International
Education and young people are key to a “responsible digital future,” say the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in Colombia
Education and young people are the keys to a “responsible digital future,” defended the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan, in Colombia where they advance a visit focused on cyberbullying and online violence.
The dukes participated in the Responsible Digital Future Forum in Bogotá, where together with the vice president and minister of Equality of Colombia, Francia Márquez, and the journalist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa, they addressed technological challenges and how to build a digital future that works for all people, taking into account the most vulnerable.
“Artificial Intelligence (AI) is scary, and one of the solutions is education, since it is becoming increasingly difficult to stop this force from the source. It is up to us to determine the true of the false” in the digital world, said the Duke of Sussex.
The prince added that they were impressed with the visit they made to a school in the Colombian capital with the children and “the knowledge and awareness they have,” and concluded that: “responsibility and accountability are the things that I think would make the most difference” for a more responsible digital future.
“When you look at the statistics, young people in Latin America review social networks above the average, a total of 67 times a day (…) The digital age has created a culture in which if you don’t have something cruel, don’t say it, and that has radically changed the way we relate,” lamented the Duchess of Sussex.
In this sense, Meghan spoke from her mother’s perspective, being concerned about “how our children are going to adapt and how to keep them safe” in the digital age, something that has been “fundamental” in the activism that the couple is the flag.
“We have a responsibility to be an example for children,” the Duchess insisted.
“In this country young people are committing suicide, and many times it is the fault of social networks where they suffer harassment (…) When I reached the Vice Presidency I did not measure to what I was exposing myself, the amount of aggressions and violence that I have had to endure in these two years, not only me but my children and my partner, it is huge, many times I hate with severity,” lamented Márquez, who also attributed online violence to “the lack of laws.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan, began a four-day visit to Colombia this Thursday, where they will tour different parts of the country, learn about their biodiverse culture and wealth, and address current problems such as cyberbullying and online violence in schools and forums.
The duke and the duchess visited, along with the Colombian vice president, on their first day a school in the south of Bogotá, where they talked with students and teachers about how digital in education transforms lives and the importance of technology to close social gaps.
The visit “aims to open doors and lay doors to make visible and address a problem that today concerns all humanity: cyberbullying, violence in digital environments and discrimination,” the vice president told the media at a press conference at the Casa de Nariño (presidential headquarters).
But this visit, which is the first made by the dukes to Latin America and that occurs after the mother of the prince of Harry, Lady Di, did not make the trip she had planned to Colombia due to her hasty death, is “a great opportunity to visit our nation and show what we Colombians and Colombians are: people who in the midst of adversity do their best to give their best,” Márquez explained.
The visit will continue tomorrow with a tour of another school in Bogotá and from there on Saturday and Sunday the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will leave first for Cartagena de Indias, where they will be in San Basilio de Palenque, the first free town in Colombia, and on Sunday the city of Cali.
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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