CHILE MEDIA REPORT - JUNE 19

UNCLAS SANTIAGO 000573 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 - JUNE 19 Leading Stories -------------- ¶1. A Center for Public Studies (CEP) poll showed a tie in a runoff between opposition, conservative candidate Sebastian Piera (41%) and the current government coalition's nominee Eduardo Frei (39%). U.S.-Related News -------------- ¶2. Presidents Michelle Bachelet and Barack Obama's meeting in Washington next week could precede another "summit" featuring high-ranking officials from both countries. The difference is that, in this case, the future summit would take place in Chile. Although not officially confirmed, Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner would attend the July 3 Finance Ministerial in Via del Mar. Geithner's office has conveyed to Chile's Ministry of Finance that he is interested in participating. (Que Pasa, weekly magazine, conservative, independent, circ. 101,000, 9/19) Chile-OAS -------------- ¶3. Foreign Minister Mariano Fernandez voiced the Government of Chile's determination to run Organization of American States (OAS) Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza for a second term. Insulza's tenure is scheduled to end in May of 2010. (El Mercurio, conservative, influential newspaper-of-record, circ. 129,000, 6/19) Chile-Opinion Poll -------------- ¶4. The think tank, Center for Public Studies (CEP),released yesterday its long-awaited opinion poll on the upcoming presidential elections. The survey showed an eventual tie in an expected runoff between opposition, conservative candidate Sebastian Piera (41 percent) and the current government coalition's nominee Eduardo Frei (39 percent). In response to the question: "If elections were to take place next Sunday and the candidates were the following, for whom would you vote?" Results were: Sebastian Piera 37 percent; Eduardo Frei 30 percent; independent Marco Enriquez-Ominami 13 percent; former Socialist Party Alejandro Navarro 1 percent; independent and former Christian Democrat Adolfo Zaldivar 1 percent; former Socialist and Communist Party Jorge Arrate 1 percent. The other 16 percent of the participants do not answer and 1 percent refuses to vote. In other results, President Michelle Bachelet obtained a 66 percent approval rating of her performance, the highest among her predecessors. The CEP poll interviewed 1,505 people from May 14 through June 3 and has a 3 percent margin of error. (All dailies, 6/19) Chile-Cuba -------------- ¶5. Cuban wire agency Prensa Latina celebrated its fiftieth anniversary with the seminar "Alternative Communication," hosted by Universidad Arcis. Chilean Journalists and Director of Chile's La Nacion government-owned newspaper, Marcelo Castillo, spoke at the event. All participants agreed that Prensa Latina "contributes with a different stance vis a vis its competitors and that a 'minimum exercise of pluralism' (sic) requires that such perspective be taken into account." (La Nacion, government-owned, editorially independent, circ. 4,200, 6/19) Chile-AH1N1 Influenza -------------- ¶6. Another 40-year old Chilean male died yesterday from AH1N1 Influenza in Chile. This is the fourth fatal victim of the flu. Coincidentally all four victims have been from Puerto Montt, in the south of Chile. (El Mercurio, 9/19) U.S. Financial Regulatory Reform -------------- ¶7. Editorial entitled "Obama's Revolution" "The largest reform to the U.S. financial system since the Great Depression (...) is a true regulatory revolution (...) U.S. Congress' response to Obama's celerity is decisive to inject confidence into the markets." (Estrategia, business and financial, circ. 30,000, 6/19) ¶8. Opinion column by Jaime de la Barra, Executive Director, Compass Consorcio Asset Management: "President Obama spoke in support of a free market, flexibility, creativity and innovation (...) a system based on the individual freedoms that have given the world so many benefits." (La Tercera, 6/19) SIMONS