International

Brazil gets hot and bothered over erotic pastry shops

AFP

At a Rio de Janeiro pastry shop, customers are waiting in line to buy waffles — but the chocolate-covered treats come with a twist that is causing controversy in Brazil: they are shaped like penises.

Since the “Putaria” pastry shop opened last month in the upscale beach neighborhood of Ipanema, it has drawn a steady stream of titillated customers, but also disapproval from some neighbors, who have called in the authorities.

This week, the justice ministry’s consumer protection agency ordered the shop and similar businesses across the country to suspend sales to minors of “all products reproducing or suggesting the shape of human genitalia and/or body parts with a sexual, erotic or pornographic connotation.”

It also barred them from displaying the products in shop windows and ordered them to take down any signs with words or pictures referring to them.

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The shop already had a policy against selling to minors, anyway, says co-owner Juliana Lopes, who also has franchises in Lisbon and the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte.

But having to cover up the sign outside the shop came as an “unpleasant surprise,” she told AFP.

“It made me sad. I knew some people might not like us — as with any business. But I didn’t think it would reach this point.”

The shop has placed pink cloth over its sign — matching the decor inside — but does not appear to have lost customers over the kerfuffle.

Inside, clients laughed and snapped pictures with the waffles of their choice — phalluses or vulva — against a backdrop of neon signs with phrases such as “Tastier than your ex.”

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“I don’t agree with the decision. It’s a business like any other,” said an elderly woman, Neusa, holding a freshly purchased penis shape.

“It’s just for fun, I think it’s great.”

International

Habeas Corpus at risk as Trump team eyes drastic border policy shift

The White House is reportedly considering suspending habeas corpus, the legal principle that protects individuals against arbitrary detention, as part of its efforts to escalate anti-immigration measures in the United States.

In remarks to reporters, Stephen Miller, a senior advisor to President Donald Trump, argued that the U.S. Constitution allows the suspension of habeas corpus “in times of invasion.”

“It’s an option we are actively considering, and it all depends on whether the courts do the right thing or not,” Miller stated.

The Trump administration has frequently invoked the notion of a “migrant invasion” to justify actions such as the militarization of the U.S.-Mexico border and the deportation of foreign nationals—primarily Venezuelans—to El Salvador’s CECOT megaprison.

International

Maduro to Xi: Venezuela is a loyal friend to China

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro assured his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, during a meeting held in Moscow on the sidelines of the 80th anniversary of the Red Army’s victory in World War II, that China has “loyal friends” in the Caribbean nation.

“You know that in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela you have loyal friends and people willing to continue working for a new world,” said the South American leader, according to footage aired Friday by Venezuelan state broadcaster VTV.

Maduro, accompanied by several of his ministers including Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López, highlighted the “great results” of a 2023 agreement between China and Venezuela called the “All-Weather and All-Round Strategic Partnership.”

“I believe we can multiply the great results we’re already seeing, and I’m sure that strong and clear guidelines will emerge from this meeting to keep moving forward together,” Maduro added.

International

Iberojet reaffirms commitment to Honduras as Central American Hub

Spanish airline Iberojet and Palmerola International Airport, located in central Honduras, signed a three-year renewal of their exclusive agreement to operate direct flights between the Honduran terminal and the cities of Madrid and Barcelona.

With this renewal, Iberojet—part of the Spanish tourism group Ávoris Corporación Empresarial—reaffirms its commitment to Honduras as its main gateway to Central America from Europe.

The agreement was signed by Iberojet’s Commercial Director, Mario Domínguez, and Erick Spears, Chairman of the Board of Directors at Palmerola.

The signing ceremony took place at the residence of the Spanish Ambassador to Honduras, Diego Nuño García, who served as an honorary witness.