Susana González wrote in La Jornada of Mexico City that although well over half of its working population goes without access to health services, Mexico ranks second globally in what the tourism industry calls “health tourism.” 

In La Tercera of Santiago Valentina Mery wrote of the most likely things that can go wrong on a Chilean beach trip.  These include falls in rocky areas, attacks by jellyfish, children that go missing, and swimmers who exceed the limits. 

El Comercio of Quito reported that in mid February the Tungurahua volcano was very active.  There were explosions that generated clouds of steam with moderate loads of ash that rose 2.5 kilometers above the crater.  

MercoPress of Montevideo reported that Uruguay, Ecuador and Malta were named the best three countries in the world when it comes to climate.  Their temperate weather throughout the year, moderate rainfall and little risk of natural disaster saw them rise to the top of the Climate category, one of eight categories in the Index, which

Camilo Mejía Giraldo wrote in Colombia Reports of Medellín that Colombia’s Inspector General has submitted a request to meet with the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) to explain his office’s decision to remove and politically sanction the Mayor of Bogotá. 

DominicanToday of Santo Domingo reported that the Dominican government has assured the Human Rights Council in Geneva that the Constitutional Court ruling doesn’t strip Dominican nationality from those who have it ,and reiterated that it will seek legislation which makes the offspring of undocumented immigrants eligible for naturalization, thus debunking accusations of creating “stateless” people. 

O Globo of Rio de Janeiro noted that the former marketing director of the Bank of Brazil, Henrique Pizzolato, is part of a list that continues to grow: those who are wanted by the police and the Brazilian justice system and have fled abroad. 

El Periódico of Guatemala City observed that many countries in the region are considering the decriminalization of marijuana.  In Argentina currently it is not a crime to have drugs for personal use.  

MercoPress of Montevideo reported that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said he was expelling three U.S. consular officials, accusing them of conspiring with the opposition forces to foment unrest as violent protests ran into a fifth straight night.

El Periódico of Guatemala City took note of the fact that a U.S. federal judge sentenced Jorge Sosa, a former Guatemalan military officer, to 10 years in prison.  Judge Virginia Phillips of the Central District of California also withdrew Sosa’s U.S. citizenship.