Americas press review
In the spotlight: start of the funeral of the victims of Uvalde
A vehicle from the funeral convoy for victims of the Uvalde, Texas, June 1, 2022 shooting. © AP/Jae C. Hong
Text by: Christophe Paget Follow
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“
A plea to celebrate life, as Uvalde faces many days of mourning
,” headlines The
New York Times
.
The newspaper takes up the words of the Reverend Eduardo Morales, during the funeral yesterday Tuesday May 31 of one of the victims, Amerie Jo Garza: “
We are not here to celebrate his death.
We are here to celebrate his life
”.
The
Houston Chronicle
notes that Americans traveled from all over the country to participate in the "
rituals of pain and mourning
" at Uvalde.
Like David, who came from afar, from Ohio: one would not have believed him, writes the newspaper, "
at the sight of the red heart he painted on a lawn in Uvalde, from which he saw the passing hearses en route to the church
”.
Investigation and controversies
Meanwhile, the investigation and the controversies continue.
"
The story of what happened and the charges are still changing as the investigation is drowned out by the dysfunctions
", headlines the
Texas Tribune
, which writes: "
the police chief of the district where the school is located has stopped cooperating with state investigators
.
It was he who had chosen to wait before facing the shooter.
Suddenly, the largest police union in Texas calls on the authorities of Uvalde to cooperate in the investigation: an “
unusual warning
” notes the
Houston Chronicle
.
The newspaper
also echoes a demonstration of several dozen teachers in Austin, among others in front of the headquarters of Senator Ted Cruz who had affirmed, with other Republicans, that rather than limiting access to weapons , the teachers had to be armed: we are here to teach, not to practice shooting, they replied.
“
The world won't stop if we put in place better gun laws
,” adds the
Boston Globe
.
In any case, according to the
Texas Tribune
, "
history suggests that the attention paid to these laws will have faded before the midterm elections in November
".
Decriminalization in British Columbia
A first in Canada: the province of British Columbia decriminalizes the possession of small quantities of hard drugs “
such as cocaine, fentanyl and heroin
”, writes the
Globe and Mail
.
As of January 31, Canadians in that province aged 18 and over will be able to carry up to 2.5 grams of these drugs.
Explanation of the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions of British Columbia, quoted by
The Toronto Star
“
Shame and fear have kept people from accessing the care they need, and the fear of being criminalized has led many people to hide their addiction and do drugs alone, and doing drugs alone can mean dying alone
".
In the province, more than 2,000 people died of overdoses last year, recalls the
National Post
, despite the state of health emergency declared in 2016. Most police forces no longer arrest for simple possession .
In Quebec, MP Alexandre Boulerice welcomed this decriminalization, but stressed that "
people are dying all over the country
", reports
Le Devoir
.
And he called for federal government action.
Record NGO dissolutions in Nicaragua
In Nicaragua, Parliament dissolves the Language Academy and 82 other NGOs.
Confidencial
speaks of "
the largest dissolution of NGO cancellations in the history of Nicaragua
", and points out that this Tuesday, there was "
no debate in the Assembly
", dominated by supporters of President Ortega .
The main argument, recalls
Trinchera de la Noticia
, is that the NGOs would not have complied with the legislation which obliges them to register as "
agents from abroad
", while they receive funds from foreign countries. exteriors.
These organizations,
Confidencial
points out , dealt with "
strengthening of democracy, social services, child protection, defense of women's rights, environment
”.
And of the language, since the Parliament has in the same spirit dissolved the Academy of the language, founded in 1928.
Confidencial
has taken stock: since 2018, 356 NGOs, foundations and associations have been dissolved.
Trinchera de la Noticia
recalls that the crisis that the country has been going through since 2018 has worsened since the re-election last year of Daniel Ortega, who put his main opponents in prison.
A fifth investigating judge for the assassination of Jovenel Moïse
In Haiti, a fifth investigating judge has been appointed for the case of the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse:
"
Me Walther Wesser Voltaire, more than 10 months after the assassination
", notes
AlterPresse
.
"
Until this date, four investigating judges have withdrawn from the case or have been removed from the said case
," notes
Le National
, which believes that "
since the presidency of Jovenel Moïse, Haitian justice has been almost dysfunctional
."
In its editorial,
Le Nouvelliste
affirms that in this affair, “
the first justices of the peace and court clerks did the preliminary work
”, but “
as soon as the stage of the report and the investigation is over, justice slips
.
Haiti will remain for a long time the country of impunity as long as the political will is absent and that justice will not have a minimum of autonomy to deal with sensitive cases, big cases and affairs of State
”.
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