International
Four complaints in a month for sexual abuse against public figures shake Chile
Four complaints in just one month for alleged abuse and alleged sexual assaults have shaken Chile, which this Thursday saw as the most notable of them, the former Undersecretary of the Interior Manuel Monsalve, one of the most powerful men in the country, was detained at his home in Viña del Mar, more than a month after the complaint was filed.
The so-called ‘Monsalve Case’, the first to explode, on October 17, was succeeded days later by the complaint with preventive imprisonment of the retired soccer player and former figure of the Chilean national team two-time champion of America, Jorge Valdivia, the complaint against Deputy Marcela Riquelme, member of the Frente Amplio, the coalition that supports President Gabriel Boric, and the arrest last weekend of an escort of the President of Vietnam, Luong Cuong, on an official visit to the country.
In addition, a woman accused the captain of the Colo Colo, league champion, and soul of the Chilean soccer team, Arturo Vidal, of sexual abuse in a case that is still in the air.
Monsalve case
The facts of Monsalve’s alleged rape of one of his advisors, according to the complaint, would have occurred on September 22 in a restaurant and hotel in downtown Santiago.
The woman reported that she got up in the undersecretary’s bedroom without remembering what had happened since they left the restaurant and that she discovered evidence that she was sexually forced, so she decided to report it.
Monsalve was arrested this Thursday and the Government has highlighted the facts under the umbrella of the Constitution that ‘in Chile there is no privileged person or group’.
‘Culture of rape’ in Chilean football
After the accusation against the former undersecretary, two new complaints appeared, but this time against the former Colo Colo footballer, Jorge Valdivia, who accused and formalized for rape against the first victim.
The second complainant claims to have suffered the abuse in the athlete’s apartment, after a date in a restaurant and continuing in a nightclub. The victim claims that he had “drugged” her to have sex, and claimed to have woken up in his own home without remembering what had happened.
The reformalization for this second complaint will continue next week, in the meantime, Valdivia will continue to comply with the precautionary measure of house arrest.
Colo Colo, the winning team of the Chilean Super Cup, also took more prominence after the accusation of drugging a woman and allegedly committing a crime and sexual nature by footballer Arturo Vidal and a group of teammates.
There are still no detainees and the name of all those involved is unknown, but Carabineros Colonel Gerardo Aravena confirmed that Vidal, 37, was the only one taken to the police station and subsequently released.
The events occurred in a bar in the capital commune of Vitacura, from where the complaint was also made and where Carabineros registered all those identified.
“Prohibition of returning to Chile”
This Monday, the Government of Chile reported on the complaint of sexual abuse by a member of the security device of the Vietnam delegation, who was on an official visit to the country.
According to local media, the Vietnamese official allegedly sexually abused a worker at the hotel where he was staying.
The subject went to detention and formalization control, and the conditional suspension of the procedure for two years was arranged as an alternative solution and the prohibition of entering the country and approaching the victim was determined.
The case of a deputy
In the fourth, the deputy of the Frente Amplio, Marcela Riquelme, is involved, who this week decided to denounce herself and renounce her affiliation to the progressive party despite the fact that she assures that she is innocent and that there is no formal complaint against her in the Prosecutor’s Office.
The parliamentarian made this decision after the information leaked to the press and the party announced the start of an internal investigation, hinting a possible conspiracy.
“I have been the subject of a complaint and it has been within the party, and that complaint was leaked to the press, causing serious damage not only to the alleged victim, but also to myself, my family, my friends and of course to my team,” said the legislator for the 15th district of the O’Higgins Region, in the center of the country.
“For that reason, I have decided that the complaint is where it has to be, which is in the Courts of Justice and today I have self-denounced. In the same way, and hoping to provide all the necessary means of proof to clarify the truth, with the same transparency that we have always had as a deputation, what we have done is renounce the Frente Amplio,” which he also accused of not supporting it.
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
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.
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