LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR a DAILY PUBLICATION of the DIALOGUE Friday, December 13, 2019
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LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR A DAILY PUBLICATION OF THE DIALOGUE www.thedialogue.org Friday, December 13, 2019 BOARD OF ADVISORS FEATURED Q&A TODAY’S NEWS Diego Arria Director, Columbus Group POLITICAL Devry Boughner Vorwerk What Will Alberto Argentina to Grant CEO, DevryBV Sustainable Strategies Bolivia’s Morales Joyce Chang Global Head of Research, Fernández’s Gov’t Refugee Status JPMorgan Chase & Co. Former Bolivian President Evo Mo- Paula Cifuentes rales arrived in Argentina, which Director of Economic & Fiscal Affairs, Bring Argentina? is giving him refugee status. His Latin America & Canada, Philip Morris International arrival came two days after Pero- Marlene Fernández nist Alberto Fernández took office Corporate Vice President for as Argentina’s president. Government Relations, Page 2 Arcos Dorados Peter Hakim President Emeritus, ECONOMIC Inter-American Dialogue Donna Hrinak Peru’s Central President, Boeing Latin America Bank Holds Key Jon E. Huenemann Former Corporate and Rate Unchanged Government Senior Executive Policymakers kept their bench- James R. Jones mark interest rate steady at Chairman, Argentina’s new president, Alberto Fernández, received the presidential sash and baton at his Monarch Global Strategies swearing-in on Tuesday from outgoing President Mauricio Macri (L-R). // Photo: Argentine 2.25 percent, maintaining it at a Government. nine-year low. Craig A. Kelly Director, Americas International Alberto Fernández on Tuesday took office as Argentina’s Page 3 Gov’t Relations, Exxon Mobil John Maisto president, bringing Peronism back to power in Argentina. POLITICAL Director, U.S. Education What can Argentines expect from Fernández’s government? Finance Group Q What do his cabinet picks say about the direction his gov- Wreckage of Chile Nicolás Mariscal Chairman, ernment is likely to take? How much will his policies differ from those of Plane Found, No Grupo Marhnos the previous administration, and does Fernández have the right plans to Hope of Survivors Thomas F. McLarty III Chairman, address Argentina’s economic woes? Search crews discovered wreck- McLarty Associates age from the Chilean C-130 cargo Carlos Paz-Soldan plane that crashed earlier this Partner, Andrés Malamud, senior research fellow at the University week with 38 people on board, DTB Associates, LLP of Lisbon’s Institute of Social Science: “In the last 36 years, and military officials said there Beatrice Rangel was no hope of finding survivors. Director, Argentina boasted eight presidents and 21 economy minis- AMLA Consulting LLC President Sebastián Piñera said ters. These figures convey one success and one failure. The his government would work to Jaana Remes A Partner, success is democracy: Argentine presidents, whom generals used to oust determine the cause of the crash. McKinsey Global Institute at gunpoint, are now ousted by the people at the ballot box. The failure is, Page 2 Ernesto Revilla Head of Latin American well, the economy: with poverty rate of more than 35 percent and inflation Economics, Citi at 55 percent, growth prospects look dim, and development, illusory. The Gustavo Roosen Chairman of the Board, combination of success and failure makes up for a sort of Argentine Envases Venezolanos miracle: how is it possible that such a dismal economic performance has Andrés Rozental not eroded democratic stability? A possible, worrying answer is: not yet. President, Rozental & Asociados Fernández’s cabinet picks show how aware he is of the ticking bomb he Shelly Shetty has sat upon. His most urgent task is to renegotiate an unpayable foreign Head of Sovereign Ratings, Latin America, Fitch debt, lest there should be another sovereign default. Fittingly, he appoint- Roberto Sifon-Arevalo ed as minister of the economy a young expert in debt restructuring that Managing Director, Americas Sovereign & Public Finance Ratings, has worked closely to Joseph Stiglitz. Also, he must prevent a social Standard & Poor’s explosion by rapidly restarting growth or, at least, domestic consumption. To this end, he has appointed his closest economic aide as minister of Piñera // File Photo: Chilean Government. Continued on page 3 COPYRIGHT © 2019, INTER-AMERICAN DIALOGUE PAGE 1 LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR Friday, December 13, 2019 POLITICAL NEWS from the United States, Argentina and Uruguay, NEWS BRIEFS along with Chile, were involved in the search. Wreckage of Chile A Brazilian navy vessel also recovered some U.S. Slaps Sanctions on wreckage, approximately 280 nautical miles Son of Nicaragua’s Ortega Plane Crash Found, from the Argentine port of Ushuaia, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said in a tweet. Also The United States on Thursday slapped sanc- No Hope of Survivors on Thursday, the Vatican said Pope Francis tions on another son of Nicaraguan President was closely following the developing events Daniel Ortega, Rafael, accusing him of money Rescue crews on Thursday found the wreckage and keeping the family members of the missing laundering and corruption, Reuters reported. of the Chilean military C-130 Hercules cargo personnel in his prayers. The administration of U.S. President Donald plane that went missing Monday off the south- Trump has accused the Nicaraguan govern- ern tip of South America with 38 people on ment of concentrating power in the hands of board, and the head of the country’s air force Argentina to Grant Daniel Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo, said there was no hope of finding any survivors, Refugee Status to who is also the country’s vice president. Rafael Agence France-Presse reported. “The condition Ortega was blacklisted for providing support of the plane wreckage that was found makes it Bolivia’s Morales to Murillo, who was already subject to U.S. practically impossible that there are survivors sanctions, the Treasury Department said. from this air accident,” Air Force head Arturo Former Bolivian President Evo Morales arrived Merino told reporters in Punta Arenas. Remains on Thursday in Argentina, where he will be recovered in the ocean were “most likely to be granted refugee status, new Argentine Foreign Bolivian Protest Leader’s body parts of those traveling on the C-130,” Minister Felipe Solá said, Reuters reported. Mo- Appearance Leads to he said. Among the debris that search crews rales was granted asylum to travel to Argentina found were portions of the plane’s landing gear, and had made the request for refugee status in Scuffles at Dialogue Office its fuel system, a wing, a wheel, two bags, a order to stay, Solá said, adding that four other Minor scuffles broke out Thursday between backpack and a shoe. The plane was headed people had also requested asylum. Morales supporters and opponents of former Bolivian to a Chilean base on Antarctica for a routine had fled last month to Mexico, where he was President Evo Morales during an event at mission when controllers on the ground lost granted asylum following his resignation in the Inter-American Dialogue featuring Luis contact with it. The 38 people on board—21 Fernando Camacho, the leader of the anti-Mo- passengers and 17 crew members—were rales Comité de Santa Cruz. Police were called headed to the Eduardo Frei base across the to the think tank to restore order as protesters Drake Passage, which separates South Amer- repeatedly disrupted a question-and-answer ica from Antarctica. In a posting on Twitter, session between Camacho and the Dialogue’s Chilean President Sebastián Piñera said his president, Michael Shifter. One person request- government would do “everything possible to ed an ambulance for a minor facial injury, find answers to this tragedy.” The area is known Washington Metropolitan Police public affairs for some of the worst weather in the world, specialist Elaina Girtz told the Advisor. and conditions can rapidly change. However, Morales // File Photo: Bolivian Government. the plane emitted no emergency signal before it vanished, indicating that the circumstances the wake of a contested election, which the that caused its crash were likely to be sudden. Organization of American States has said was Scheer Resigns as Head Chilean military authorities said they were marred by fraud, The Guardian reported. “My of Canada’s Conservatives committed to determining what had happened. eternal thanks to [Mexican] President [Andrés Andrew Scheer, the leader of Canada’s Conser- “When 38 of your compatriots die, the least Manuel López Obrador] and the government vative Party, resigned on Thursday after reports that can be done is to find the truth” said of Mexico for saving my life and for sheltering surfaced that he used party funds to help pay Defense Minister Alberto Espina, AFP reported. me. I felt at home with Mexican sisters and for his children’s private school education, The plane was built in 1978, so due to its age, brothers for a month,” Morales said in a tweet. Global News reported, citing party sources. its maintenance history will likely be under He also thanked Argentina for its “support Only a small circle within the party knew that intense scrutiny as investigators seek to deter- and solidarity.” Morales served as president the party was reimbursing Scheer, who came in mine the cause of the crash, Stephen Wright, of Bolivia for nearly 14 years, running for a second to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the an air industry specialist at Finland’s Tampere fourth time in the October presidential election, October federal elections, for the cost of his University, told the wire service. Search vessels despite a 2016 referendum in which Bolivians children’s schooling. COPYRIGHT © 2019, INTER-AMERICAN DIALOGUE PAGE 2 LATIN AMERICA ADVISOR Friday, December 13, 2019 voted against his re-election and a constitu- BUSINESS NEWS to attend throughout the year,” BBVA said. “It tional ban. New center-left Argentine President also allows for entrepreneurs to be in close Alberto Fernández, who took office Tuesday, contact with each other, enabling the sharing said there had been a “coup” against Morales BBVA Launches New of ideas, tactics, learnings, etc.” The space in when he resigned, Reuters reported.