The Americas | Bello

Why backing coups in Latin America is a bad idea

Odious though Venezuela’s regime may be, America should have nothing to do with putsch plotters

SEPTEMBER 11th is best known for al-Qaeda’s attack on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon in 2001. But in Latin America the date is remembered for another act of villainy. On that day in 1973 General Augusto Pinochet staged a military coup against the chaotic Socialist government of Salvador Allende in Chile.

This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Who will rid us of this irksome regime?”

1843-2018: A manifesto for renewing liberalism

From the September 15th 2018 edition

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Uruguay's centre-left presidential candidate Yamandu Orsi.

Is Uruguay too stable for its own good?

The new president must deal with serious problems with growth, education and crime

Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro speaks to members of the media.

Bolsonaro’s bid to regain Brazil’s presidency may end in prison

Brazilian police have accused some of his backers of involvement not just in a coup, but in an assassination plot


A worker holds a salmon inside a salmon hatchery in Puerto Montt, Chile.

The mafia’s latest bonanza: salmon heists

Fish farming is big business in Chile. Stealing fish is, too


Parlacen, a bizarre parliament, is a refuge for bent politicians

A seat in the Central American body offers immunity from prosecution

Brazil courts China as its Musk feud erupts again

Xi Jinping, China’s leader, spies a chance to draw Brazil closer

Brazil’s gangsters have been getting into politics

They want friendly officials to help them launder money