LATAM POLITICS TODAY-Peru's new leader offers early election as six die in protests

The latest in Latin American politics today: Peru's new leader offers early election as six die in protests LIMA - Peru's new president offered lawmakers a plan to bring elections forward by two years, after last week's ousting of her predecessor Pedro Castillo sparked protests that have left at least six dead - mostly teenagers.

The latest in Latin American politics today: Peru's new leader offers early election as six die in protests

LIMA - Peru's new president offered lawmakers a plan to bring elections forward by two years, after last week's ousting of her predecessor Pedro Castillo sparked protests that have left at least six dead - mostly teenagers. President Dina Boluarte, previously the vice president, was sworn in last week after Castillo was removed by Congress and arrested for trying to dissolve the legislature while preventing an impeachment vote against him.

Local authorities in Apurimac said a 16-year-old had died from a gunshot wound, and two more 18-year-olds had died in Andahuaylas province. Another death had been reported earlier Monday in Arequipa, and two teenagers were killed on Sunday. Bolsonaro supporters try to invade police HQ as post-election tensions spark

BRASILIA - Supporters of far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro attempted to invade the federal police headquarters in Brasilia, the capital, protesting the arrest of an indigenous leader in the first major flash of post-election violence. Television images, as well as videos shared by federal police officers with Reuters, showed burned-out cars, a bus that had been set on fire, and the sound of explosions and what appeared to be rubber bullets being fired.

It came on the same day that the country's federal electoral court certified the Oct. 30 election victory of Bolsonaro's leftist rival, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, as president. Colombia's government, ELN guerrillas complete first round of talks

CARACAS - Representatives of Colombia's government and of the National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas completed the first round of peace talks in Venezuela's capital Caracas, with the next round of negotiations to take place in Mexico. The two sides restarted peace talks on Nov. 21 with the intention of ending the ELN's part in Colombia's almost six decades of armed conflict, which has left at least 450,000 dead.

Mexico will hold the next round of talks starting in January, according to Mexico's ambassador in Caracas. Colombia signs agreement to establish national mining company

BOGOTA - Colombian government organizations signed a memorandum of understanding in the capital Bogota to create a national mining company out of assets seized from illegal groups, to tackle mining-related pollution and help small-scale miners. The government of Colombian President Gustavo Petro - the first leftist to lead the country - has pledged to reform the mining sector, ruling out more licenses for large-scale open-pit coal mines as it focuses on minerals that are important for the energy transition, such as copper.

The national mining company will buy gold from small scale miners who produce the yellow metal without using cyanide or mercury, with the aim of exporting environmentally friendly gold to Europe, Alvaro Pardo, president of the National Mining Agency (ANM), said last week. Chilean lawmakers reach agreement to start another constitutional process

SANTIAGO - Chilean government and opposition lawmakers announced an agreement to begin drafting a new constitution, three months after a referendum overwhelmingly rejected the progressive first text that looked to replace a dictatorship-era charter. The agreement would see the new constitution drafted over next year by a body of 50 so-called constitutional advisors elected by direct vote, based on a preliminary draft prepared by a commission of 24 experts. It would be submitted for referendum in November or December next year with mandatory participation.

Cuban Coast Guard rescues would-be migrants adrift off of Havana HAVANA - A makeshift boat loaded with Cubans drifted just off Havana's seaside drive before those aboard were rescued by the Cuban Coast Guard as hundreds of spectators looked on.

A passerby who said he helped police bring on shore two men who had jumped ship as the coast guard arrived, told Reuters the migrants said they had left from a town just west of Havana, but their motor had quickly failed. A severe economic downturn in Cuba has driven a massive spike in migration from the Caribbean island. The U.S. Coast Guard said it intercepted over 9,000 Cubans at sea since the start of the 2022 fiscal year. Almost all were returned to Cuba. (Compiled by Steven Grattan and Sarah Morland; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

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