Commentators have been preparing obituaries for Hugo Chávez ever since the announcement of his cancer diagnosis in July 2011. There were peaks and troughs of activity, Christmas 2012 being a time of frenzied speculation after no word or tweet emanated from the ebullient president after he departed for Havana and a fourth round of treatment.

Official pronouncements over the passing weeks provided optimism that Chávez would be able to assume the fourth term that he had won in the October 2012 presidential election. Opinion polls showed that a majority of Venezuelans were confident Chávez would be back in Miraflores Palace and were supportive of the delay of his January 10th inauguration. There was consequently a stunned popular reaction to the tearfully delivered message from Vice President Nicolas Maduro that Chávez had died on March 5th.

The 14^th Irish Latin American Film Festival - 2013

Full festival programme click here

The 14^th Irish Latin American Film Festival 2013 will take place once again in Belfast and Dublin, featuring shorts and documentaries about this most interesting continent.  Latin America was the first to experience the disastrous impact of neoliberal masochism (that we are now experiencing in Ireland with an apathetic attitude) and the first to revolt against it.  An example in this Festival is Water Rising and the resistance to privatization of water in Bolivia.  It has seen a resounding return for Chávez, Morales and Correa.  They have made corporations and the well-off pay their taxes (receipts have almost double in six years) raising public investment to 15% of national income, extending public ownership and re-regulating the banking system to support development!

Admission is free to this bilingual Film Festival, but attendees are requested to be on time for the screenings.

Spanish classes

Beginners starting Monday 21st January until Monday 8th April 6pm - 7.30pm

Continuation starting Monday 21st January until Monday 8th April 7.45pm - 9.15pm

Portuguese classes

Beginners starting Thursday 24th January until Thursday 28th March 6pm - 7.30pm

Continuation starting Thursday 24th January until Thursday 28th March 7.45pm - 9.15pm

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/open-honest-dialog-cuba-government-secure-release-american-operative-alan-gross/qcZC2pG2?utm_source=wh.gov&utm_medium=shorturl&utm_campaign=shorturl

Dear all, Teresita the Cuban ambassador asked us to help the Miami five... please go to the above url address in order to sign up a petition for the release of the Miami 5 a very high profile case we should all support. For more info you can check:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_Five

Please circulate this petition if you can and sign up please.

President Obama's crass comments about newly-elected Chavez only serve to further alienate himself from Latin America.

The latest Justice For Colombia campaign is to free Colombian Political Prisoner Omar Alfonso Combita - more information about Omar's plight can be obtained online at:

http://www.ictu.ie/globalsolidarity/actions/omaralfonsocombito.html