Néstor Kirchner

ARGENTINAMushrooming corruption allegations Allegations of corruption against public officials have mushroomed against a backdrop of the diminishing popularity of the government. Prosecutions brought during the administration of Néstor Kirchner (2003 2007), President Cristina Fernández's husband and predecessor, have picked up

ARGENTINA President defends her assets President Cristina Fernández rejected accusations of illicit enrichment after the publication of her and her husband's assets revealed an increase of almost 160 percent in the last year. In their asset statement Fernández and

ARGENTINA Money mess at the Ministry A few days before the Néstor Kirchner transferred power to his wife Cristina in December, 2007, the Ministry of Finance paid irregularly $15.7 million to a group of foreign insurance companies linked to Iván

ARGENTINA: Minister Resigned as Monday Laundering Suspect:; BRAZIL: The Berezovsky Connection; Lawsuits against Investigative Reporting; CHILE/PERU: Thicker and Thicker; EL SALVADOR: New Initiative to Report Financial Transactions; MEXICO: Former Governor Extradited; Frozen Money to Be Shared; NICARAGUA/PANAMA: Alemán Is Summoned.

ARGENTINA: When Disco's Owners Hide Behind Corporations; Secret Laws and the Ministers; CHILE: Chile Has More Secrets Than Anybody Else; DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: "Plan Renove"; and MEXICO: Pemex Gets Fined, Unionists Don't; After moving slowly through the courts for four years, the "Pemexgate" case is almost over; E-banking Frauds on the Rise; and PERU: Wiese Controversy Continues.

ARGENTINA Bad start for new president Néstor Kirchner, an obscure provincial governor, became Argentina's president elect by default when former President Carlos Menem withdrew alleging that there was "a systematic slander campaign" against him. Menem is on trial for several

Latin America Round-Up: ARGENTINA: Election is no cause for celebration; BOLIVIA: Former manager of the Peasant Development Fund is imprisoned for embezzlement; CHILE: Beleaguered President Lagos barely surviving; COSTA RICA: Authorities seek foreign help in investigating investment schemes known as 'The Brothers' and Ofinter SA; REGIONAL: ChoicePoint information used to arrest illegal immigrants in the USA; MEXICO: Mexico becoming a heroin production center; PARAGUAY: Elections at a difficult time.