and activist of 32, said Tuesday she would accept the first lady job, but exercise it with a modern, feminist twist.
The pair have been in a relationship since 2019.
Like in many other countries, the role of first lady in Chile is not officially defined, but traditionally involves overseeing the work of social organizations.
It does not come with a salary, and is exercised from the presidency’s socio-cultural division, which has an office in the presidential palace.
Boric himself had spoken in favor of abolishing the position, saying on the campaign: “There can be no posts in the State that have to do or are related to a relationship with the president or with anyone.”
– ‘Different times’ –
But then Karamanos said Tuesday that reforming the role would involve “adapting it to the times.”
She added: “Also, as a feminist I think this position — and it seems contradictory to take it on as a feminist — in reality is mostly a challenge that we can exploit to talk about different issues, and display a new way of exercising power.”
Her announcement divided the feminist movement.
While some applauded her commitment to reform, others agreed with her own statement that accepting the role contradicted her commitment to advancing women’s rights.
Karamanos is head of the Feminist Front of the Social Convergence party which is part of the leftist Broad Front to which Boric also belongs.
“We have different ways of looking at feminism,” Daniela Osorio, spokeswoman for the activist group Coordinadora Feminista 8M, told AFP.
“Our analysis has nothing to do with Irina herself… For us, the right thing to do would have been to abolish the position.”
Added Priscila Gonzales of the Chilean Network Against Violence Against Women: “I do not doubt in her abilities, what I question is the continuation of a profoundly chauvinist position in which women are relegated to a secondary role.”
But Erika Montecinos, founder of the Rompiendo el Silencio (Breaking the Silence) lesbian rights group, said the focus should be on Karamanos’s promise to change the position.
“That is what’s important. To transform spaces — and give them a feminist vision.”
Questions have also been asked about the couple’s unmarried status.
“How do you ask for an audience with the president’s concubine?” former lawmaker and one-time presidential candidate Tomas Jocelyn-Holt asked on Twitter, inviting a flurry of criticism.
Boric has come out in support of his partner.
“Her intention to modernize and make the office transparent reflects the work we have collectively been doing: we have to make the changes responsibly and from within,” he said.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
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