International
Peruvian president investigated for alleged plagiarism in human rights book
July 13 |
Peruvian prosecutors on Wednesday opened a preliminary investigation against President Dina Boluarte for allegedly plagiarizing parts of a book on the importance of human rights and their international relevance that she co-authored almost two decades ago.
This is the second prosecution of the president, who is also being investigated for the alleged crimes of genocide, aggravated homicide and serious injuries committed during the protests demanding her resignation, which left more than 60 people dead between December and February.
Investigations for alleged kidnapping are not unusual in Peru. Boluarte’s predecessor, Pedro Castillo, is also under investigation for allegedly copying part of his master’s thesis in Education that he co-authored with his wife – former first lady Lilia Paredes – and submitted in 2012.
Prosecutor Miguel Puicón told the local press that the investigation is taking place because “we are facing a fact of public action”. Puicón entered the National Library in Lima to review a copy of the 176-page book entitled “The Recognition of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law” written by Boluarte and seven others and published in 2004.
Local television station Latina indicated over the weekend that the book on human rights written by the president was submitted to the Turnitin computer program and the examination showed 55% similarities with other academic works that were not cited in the book.
Aggravated plagiarism is punishable by up to eight years in prison in Peru.
Boluarte was vice president and replaced Castillo (2021-2022) in December after the president was removed from office after attempting to dissolve Parliament. In her first months in office Boluarte faced a series of protests calling for her resignation that left 49 civilians dead due to action by security forces, according to the Ombudsman’s Office.
Another 11 civilians died in traffic accidents or road blockades and seven uniformed officers were also killed.
International
Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction
Former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe on Monday requested that the Supreme Court restore his freedom while he appeals the historic 12-year house arrest sentence he received for bribery and procedural fraud.
Uribe, the most prominent figure of Colombia’s right wing, was convicted last week by a lower court for attempting to bribe paramilitary members into denying his ties to the violent anti-guerrilla squads.
Since Friday, the 73-year-old has been under house arrest at his residence in Rionegro, about 30 km from Medellín. The judge justified the measure by citing a risk of flight.
However, Uribe’s defense team rejected that argument and formally petitioned the court to immediately lift the detention order, claiming it lacks legal basis.
Uribe, a dominant force in Colombian politics for decades, is now the first former president in the country’s history to be convicted and placed under arrest, found guilty of witness tampering and obstruction of justice to prevent links to paramilitary groups.
He has repeatedly denounced the trial as politically motivated, blaming pressure from the leftist government currently in power.
His political party, Centro Democrático, has called for nationwide protests on August 7 in support of Uribe, who remains popular for his hardline stance against guerrilla groups.
Uribe has until August 13 to submit his written appeal. The case will then move to the Bogotá High Court, which has until October 16 to uphold, overturn, or dismiss the sentence. If the deadline passes without a decision, the case will be archived.
International
U.S. Embassy staff restricted as gunfire erupts near compound in Port-au-Prince
The poorest country in Latin America and the Caribbean is currently engulfed in a deep political crisis and a wave of violence driven by armed groups — a situation that an international security mission led by Kenya is attempting to stabilize.
Due to the worsening security conditions, the U.S. government has suspended all official movements of embassy personnel outside the compound in Port-au-Prince, the U.S. State Department announced Monday in a security alert posted on social media platform X.
“There are intense gunfights in the Tabarre neighborhood, near the U.S. Embassy,” the alert reads, urging the public to avoid the area.
Tabarre is a municipality located near Port-au-Prince International Airport, northeast of the Haitian capital.
According to a July report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 3,141 people were killed in Haitibetween January 1 and June 30 of this year.
International
Israel says 136 food aid boxes airdropped into Gaza by six nations
The Israeli military announced on Sunday that 136 boxes of food aid were airdropped into Gaza by the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Germany, and Belgium.
“In recent hours, six countries conducted air drops of 136 aid packages containing food for residents in the southern and northern Gaza Strip,” read the statement, which added that the operation was coordinated by COGAT, the Israeli defense body overseeing civil affairs in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Israeli military emphasized that they will “continue working to improve the humanitarian response alongside the international community” and reiterated their stance to “refute false allegations of deliberate famine in Gaza.”
The announcement comes as UN agencies warn Gaza faces an imminent risk of famine. More than one in three residents go days without eating, and other nutrition indicators have dropped to their worst levels since the conflict began.
The agencies also noted the difficulty of “collecting reliable data in current conditions, as Gaza’s health systems —already devastated by nearly three years of conflict— are collapsing.”
Meanwhile, Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry reported on Sunday that hospitals in the enclave recorded six deaths from hunger and malnutrition on Saturday, all of them adults.
Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction
U.S. Embassy staff restricted as gunfire erupts near compound in Port-au-Prince
Israel says 136 food aid boxes airdropped into Gaza by six nations
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Uribe requests freedom amid appeal of historic bribery conviction