International
Bolivia files ‘genocide’ charges against ex-president Anez
AFP
The Bolivian prosecutor’s office said on Friday it had filed charges of “genocide” and other crimes against former acting president Jeanine Anez, over the death of 20 opposition protesters in 2019.
Attorney General Juan Lanchipa said he had presented documents “against citizen Jeanine Anez” before the country’s Supreme Court of Justice, including charges for “genocide,” which carries a sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison, according to the Bolivian penal code.
The conservative Anez came to power in November 2019 after her predecessor and rival, former president Evo Morales, resigned following weeks of protest over his controversial reelection to an unconstitutional fourth term.
He fled the country after an election audit by the Organization of American States (OAS) found evidence of fraud.
After the election, at least 37 people died in violence that flared between supporters and opponents of Morales, as well as between protesters and the security forces.
Most of the deaths came in clashes between Morales supporters and security forces after the socialist leader’s flight.
The specific accusation against Anez relates to two incidents in November 2019 in which a total 22 people died. A report released by the OAS on Tuesday described those incidents as “massacres.”
Lanchipa said they had been “provisionally classified as genocide, serious and minor injury, and injury followed by death.”
After Morales resigned, Anez was the most senior parliamentarian left and was sworn in by congress as interim president despite the lack of a quorum, with legislators from Morales’ Movement for Socialism (MAS) boycotting the session.
MAS cried foul and accused the interim government of having pulled off a coup.
Under Anez’s administration, Bolivia held peaceful, transparent elections in October 2020 in which Morales’s protege Luis Arce stormed to a landslide victory.
He subsequently vowed to go after those he accused of staging a coup.
Anez was arrested in March 2021 on accusations of leading a coup against Morales, including charges of terrorism, sedition and conspiracy. She has remained in pre-trial detention since then.
Her detention elicited widespread international condemnation.
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.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
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