World Briefs: The Americas
Puerto Rico: The old U.S. Navy checkpoint on Vieques, for decades a symbol of bombing and repression, lay in pieces Thursday, slumped over like a grand piano on two legs. "Navy Down" was scrawled on it in blue, and a makeshift doll lay nearby in military police clothes, with a beauty-pageant style sash that said "Goodbye!" Many stopped to pose for pictures. For some, it was about recording history. For others, it was about redeeming those long gone. "I was wondering what my father would feel at this moment," said a misty-eyed Carlos "El Prieto" Ventura, an anti-Navy activist leader who took after his fisherman father. "I think he would be happy." Colombia: Colombia's constitutional court has knocked down the nation's 8-month-old "state of emergency," a surprise political setback to President Alvaro Uribe's quest to gain an upper hand in the war against guerrillas. The court said Uribe illegally extended the state of emergency that lifted some civil liberties as part of his intensified campaign to counter rampant violence, kidnappings and terrorism. He made a mockery of congressional controls by having the legislature approve a 90-day extension two months before it was set to expire, the court said. Venezuela: Uruguay said Wednesday it had granted asylum to two former Venezuelan military officers accused of participating in a coup against President Hugo Chavez last year. Both entered the Uruguayan Embassy in Caracas early Wednesday, claiming they were being "persecuted and don't trust the judicial system," said retired Navy Adm. Oscar Betancourt. Army Capts. Carlos Blondell and Otto Gebauer were granted asylum, Uruguay's foreign ministry said in a statement. Brazil: Brazil's leftist president promoted his idea of regional economic integration in talks with his Bolivian counterpart -- the latest in a string of summit meetings reflecting Brazil's growing influence. "Latin American integration will no longer be a sentimental" notion, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stressed after he and Bolivian leader Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada agreed last week to boost trade between the neighboring nations. The leaders of Colombia, Peru and Venezuela have visited in the past month, and the presidents of Uruguay and Ecuador will come later this month. The activity represents a move toward a united South America planning to negotiate hard over a proposed Americas free-trade zone. ----- Roger Morton has reported from Argentina, Brazil, Canada and Mexico. rmorton@sltrib.com