President Michelle Bachelet

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet sent her condolences in the aftermath of the tragedy in Chiloé. The President expressed her sympathy and support to the families of the 10 victims who lost their lives when a ferry, traveling Chacao channel, sunk.  The President vowed that all efforts will be made by local and maritime authorities to recover all the bodies.  So far only two bodies have been recovered; those of a 3-year-old girl and a 36-year-old woman.  Bachelet expressed her hope that incidents like these can be avoided in the future.

Sebastián Piñera will announce his Presidential Cabinet at a ceremony to be held in Santiago next week. According to the coordinator of the Presidential Transition Ceremony, Rodrigo Hinzpeter, the rise to power of President-elect, Sebastián Piñera, will take place at the National History Museum on Tuesday, February 9^th. Piñera said he chose this location because it originally served as the first Presidential House after Chile’s founding father, Bernardo O’Higgins, was appointed the country’s Supreme Director. Brazilian President Lula da Silva has announced his intention to attend Piñera’s inauguration ceremony to be held on March 11^th.

Andrés Velasco and Timothy Geithner. Photo: Ministerio de Hacienda

Chile and the United States have signed a new income tax treaty. Chilean Finance Minister Andrés Velasco and U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner this week signed a new income tax treaty. The treaty will provide certainty and stability to tax treatment for U.S. and Chilean cross-border investors. If the U.S. and Chilean Senates approve the treaty, it would be the first bilateral income tax treaty between both countries, and the second U.S. tax treaty with a South American nation. According to Geithner, this will open a new chapter in the strong economic relation between the United States and Chile.

Chilean Investigation Police (PDI) are investigating possible pornography networks after recent arrests. The PDI requested the assistance of the International Criminal Police Organization, commonly known as Interpol, to investigate the child pornography networks that recently arrested pedophile Marta Lagos Frías could be involved in. According to the inspector of the PDI Sex Crimes Squad, Cristián Vega, considering this is an organized type of crime, it should be investigated not only in Chile, but in other South American and European countries. The police said Lagos used her own children to produce pornography material, which she would later distribute in Argentina.

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