Argentina legalizes gay marriage

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina: Argentina legalized same-sex marriage Thursday, becoming the first country in Latin America to grant gays and lesbians all the legal rights, responsibilities and protections that marriage brings to heterosexual couples.

More here: 
Argentina legalizes gay marriage

Pak not involved in Kashmir protests: Fazl

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is not involved in the current wave of protests in held-Kashmir against the Indian occupation, said Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Chairman of the Parliamentary Kashmir Committee on Friday.

Here is the original: 
Pak not involved in Kashmir protests: Fazl

UK singer Susan Boyle seeks duet partner

LONDON: Scottish singer Susan Boyle, who shot to fame on a British TV talent show in 2009, is searching for a duet partner to appear on her new album.

Read the original: 
UK singer Susan Boyle seeks duet partner

Jennifer Lopez cancels Cyprus gig after outcry

NICOSIA: Latin pop star Jennifer Lopez has cancelled a performance in Turkish-held north Cyprus after whipping up a storm of angry protest from thousands of displaced Greek Cypriots.

Read the original here: 
Jennifer Lopez cancels Cyprus gig after outcry

Shakira to sing for Bollywood film featuring Candice Boucher

After Akon for Shah Rukh Khan’s Ra.One it is now the Latin American sensation Shakira’s turn to rock in a Bollywood song.

The number, a frenzied dance track to be filmed on South African model Candice Boucher for the film featuring entrepreneur Sachin Joshi, will be recorded in the next couple of months.

Shakira is no stranger to India. She has performed live in Mumbai and other cities in 2007 and has repeatedly expressed a desire to be part of the Bollywood film industry.
Says a source, “Sachin Joshi who’s helming and starring in the project is in touch with Shakira and she has agreed to sing for Salim-Sulaiman. The lyrics would be in English but with a smattering of easy Hindi. It won’t be a duet like the song Kylie Minogue sang on Anthony D’Souza’s Blue. It’d be a Shakira solo dhamaka.”

Composer Salim of Salim-Sulaiman confirms the happening. “It would be a very sensuous cabaret kind of song.”

Ricky Martin to star in Evita on Broadway

NEW YORK: Latin pop star Ricky Martin will return to Broadway in 2012 to star in a revival of Evita, opposite Argentine actress Elena Roger who will portray the title role, producers said on Wednesday.

Read the rest here: 
Ricky Martin to star in Evita on Broadway

telefonica

Telefonica Q1 net profit up 2 pct
Spanish telecom giant Telefonica on Thursday reported first-quarter net profit rose a smaller-than-estimated 2%, as strength in Latin America and the U.K. was partly offset by troubles in its unemployment-ravaged home country.
Telefonica (TEF 60.71, +0.17, +0.28%) (ES:TEF 15.82, -0.23, -1.43%) said net profit rose 2% to 1.66 billion euros ($2.11 billion) in the quarter, or 36 European cents per share, against €1.62 billion in the same period a year ago, also 36 cents per share. Analysts polled by FactSet Research were forecasting a net profit of 1.74 billion euros.
3″ />
The company has already been in the spotlight once this week after Portugal Telecom (PT 10.10, +0.64, +6.77%) (PT:PTC 8.03, +0.06, +0.74%) on Tuesday rejected a $7.3 billion offer by Telefonica to buy out its share of their Brazilian joint venture Vivo (VIV 27.91, +0.75, +2.76%) .
The Portuguese telecom provider argued that Vivo is a key part of its strategy and helping to offset weaker home markets, but analysts said the size of the offer by Telefonica highlights how important the region its to its own plans.

Quarterly figures clearly laid that out. Revenue for Telefonica rose 1.7% in the period to €13.93 billion in the period against €13.7 billion a year ago. That figure was just shy of analysts’ forecast for sales of €13.83 billion, helped by strong growth in Latin America and Europe, and hurt by weak Spain growth.

Telefonica shares dropped 1% in early Madrid trading.

Spanish revenue dropped 5.4% on a comparable basis, though Telefonica said the rate of decline was less steep than earlier quarters. In Latin America, comparable revenue rose 5.4% and in Europe outside of Spain they improved 1.7%.
The company added just 247,000 new customers in Spain in the quarter, while Latin America logged 3.7 million new accesses, three times the prior year figure, cementing its status as largest contributor to group revenue in terms of organic growth. The U.K. and Germany logged over half a million new wireless customers.
source:marketwatch

Shakira announces $300 m World Bank early childhood initiative for Latin America

Colombian performer Shakira announced on Monday a $300 million joint initiative with the World Bank to expand development programs for young children in Latin America.

The musical sensation made the announcement in Washington D.C. after meeting with US President Barack Obama. She said they discussed the importance of promoting education for children younger than six years of age. It was really a privilege to me to be able to sit down today earlier with President Obama and to talk about our shared commitment to early childhood development and, in particular, the way that investing in our children’s earliest education is the smartest strategy that governments can create to boost economic growth, global security and peace,” she told. Shakira has long been an advocate for children and founded the nonprofit ALAS (Spanish for ‘wings’) to unite artists, business leaders and intellectuals to promote childhood nutrition, education and health. She said the money, which will be accessible to governments as grants and loans over the next two years, was a significant opportunity to make a difference in the region where the World Bank says 9 million children suffer from chronic malnutrition and 22 million lack access to early basic care. During this year, 2010, and next year, we can count on this enormous help and invest in nutrition, health and education for 22 million children in Latin America who have no access to this kind of state protection. This is truly a golden opportunity that we shouldn’t waste, she said.

One of the first beneficiaries of the World Bank funds will be a partnership with Mexico’s state agency CONAFE to provide parent and caregiver training in the country’s poorest 172 municipalities.

---

Shakira announces $300 m World Bank early childhood initiative for Latin America was first posted on February 23, 2010 at 10:01 am.

Sammy Sosa pictures Before and After

---

Sammy Sosa pictures Before and After was first posted on November 16, 2009 at 7:30 am.