International

Venezuelan candidate Ecarri says that the electoral agreement opens a new democratic stage

The opposition Antonio Ecarri, candidate for the Presidency of Venezuela, said on Friday that the agreement to recognize the electoral result, proposed by the Government and signed on Thursday by eight of the ten candidates before the National Electoral Council (CNE), is the beginning of a “new democratic stage” in the country.

“Yesterday’s photo, for me, is the beginning of a new democratic stage, of coexistence of all sectors,” said the anti-chavista – who declares himself “independent” -, according to a press release from the Alianza Lápiz, the formation for which he is presented to the presidential elections.

Ecarri criticized the absence, at the headquarters of the CNE, of the candidates Enrique Márquez, from the Centrados party, and Edmundo González Urrutia, standard-bearer of the main anti-Chavista coalition, Plataforma Unitaria Democrática (PUD).

“It is an absurd and clumsy bad silt to play with the policies of absences in Venezuela,” Ecarri said.

Ecarri added that it is “unacceptable” to be the “guarantor of a change in peace, without being part of the agreements.”

20250501_vacunacion-influenza-728x90

20250501_vacunacion_vph-728x90

20241211_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

20231124_etesal_728x90_1

20230601_agenda_primera_infancia_728X90

domfuturo_netview-728x90

20240604_dom_728x90

CEL

“How are you going to lead the pacification of a country and a change in peace if you don’t go? Those absence policies, I particularly don’t like them, that absence has a swew of cowardice,” he said.

Eight of the ten candidates for the July 28 elections in Venezuela, including President Nicolás Maduro, signed on Thursday, before the CNE, an agreement that obliges them to recognize the result that the governing body of the elections announced after the count, leaving no room for claims.

Enrique Márquez said this Friday that the recognition agreement is “useless,” since it is “redundant” and “incomplete.”

Márquez also criticized, during a press conference, that the agreement is “unilateral,” having not been able to “give an opinion and discuss its content” all the candidates, as – he assured – was his case, which is why he refused to go to the CNE and sign the document.

Meanwhile, González Urrutia said on Thursday that he was not invited to sign the agreement, which he had previously rejected, saying that the recognition of the results is already contemplated in the Barbados Agreement, signed between the PUD and the Government in October.

20250501_vacunacion-influenza-728x90

20250501_vacunacion_vph-728x90

20241211_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

20231124_etesal_728x90_1

20230601_agenda_primera_infancia_728X90

domfuturo_netview-728x90

20240604_dom_728x90

CEL

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.

20250501_vacunacion-influenza-728x90

20250501_vacunacion_vph-728x90

20241211_mh_noexigencia_dui_728x90

20231124_etesal_728x90_1

20230601_agenda_primera_infancia_728X90

domfuturo_netview-728x90

20240604_dom_728x90

CEL

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.