Hello, and welcome to the Latin America Weekly newsletter! In this issue: Is freedom essential to development? How the tables have turned in Chile. And a nationalist rebellion in Uruguay.
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Freedom often goes hand in hand with development. But not in Cuba
Freedom and development are strongly correlated in Latin America, according to data analyzed by The Brazilian Report, based on figures from the Washington-based NGO Freedom House and the United Nations.
- Countries with higher GDP per capita, educational attainment, and life expectancy (the key components of the Human Development Index) are also the freest in terms of politics and the press, with few exceptions.
The good. At the top, combining the best of both worlds, are nations such as Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, and Uruguay, which have combined relative political stability and press freedom with the highest per capita gross national income figures in the region.
- Yes, but … A closer look at these countries reveals that many of these positives may be in jeopardy, as Argentina faces a...