BRAZIL
Petrobras workers end strike
Workers at state-owned oil giant Petroleo Brasileiro (Petrobras) have ended a nearly three-week strike that left the firm scrambling to avoid a drop in production, labor unions said on Friday. About 21,000 workers — one-third of the total workforce — joined the mass walkout at the start of this month. They were protesting the closure of a subsidiary’s fertilizer plant in southern Parana state, with about 1,000 total layoffs. The company met with employee representatives after an arbitration hearing called by a labor court in Brasilia, after which an oil workers’ union announced an end to the strike. “An attempt will be made to increase financial compensation for the dismissed,” the court said. The court had earlier ruled that the strike was illegal and set a daily fine of up to US$115,000 for unions that did not comply with a return to work. The strike did not affect production thanks to the hiring of outsourced labor, Petrobras said. The company earlier this week announced a record net profit of US$10.2 billion for last year, an annual jump of more than 55 percent.
MEXICO
Hundreds protest projects
More than 1,000 people on Friday marched through the center of Mexico City in opposition to the government’s largest infrastructure projects. The protest brought together unions, environmentalists, students and representatives of indigenous communities, a mix that would seem a natural base for populist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, but which has become among his most vocal critics. Erika Cortez, a member of the Popular Organization Francisco Villa of the Independent Left from the Mexico City borough of Iztapalapa, said that she opposed the president’s Maya Train project that would move tourists around the Yucatan Peninsula. The train is one of Lopez Obrador’s signature initiatives, which he has said would spur economic development in the southeast, but has faced criticism for its environmental impact. Other demonstrators voiced opposition to a rail line that would traverse the nation, connecting the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, as well as a huge new oil refinery and a gas-fired power plant. The march came one day after the anniversary of the death of activist Samir Flores Soberanes, who had protested a gas-fired power plant in Morelos state. Flores was killed days before a referendum on the nearly completed project and his slaying remains unsolved.
UNITED KINGDOM
Andrew pressed to testify
A yellow school bus with a banner depicting the face of Prince Andrew on Friday drove past Buckingham Palace, urging him to testify in the investigation of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The stunt organized by US lawyer Gloria Allred sought to pressure the prince to reveal what he might know about the disgraced financier. Allred represents some of Epstein’s victims and has demanded that Andrew cooperate. The message, featuring pictures of Andrew, said: “If you see this man, please ask him to call the FBI to answer their questions.” US Attorney Geoffrey Berman last month told reporters that Andrew has provided “zero cooperation” to the FBI and US prosecutors seeking to speak with him about Epstein. The statement by Berman, the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, was the first official confirmation that the leading US law enforcement agency had sought — and failed — to obtain evidence from Andrew, despite his pledge to cooperate with legitimate law enforcement agencies.
A new online voting system aimed at boosting turnout among the Philippines’ millions of overseas workers ahead of Monday’s mid-term elections has been marked by confusion and fears of disenfranchisement. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers have already cast their ballots in the race dominated by a bitter feud between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and his impeached vice president, Sara Duterte. While official turnout figures are not yet publicly available, data from the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed that at least 134,000 of the 1.22 million registered overseas voters have signed up for the new online system, which opened on April 13. However,
EUROPEAN FUTURE? Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama says only he could secure EU membership, but challenges remain in dealing with corruption and a brain drain Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama seeks to win an unprecedented fourth term, pledging to finally take the country into the EU and turn it into a hot tourist destination with some help from the Trump family. The artist-turned-politician has been pitching Albania as a trendy coastal destination, which has helped to drive up tourism arrivals to a record 11 million last year. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also joined in the rush, pledging to invest US$1.4 billion to turn a largely deserted island into a luxurious getaway. Rama is expected to win another term after yesterday’s vote. The vote would
ALLIES: Calling Putin his ‘old friend,’ Xi said Beijing stood alongside Russia ‘in the face of the international counter-current of unilateralism and hegemonic bullying’ Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday was in Moscow for a state visit ahead of the Kremlin’s grand Victory Day celebrations, as Ukraine accused Russia’s army of launching air strikes just hours into a supposed truce. More than 20 foreign leaders were in Russia to attend a vast military parade today marking 80 years since the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, taking place three years into Russia’s offensive in Ukraine. Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and has marshaled the memory of Soviet victory against Nazi Germany to justify his campaign and rally society behind the offensive,
Myanmar’s junta chief met Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the first time since seizing power, state media reported yesterday, the highest-level meeting with a key ally for the internationally sanctioned military leader. Senior General Min Aung Hlaing led a military coup in 2021, overthrowing Myanmar’s brief experiment with democracy and plunging the nation into civil war. In the four years since, his armed forces have battled dozens of ethnic armed groups and rebel militias — some with close links to China — opposed to its rule. The conflict has seen Min Aung Hlaing draw condemnation from rights groups and pursued by the
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