June 10, 2015 nº 1,635 - Vol. 13
 

“Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die.”

Mel Brooks

Read Migalhas LatinoAmérica in Spanish every Tuesday and Thursday. Visit the website at www.migalhas.com/latinoamerica

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• Top News

US weighs wire-fraud charge against General Motors

The US Justice Department is weighing charging General Motors Co. with criminal wire fraud stemming from the auto maker's failure to recall millions of vehicles equipped with a defective ignition switch. Federal prosecutors in New York are focusing on the charge after determining GM likely made misleading statements and concealed information about the faulty switch, now linked to more than 100 death. They are hoping to reach a settlement with the company by the end of summer or early fall, though the timing could slip. Prosecutors also could explore other kinds of possible criminal wrongdoing in the GM case, the people familiar with the matter said. They haven't made any final decisions on which charges to bring, if any.

Growing body of law allows prosecution of foreign citizens on US soil

Using a growing body of law that allows the United States to prosecute foreign citizens for some actions, the government has been turning the federal courts into international law-enforcement arenas. In terrorism cases, the broadening of a key law in 2004, the splintering of terrorist groups and a shift away from military detention has led the United States to bring more foreigners onto its soil, some with only a tenuous link to the United States. The recent FIFA arrests suggest that now that she leads the Justice Department, overseas cases are likely to become even more of a priority. The United States has become "the jailer, the military front and now the prosecutor" of global crimes, particularly terrorism.”

Supreme Court shouldn't have taken Obamacare lawsuit, Obama says

Obama said the Supreme Court probably shouldn't have accepted a lawsuit challenging Obamacare's health insurance subsidies, calling it an "easy case." "Frankly it probably shouldn't have even been taken up," Obama said. The suit, King v. Burwell, challenges the availability of tax credits that discount the cost of insurance in at least 34 states using the federal healthcare.gov system. Opponents of the law say that it only allows subsidies in states that run their own insurance marketplaces, called exchanges. A decision is expected this month.

R&W Insurance

In this article, Guilherme Leporace and Bruno Haack Vilar, lawyers at Lobo & Ibeas Advogados, talk about the R&W Insurance as "an interesting alternative to overcome deadlocks over collection devices and guarantees". Click here to read it.

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• Crumbs

1 - US prisoner set to be released after four decades in solitary confinement - click here.

2 - Obama lawyers asked secret court to ignore public court's decision on spying - click here.

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• MiMIC Journal

China frees GSK investigator

British company investigator Peter Humphrey, jailed in China last August for two-and-a-half years for trafficking personal data, has been released early from prison. A Shanghai court had reduced Humphrey's sentence. His case was connected to the GlaxoSmithKline corruption scandal. He was released on health grounds and has been moved to a Shanghai hospital for tests relating to cancer. He will be deported on release from hospital.

Alibaba boss Jack Ma in US charm offensive

The boss of the Chinese internet firm Alibaba, Jack Ma, has told US businesses that it needs more American products for China. In a speech in New York, he said his company wanted to help small US businesses sell their wares in China. Alibaba already accounts for 80% of all Chinese online consumer shopping and is looking to expand abroad. Ma said he eventually wanted 40% of sales to come from outside China, rather than the current 2%.

Anxious about China, Asian nations buy more US military hardware

The shopping spree by Southeast Asian nations is expected to total around $40 billion over the next year. But the US has competition, from Russia, Europe and other countries in Asia.

Global index may add Chinese Stocks, fueling investment

MSCI, which compiles the index, says it will work with regulators to assure that China's markets are prepared for the move.

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• Historia Verdadera

Acero

México fijó cuotas compensatorias provisionales a importaciones de rollos de acero laminados de Alemania, China y Francia como parte de una investigación en curso en materia de prácticas desleales de comercio en la modalidad de discriminación de precios.

Banco

Grupo Financiero Ficohsa recibió la aprobación regulatoria de parte de la Superintendencia de Bancos y Otras Instituciones Financieras de Nicaragua y de la Superintendencia de Bancos de Panamá para adquirir la totalidad de las acciones de Banco Citibank de Nicaragua, S.A. y Cititarjetas de Nicaragua, S.A.

Minería

La Superintendencia del Medio Ambiente de Chile sancionó con la clausura definitiva de sus instalaciones y faenas a la empresa Minera Esparta Limitada - ex Minera Española Chile Limitada-, ubicada en el sector Quebrada de La Plata, comuna de Maipú.

Fondos

El administrador de fondos privados de inversión en países emergentes, Actis, abrió sus oficinas en México con el fin de aterrizar proyectos de generación eléctrica mediante fuentes renovables y la ampliación de redes de transmisión y distribución, con lo que espera multiplicar por 10 su capacidad instalada actual al 2020, gracias a las garantías a largo plazo que ofrecen las subastas y las asociaciones público-privadas del nuevo régimen legal del país.

• Brief News

British MPs back up EU referendum plan

MPs have overwhelmingly backed plans for a referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union. The vote, which followed the first debate on the EU Referendum Bill, means the legislation moves to the next stage of its progress through Parliament. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said a "generation" had been denied a say on the UK's place in Europe, and the public must now have the "final say". MPs voted by 544 to 53 in favor of the bill.

Germany, France Targeted as EU Chases Tax-Loophole Data

The European Union stepped up a probe into tax loopholes for multinational companies, demanding details of specific agreements in 15 nations including euro-area heavyweights Germany, France and Italy. Regulators also issued an ultimatum to Poland and Estonia for failing to hand over information about tax deals. The EU ordered them to fall in line within one month or face possible legal action at the European Court of Justice. The EU is seeking to throw the spotlight onto the tax affairs of multinationals across the EU, potentially adding to probes targeting fiscal arrangements of Apple Inc. in Ireland, Starbucks Corp. in the Netherlands and Amazon.com Inc. and a Fiat SpA unit in Luxembourg.

Insurer uses personal data to predict who will get sick

A Philadelphia health insurance company analyzes its clients' health data and other factors to find the frailest and assign them health coaches. That may improve health, but is it a breach of privacy? The industry calls these returns to the hospital preventable readmissions, and they are a huge drain on finances, costing Medicare alone $15 billion annually. That's why Medicare launched an initiative a few years ago that penalizes hospitals that see too many patients readmitted too soon. And in turn, that spurred many hospitals to pay more attention to the problem. Now insurance companies are also taking a stab at a solution. A computer algorithm sifts through all that information and pops out a score for each individual patient, identifying those it deems at highest risk.

Amnesty: Ireland's abortion law treats women like 'criminals'

Ireland's abortion law — which treats women like "criminals" and "childbearing vessels" — must be changed, Amnesty International said. The human rights organization is calling for the decriminalization of abortion in the Catholic nation after a new "restrictive and unclear" law came into effect last year. The right to life of fetuses is also enshrined in the country's constitution. The law states abortion is a criminal offense unless the mother's life is at risk, including if she is at risk of committing suicide. However, Amnesty International charges it fails to define what constitutes a risk to life. The group also wants women to be allowed abortions in cases of rape, severe fetal impairment, or a risk to their health at the minimum.

SEC appointment of in-house judges 'likely unconstitutional'

The US Securities and Exchange Commission was ruled to have probably overstepped its constitutional authority by tapping an in-house administrative judge to preside over an insider-trading case. US District Judge Leigh Martin May's decision Monday that the SEC may not have the authority to divert such cases from regular courts halted its action against a Georgia real-estate developer. Charles Hill was accused of profiting from trades made after he received a tip from a friend. He sued in Atlanta federal court to block the administrative action.

Romania MPs block PM's prosecution

Romania's parliament has refused to lift Prime Minister Victor Ponta's immunity from prosecution after he was questioned on suspicion of forgery, tax evasion and money laundering. Ponta, who has come under pressure to resign, said he would stay on to prevent a protracted political crisis. Anti-corruption officials are looking at his work between 2007 and 2011.

Uber and Airbnb urge watchdog to back off

Uber and Airbnb have advised US regulators to back off from their businesses at a meeting in Washington where the ride-hailing company promoted "delegated regulation" as the right way for them to be left alone. Senior executives from the two businesses were in the US capital to address officials from the Federal Trade Commission, which is examining how to manage safety and competition in the so-called "sharing economy". Their strident arguments — and cheerleading of their companies' economic benefits — indicated that the FTC's work is being treated as a serious threat by two of Silicon Valley's most richly valued private companies.

Advocates push to bring solitary confinement out of the shadows

Some big states have been moving to limit the numbers of people they send to solitary but officials say it's necessary to maintain control and, in some cases, protect the prisoners themselves.

Abortion restriction law is backed by Federal Court in Texas

A federal appeals court has backed key parts of Texas' controversial 2013 law that critics say would put some clinics at risk of closing.

Deutsche Bank headquarters in Frankfurt are searched by prosecutors

The German bank is not suspected of wrongdoing, but the raid comes just days after the resignation of the bank's co-chief executives.

Court sides with President over congress in 'Jerusalem' passport dispute

The US Supreme Court Monday sided with the president in a long-running struggle with Congress over who controls recognition of foreign countries and what information about nationhood can be put on the passports of American citizens. In a 6-to-3 decision, the high court struck down a law requiring the State Department to indicate on passports that the city of Jerusalem is part of Israel. The decision was a blow to the pro-Israel lobby and to congressional power over certain parts of foreign policy. Since the founding of Israel in 1948, the US has taken the position that Jerusalem is not considered part of any country until its status is negotiated in a Middle East peace deal. Israel's supporters in Congress, however, have tried to force a different policy, seeking to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and requiring, as a matter of law, that the State Department allow US citizens born in Jerusalem to list Israel as their place of birth on their passports.

International survey shows a world divided on Ukraine

Canadians and Americans are distinctly hawkish when it comes to Ukraine, more willing to push back against Russia than almost all their NATO allies, including the United Kingdom, a major international survey confirms.

Yemen drone strike victims' familes file suit against US

The families of two Yemeni men who were killed by US drone strikes filed a lawsuit Sunday against the US claiming that the men, Salem bin Ali Jaber and Waleed bin Ali Jaber, were "innocent bystanders" who were wrongfully killed. The lawsuit, which seeks no monetary relief, states that the men were not "likely targets of the strike that killed them," as both men spent their lives preaching against al Qaeda and terrorism. The lawsuit further alleges that the killings were in violation of the Torture Victim Prevention Act's ban on extrajudicial killings and that the government knew within hours that a mistake had been made. The lawsuit specifically names President Barack Obama, former defense secretary, Leon Panetta former CIA director David Petraeus and three unknown defendants.

• Daily Press Review

Documenting life under ISIL
Al Jazeera, Doha, Qatar

LeBron carries Cleveland to Game 3 win over Golden State, take 2-1 NBA Finals series lead
Haaretz, Liberal daily, Tel Aviv, Israel

Osborne to push on with surplus rule
BBC News, Centrist newscaster, London, England

Investigators think driver changed mind at last minute, source says
CNN International, London, England

Zayn Malik's alleged Thailand fling Lauren Richardson fears she will get dumped for another girl on Love Island
Daily Mail, Conservative daily, London, England

'Shawshank' escapees 'cornered' in New York's Willsboro after 'getaway driver didn't show'
Daily Mail, Conservative daily, London, England

African free trade agreement to be signed in Egypt
EuroNews, International news, Ecully Cedex, France

Can Libyans agree on a plan to give peace a chance?
France 24, Issy-les-Moulineaux, France

Mozart Marathon with Faz?l Say
Hurriyet Daily News, (Liberal, English-language), Istanbul, Turkey

Dzhuna dead: Faith healer to the Kremlin and Russian celebrities, dies aged 65
Independent The, London, England

Airlines set to reduce size of carry on luggage
Telegraph The, Conservative daily, London, England

Tony Bennett cancels concert with Lady Gaga after falling ill
Telegraph The, Celebrity news, London, England

HSBC slashes jobs as it shifts focus further to Asian roots
China Post, English-language daily, Taipei, Taiwan

N.Korea Makes Knockoff Choco Pies
Chosun Ilbo, Conservative daily, Seoul, South Korea

Woman from India being treated for rare TB strain in US
Hindustan Times, New Delhi, India

20 farmers booked for locking DC office gate
India Times, Conservative daily, New Delhi, India

On defensive, LDP considers extending Diet session to ensure security bills' passage
Japan Times, Independent centrist, Tokyo, Japan

Twin brother of murder accused arrested in connection to Stephanie Scott killing
New Zealand Herald, Conservative daily, Auckland, New Zealand

Ukraine President cancels trip over protests in eastern Ukraine
Straits Times, Pro-government, Singapore

Beat the post holiday blues
Sydney Morning Herald, Centrist daily, Sydney, Australia

San Francisco approves health warning on sugary drink ads
The Economic Times, Business, Mumbai, India

Search for escaped killers shifts to small town after possible sighting
Canadian Broadcasting Centre, Toronto, Ontario

Ex-U.S. House Speaker Hastert pleads not guilty to federal charges
Globe and Mail The, Centrist daily, Toronto, Canada

Liberty Reserve Brought Down By 'Joe Bogus': How The Feds Arrested Arthur Budovsky
International Business Times, Business news organization, New York, U.S

Ni Una Menos - The Cry Against 'Femicides' Finally Heard in Argentina
IPS Latin America, International cooperative of journalists, Rome, Italy

Target announces share buyback, dividend boost after disclosure snafu
Reuters, Business News, New York, U.S

South Korea's Park postpones U.S. trip as MERS cases rise
Reuters, World News, New York, U.S

CBC host Evan Solomon fired after Star investigation finds he took secret cut of art deals
Toronto Star, Toronto, Ontario

Eritrea accuses UN of 'vile slander'
BBC News, Centrist newscaster, London, England

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