South America

RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- Brazil will begin to produce a COVID-19 vaccine in the first half of 2021, a state-run biological sciences institution said Monday.

With a technology transfer agreement with British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation based in Rio de Janeiro will be able to start making the vaccine in Brazil in April, said Marco Aurelio Krieger, the vice president of production and innovation in health with the foundation, in an interview with the UOL internet portal.

BUENOS AIRES, Feb 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) –Argentina’s new Health Minister Carla Vizzotti was sworn in on Saturday after the country was rattled by a scandal over VIP coronavirus vaccine access, pledging to strengthen oversight and transparency of the inoculation program.

Her predecessor stepped down on Friday after reports that people had been able to use connections to get priority access to COVID-19 vaccines, piling pressure on the government of President Alberto Fernandez.

BRASILIA, Feb 21 (NNN-TELESUR) — Brazilian demonstrators mobilized in at least 70 cities holding rallies to demand an immediate and free COVID-19 vaccination for the entire population.

Pres Jair Bolsonaro has dismissed the scope of the pandemic since its beginning as the death toll rises to over 244,000 people since March 2020.

The protests “also demand the return of the emergency relief suspended by the government of Jair Bolsonaro. 14 million people are unemployed in Brazil. For many, it was the only source of survival.”

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro moved to replace the head of state-run oil company Petrobras, naming a retired army general with no oil and gas experience as CEO after weeks of clashes with the current chief executive over fuel price hikes.

In a late Friday statement from the Mines and Energy Ministry, first shared on Bolsonaro’s Facebook page, the government said it had decided to appoint former Defense Minister Joaquim Silva e Luna to run Petroleo Brasileiro SA, as the firm is known formally.

BOGOTA. Feb 19 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Colombia’s military carried out at least 6,400 extrajudicial killings and presented them as combat deaths between 2002 and 2008, a number significantly higher than previously estimated, a special court said.

The court, called the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, is investigating crimes and atrocities committed during half a century of armed conflict between government troops and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Marxist rebels who laid down their weapons following a historic 2016 peace accord.

LIMA, Feb 15 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Peru’s foreign minister resigned Sunday in a growing scandal over the revelation that government officials received Covid-19 vaccinations well before the general public.

The South American nation has been badly hit by the pandemic, with its health system overwhelmed and a targeted vaccination program for health workers rolling out only from Feb 8.

Public resentment over officials receiving vaccinations — despite there being no date for a wider immunization roll out — has seen at least two government officials resign.

BRASILIA, Feb 14 (NNN-Xinhua) — Brazil registered 1,043 more deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, taking the nationwide death toll to 238,532, the Ministry of Health said.

It has been the fifth consecutive day that more than 1,000 daily deaths from the disease have been reported.

The ministry also reported 44,299 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the national tally to 9,809,754.

Brazil has the second highest number of deaths, after the United States, and the third highest number of cases, behind the United States and India.

BRASILIA, Feb 13 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — The leaders of Brazilian congress two chambers announced priority will be given to reviving pandemic emergency payments to the vulnerable population, which are expected to be granted in four months, from March to June.

Senate president Rodrigo Pacheco speaking next to Economy minister Paulo Guedes and Lower House leader Arthur Vila emphasized that emergency aid and the Covid-19 vaccines are the “absolute priority” of the Legislative and the president Bolsonaro administration.

QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador’s election authority said on Friday it will conduct a recount in most of the country to ensure the transparency of Sunday’s presidential elections, after one of the candidates made accusations of electoral fraud.

Left-wing economist Andres Arauz won Sunday’s vote and moved on to the April 11 runoff vote. With less than 1% of votes left to count, Guillermo Lasso holds a narrow lead over indigenous activist Yaku Perez in the race for runner-up.

SANTIAGO, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chile's President Sebastian Pinera on Friday received the first dose of the CoronaVac vaccine developed by Chinese pharmaceutical firm Sinovac against the novel coronavirus disease, along with those aged 71 and over.

While visiting a community healthcare center in the southern region of Los Rios, where the president spends his austral summer vacations, Pinera joined more than 1.5 million Chileans in receiving at least the first dose of the vaccine.