The Senate approved changes to a bill that would provide for up to six years in prison and financial compensation for false accusations, sending it back to the Chamber of Deputies as critics warn that it could discourage legitimate complaints.
Esperanza Martínez
Pytagua coverage mentioning Esperanza Martínez.
Paraguayan Senator Esperanza Martínez denounces that politicians, including senators, deputies, governors, and ministers, are linked to drug trafficking, finance campaigns with illicit money, and enjoy impunity, pointing to systemic tolerance for corruption in the country.
Residents of the Mbocayaty neighborhood in Asunción are denouncing the halt in the land titling processes by the Municipalidad de Asunción and pressure from Grupo Vázquez to buy their properties, leading city councilors to request official information.
The Finance Committee of the Paraguayan Senate halted a project that would redirect communication funds to healthcare and postponed for 15 days the analysis of a budget increase to pay off the sector's debts.
The Paraguayan Senate is debating two bills to address the public health system's financial crisis, including the reallocation of funds from the Itaipu Binacional hydroelectric plant for the purchase of medicines and the relaxation of a debt payment mechanism for suppliers.
Three generations of a Paraguayan family, members of a dance academy that had won an international competition in Gramado, were killed and dozens injured when the bus bringing them back to Paraguay overturned in Santa Catarina, prompting the Paraguayan government to declare a period of mourning and mobilize assistance.
The Vázquez Group, whose main bank received billions in public deposits from the social security institute IPS, expanded rapidly during the Peña administration, while the bank defends the legality of the operations.
The scandal involving fake university degrees in Paraguay, with over 250 confirmed frauds and suspicions surrounding 1,500 more, has exposed a structural crisis in higher education that has led to government intervention in universities and triggered investigations by Congress and the Public Prosecutor's Office.
Paraguay's Chamber of Deputies rejected the request for an audit of the Peace Courts related to the alleged promissory note usury scheme, and the bill was referred to committees for review due to questions over its wording.
The House of Representatives postponed for 15 days the analysis of a bill that provides for the payment of default interest to construction companies for halted public works, after lawmakers raised concerns about legal issues and the high fiscal cost.
The Senate of Paraguay has set up a special commission to investigate an alleged scheme involving approximately 100,000 irregular university degrees issued between 2023 and 2025, of which roughly 60% correspond to programs lacking quality accreditation. The first institution under investigation is Universidad Sudamericana, the alma mater of former senator Hernán Rivas.
The Senate of Paraguay established a Special Investigation Commission on Monday, June 15, to investigate the issuance, sale, and use of allegedly fake or irregular university degrees, diplomas, and higher education certificates. This follows the scandal involving Universidad Sudamericana, which is believed to have issued around 2,500 irregular degrees over three to four years, a case that led to the resignation of former senator Hernán Rivas.
Senator Esperanza Martínez threatens to leave the Senate special commission investigating the "degree mafia" if there is no genuine investigation free from political interference, after the Cartismo movement appointed Patrick Kemper to chair the body.
The Paraguayan Senate passed on Tuesday, June 2, the bill declaring a national road safety emergency for one year, authorizing the ANTSV to adopt exceptional measures for the prevention and enforcement of traffic accidents, including the use of automated speed cameras and radar systems, despite opposition criticism over the lack of technical studies and the broad powers granted to the agency.
Brazilian citizen Antonio Ademir Andrioli, 72, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for attempted murder after shooting Carlos Manuel Martínez at a car dealership in Ñemby in June 2020. The sentence was handed down unanimously by the Trial Court, which considered evidence presented by prosecutor Lourdes Bobadilla.