Culture
Cultural life has a lot in common with that
in Argentina and is characterized by European
traditions. Of the original cultures, very little is
preserved.
A central feature of both literature and music are
songs created by herdsmen, gauchos,
which facilitated the lonely life of the plains by
singing about love and adventure. The music culture is
akin to that in Argentina and encompasses a variety of
song forms accompanied by guitar. Some Uruguayans claim
that tango was invented in Montevideo rather than Buenos
Aires. In northern Uruguay, Brazilian influences are
noticeable in the music.
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Countryaah:
Latest population statistics of Uruguay, including religious profiles and major languages spoken as well as population growth rates in next three decades.
Literature has a prominent place in cultural life and
several writers from Uruguay have found a readership in
Sweden. Among them are the poet Circe Maia (1932–) and
Eduardo Galeano (1940–2015), with works such as
Latin America's open veins and the trilogy The
Memory of the World.
2019
December
Record-breaking cocaine seizures
 December 28
Military and Customs officials seize a total of six tons of cocaine, with an
estimated value of over $ 1 billion. The drug was found partly in a cargo of
soybean meal on the way to Togo in West Africa and partly on a ranch. The
seizure is the largest so far in the country - twice the size of the previous
record made in November and then a cargo on the way to Benin, also in West
Africa, via the Canary Islands. Nearly one-third of the cocaine consumed in
Europe is smuggled via Africa, and Uruguay appears to be increasingly along the
smuggling routes.
November
Lacalle Pou wins the presidential election
November 24
Right-wing candidate Luis Lacalle Pou barely wins over left-wing Daniel
Martínez in the second round of the presidential election. Lacalle Pou gets 50.8
percent of the vote compared to 49.2 percent for Martínez. Only 37,000 votes
cast candidates apart. The election is so smooth that the electoral court
carries out a review of 35,000 votes. On November 28, Martínez acknowledges
defeat and congratulates Lacalle Pou on the victory. Two days later, the
official result is presented.
October
The presidential election goes to the second round
October 27th
The ruling left-wing alliance Breda Front's candidate Daniel Martínez gets
the most votes in the first round of the presidential election, 40.7 percent,
which is far from the 50 percent required for victory in the first round. In
second place is Luis Lacalle Pou, the candidate of the Blancoparti, with 29.7
percent. Lacalle Pou receives support from other parties on the right before the
decisive round on 24 November. Among those behind Lacalle Pou are the Colorado
Party candidate Ernesto Talvi (who himself gets 12.8 percent in the first
round), Cabildo Abiertos Guido Manini Ríos (11.3 percent), Edgardo Novick of the
People's Party (1.1 percent) and Independent Party's Pablo Mieres (1.0 percent).
In the contemporary congressional elections, the FA remains the largest party
but loses its former majority. The party gets 42 out of 99 seats in the House of
Representatives and 13 out of 30 electable seats in the Senate. The Blanco party
gets 30/10, the Colorado party 13/4 and Cabildo Abierto 11/3, while three seats
go to three small parties.
June
Primary elections before the presidential election
June 30th
When primary elections are held before this fall's presidential election, the
ruling Left Alliance Breda Front (FA) appoints former mayor of Montevideo Daniel
Martínez as its candidate, with 42 percent of the vote. The Blanco Party
appoints Senator Luis Lacalle Pou and the Colorado Party economist Ernesto Talvi
as candidate, both with 54 percent of voters in each party. Lacalle Pou was also
the candidate of the Blanoc Party in 2014 and was defeated in the second round
of the FA's Tabaré Vázquez. The election will be held on October 27, with a
possible second round on November 24.
Mercosur concludes free trade agreement with EU
June 28
Uruguay and the other Mercosur countries reach a free trade agreement with
the EU after 20 years of negotiations. However, in order to enter into force,
the agreement must be approved by the European Parliament and all individual EU
states, which can prove difficult due to increasing protectionism and opposition
to free trade. The agreement is the second largest EU agreement, covering 780
million people and a quarter of the world's GDP. Both environmental
organizations and farmers in the EU are critical to the agreement.
April
The defense minister and the army chief kicked
April 1st
President Tabaré Vázquez dismisses Defense Minister Jorge Menéndez and Army
Chief José González following harsh criticism of the government over testimony
about the murder of a dissident during the military dictatorship. The Deputy
Minister of Defense and two army generals may also go. The reason is that a
convicted torturer before a secret military tribunal has admitted that he threw
a murdered regime critic in a river in 1973. Critics believe that the
information should have been forwarded to the ordinary judiciary so that a
regular trial could be held - and the circumstances of the murder clear.
March
A new regional forum is formed
March 22
Uruguay participates in a meeting in Chile where eight other South American
countries launch the new Regional Forum for South America's Progress (Prosur)
which is intended to replace Unasur. Prosecur will mainly support democracy and
the market economy, it says. The initiative has been taken by the presidents of
Chile and Colombia, and the other participating countries are Argentina, Brazil,
Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay and Peru. In addition to Uruguay, representatives of
the left-wing governments in Bolivia and Surinam are also participating, but
none of the three countries does not join Prosur. Venezuela was not invited.
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