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R 151918Z JUL 09
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UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000664 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR R/MR, I/PP, WHA/BSC, WHA/PDA, INR/IAA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR KPAO PGOV ECON PREL SNAR EFIN CI
SUBJECT:  CHILE MEDIA REPORT - JULY 15 
 
Leading Stories 
--------------- 
¶1. The government and the opposition reached an agreement to provide 
US$3.4 billion to finance the public transportation system 
(Transantiago) in the capital city until 2014. 
 
Insulza and the OAS 
------------------- 
¶2. Conservative sectors in the region are lobbying to discredit OAS 
Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza. These sectors disagree with 
Insulza's role in lifting the ban on Cuba and/or with his defense of 
Honduras President Manuel Zelaya. Democrats led by Congressman 
Robert Menendez are lobbying the Department of State, Congress and 
the media questioning Insulza's performance. The Democratic Party 
was the origin of "El Mercurio's" report that Secretary Clinton had 
informed Bachelet that the United States would not vote for 
Insulza's reelection. Although Bachelet herself denied having spoken 
about this with Clinton, an array of dailies published the story 
anyway, as well as the opinions of well-known columnists who also 
question Insulza Government-owned, editorially independent La 
Nacion, 7/15). 
 
¶3.  At a dinner with Socialist Party senators and Secretary General 
Insulza, the topic of discussion was "the rumor of an eventual U.S. 
veto of the Secretary's reelection and the campaign to discredit him 
led by conservative sectors in the United States and Latin America" 
(La Tercera, conservative, independent, 7/15). 
 
U.S.-Related News 
----------------- 
¶4.  Column on President Obama's speech in Accra: "The speech in 
Ghana is important because it successfully promotes the view that 
Africa can play a transcendental role in a new system of nations.... 
It didn't have the usual demagogy, mixed with colonialism and 
assistance... and instead urged Africa to form part of a global 
alliance to rebuild the foundation of prosperity; there are no 
records of this kind of speech with regard to Africa. The four 
pillars of the speech hold true for any developing country and seem 
obvious; Governance, opportunity, public health, and the peaceful 
resolution of conflict ... but are goals that the international 
community has been unable to fulfill.... More than acting as the 
administrator of a country seeking supremacy, the U.S. President is 
articulating a message that we would expect to hear from a United 
Nations Secretary General, but never have" (El Mostrador, by Juan 
Francisco Coloane on-line independent news agency, 7/15). 
 
Chile other countries 
--------------------- 
¶5.  President Bachelet and Turkish Foreign Trade minister Zafer 
Caglayan signed an FTA that will allow the entry of products to both 
countries 98% tariff free. (Diario Financiero, business, daily, 
7/15). 
 
U.S-Cuba 
-------- 
¶6.  At U.N. headquarters in New York, former U.S. Ambassador to 
Chile Craig Kelly - today Secretary Clinton's advisor for Latin 
America and the Caribbean -- led a dialogue with Cuba on 
immigration.  This is the first dialogue on this topic between the 
two countries in six years (La Tercera, 7/15). 
 
Survey 
------ 
¶7.  In an eventual presidential election, the "Imaginaccion" poll 
gives Sebastian Pinera 35.9% votes, Eduardo Frei 28.2% and Marco 
Enrique Ominami 21.5%.  In a runoff election, Pinera received 43.3% 
and Frei 41.9% (La Segunda, conservative, afternoon, 7/15). 
 
Narcotics 
--------- 
¶8.  Three containers with a total of 634 kilos of cocaine arriving 
in Spain and Bulgaria were smuggled from Bolivia through Chile's 
northern port of Arica. The containers are protected by the 
Chile-Bolivia 1904 Free Transit Treaty, which means that Chilean 
Customs officials can only inspect containers if there is evidence 
that the seals have been tampered with (El Mercurio, conservative, 
influential newspaper-of-record, 7/15). 
 
URBAN