2/02/2025
FTS 8.30
*China: Beijing responds to Trump's tariff war
*DRC fighting leaves 700 dead and 2,800 wounded
FTS 8.30
*China: Beijing responds to Trump's tariff war
*DRC fighting leaves 700 dead and 2,800 wounded
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NewsTranscript
00:00In Venezuela, everything is ready to carry out the first national public consultation
00:15of 2025, a democratic process that strengthens communal power.
00:20The shockwake of President Donald Trump's tribes war has also had a response.
00:26In China, Beijing will announce Washington the World Trade Organization.
00:34And the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recorded 700 dead and 2,800 wounded
00:40in the fighting in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from January 26th to 30th.
00:51Hello and welcome from the south, I'm Luis Alberto Matos from Televisual Studios in Havana,
00:55Cuba.
00:56Let's begin with the news.
00:57In Venezuela, the first national public consultation of 2025 is underway.
01:02The process is one of the most important since it is the people choosing the projects that
01:06their communities need.
01:08The Minister of Communes, Ángel Prado, informed that there are more than 36,000 projects nominated
01:13for this Sunday's voting, where more than 5,000 will be elected.
01:17The remaining projects will also have the opportunity to be developed.
01:20All the proposals to be voted this Sunday were discussed by the communities themselves
01:25in open assemblies.
01:26The more than 1,100 parishes in the Bolivarian nation will go to the 5,245 electoral centers
01:33to cast their votes on these community-driven initiatives.
01:41In El Salvador, at least two people were killed and one injured in a new traffic accident
01:45in the country's capital.
01:47Authorities detailed that the accident occurred in the early hours of the morning when a motorbike
01:52and a private vehicle collided at kilometer 14 of the Pan-American Highway in San Martín,
01:57San Salvador East.
01:58It should be noted that the National Civil Police reported that so far in 2025, there
02:03have been 1,482 accidents, of which 82 people have died and 937 have been injured.
02:10In response to the increase in these accidents, the controls established in traffic regulations
02:14approved in December 2024 have been increased, including the application of photo fines and
02:20other enforcement measures.
02:27And in Brazil, Hugo Mota was elected President of the House of Representatives, while Davi
02:32Alcolumbre was elected President of the Senate.
02:35Deputy Hugo Mota, supported by the Workers' Party, the Liberal Party and 16 other parties,
02:39was elected President of the Chamber of Deputies with the vote of 444 parliamentarians, the
02:44second highest vote in history.
02:46Similarly, Davi Alcolumbre will assume the Senate for the second time, obtaining 73 of
02:51the 81 votes, also backed by an arc of alliances, ranging from the Workers' Party to the Liberal
02:57Party.
02:58The main guidelines of the political left in Congress include regulating social networks,
03:02enriching tariffs and reducing the working day.
03:07Meanwhile, in Uruguay, hundreds of LGBTQ plus activists gathered in front of the Argentine
03:16Embassy in Montevideo to protest against President Javier Millet's controversial statements at
03:22the World Economic Forum in Davos.
03:26To show that the movements of the miscalled minorities are not alone, that they have all
03:33the human strength, all the loving power, all the desire to move forward, to fight fascism,
03:40to give love, and to prove that with love, we can achieve much more than with hate.
03:50Above all, it is a regional issue that doesn't only affect Argentina, but the entire region,
03:56and is happening in various parts of the world, where certain discourses are repeating, aiming
04:00to limit rights when, in reality, it is completely unjust.
04:18Nicaragua experienced the series of the Americas in a great baseball party, and the country
04:22showed its capacity to host great international events in modern stadiums.
04:53What a tremendous tournament.
04:56I have loved more than anything the reception and the treatment that the country of Nicaragua
05:01has given me.
05:02Truly, what a tremendous tournament.
05:05Very good level of the teams that are here.
05:10It is unbelievable what we are experiencing.
05:12The organization of the tournament is tremendous.
05:20Nicaragua should feel proud of these three stadiums that you have here and you can play
05:24any event, I believe that you are close to reach the level of possibly even a World Cup.
05:33I had not been here, but I had references that it was a stadium with a good infrastructure.
05:37It is a good quality stadium that is suitable for international matches, and I believe that,
05:42yes, the expectations were met.
05:48For seven days, the teams competed in an atmosphere of excitement and high level of
05:53sportsmanship.
05:54The Metropolitan Eagles of Panama were crowned champions for the first edition of the series
05:59of the Americas.
06:00The national team of Nicaragua was crowned runner-up.
06:07I think we already had an idea of how to pitch to the hitters.
06:10The Nicaraguan hitters are very good and I think we made the necessary adjustments to
06:14pull out the victory.
06:23Baseball is considered the king sport in Nicaragua due to its popularity and the massive turnout
06:29of fans in the country's new and modern stadiums.
06:36I think that something very nice about this country is that the countries that come here
06:39will speak well of Nicaragua for having stadiums like this one.
06:47The government is building stadiums in which we as former players would have liked to play.
06:52Unfortunately, we couldn't play in these stadiums, but the new generation is acquiring these
06:57new stadiums.
06:59They already look at us with respect and that is the objective because baseball in Nicaragua
07:06reaches the top to occupy the first places in Latin America.
07:19In addition to the sporting impact, events such as this one boost the local economy,
07:23benefiting small and large businesses.
07:26Entrepreneurs and merchants take advantage of these opportunities to offer traditional
07:30Nicaraguan cuisine and other products, strengthening the country's economic development.
07:38I offered my client different types of food that we make here.
07:46First of all, we thank God and the people who support us as the good government that
07:50has come to make this stadium nice and beautiful, and also this favor that we bring a livelihood
07:55to our family.
08:02In recent years, the Sandinista government has invested more than 142 million U.S. dollars
08:08in the construction of sports infrastructure, consolidating Nicaragua as a benchmark in
08:13the organization of international events.
08:16We now have a short break coming up, but remember you can join us on TikTok at TelesurEnglish
08:26where you'll find news in different formats, news updates, and much more.
08:30We'll be right back, stay with us.
08:46Welcome back.
08:54The shockwake of President Donald Trump's tribes war has also had a response in China.
08:58Beijing will denounce Washington to the World Trade Organization.
09:02China's Commerce Ministry will contest the 10% tariffs imposed by the United States,
09:06but will also launch several countermeasures.
09:08The executive reiterates that the unilateral imposition of tariffs is a serious violation
09:12of the rules of the World Trade Organization, a body of the United Nations.
09:17Additionally, Beijing will file an unlawful practice lawsuit against Washington, although
09:21the Asian nation insists that a trade war has no winners.
09:25It announces that it is forced to impose measures to protect the country's interests.
09:34And U.S. President Donald Trump ordered airstrikes on Somalia under the pretext of operations
09:39against terrorist groups.
09:41These are the first attacks carried out by the United States during Donald Trump's
09:44second term in office against the African nation.
09:46According to local media, about six airstrikes hit several places in the mountains of Al
09:51Miqsqat, particularly in the areas of Curaçao, Boko, Guangbale, and Dazan.
09:55The U.S. President also accused former President Joe Biden of not acting quickly during his
10:00term of office and sent a message emphasizing that all those who want to attack the United
10:04States will be found.
10:25In Palestine, the Israeli offensive in the West Bank leaves several dead in multiple
10:29drone strikes in the region.
10:31An Israeli drone strike on a car in Qabatiyah, northern West Bank, killed two Palestinians.
10:36The health ministry reported five deaths in separate strikes across Yenin on Saturday,
10:40including a 16-year-old boy who was killed in an airstrike targeting an eastern neighborhood.
10:45Minutes after a third strike killed two more Palestinians on a motorcycle in central Yenin.
10:51The Israeli military claimed these operations targeted terrorists as part of its Iron Wall
10:55campaign to dismantle militant groups.
11:25Welcome back.
11:41This Sunday, Venezuelans vote in the first national public consultation of 2025 where
11:45Venezuelans choose the projects on which the public budget will be used, giving more voice
11:50to the people's power.
11:51Let's go live with our correspondent Belen de los Santos in Caracas for all the details.
11:55Hello Belen, welcome to From the South.
11:59Hello Luis, exactly.
12:06So as you were saying, an important day for democracy in Venezuela in this project of
12:12a participative and protagonist democracy that the Bolivarian revolution is carrying
12:17along.
12:18And as you were saying, this is the first public consultation that is being underway
12:22here in the whole Venezuelan territory.
12:26And this is a particular kind of election because Venezuelans, as you were saying, are
12:31heading to the polls, specifically in over 5,000 communes and communal circuits.
12:37But today they are not choosing representatives, they're not choosing authorities, they are
12:42actually choosing which projects, which communal projects are going to be financed, prioritized
12:49in the coming months, which will be receiving the necessary funds to be carrying along.
12:55So this is a project, these public consultations have been a tool of participative democracy
13:01in the sense that the people are able not only to decide on their fate through the election
13:07of representatives, but also to directly decide on their needs.
13:11So the process has been underway with assemblies, for example, in every commune or communal
13:18circuit in which the neighbors have come together to discuss the different issues, the main
13:23issues that affect each community.
13:26And they are deciding, okay, with this funding, what are we going to do?
13:30So they are bringing to the table through a process of assemblies different communal
13:34projects.
13:35And today all the neighbors from this communes and communal circuits, you can see them right
13:42behind me, they are coming to vote and they are actually voting on those projects.
13:48So we are here in particular in the Giant of the Homeland building that is part of the
13:55communal circuit number two in Caracas.
13:58We are right in front of the Fine Arts Museum and the Fine Arts Square, a very important
14:03place of Caracas Center.
14:06And in this circuit, we were just talking to some of the leaders.
14:11And for example, one of the main projects that will be voted on is the continuation
14:18of a project of recovery for the buildings and communal spaces in this community.
14:25So the leaders were just, the neighbors were just telling us that this communal circuit
14:31in particular, for example, is of course in downtown Caracas.
14:35So it's mainly composed of different buildings, large buildings that are in some cases decades
14:43old.
14:44And so they need a lot of maintenance and that maintenance, because it's not just simple
14:48housing, it's expensive.
14:51So they are deciding to allocate these resources to the recovery of these spaces.
14:57That is one of the things that we are, that they're voting on today.
15:01And also just so you know, this is not a project that is beginning right now, but actually
15:08this is the third public consultation since 2024.
15:13And this particular communal circuit already voted on a similar project.
15:18And already nine buildings have been recovered with the infrastructure repairments in the
15:25last consultations, with the execution of the last budget.
15:31So what they are voting on right now is the possibility to continue that project, because
15:37of course there are still a lot of things to get done.
15:40So they are very just eager to see if this funding will be allocated to that.
15:46And also that is just one of the projects.
15:48There are also some projects to recover a square that is just here a few blocks away.
15:56And also some of the neighbors were proposing the budget go to external lighting.
16:00So as you can see, these are different projects that the community is voting on.
16:06They have proposed them themselves, just thinking about what is their priority.
16:11And today those same neighbors from this communal circuit are deciding which projects will be
16:17a priority for the coming months.
16:19And of course, the goal is that all these projects will be targeted in due time.
16:27You've been there since very early.
16:29I know you had a chance to talk with people.
16:31What is the feeling of the people?
16:32Do they feel like their voice has an impact on the projects that they are voting for?
16:45Exactly.
16:46Not only we've been here from very early, but we've been also just going through different
16:51territories and communes throughout the week.
16:53We've been seeing the footage and the different from the south emissions.
16:58And really there's one common experience, both in communes, in communal circuits, both
17:05in Caracas and also in rural areas.
17:07And that is that the neighbors feel heard, because this is just a practice that is very
17:14unusual in different countries.
17:18The possibility that they can go and vote directly on the projects that they have decided.
17:24So one of the phrases that they have been repeating, of course, is that no one really
17:29knows better than them what the problems are, what things need to be targeted and what is
17:35the best solutions also to bring to the table.
17:39And that is what this tool is trying to achieve.
17:43The idea that, of course, this is coordinated through state entities, it is an initiative
17:48of the national government.
17:51But the initiative is focusing on the idea that it's the neighbors from these communal
17:56circuits in particular that know what they need.
18:00And this is the way of allocating the funding in an efficient way.
18:04Also, they have been telling us repeatedly, and particularly in this case, I was just
18:08telling you about the...
18:13It seems we have a communication issue.
18:19We lost contact with our correspondent, Belen De Los Santos, but we're going to stay tuned
18:24with Belen in our coming news brief, as she's going to continue updating all the information
18:28coming from Venezuela as a whole in this important day for the people of Venezuela.
18:33For now, let's put an end to this news brief.
18:35We have come to the end.
18:36Remember, you can find this and many other stories on our website at telesudyinglish.net.
18:41You can also join us on social media, Facebook, Instagram, Telegram, and TikTok.
18:46For Telesudy English, I'm Luis Alberto Matos.