Authorities said late Tuesday they were prepared to send troops into the streets of the Guatemalan capital, after nearly 1,000 protesters prevented lawmakers from voting on a pending free-trade agreement between Central America and the US.
Demonstrators blocked the legislature for hours, delaying a session during which some lawmakers wanted to put the free-trade pact to a vote.
Colonel Wilfred Estrada, a spokesman for the army, said he received an order from the security detail in charge of protecting the president to ready 500 soldiers and military police who would be deployed if a new round of protests erupted yesterday or today.
Interior Secretary Carlos Vielmann told reporters that the country's national police force was in charge of responding to protesters, but said that "should they falter ... they would have some small support from" military forces.
No one was hurt or arrested during Tuesday's protests, but legislators unable to make it to their offices were forced to spend most of the day in auxiliary buildings nearby.
"There aren't enough lawmakers for quorum and when some who want to enter the building get close, they aren't allowed to," said Mariano Rayo, a congressman who got to the legislature early but was then prevented from leaving.
Other lawmakers wanting to leave the legislature successfully made it to the street, only to be chased for blocks by protesters.
Demonstrators eventually dispersed, allowing the legislative session to begin on Tuesday night. Lawmakers quickly passed a resolution pledging to compensate those who could be hurt by the ratification of the free-trade agreement.
Protesters had promised even larger demonstrations today and tomorrow, but it was unclear whether the proposal approved late Tuesday -- and the army's plan to deploy troops -- would alter those plans.
They are demanding that the agreement be put to a public referendum and oppose passage of a law that would grant concessions to private companies for infrastructure construction projects, saying it was a maneuver aimed at privatizing public services.
The US signed the agreement, known as CAFTA, last May with Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
CAFTA also sparked a wave of smaller, more orderly protests in neighboring Honduras on Tuesday, where demonstrators briefly blocked roads.
Guatemalan President Oscar Berger, whose party has been a chief supporter of the agreement, has ruled out holding a public referendum.
CAFTA also faces a tough road ahead in the US. President George W. Bush says the accord would open new markets for US goods and services while encouraging economic and democratic reforms in Central America, but he didn't have the votes in Congress last year. He may not have support this year either, because of competition fears among US sugar and textile producers.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
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