Uruguay's senate approves same-sex marriage bill

Gay couples observe the Senate's discussion of a bill on same-sex marriage in Montevideo, Uruguay, on Tuesday.

Montevideo, Uruguay (CNN) -- Uruguayan senators voted overwhelmingly in favor of a same-sex marriage measure Tuesday -- a key step that puts the South American nation on the path to becoming the 12th country to approve such a law.

Senators approved the marriage equality bill 23-8. Next week, lawmakers in the lower house, which approved a different version of the legislation late last year, are expected to vote on the senate's version.

If approved and signed by President Jose Mujica, who has indicated he supports the measure, the proposal would make Uruguay the second country in Latin America to legalize same-sex marriage. Neighboring Argentina legalized such marriages in 2010.

It's an issue that's sparked debate and impassioned demonstrations from supporters and opponents in many countries.

Legislators in France and the United Kingdom are among lawmakers worldwide weighing proposals to legalize same-sex marriage. In the United States, the question of same-sex marriage went before the Supreme Court last week, and justices are now deliberating over the matter.

The first same-sex couples walked down the aisle in the Netherlands in 2001. Since then, almost a dozen countries have passed laws allowing same-sex marriages and domestic partnerships, including Canada, South Africa, Belgium and Spain.

In Argentina, the push to legalize same-sex marriage met with fierce opposition from the Roman Catholic Church, with Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio -- then the archbishop of Buenos Aires and now the pope -- engaging in a notorious war of words with the government over the issue.

In Uruguay, the church has taken a similar tack, with officials describing the measure as a harsh blow to the institutions of marriage and the family.

"Why make relative or devalue an institution that is already so injured, like the family, introducing deep modifications that are going to confuse more than clarify?" the Rev. Pablo Galimberti, bishop of Salto, wrote in a recent post on the website of the Uruguayan Bishops Council.

Uruguay's Broad Front, a coalition of left-wing political parties, backs the measure. On Tuesday, the group's president stressed that the proposed law change a civil institution and has nothing to do with the church.

"Here we are speaking about RIGHTS, with capital letters. Rights that were denied and repressed for a long time, and which a society that is trying to be modern and inclusive necessarily must recognize, to advance in equality," wrote Sen. Monica Xavier. "Rights that are inherent to people, that are not a legislative creation, but something that the law must recognize."

For years, it was rare to see gay rights issues gaining traction in Latin American countries.

Not anymore, Javier Corrales, a professor of political science at Amherst College in Massachusetts, told CNN in 2010.

"Latin America currently has some of the most gay-friendly cities in the developing world," said Corrales, who ranked cities' gay-friendliness in a book he co-edited, "The Politics of Sexuality in Latin America."

In 2009, Uruguay was the first Latin American country to allow same-sex couples to adopt children. It was also one the first Latin American countries to allow same-sex civil unions.

The measure approved by Uruguayan senators Tuesday removes the words "man" and "woman" from the country's civil code and replaces them with the word "spouse," CNN affiliate Teledoce reported.

Brazil police make 3rd arrest in rape of American woman

Sao Paulo, Brazil (CNN) -- Police in Brazil have arrested a third person in connection with the rape of an American woman on a minibus in Rio de Janeiro.

Carlos Armando Costa dos Santos was arrested Monday night, police said.

The woman boarded the minibus with another tourist in the Copacabana beach district in Rio de Janeiro early Saturday. Three men subsequently boarded the minibus and forced off all the other passengers, police said.

The woman was raped, and the other tourist, a man, was held captive and robbed, authorities said.

Their credit cards were used at multiple locations inside and outside of Rio de Janeiro over a span of hours, the police said in a statement.

According to Brazilian newspapers, the man was handcuffed and beaten, while the woman was repeatedly raped. The two were dumped in Itaborai, a city more than 30 miles (about 50 kilometers) away, after six hours, O Globo newspaper said.

Earlier, police arrested two men, both in their early 20s. They are Jonathan Foudakis de Souza and Wallace Aparecido Souza Silva.

The U.S. Consulate is in contact with the victim and is providing all appropriate consular assistance, said a State Department official, who did not want to be identified because he was not authorized to talk about the case

The rape highlights security concerns in the Brazilian city that will host matches in the 2014 World Cup and will put on the Summer Olympics two years later. '

As more women come forward saying they were victims of similar attacks, Rio de Janeiro's Civil Police Chief Martha Rocha issued a written apology. She also fired two police officers responsible for handling rape cases.

Rio has gone a long way toward cleaning up its image as one of Latin America's most violent cities. But Brazilian media already are drawing parallels between this attack and the infamous gang rape of a young woman on a bus in India.

A grisly crime surges into spotlight as Mexico shifts drug war strategy

(CNN) -- It was a staggering sight, even in a Mexican city that has seen its share of violence in recent years as drug-related crimes surged.

Seven bodies sat slumped in white plastic chairs placed near a central plaza in Uruapan, Mexico.

Local media reported messages were left behind, written on poster board and pinned to some of the victims' bodies with icepicks.

The men appeared to have been killed by gunfire, and investigators believe organized crime groups are to blame, Mexico's state-run Notimex news agency said. Investigators haven't provided details about who they suspect was responsible or why they targeted the men -- windshield washers and farm workers, according to Notimex.

Uruapan, a city of a quarter million people in the western state of Michoacan, made headlines in 2006 when members of a drug cartel -- La Familia Michoacana -- hurled five decapitated heads of rival gang members onto a dance floor there.

Foreign leaders attend Hugo Chavez funeral

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was remembered Friday as a leader who cared for the poor and opposed the dominance of one nation over others during a funeral ceremony that attracted dignitaries from around the world.

The Venezuelan national anthem was played by the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra, directed by conductor Gustavo Dudamel.

In his funeral oration, Vice President Nicolas Maduro said Chavez, who died Tuesday at 58 after a long bout with cancer, was the champion of the oppressed and "redeemer of our poor and those of all the world." Perhaps referring to Chavez's frequent tirades against the United States, Maduro said Chavez wanted "a world without empires, without hegemonies."

"There was never a leader more vilified than Hugo Chavez," Maduro, who was sworn in late Friday as interim president, told those assembled at the Venezuelan Military Academy. "But our commander had inside him the biggest shield against infamy a human being can have: his purity and the love of Christ, which saved him and left him undefeated."

With Chavez family members sitting among dignitaries who included Cuban President Raul Castro, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Chilean President Sebastian Piñera and Spain's Prince Felipe, Maduro began the observance by placing a replica of liberator Bolivar's sword atop Chavez's coffin.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, addressing the congregation, issued a plea for better binational relations and asked God to "heal the breach between the U.S. and Venezuela" and to "let there be peace between nations."

"Let us forgive, redeem and move on to higher ground," Jackson said. "We are neighbors who share the same hemisphere. We play ball together. We share natural resources and we combat drugs together, share dreams and are bound by culture and environment."

Others in attendance included Uruguayan President Jose Mujica and actor Sean Penn, who has expressed his friendship with Chavez as well as gratitude for financial support of relief efforts Penn directed in Haiti. Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner unexpectedly left before the service, citing medical reasons, officials said.

Dudamel, the Venezuelan-born music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, traveled to Caracas on an overnight flight after a performance Thursday night.

Maduro took the oath as interim president from National Assembly President Diosdado Cabello, swearing to uphold the constitution and laws of Venezuela in the "name of our Commandante Hugo Chavez." The Friday night ceremony was held in the assembly hall in central Caracas.

Riding a wave of sympathy for Chavez, Maduro is heavily favored to win a special election next month for the presidency.

Venezuela interim leader vows to tackle crime

CARACAS, Venezuela — Interim President Nicolas Maduro on Monday raised the curtain on Venezuela's abbreviated campaign to elect a successor to Hugo Chavez, lavishly praising the late leader during a televised address but promising to tackle escalating crime, perhaps Chavez's darkest legacy.

The 50-year-old Maduro, a former bus driver and socialist union leader, is heavily favored to beat his challenger, Gov. Henrique Capriles of Miranda state, in the April 14 election to fill out Chavez's six-year term.

The snap election was called after Chavez died of cancer March 5. Maduro, who had been vice president and foreign minister under Chavez, was sworn in as interim president March 8. Campaigning has been limited to Tuesday through April 11.

Recent polls give Maduro leads ranging from 8 to 20 percentage points, reflecting popular sympathy for Chavez, who had designated Maduro as his political heir. Maduro also reaps the goodwill generated by Chavez's social welfare programs, which are highly popular with Venezuela's poor.

In recent days, Maduro has referred to Chavez as "Christ the redeemer of the poor" and to himself as his apostle.
But Maduro is also inheriting rampant violent crime that has quadrupled since 1999, when Chavez took power. Crime is voters' top concern, according to analysts, and could be Maduro's electoral Achilles' heel. On Monday, he announced an initiative called "Movement for Peace and Life" to combat violence.
"You all have the right to life," Maduro said in his speech, broadcast from an adult school in Caracas' Catia slum. "Join us to end violence and kidnapping.... Any of these victims could be your sisters, your parents."
He invoked the so-called cadena law that requires all TV and radio stations to carry his speech.
Maduro may have been responding to news reports Monday of a 7% increase in violent deaths handled by the city morgue over the first three months of the year compared with the same period in 2012. About two-thirds of the bodies brought there typically are murder victims, said El Universal newspaper.
The government has not released official crime statistics since 2004.
Meanwhile, Capriles, 40, who lost to Chavez in October by 10 percentage points, announced at a news conference Monday that supporters would hold candlelight marches Tuesday night in 19 states to demand that the government address rising crime.
Marchers "will make us feel the dream our nation has of being able to walk through the streets after dark," Capriles said. "Public spaces should belong to the citizens."
Chavez had drawn heavy criticism for failing to direct sufficient government resources to tackling crime during his presidency. On various occasions, he had either refused to acknowledge it or, as Maduro did Monday, blamed it on capitalism.
Capriles also criticized Maduro's use of the cadena as an unfair campaign advantage that the National Electoral Commission should prohibit.
"We're not asking for anything that isn't stipulated" by Venezuelan law, Capriles said. "We believe that all should have the same rights."
(Chasity M.)

Brazilian doctor killed 7 patients to free up hospital beds, police say

Killing patients for hospital beds?

(CNN) -- A Brazilian doctor appeared in court for allegedly killing seven patients to free up hospital beds in the southeast city of Curitiba.

Virginia Helena Soares de Souza recruited a group of doctors to help administer lethal doses of anesthetics, sedatives and painkillers, according to authorities.

In addition, the group allegedly altered oxygen levels for patients, leading to deaths by asphyxiation, police said.

Seven other health care professionals have been charged in the case.

Prosecutors allege de Souza pulled the plug on victims against the wishes of patients and their families, and in so doing broke the law. She did that to free up beds in the ICU and clear up the "clutter" the patients were causing, according to police.

De Souza was arrested in February, but was later released until trial. Her court appearance Wednesday is part of mandated monthly appearances to avoid going back to jail.

Investigators say between 2006 and 2013, de Souza ordered medical professionals working under her at an intensive care unit to alter medication and oxygen levels.

In an interview with CNN affiliate TV Globo, Mario Lobato, the doctor tasked by the health ministry to investigate the case, said the number of deaths could be much higher.

He said his team is analyzing medical charts of more than 1,700 patients and interviewing more doctors.

During the seven years the incidents occurred, in cases where de Souza did not prescribe the drugs herself, she ordered other doctors to change mechanical ventilation devices, according to authorities. She allowed them access to medical records to issue prescriptions in her name, police said.

De Souza has pleaded not guilty.

Her lawyer, Elias Mattar Assad, said she will prove that her orders in the ICU were backed and justified by medical literature. Lobato, however, said some of the patients were awake and conscious moments before the drugs were administered.

CNN affiliate TV Record reported that the investigation began a year ago. In telephone recordings made with the consent of the justice department, de Souza ordered other medical doctors and employees to shut down some ventilation devices.

Euthanasia is considered a crime in Brazil

Venezuela to probe Chavez cancer 'poisoning', Al Jazeera

Acting president Maduro tells local TV "truth" will be sought, insisting president who died of cancer was "poisoned".

Maduro said foreign scientists would be invited to join a government commission to probe the accusation [Reuters]

The Venezuelan government has said that it will set up a formal inquiry into suspicions that the late President Hugo Chavez's cancer was the result of poisoning by his enemies abroad. The decision to probe the circumstances surrounding the former president's death comes days after Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, one of the foreign dignitaries at Chavez's funeral, alleged he died of a "suspect illness". Acting President Nicolas Maduro, handpicked by Chavez to run the country as the president underwent surgery in Cuba, also said the socialist leader had been "poisoned". "We will seek the truth," Maduro told regional TV network Telesur late on Monday. "We have the intuition that our commander Chavez was poisoned by dark forces that wanted him out of the way." Foreign scientists will be invited to join a government commission to probe the accusation, the OPEC nation's acting leader said. But the the accusation has been derided by critics of the government, who view it as a typical Chavez-style conspiracy theory intended to feed fears of "imperialist" threats to Venezuela's socialist system and distract people from daily problems. Maduro, a candidate in the April 14 snap election to choose Venezuela’s new president, is trying to keep voters' attention firmly focused on Chavez to benefit from the outpouring of grief among his millions of supporters, analysts said.