Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez addresses the country

On March 1, 2005, Uruguayan politics shifted dramatically when the political party Frente Amplio, a coalition of left wing parties, came to power for the first time since the return of democracy to Uruguay in 1985, when their candidate, Tabare Vazquez won the presidency. Last Friday, March 2, 2007--two years into his term--President Tabare Vazquez addressed his constituents for three hours in la Plaza de la Independencia, the main plaza downtown Montevideo. His goal was to demonstrate to Uruguayans how much his administration has accomplished in these two years, to set forth the agenda in the remaining three years of his term, and to defend decisions made by his administration that many within his own party have considered controversial, namely, the visit of U.S. President George Bush on Friday. Many are pleased by the drop in poverty levels over the past two years, which the administration tauts, while others are critical of Vazquez's positioning of Uruguay's tiny economy in the global market, most especially within Mercorsur, a trade partnership of Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay, which is known for its ineffectiveness. For more photos of the event, click here.