The U.S. and Canada have agreed to temporarily close their shared border to nonessential travel, President Donald Trump announced Wednesday as the two nations work to stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Both countries are eager to choke off the spread of the virus but also maintain their vital economic relationship. Canada relies on the U.S. for 75% of its exports.  Trump made the announcement on Twitter, saying the decision would not affect the flow of trade between the countries. “We will be, by mutual consent, temporarily closing our Northern Border with Canada to non-essential traffic,” Trump tweeted. We will be, by mutual consent, temporarily closing our Northern Border with Canada to non-essential traffic. Trade will not be affected. Details to follow!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau works from his home office at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, March 13, 2020, during his self-quarantine. (Prime Minister’s Office via Reuters)Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday he would close the country’s borders to anyone not a citizen, an American or a permanent resident, and even then they must self-isolate for 14 days on arrival. Trudeau said the exemption for Americans, despite the rapid rise of cases in the U.S., was due to “the level of integration of our two economies.”  For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The vast majority of people recover from the new virus.  The United States has seen about 6,500 coronavirus cases and more than 110 deaths while Canada has seen about 600 cases and eight deaths. Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said the border is vital to the daily life to people on both sides.  “Nearly 200,000 people cross that border every day, and that border and that traffic that goes across that border is literally a lifeline for both the Canadians and the Americans on both sides of that border,” Freeland said. “We get our groceries thanks to truckers who drive back and forth across that border,” she said. “Very urgently needed medical supplies and medicines go back and forth across that border. And essential workers go back and forth across that border every day. So it is a unique relationship for Canada, and it’s important for us in handling our situation on the border to be sure that we act to get things right.” But many people in Canada criticized the decision to give Americans an exemption. British Columbia Health Minister Adrian Dix said he vehemently disagreed with the American exemption given the surge in cases in neighboring Washington state.  Bruce Heyman, a former U.S. ambassador to Canada, said both countries recognize how many people cross the border daily.  “Border traffic has already slowed and in line with recommendations to stay home and eliminate nonessential movement,” Heyman said. “New rules jointly accepted for our shared border makes sense.” Robert Bothwell, a professor of Canadian history and international relations at the University of Toronto, noted the government-to-government accord merely ratifies what is already in place. “Tourism in the age of the coronavirus is a contradiction in terms,” Bothwell said. “And no Canadian in his or her right mind would want to be caught with the virus on the U.S. side of the border, given the predatory U.S. medical pricing system. Actually, the insurance companies have already taken care of the problem. Many of us have received notices that they will not pay for virus treatment south of the border.” ___ 
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The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic is threatening to worsen labor shortages experienced by Pacific Northwest farms and food processors. On March 16, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico said it would suspend routine immigrant and non-immigrant visa services due to COVID-19, potentially cutting off seasonal and migrant agricultural workers through the H-2A visa program. Dan Fazio, CEO of Wafla — formerly the Washington Farm Labor Association — told the Capital Press that the USDA is working with the State Department to obtain an emergency designation for H-2A visas, which would allow temporary farmworkers to continue entering the country. “We’ve got to get these people here in May so we can have a harvest in October,” Fazio said. Washington state had over 25,000 H-2A labor certifications in 2019, which accounted for 25% of seasonal workers, Fazio said. So far this year, Wafla has brought in more than 5,000 H-2A workers, with the biggest wave still to come in late May for the start of cherry harvest. Agriculture is a baseline industry, Fazio said, and any disruptions would trickle down throughout the economy.  Spring is also peak shipping season for Oregon’s $995 million greenhouse and nursery industry. Jeff Stone, executive director of the Oregon Association of Nurseries, said it is already difficult to find workers willing to package products and load trucks. With coronavirus potentially stalling the H-2A program, he said it only adds to the pressure. “All this really shows is the fragility of the workforce,” Stone said. “This adds a layer of worry. I feel for every business.”  
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A migrant advocacy group is suing the Trump administration to stop three children from deportation to El Salvador, where their family says their lives would be in danger.   The three children are in a U.S. facility. Their mother is in a tent camp in Mexico, while their father lives in Maryland, outside Washington, D.C., and says he is willing to bring his children into his home. Lawyers for the Coalition Action Justice Center say the children should be considered “unaccompanied” minors and deserve an asylum hearing. The lawyers say the children would be in grave danger if deported, because their father ran a church there and preached against the violent MS-13 gang. The family fled El Salvador for Mexico. The father and a fourth child entered the U.S. last June and were allowed to stay.  Three children and the mother crossed the border into Texas, but a judge rejected their asylum claim in January and ordered them back to a camp in Mexico. After a 16-year-old daughter barely escaped being raped, and her 9-year-old brother was beaten and robbed, their mother sent all three children back over the border into Texas.  They are in a U.S. facility, unsure of what will happen next. If they are granted asylum, it is unclear if or when their mother would be allowed to leave the camp and join the family. U.S. officials have not commented on the case. 
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Vendors at the busy Croix-des-Bossales market in downtown Port-au-Prince have not heard much about the coronavirus pandemic that is currently sweeping the world.   VOA Creole found Monday that half of the vendors were busy trying to make ends meet and had no knowledge or incorrect information about the virus.  
 
“I haven’t heard about it. I only came back to the capital yesterday,” a female vendor told VOA. “I do have a radio at home, but it’s not working.”  
 
“I heard it’s people who eat mice who have this disease,” a vendor in her 20s told VOA. “People who eat rats. I heard coronavirus is killing people, but I have no idea whether it’s here in Haiti.”   
 
Farther down the row of merchants, another female vendor had more accurate information.Potato vendors wait for customers at the Croix-dèz-Beausalles open air market in downtown Port au Prince. (VOA Creole/Matiado Vilme)“I heard that corona is a virus that we should avoid. We should wash our hands, but that’s all I know,” she said.  “But I did hear someone say it originated with white people who eat cockroaches, rats and mice — that’s what I heard on the street.”  
 
A male vendor in his 40s knew that COVID-19 has infected people worldwide. 
 
“I don’t know much else about it,” he said, “because I’m still waiting to hear what the experts have to tell us.”  
 
Another vendor told VOA she believes drinking moonshine can keep the virus at bay.  
 
“I heard the virus doesn’t like hot climates nor strong alcohol, so that’s our protection,” she said. Among vendors who had some knowledge of the virus and the precautions they can take to keep it from spreading, several admitted the advice wasn’t easy to follow.   
 
“They told us we shouldn’t touch our faces, but after moving merchandise, sometimes we sweat, and out of habit, we wipe our forehead (with our hand),” a woman said. “How are we supposed to avoid doing that?”  
 
A vendor selling rice and beans said she washes her hands often, but noted that her clients may or may not do the same. 
 
“When a person is hungry, they may not remember to wash their hands before they come to my stand to buy food. All they can think of is eating,” she said.  
 
A male vendor said he was praying for God’s protection. As for social distancing, he said Haitians will never stop kissing each other when they meet. 
 
“We poor people are used to bacteria, so it doesn’t kill us,” he said, adding that he will say an extra prayer to remain healthy as he continues to greet his friends with kisses. The Croix-des-Beausalles open air market is one of Port au Prince’s busiest. (VOA Creole/Matiado Vilme)Haiti has no confirmed cases of COVID-19 and is working to keep it that way, through nationwide information campaigns, public service announcements on radio and television, and daily press briefings. 
 
Over the weekend, the National Federation of Haitian Mayors announced a nationwide campaign in the country’s 10 departments to inform people about the pandemic.  On Sunday, Interior Minister Audin Bernadel Fils announced he would go downtown Monday evening, accompanied by members of the police force and Justice Ministry officials, to shut down roadside merchant stands.   
 
“We will close them, because coronavirus is not a ghost, it’s not fake news, it’s real,” he said. “We have been fortunate not to have any cases yet, and we intend to keep it that way as long as we can.”  
 
Monday at midnight, Haiti is shutting its border with the Dominican Republic, where the coronavirus has sickened 11 people.  An exception is being made for merchandise coming across the border, which will be required to undergo screening both in the Dominican Republic and in Haiti immediately after entering the country.   
 
Haiti has also stepped up patrols of its maritime borders and has suspended air travel from Europe and Latin America.  Air travel between Haiti and the United States has not yet been halted but is currently under review, according to Prime Minister Jouthe Joseph.  
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday he will close the country’s borders to anyone not a citizen, an American or a permanent resident and asked all Canadians to say home amid the coronavirus pandemic.“All Canadians as much as possible should stay home,” Trudeau said said outside his residence, where is self-isolating after his wife tested positive for the virus.Trudeau said his government based its decisions on science and public health recommendations, but said Americans would exempted despite cases surging in the U.S.“We recognize that the level of integration of our two economies,” he said.The U.S. is by far Canada’s largest trading partner — accounting for 75 percent of the country’s exports. Trudeau has spoken to U.S. President Donald Trump in recent days.Trudeau also said his government will restrict flights to Canada to airports in four major cities. The Canadian government is also mandating air carriers to screen passengers with symptoms of the novel coronavirus out of lines so they don’t board planes home.He said the country is taking “increasingly aggressive steps” to keep everyone safe. 
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Brazilian airline Azul said on Monday that it will cut all of its international flights out of its main hub in Sao Paulo state later on Monday because of the coronavirus outbreak, significantly increasing its cancellations.
 
Latin American airlines, including Azul, had announced last week they would cut no more than 30% of their flights.
 
The continent’s largest carrier, LATAM Airlines Group , said on Monday that it might cut back flights further following Azul’s announcements but declined to provide more details.
 
“We will maintain the flexibility to take additional measures, if necessary, due to the speed at which events are unfolding,” the company said in a statement.
 
Other carriers have also been canceling flights to Latin America. American Airlines said over the weekend it would cut all of its flights to Brazil and to much of South America.
 
The speed of cancellations accelerated from what airlines said they expected last week. Azul had said that it would focus its cancellations outside of its Sao Paulo hub and instead work to keep those flights in place, only to then cancel all Sao Paulo international flights on Monday.
 
It was unclear what, if any, international flights Azul will keep operating. Azul flies mainly to the United States and to Portugal.
 
The airline added it would cut up to 50% of its capacity by next month and adopt measures to cut costs. One of them is the 25% reduction in salaries of its executives, significantly lower than cuts taken by airline executives in the United States.
 
Brazil’s Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes has not made specific announcements yet, but it only operates international flights within Latin America. 
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Haiti will close its border with the Dominican Republic as of midnight on Monday, Prime Minister Jouthe Joseph announced Sunday.   Joseph said an exception is being made for merchandise, which will still be allowed across the border after screening.  He said Dominican officials will test those aboard the vehicles prior to entering Haiti, and Haitian health officials will also test them upon entry.   
 
The move aims to keep the coronavirus, which has sickened 11 people in the neighboring Dominican Republic, out.  So far Haiti has no confirmed cases of the deadly disease. The country’s first suspected case, an unidentified foreign woman who had traveled to one of the countries where the coronavirus has spread, tested negative for the disease.  “We are asking people to take this pandemic very seriously,” Joseph said. “We are asking for the cooperation of all Haitian citizens as well as foreigners living in Haiti.” The prime minister announced that Haiti is also suspending all flights from Europe and Latin America. Flights from the United States are under evaluation, he said.  
 
“We are evaluating fights between Port-au-Prince and New York, Port-au-Prince and Miami, Cape Haitian and Miami, Cape Haitian and Fort Lauderdale,” he said. “We have an agreement with American air transportation officials that all passengers boarding planes for Haiti must be screened for coronavirus.” 
 
He said Public Health officials at the nation’s two international airports – in Port-au-Prince and Cape Haitian  – are already screening passengers for the virus upon arrival. Quarantine facilities have also been set up for passengers who exhibit flu-like symptoms. They will be required to fill out a special form, regarding the disease.  
 
“If you are asked to undergo testing or if you are ordered to be quarantined, we urge you to cooperate.  Don’t be angry, this is being done to protect our country,” he said. 
 
Joseph appealed to avoid traveling outside of the country, unless it’s an emergency. 
 
“We urge all Haitians to avoid all non-essential travel. Do not travel to any foreign country unless it’s urgent that you do so,” Joseph said.  According to the prime minister, the extra measures to reinforce the country’s land and maritime borders and its airports have been successful in keeping the pandemic out so far.    In addition to new restrictions affecting civilian travel, the prime minister said the government has cancelled all official travel.  Joseph said any official who wants to travel abroad must first get approval from either President Jovenel Moise, the prime minister or the foreign minister.  
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Cuba released dissident artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara from jail overnight after dozens of prominent artists, including those traditionally supportive of the communist government, as well as international rights groups, criticized his arrest 13 days ago.The 32-year-old, known for his provocative performances criticizing authorities, had been put in “preventive prison” awaiting trial on various charges, according to his partner and art curator, Claudia Genlui.One of these was the charge of insulting national symbols, after the self-described “art-ivist” draped himself in the Cuban flag for a month last year, including in the bathroom, documenting his performance with photos and videos.Supporters said they were trumped-up charges to silence a vocal critic. The Cuban government, which usually does not comment on police activity such as the detention of dissidents, did not respond to a request for comment.But officials said this week on social media that he was not an artist and state news outlets ran articles on the importance of respecting the flag.’I am still in shock’Otero Alcantara said in a video released by alternative outlet El Estornudo that authorities did not explain whether they would maintain those charges against him when they released him unexpectedly.”I am still in shock because inevitably the experience of being in a jail is traumatic,” said Otero Alcantara. “But honestly I’m happy … [because this support shows] I am not alone, all I have done is not in vain, and Cuba is changing.”Amnesty International had on Friday named him as a prisoner of conscience. Otero Alcantara had been detained dozens of times at police stations over the past few years but never for more than 72 hours, and he had never been thrown in jail, Genlui said.Those who criticized his imprisonment included even some staunch defenders of Cuba’s 1959 revolution such as folk singer Silvio Rodriguez and painter-sculptor Alexis Leiva, or  “Kcho,” who was friendly with late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.”We are giving a very sad impression of backwardness, of the Middle Ages,” Rodriguez wrote on his blog. “How, in the middle of the 21st century, are we going to put ideological brakes on young artists?”
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Haiti’s first suspected coronavirus case has tested negative, the country’s new prime minister says.Joseph Jouthe held a news conference Friday at his official residence along with the director general of the Ministry of Public Health, Dr. Laure Adrien, to try to calm citizens anxious about the country’s potential first case of the deadly infection.The health official described the tested patient as a female foreigner who had returned to Haiti after traveling to her native country, where coronavirus has spread. The woman was experiencing symptoms, which prompted concern and led to tests administered at the national laboratory in Port-au-Prince. The tests came back negative, officials said.   No further details about the patient were given. Cause for concern The prime minister also addressed a case that sparked rumors and fear among residents of the capital, regarding a group of 16 people who arrived in Haiti on Wednesday by bus from the Dominican Republic.   Minister of Public Health Marie Greta Roy Clement told VOA that the neighboring country had nine confirmed cases of the virus.Haitian officials quarantined the bus passengers Wednesday in the neighborhood of Tabarre, after one bus passenger died before crossing the border into Haiti. Prior the death, officials said, the person exhibited coronavirus-like symptoms such as fever and coughing.   The remaining passengers were tested for the virus, and results of those lab test results were still pending. A passenger wears gloves to use his phone while waiting to board a flight at Toussaint Louverture International Airport, March 14, 2020, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. As of Saturday, there were no reported cases of COVID-19 in Haiti.Awareness campaignMeanwhile, mayors belonging to the Federation of National Mayors (FENAHM), who represent Haiti’s 10 departments, are launching a national coronavirus public awareness campaign.“Previous governments never made public health a priority. That’s why we don’t have adequate infrastructure to confront this virus,” FENAHM leader Jude Edouard Pierre told reporters. “So we want to help the government inform the public and we are starting today [Friday] in 146 communities nationwide.”Pierre said they were working with the health ministry to roll out the program and were asking the government to announce broad measures that would help the nation face the pandemic.  He said officials must identify all local enterprises that sell or produce masks, gloves, hand sanitizers and oxygen; make them available to those who need them; and keep them off the black market.“We are asking the government to act quickly to announce the names of companies operating in this sector and tell us which measures it is taking to prevent profiteering, which we have seen happen in other countries.  Black market sales have already begun here in Haiti,” Pierre said.He also discussed future school closures and stockpiling of food items to make sure those who are quarantined have adequate sustenance should that become necessary.“If we get hit with this virus — we are a small country. We don’t have adequate health facilities. We can expect big problems,” he said.Cayman Islands death Elsewhere in the Caribbean, the Cayman Islands announced its first coronavirus death Saturday.According to health officials, a 68-year-old Italian patient died early Saturday morning at a health facility in Health City.  He was transported into the country from a cruise ship on which he was a passenger on February 29 for critical cardiac care.  The man originally had no COVID-19 symptoms, according to officials, but after six days he began to show flu-like symptoms and tested positive for the disease.Yves Manuel Matiado Vilme contributed to this report.
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Canada shut down Parliament and advised against all nonessential travel outside the country while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau governed remotely from his home, in self-imposed quarantine after his wife tested positive for the new coronavirus.Dr. Theresa Tam, the chief public health officer, also advised more social distancing, no handshakes and kisses.The Canadian government is advising the cancellation of all large events like concerts. Transport Minister Marc Garneau said cruise ships with more than 500 people will not be able to dock in Canada until July 1.Overseas flights restricted Overseas flights returning to Canada will also be restricted to a small number of airports in the country.Canada’s House of Commons voted to shut down for at least five weeks to help ensure lawmakers do not contribute to the spread of the virus.The moves came a day after Trudeau’s wife tested positive. The prime minister himself has been in self-imposed quarantine.All parties in Parliament agreed to the suspension, which means lawmakers will miss two weeks of sessions since they had previously planned to be away next week and two weeks in April. The House is scheduled to next meet on Monday, April 20.“This just shows you how seriously our government and members of the house are taking this,” Government House leader Pablo Rodriguez said.Part of the deal for closing Parliament for five weeks was ratifying the new North American Free Trade Agreement. Rodriguez said lawmakers have passed legislation to ratify the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and the Senate is expected to follow suit later Friday.Presentation of federal budget delayedThe suspension of the House of Commons means the federal budget won’t be presented March 30 as Finance Minister Bill Morneau had promised. Rodriguez said the federal budget will be announced at a later date.Trudeau was quarantining himself at home because his wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, tested positive for the new coronavirus after returning from Britain. He said Friday his wife has mild flu-like symptoms but is doing fine. He said neither he nor their three children are showing symptoms.“She’s getting lots of rest and drinking lots of fluids and we’re paying very close attention to what the medical professionals are saying,” Trudeau said to the CBC.“I am feeling fine, no symptoms. The kids are all fine, happy to being staying home from school. We’re doing well.”Speaks with TrumpTrudeau was spending the day in briefings, phone calls and virtual meetings from home, including speaking with other world leaders and joining a special Cabinet committee discussion on the coronavirus. Trudeau spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday.But Trudeau did cancel an in-person meeting with Canada’s provincial premiers.The prime minister planned to address the nation later Friday, according to his office.Trudeau himself had not been tested because he was not showing symptoms, his office said. The doctor’s advice to the prime minister is to continue daily activities while self-monitoring.Trudeau said his government will likely recommend that Canadians avoid travel outside the country except for essential purposes.“We are going to be able to get through this if everyone is going to follow the advice of our medical professionals and experts,” Trudeau said to CBC. 
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The United States imposed sanctions on another Russian state-controlled Rosneft Oil subsidiary for providing financial help to Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro regime.Trading International S.A. (TNK), a Swiss-based unit of Rosneft that has been operating in the oil sector of the Venezuelan economy, was directly involved in efforts to assist Rosneft Trading S.A. (RTSA) to evade U.S. sanctions, the U.S. government said Thursday.“TNK Trading International S.A. is another Rosneft subsidiary brokering the sale and transport of Venezuelan crude oil,” Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement. “The Trump administration remains committed to targeting those who support the corrupt regime’s exploitation of Venezuela’s oil assets.”TNK purchased nearly 14 million barrels of crude oil from Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA) in January 2020 alone, U.S. officials said.The measure against TNK follows U.S. sanctions against Rosneft Trading S.A. Feb. 18, 2020 on similar claims.“The people of Venezuela, interim President Juan Guaido, and the democratically elected National Assembly need the continued support of our international partners,” U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement. “We call on the international community to join us in applying stronger pressure on Maduro and his corrupt former regime to relinquish its illegitimate hold on power in Venezuela.”In January 2019, the U.S. recognized Guaido as the OPEC nation’s legitimate interim president and since then has increased its economic and diplomatic pressure to force the ousting of Maduro’s regime.About 60 nations recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido last year as Venezuela’s legitimate leader and consider Maduro to be illegitimate.
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As Haitian government officials intensify their efforts to inform and prepare the nation for the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the world, residents of Petionville, a suburb of the capital, Port-au-Prince, seemed woefully uninformed about the deadly disease.“Do you know how people get infected with coronavirus?” a woman who didn’t want to appear on camera asked VOA Creole’s reporter. “It’s the result of too many sins. That’s why the disease is spreading worldwide. This is God’s way of punishing us.”Louis Jeune François believes the coronavirus is a conspiracy. (Matiado Vilme/VOA)Louis Jeune Francois, a voodoo worshiper who had just attended a service believes the pandemic is a conspiracy.“There are 21 families which rule the world. Maybe they feel the population is too big, so they found a way to reduce it. They created a virus to kill a group of people,” he said. “They especially want the virus to kill people in the poorest countries.”This woman told VOA Creole she doesn’t believe the coronavirus only targets people who practice certain religions. (Matiado Vilme/VOA)Another voodoo worshiper told VOA she doesn’t believe coronavirus has anything to do with black magic.“Coronavirus isn’t just a hex on Haiti, don’t you see China is infected with the virus too?” she said. “People who are blaming it on religion are wrong, the virus targets both Protestants and Pagans. You just need to be cautious.”Another man who didn’t want to be identified seemed to understand the basics.“From what I understand, the coronavirus is a virus. It’s a virus that’s transmitted through the air,” he said.Asked what preventative measures they can take to avoid being infected, residents offered various solutions.“Don’t shake hands, fist bump instead,” one man suggested.This market vendor says hand-washing and avoiding touching your face can keep you healthy, March 12, 2020. (Matiado Vilme/VOA)“Wash your hands, don’t touch your mouth, don’t pick your nose, use a handkerchief,” a woman selling clothing at the local open air market advised.“I don’t buy this washing hands thing,” another man said. “Of course you have to wash your hands, because if your hand is dirty you won’t be able to use it. I was brought up to do that. But some people say you should eat limes, eat local fruits, because they are natural (and won’t harm your health).”Expanding on the homeopathic remedy idea, a man told VOA he heard there are vegetable leaves you can boil to protect yourself from the virus.“Boiling leaves is part of our culture,” he said.This man had accurate information about how the pandemic spreads but also believes consuming certain boiled plants can protect him from being infected. (Matiado Vilme/VOA)Most people VOA Creole spoke to said the government should act more responsibly to inform the nation about the virus.“Haiti is a free country, people do whatever they want here, but there are countries where planes are not allowed to land, transportation is restricted, but here there are no restrictions that I’m aware of,” a woman shopping at the open air market said. “We have no protections whatsoever. We’re in God’s hands.”“If the government forbids groups of 500 people or more to meet, I will know that if I see that happening I should not attend,” one man said. “But if the number they give is 1,000 or 2,000 then I’ll go ahead and attend because it’s hard to get that many people in one place around here.”Haiti’s Public Health Minister Marie Greta Roy Clement announced Wednesday that the government has stepped up efforts to keep coronavirus out. The measures include screening at the nation’s airports and official border crossings, training for health professionals and journalists, and public service announcements airing on radio and television.Renan Toussaint in Port-au-Prince contributed to this report.
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Haiti’s public health minister says there are at least 941 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the Americas, as the virus continues to spread globally.“In the Dominican Republic, there are nine confirmed cases,” Marie Greta Roy Clement told reporters on Wednesday. “But I’d like to note that the cases in the Dominican Republic are imported cases, meaning the patients came from foreign countries. There has not yet been — according to my conversations with my Dominican counterpart — any community transmission of the disease.”Clement said this is particularly important for Haiti, which shares a border with the Dominican Republic.According to the health minister, Haiti has no suspected nor confirmed cases of the virus on its territory — as of yet. She said additional measures have been rolled out to protect the country.Haiti Public Health Minister Marie Greta Roy Clément briefs reporters on the latest Coronavirus measures, March 12, 2020 in Port au Prince, Haiti. (Renan Toussaint / VOA Creole)Airports, official border crossingsThe Caribbean nation’s two international airports — in Port-au-Prince and Cape Haitian — are screening incoming passengers for the virus, Clement said.“When a passenger arrives at the airport — no matter where you are coming from — your temperature will be taken and you will be given a form to fill out,” she said. “We also hand out a sanitary information form which provides information about who to call, how to protect yourself and what to do if you experience symptoms.”The minister said at Haiti’s official border crossings, additional measures have been implemented to thoroughly screen travelers.“As you know we have four official entry points, but there are more than 200 unofficial crossings,” Clement noted. “At the four official border crossings — at Malpasse, Ouanaminthe, Belladere, and Anse a Pitre — we are screening travelers using the same methods the airports are using and we are intensifying our efforts there.”TrainingClement said Haiti’s Health Ministry is also providing coronavirus training this week to doctors, nurses and journalists.“On Saturday [March 14] we will be training health professionals at the nation’s private hospitals — because we can’t expect patients to only be seen at the state-run hospitals — so we will continue working with the private hospitals to get them ready,” she said.Health professionals who were previously trained on infectious diseases will be working with local officials in the country’s 10 departments to brief them on best practices with regards to the new virus.“We trained CMI’s [Infectious Disease Coordinators] who will take a leadership role in training the different departmental officials on how to deal with coronavirus cases,” she said.Immigration agents also received training on detecting possible cases of the virus and what questions to ask visitors to determine whether or not they pose a potential health risk.  Hospital workers fear outbreakDr. Jacques Mackenzie says the General Hospital is ill equipped to handle Coronavirus patients. (Matiado Vilme / VOA Creole)News of the intensified efforts in Haiti comes after doctors and nurses at the state-run General Hospital in the capital decried their own lack of preparedness.“It’s sad to say this but the hospital receives a lot of patients daily and we are not — I repeat — we are not ready, as far as I know, to diagnose a person who has the coronavirus,” Dr. Jacques Mackenzie told VOA Creole, adding that they don’t even have the test to determine if someone is infected.Nurse Marie Catherine is disappointed in the lack of communication and support from the Public Health Ministry. (Matiado Vilme / VOA Creole)Marie Catherine, a nurse at the hospital, told VOA she was unaware of the Health Ministry’s directives.“We are already working under conditions that are not normal for most hospitals and now it’s gotten worse,” Catherine said. “The Ministry of Public Health has never discussed with us its policy for what to do when we receive the first coronavirus case in Haiti.”Haiti’s hospitals were hit hard during the mass anti-government and anti-corruption protests last year, during which roads were barricaded, public sanitation employees stayed home and basic supplies were critically low.Greater visibilitySince last week’s outcry, the Haitian government has been more visible on social media, with regards to coronavirus prevention and news. The presidential press secretary, Eddy Jackson Alexis, has been posting alerts on his official Twitter account.The health minister said the government has established a second emergency telephone line — 116 (equivalent to 911 in the U.S.) and that they are working on a third emergency line that citizens can call at no charge, for information on the virus.“What is most important with regards to this pandemic is notifying the public,” Clement told the press. “We have public information announcements airing on TV and radio with advice on how to wash your hands, avoid touching your face, eyes and mouth and what are the best practices when coughing or sneezing to avoid infecting others.”Clement also advised social distancing as a way of preventing the possible spread of the virus.
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is quarantining himself at home after his wife exhibited flu-like symptoms.
    
Trudeau’s office said Thursday that Sophie Gregoire Trudeau returned from a speaking engagement in Britain and had mild flu-like symptoms, including a low fever late, Wednesday night.
    
She is being tested for the COVID-19 disease and is awaiting results. Her symptoms have since subsided.
     
“Out of an abundance of caution, the Prime Minister is opting to self-isolate and work from home until receiving Sophie’s results,” the statement said.
    
His office said the doctor’s advice to the prime minister is to continue daily activities while self-monitoring, given that he is exhibiting no symptoms himself. He is spending the day in briefings, phone calls, and virtual meetings from home, including speaking with other world leaders and joining a special cabinet committee discussion on the new coronavirus.
    
Trudeau has also cancelled an in-person meeting with Canada’s provincial premiers.
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Governments around the world are responding to the coronavirus pandemic with more and more travel bans as they seek to prevent imported cases while also avoiding or containing the spread of cases within their borders.U.S. President Donald Trump issued a ban on foreign travelers who recently visited Europe’s Schengen Area as he gave a televised speech that also highlighted economic measures his administration is taking.He drew criticism from Democratic leaders who say not enough is being done to accelerate testing of potential cases in the United States, and they have offered legislation that includes free testing and paid leave that would encourage people to stay home from work.WATCH: White House correspondent Patsy Widakuswara’s video report.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
A man and a girl on a scooter are backdropped by a Lombardy region campaign advertising reading in Italian ‘ Coronavirus let’s stop it together ‘, at the Porta Nuova business district in Milan, March 11, 2020.In addition to travel bans, governments have increasingly turned to restricting public gatherings to go along with advice from public health officials who say such social distancing, along with hand washing and staying home for those who feel sick, can help stop the virus from spreading.The U.S. state of California said late Wednesday that any gathering of more than 250 people should be canceled, and those in smaller groups should stay about two meters apart.The National Basketball Association suspended its season indefinitely after a player for the Utah Jazz tested positive for coronavirus. The National Basketball Association suspended its season indefinitely after a player for the Utah Jazz tested positive for coronavirus.  The governing body for collegiate sports in the United States said the popular men’s and women’s basketball championship tournaments would be held with only staff and family members in attendance.The world figure skating championships set to be held next week in Montreal have also been canceled.Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel after the press conference, in Melbourne, Australia, March 12, 2020.In Australia, the Formula One racing series is set to go ahead with its opening event Sunday, despite several team staff members being held in isolation while they await the results of coronavirus tests.  British driver Lewis Hamilton, who has been the top F1 driver in five of the past six seasons, said Thursday he was “very surprised” the race is still on.”It seems that the rest of the world is already reacting a little bit late, but you have seen this morning with Trump shutting down the border to Europe to the States, the NBA suspended, yet Formula One continues to go on,” Hamilton told reporters.Bahrain, host of the second race of the season, has already said it would not allow spectators.
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“Where to find it?” and “Whatever you want” and “What do you need?”These are the names of some of the social media groups catering to thousands of Cubans who are using newly available mobile internet to grapple with shortages of basic goods that are worsening under tougher U.S. sanctions.Armed with internet access on cellphones that came into general use last year, Cubans are forming online chat groups to share tips about where to find dish detergent, chicken, diesel fuel and other scarce essentials. They do so on WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook.Claudia Santander, a 21-year-old graphic designer, poses with her mobile phone as others line up to buy goods at the 4 Caminos market in Havana, Cuba, March 11, 2020. Santander administers 10 Whatsapp groups that help others search for necessities.Chat groupsWithout the chat groups, people would have to “spend all day going around the city” looking for things that they need, said Claudia Santander, a graphic designer who administers a dozen WhatsApp groups at no charge.Now, for example, someone can ask about a certain product — toilet paper or milk powder or soap — and another person on the chat might reply within minutes to say which store in Havana, the Cuban capital, is stocking it.“I’ve been able to sort out” diaper and other purchases since joining several social media groups aimed at locating essential items, said Havana resident Laura Vela, who has a young child.Some of the groups have waiting lists of people anxious to get the benefits of being a member. WhatsApp limits group chat sizes to 256 people, while other platforms accept thousands.Inequality worsensShopping through social media is easing life for many on the island, but it may be exacerbating inequality and making things harder for those without internet connections. Moreover, people get discounts on data if they pay with badly needed dollars through companies outside Cuba, meaning those without U.S. currency are at a disadvantage.“A lot of people can’t afford” to buy phone data or a good phone, said Lucia March, a writer. For those who can, she said, “the usefulness is obvious and it’s something that represents, above all, development and also helps open people’s minds a little.”Cuba doesn’t have classified ads in official newspapers. Some businesses offer sales on the internet, but the social media groups help people grapple almost in real time with constant challenges.Cooking oil might vanish from shelves, but then it returns and there is no flour. One day there is no butter and the next there is no cheese. Many people, particularly those not getting information from a social media network, can spend hours fruitlessly searching for household items.US sanctionsCubans have been used to struggling for the basics since the collapse of their benefactors in the Soviet Union decades ago, but the situation deteriorated in 2019 after U.S. President Donald Trump escalated sanctions. The economic woes of Venezuela, a key provider of oil to Cuba, has also hurt the Caribbean country.As a result, there have often been long lines at shops as well as rationing of products. Many people then turned to social media to try to find what they need.Cuba began to provide data for cellphones in December 2018, and now has more than 3 million lines in service.It costs the equivalent of $5 for 400MB and $20 for 2.5GB, although more discounts have become available recently. Average monthly salaries are between $20 and $50, although many people receive remittances from relatives abroad.Paying in dollarsIn recent months, Cuban authorities have started to promote websites that allow people to pay in dollars through Visa and Mastercard for items including flowers, meat, mattresses and air conditioners.Although the use of such websites is not widespread, they could increase inequality between those with access to dollars and foreign credit cards, and those who don’t, or don’t have relatives living abroad who can help them out.Some people have used the internet to campaign on issues such as the abuse of women, or to engage in unofficial journalism, drawing criticism from authorities in the one-party state who have warned against any anti-government activism.Ted Henken, a Latin America expert at Baruch College, City University of New York, said many Cubans use social media for personal or non-political reasons. But he said the use of social media has broader implications for society because it is “much more free, social and spontaneous.”
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U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) plans to increase U.S. military presence in the Western Hemisphere while taking on funding cuts to partner security programs that help Latin American partners counter drug cartels.In written testimony Wednesday, SOUTHCOM commander Admiral Craig Faller said the U.S. “only enabled the successful interdiction of about 9% of known drug movement” recently in Latin America and the Caribbean.Faller told the House Armed Services Committee that he’d need significant assets to drastically improve that number, including dozens of ships.“Recognizing these complex challenges in our neighborhood, we will see an increase in U.S. military presence in the hemisphere,” Faller said, speaking to reporters at the Pentagon after the briefing.Partners vitalThe increase, which is coinciding with a Pentagon review of the command, will include more ships, aircraft and forces, said Faller, who declined to discuss numbers.But the increase will not be enough to fully counter the threats, which is “why it’s so important to get partners in the game,” Faller added.Last year, half of U.S. drug interdictions in the region were enabled by local partner forces, according to SOUTHCOM.The need for more partner nation participation comes as the latest Pentagon budget slashes SOUTHCOM’s partner security program funds by about 20%.”That reduction will mean we’ll have to make some choices and have to defund some programs … that have increased our partners’ ability to do things like counternarcotics,” Faller said Wednesday.He added that the increased military presence would help the U.S. offset short-term losses to security cooperation program funding. But he acknowledged that “there might be some areas where we’ll take risks as we look in the future.”Georgian scolds administrationThe Pentagon’s failure to prioritize the geographic command responsible for counternarcotics operations south of the United States has hurt Americans, Republican Representative Austin Scott of Georgia said during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on national security challenges in the Western Hemisphere.”All of the additional money we’ve given [to defense] has been transferred to other priorities and not to the priority that is resulting in more deaths than any other area,” Scott said, adding that the U.S. saw tens of thousands die last year from drug overdoses.Scott scolded administration officials for giving the command “what’s left over” in intelligence and surveillance abilities after fulfilling other regions’ needs.SOUTHCOM’s budget for this year is $1.2 billion, which is 1/14th of what was spent in Afghanistan alone.
 
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A two-train subway collision in Mexico City killed a male passenger, injured 41 people and disrupted service Wednesday on the bustling metro system serving this megalopolis of over 20 million people.Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said via Twitter that one of the trains apparently reversed into the other by accident the previous night, shortly before midnight.Twenty-five of the injured were treated at the scene, and the other 16 were taken to hospitals, Sheinbaum said. All the injuries were “light to medium” and not life-threatening. Hours later, Sheimbaum’s chief of staff, Rosa Icela Rodriguez, said that only four of the 16 remained in hospitals.She said the cause of the crash was under investigation.Mexico City’s Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum, center, leaves Tacubaya metro station, where two trains collided leaving one dead and 41 injured, in Mexico City, March 11, 2020.Metro authorities said the two drivers of the trains were among those hurt.Mexico City Metro director Florencia Serrania said at a news conference that the “black boxes” from both trains, which will provide a “second-by-second” record of what happened, were turned over to the city prosecutor’s office and their information appeared to be intact.Workers had separated the stacked metro cars and were working to clear the track. She said she expected the line to be ready for service Thursday morning.Serrania said the accident occurred 20 minutes before the end of service Tuesday night when one train was headed to the garage to prepare for Wednesday morning service.She added that an international expert had been hired to conduct an independent review of the incident.Images of the accident published in local media showed wrecked subway cars derailed in the Tacubaya underground station, and rescuers carrying people away.Diana Segura Canchola, who was selling sweets from her street stall outside the station on Wednesday, said she was packing up the previous night when she heard a loud bang “as if a transformer had exploded,” followed by a burned odor.Soon people began emerging from the station saying there had been a crash, and about 10 minutes later police, firefighters and ambulances started arriving.”A lot of people came out disoriented, in shock … very frightened by what had happened,” Segura said.Metro personnel remain at the entrance of the Tacubaya station, where two trains collided, in Mexico City, March 11, 2020.The Mexico City Metro system, one of the world’s largest and most transited, has seen at least two serious accidents previously since it opened five decades ago.In 2015, a train failed to brake in time and smashed into another at the Oceania station in the city’s north, injuring 12 people. Authorities later blamed “double human error.”In the most serious incident, two trains collided at the Viaducto station in 1975, killing at least 31 and injuring more than 70, according to the national newspaper El Universal.Tacubaya is a key station for the Metro system, with three of its 12 lines intersecting there, and there were disruptions during the Wednesday morning commute as people formed long lines outside Tacubaya station waiting to board buses.Metro authorities said service on Line 1 would be reduced throughout the day with Tacubaya and a neighboring station out of action and 45 buses deployed to bridge the gap of about 2.5 miles (4 kilometers).Serrania told Milenio television that about five cars on each train were damaged.Mexico City’s Metro system transported more than 1.6 billion passengers in 2018, according to official figures, or about 4.4 million per day.
 
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PROGRESO, ECUADOR — For years, Dionisio Romero has relied for his livelihood on a magenta-colored dragon fruit that is wildly popular in Asia, planting dozens of the spindly trees at his farm near Ecuador’s Pacific coast.But as the coronavirus wreaks economic havoc worldwide, the 72-year-old farmer has watched demand for his fruit plummet and prices drop to astonishing lows, wiping away much of the profit he might normally expect.“It’s affecting all of the production of pitahaya in Ecuador,” he said on a recent morning from his farm, called Voluntad de Dios, or Will of God. “You don’t want your fruit to grow rotten on the tree so you sell it for whatever price you can.”The virus and its wide-ranging effects on business have Latin America bracing for a downturn that could test the resilience of the beleaguered region’s already ailing economy.China, where the virus emerged, has been making inroads into Latin America over the last two decades. It is now the region’s second-largest trading partner, meaning any economic contraction there will have a ripple effect. Demand for products like Chilean salmon and Argentinian beef have dipped. The prices of all-important commodities like copper and oil have also declined.Countries such as Chile, Peru and Mexico, with export-driven economies, are likely to see the most serious impact, while others like Brazil and Argentina, whose markets are more closed, could be somewhat shielded from the fallout.“This is a cataclysm for our economy,” said Manuel Viera, president of the Camera Minera de Chile, an independent association representing mining interests. “We should have been thinking about the lean years when the price of copper was up.”Trade between China and Latin America soared to $306 billion in 2018, up from just $12 billion at the start of the century. Exports to China now represent nearly 10% of all goods produced and sent for sale abroad.“The region is so dependent on China and Chinese investments, so every country is going to take a hit,” said Monica de Bolle, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. “Those more dependent are going to take more of a hit.”There are mounting signs that the entire global economy could sustain a blow, with stocks falling Wednesday as the World Health Organization declared the virus a pandemic. Oil prices fell Monday by the most in one day since the 1991 Gulf War. The selling stems from fear of the unknown. Many investors are trying to estimate how badly COVID-19 will hurt earnings.Worldwide, the virus has infected more than 121,000 people. Latin America and the Caribbean thus far has had a fairly low caseload, with about 160 people diagnosed across the wide region, though health officials are confirming new cases almost every day and preparing for a wider outbreak.For most people, the virus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia. The majority of people recover.The economic impact is likely to be felt on several fronts in Latin America: a devaluation of currencies as investors seek refuge in gold and U.S. dollars; a decline in tourism; and dips in demand for exports and prices.In Colombia, flower companies say they’ve redirected fresh cut bouquets originally destined for China to other markets. In Chile, fruit exporters say crops like strawberries languished in Chinese ports as cities were quarantined and prices dropped. Ships carrying salmon slated for China were redirected to Brazil and the United States. In Mexico, there are concerns about interruption of supply chains impacting assembly plants.Goldman Sachs has downgraded its growth forecast for several countries in the region, including Brazil, in part due to the coronavirus. Brazil’s economy grew just 1.1% in 2019, its third straight year of meager activity after a crushing two-year recession.Rubens Ricupero, a Brazilian who was secretary-general of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development for nearly a decade, said the nation could be somewhat protected by its relatively small degree of integration into world trade. Nonetheless, he said the crash in oil prices Monday would likely be felt in lower export revenues for state-run oil giant Petrobras, among other side effects.“There will be a mixed impact on Brazil, in general damaging,” he said.Calamity in the oil industry could be particularly damaging for nations like Venezuela, which is already teetering on the edge. Venezuela’s oil production was bringing in up to $37 million daily, but the sudden fall of crude prices has cut that to $20 million, estimated Russ Dallen, head of the Miami-based Caracas Capital Markets brokerage.President Nicolas Maduro’s government has been struggling to counter hyperinflation, an economic contraction worse than the U.S. Great Depression and mounting sanctions targeting the country’s flagging oil industry.Ecuador, where the economy was already projected to contract this year, could also be hurt by a sustained drop in oil prices because the country depends on those revenues to have sufficient liquidity, analysts said. Petroleum is the nation’s top export, generating several billion dollars a year for the small Andean nation.“We’re facing a scenario that I wouldn’t say is catastrophic, but is very delicate, very difficult,” President Lenin Moreno said Tuesday, later announcing measures to cut $1.4 billion from the budget.At least one industry in the region is enjoying a bright spot: In Brazil, the 71-year-old Companhia Nacional de Alcool said demand has surged for its hand sanitizer. The company sold more than 1 million units of its most popular brand in February, up from 200,000 bottles during the same month a year before. They have added a second shift with another 20 employees and are weighing whether to start exporting.“Our workers are very engaged in this, working a lot of extra hours,” CEO Leonardo Ferreira said. “They see how concerned their friends and relatives are.”Back at Romero’s farm in Ecuador, the price of his fruit, which usually fetches $2.50 a kilo (2.2 pounds) is now selling for around 80 cents, if he can find a buyer.A lifelong farmer, he said he chose to grow pitahaya over a decade ago because he was intrigued by the nutritional benefits. The fruit comes in magenta or yellow and has a soft but thick exterior with green stems that look like succulents. The inside is filled with a delicate white fruit sprinkled with tiny black seeds.Instead of throwing out the fruit he can’t sell, he has chosen to give it to locals, many of whom had never tried it before. Before the crisis, nearly all his fruit went to the U.S., where it was popular in Asian communities.“We’ve never tried it and it’s delicious!” he said neighbors tell him.Having observed economic rises and falls before, he’s willing to weather the storm.“That’s the life we have, to produce,” he said. “At high prices or low ones.”
 
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Seven children stood shoulder-to-shoulder in a Texas immigration facility. Their image was beamed 1,000 miles away to Atlanta, where a judge sat in a largely empty courtroom and contended with glitchy audio.At multiple points, a woman’s voice broke through the audio into the Atlanta courtroom, translating the testimony of an asylum seeker in a separate hearing.The Trump administration this week expanded the use of video hearings for immigrant children, having dozens of them held in Houston appear before a judge based in Atlanta. Advocates believe the effort could portend a nationwide expansion of video courts to process the immigration claims of children in U.S. government custody.While the government would not confirm its plans, advocates warned of a greater burden being placed on detained immigrant children, many of whom are not yet teenagers and don’t have guaranteed access to an attorney.Technical difficulties caused delays and snarled the launch of the hearings in Houston, one of the busiest immigration courts in the nation.Video court hearings already occur for some children held in facilities that are hours away from an immigration court — in parts of Texas, Virginia, New York and Tennessee.But Houston has one of the nation’s largest immigration courts, with hundreds of cases heard weekly and children often appearing before a judge in person.Neither the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which oversees immigration courts, nor the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which has custody over 3,650 immigrant children, would answer why the Houston-to-Atlanta pilot was necessary. EOIR spokeswoman Kathryn Mattingly said that using video in general “reduces costs, increases hearing flexibility for backlogged dockets, and generally reduces processing or waiting times for decisions in administrative proceedings, without affecting the integrity of the proceedings.”There were 25,351 immigration court hearings held by video conference in the first 17 days of January, roughly a quarter of the 95,492 for all of 2019, according to government figures obtained by immigration attorney Andrew Free.Most of the children in government custody crossed the U.S.-Mexico border alone. Some children in ORR’s custody were sent across the border by their parents in border camps, while others may have been separated from a parent or adult relative due to suspected fraud or neglect.On Monday, the first day of the change, Judge Sirce Owen in Atlanta saw dozens of children via video conference. They included a confused 7-year-old boy with no lawyer, a teenage mother trying to calm her toddler daughter, and a group of kids all dressed in the same green sweaters.In the Atlanta courtroom, against the din of fuzzy audio, the judge pressed on with the group of seven children from a government-run facility in Corpus Christi, Texas, telling them why they were there and explaining their rights.As the audio interference worsened, Owen narrowed her eyes at the screen and said, “We’re hearing some feedback on the microphone.”The audio problems continued as the judge finished with the kids, resetting their hearings for April 20 to give them time to find attorneys.As Owen waited for another group of children to file into the room in Corpus Christi, a female interpreter’s voice came over the speakers in the courtroom, “…and they pointed a gun at me…” before fading to garble.Outside observers are typically prevented from sitting in on asylum testimony to protect the privacy of the person applying. Owen ultimately cut off the video and delayed court for more than an hour so the problem could be fixed.Eventually, Owen got to the children waiting in Houston. One by one, she called up about a dozen children from a facility wearing matching forest-green zip-up sweaters. The children sat at a table next to an attorney from Catholic Charities.Owen’s face was shown on a flat-screen television to the left of the table. But the children instead looked forward at a Spanish-language interpreter.In the courtroom gallery, a teenager waiting for her hearing tried to calm her 2-year-old daughter as the delays mounted. The toddler tapped a toy against the bench and ran up and down the line, gently hitting the knees of other children waiting for their hearings.A 7-year-old boy named Justin appearing from a government-run facility seemed confused when the judge asked him about whether he understood his right to an attorney. Owen explained again slowly and the boy told her he did want more time to find one.Owen saw more than 40 children Monday. She reset some cases to allow the children to find attorneys or to give their attorneys time to prepare. She granted a handful of voluntary departure requests. And she transferred some to the adult docket because they would turn 18 before their next hearing.“Kids are being railroaded through the proceedings,” said Zenobia Lai, vice president of immigration legal services for the Catholic Charities chapter in Houston.“If it’s in person, the judge would be able to catch body language,” she said. “Here, I don’t know if the judge was looking at them at all. I don’t know what she sees.”Judges have been urged to decide children’s cases more quickly and children’s attorneys learned that government-contracted facilities would no longer take children to law offices for meetings, making these cases more difficult to prepare, said Jennifer Podkul of immigrant advocacy group Kids in Need of Defense.Gladis Molina, child advocate program director at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, notes that video has been used for children at government-contracted facilities in recent years. In a previous pilot program in Phoenix, children participated in their hearings from the facility while the judge and government attorney were in court about five minutes away, she said.“It almost felt in the courtroom what was happening was the processing of file after file because the kids weren’t there,” she said. “They were just images on a screen as opposed to children whose lives were being impacted by the decision that was being made in court.” 
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Venezuelan police used tear gas to break up an anti-government demonstration in Caracas called for by opposition leader Juan Guaido Tuesday.Thousands of protesters gathered in the Venezuelan capital to march on the National Assembly, which was taken over in January by lawmakers of President Nicolas Maduro’s ruling Socialist Party.  The marchers advanced only a few blocks before their path was blocked by riot police.  Some of the protesters responded by hurling stones at the police.Shortly after the failed march, officers with a special police unit raided a Caracas hotel and arrested three opposition lawmakers who were staying there.  Two of them were later released, but a third, Renzo Prieto, remained in custody.Guaido organized the march in an effort to revive the street protests against President Maduro that erupted in 2019 after he used his post as president of the National Assembly to declare himself Venezuela’s legitimate interim president, claiming that Maduro’s re-election the year before was illegitimate.  The United States and nearly 60 other countries have recognized Guaido as the country’s rightful leader, but Maduro continues to cling to power.More than four million Venezuelans have fled the oil-rich country as it has slid from prosperity into economic ruin, complete with rising poverty and soaring inflation.The protests were held on the same day as Michele Bachelet, the United Nations human rights commissioner, denounced Maduro’s government in a scathing report to the U.N. Human Rights Council Tuesday.  Bachelet told the council that opponents of the Maduro government are in a particularly difficult and dangerous situation.  
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The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights is deploring the violent, escalating attacks against political opponents of the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Michelle Bachelet presented an oral update of the situation in Venezuela to the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva Tuesday.Bachelet said the human rights situation in Venezuela has worsened since she last reported on conditions in that country in December. She said opponents of the Maduro government are in a particularly difficult and dangerous situation.  As political tensions increase, Bachelet said, so does violence against opposition members of parliament and other dissidents by security forces and government supporters. She said several parliament members have been arrested.FILE – United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet speaks at a session of the Human Rights Council, at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Feb. 27, 2020.“My office has also documented acts of aggression against members of the political opposition, protesters and journalists. And, the security forces did not act to prevent such acts of aggression.… We have also registered cases of seizures targeting political parties and NGOs.  These acts of aggression are usually accompanied by a rhetoric that stigmatizes, exposes and discredits the victims, and justifies violence,” the U.N. human rights chief said.Bachelet, a former president of Chile, said she is also concerned about pending legislation to sanction human rights organizations that receive funding from abroad.  Other causes for alarm, she said, are growing restrictions on the freedom of trade unions, whose leaders often face arbitrary detention. She added her office receives allegations that some people under arrest have been subjected to cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment.At the same time, Bachelet criticized economic sanctions imposed on Venezuela’s airline, Conviasa, as well as the country’s oil industry. She said they deprive the government of money to spend on social programs, which most hurts the impoverished general population.Venezuela’s ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, Jorge Valero Briceno, criticized the high commissioner’s presentation as lacking balance. But he noted the necessity of maintaining a dialogue with her office and said his country welcomes its technical assistance.But Briceno reserved the full blast of his ire for what he calls the war-mongering administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.  He said the U.S. president’s threats to blockade and even militarily invade his country undermine the security, economy and human rights of the Venezuelan people. 
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Scores of women across Mexico stayed away from their jobs Monday to call attention to the unchecked violence they face on a daily basis.The strike, dubbed “A Day Without Us,” left subways, offices, schools, and government agencies in Mexico City and elsewhere virtually empty.  The walkout was an outgrowth of Sunday’s massive protests in the Mexican capital to mark International Women’s Day.  Sunday’s protests were marked by sporadic violence, as protesters threw homemade gasoline-filled bombs at the doors of the national palace.The organizers used Sunday’s protests and Monday’s subsequent strike to focus the country’s attention on the alarming rise of femicides, the deliberate murder of women and girls, made even more prominent due to Mexico’s machismo, or male-dominated culture. Statistics show that an average of 10 Mexican women are killed every day.  President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador angered women when he complained last week that the protests were staged to undermine his government.  
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Venezuelan officials are vowing not to let a fire that destroyed thousands of voting machines deter their quest to hold legislative elections this year that could help President Nicolas Maduro consolidate his power.
    
Tibisay Lucena, president of the government-stacked National Electoral Council, said the fire that tore through a warehouse Saturday, obliterating 49,323 voting machines and nearly 50,000 fingerprint readers, would not prevent a planned vote to replace lawmakers in the last opposition-controlled federal institution.
    
“If there are groups who think that they’re going to stop electoral processes, constitutionally established, they are very wrong,” she said Sunday.
    
Maduro has been vowing to quickly convoke legislative elections for several months, threatening to hold them earlier than usual. The election is constitutionally scheduled to take place in 2020, though it usually is held at the end of the year. Opposition leaders have not yet stated whether they will participate.
    
The opposition has boycotted other recent elections, refusing to participate in an election run by the current electoral body, which is dominated by pro-Maduro officials. Authorities have barred a number of high-profile opposition leaders from running and are accused of manipulating the vote in which Maduro’ was reelected in 2018.
    
Opposition leaders have expressed concern about running in a legislative vote without a reformed National Electoral Council that would allow what they consider a free and fair election, though analysts also warn that if they do not participate, Maduro allies could assume control of the opposition’s only remaining national platform in the government.
    
Key opposition members did not respond to news of the fire, instead pushing forward in calling for a planned march on Tuesday.
    
Lucena said two prosecutors have been assigned to investigate the fire, which took place at a warehouse in the state of Miranda, not far from the capital.
    
“The CNE wants to know the truth: What was the origin of the fire and how did it spread so rapidly?” she said in a state broadcast. “No hypothesis is being discarded.”
    
First responders were able to rescue only 562 voting machines and 724 fingerprint readers.
   
 “Very little could be recovered,” Lucena said. “It was a great effort, but the fire was greater.”
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