Foreign Digest: Argentina, Peru, Liberia, Italy, South Africa, Iran, North Korea

Argentina

            An Argentine state investigation recently revealed that a prosecutor, who had investigated and found proof of Iran’s complicity in the 1994 terrorist bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires, had been murdered during the leftwing presidency of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. 

Peru

            Former President Alberto Fujimori, who was in ill health while serving a lengthy prison sentence, was pardoned at Christmas by the current Peruvian President for Fujimori’s human rights violations.  The former President committed the crimes in the course of crushing the Maoist Shining Path guerillas, the most brutal terrorist group in Latin America.  After his pardon, Fujimori asked the people of Peru for forgiveness.

Liberia

            Senator George Weah, a former soccer star, won the presidential election this week in Liberia, defeating the ruling party Vice President under Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who had been elected in 2005 over Weah, following the second Liberian Civil War.  The election was conducted peacefully and without irregularities.  Weah promised to reduce corruption to make impoverished Liberia more business-friendly.  The expected democratic transfer of power will be Liberia’s first peaceful one since 1944.

Italy

            The President of the Italian Republic dissolved Parliament this week following the completion of its legislative session and scheduled parliamentary elections for March 4.  The dissolution of the assembly was expected after the recent passage of Italy’s new election law.

South Africa

            The Supreme Court of South Africa this week ordered the national legislature to develop rules for impeachment, a necessary step in the removal of President Jacob Zuma from office.  He is accused of public corruption for having embezzled public money for personal gain and for violation of the constitution.  The loyal opposition, as well as some of the dominant ruling leftwing party, supports impeaching and removing Zuma, but a majority of the ruling party still supports him to allow him to continue in office. 

Iran

            Widespread demonstrations in the Islamic Republic of Iran this weekend that began as protests against increases in prices and included public corruption as a target are now turning against the Iranian support for Syria’s Assad regime and other terrorists and the spread of Islamic revolution abroad.  Shi’ite Muslim Iran is the world’s foremost state sponsor of terrorism and its Islamist foreign policy is regionally destabilizing.  It supports rebels in Yemen and is involved in spreading Islamism in Lebanon, the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Iraq and Afghanistan.  The demonstrators have even become counterrevolutionary, in calling for the overthrow of the totalitarian Islamist theocracy.   

Massive protests against the rigged presidential election in 2009 were put down by the mullahs who lead Iran, after the United States under President Barack Obama declined to support them.  Instead, Obama pursued a nuclear arms deal with Iran that included dropping economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic and unfreezing billions of dollars the Iranians used to spread Islamic revolution.

North Korea 

           Like China, whose ships have recently been intercepted by South Korea sending oil to Communist North Korea, the Russian Federation also ships fuel to North Korea, according to reports yesterday that the shipments have been detected by Western European intelligence services.  Both the Chinese and Russians help North Korea, despite China’s and Russia’s support for another round of economic sanctions against the Hermit Kingdom for its nuclear missile program.  Therefore, a more effective international policy against North Korea would have to include placing increased pressure not only on the Chinese, but also on the Russians.