German President Tours Latin America

On the second leg of his Latin America tour, German President Johannes Rau met Chilean President Ricardo Lagos in Santiago de Chile on Monday. Topics of discussion included strengthening Chile's young democracy and human rights as well as expanding ties between the two countries. Chile profited from German immigration during the 19th century and Germany became a place of refuge for many Chileans during the Pinochet dictatorship, a Chilean government official said at the start of Rau's visit. The German president is traveling with 25 businessmen who want to strengthen business ties with Latin American countries. Rau began his trip in Mexico on Nov. 18. He will fly to Uruguay on Tuesday and to Brazil on Wednesday before returning to Germany on Saturday.