New Paraguay leader's first challenge: land reform

New Paraguay leader's first challenge: land reform : Just outside the rickety wire fence that guards the rich, red soil of this vast hacienda, dozens of peasants have camped for weeks under a patchwork of thatched shelters and tarpaulin-covered tents. They are demanding a slice of the wealthy landowner's property to grow food for their families. And if Paraguay president-elect Fernando Lugo doesn't help them get it, they plan to swarm the private property, just as thousands of other landless farmers have done throughout the country. "The Paraguayan people are awakening," said Salomon Ruiz Diaz, 29, a protest leader. Land reform is the single biggest issue in this tiny nation of just under 7 million people, where 1 percent of the population controls 77 percent of the arable fields. It is also the biggest challenge facing Lugo,... [read full story]