Human Rights Watch
Ecuador’s criminal code limits women’s and girls’ ability to safely access reproductive care by imposing harsh penalties for those who seek abortion, including survivors of sexual assault and rape. According to a new Human Rights Watch report, Rape Victims as Criminals: Illegal Abortion after Rape in Ecuador, women and girls who obtain abortions face sentences ranging from one to five years in prison, with even harsher penalties given to medical professionals who perform the procedures. The restrictive laws have led many women and girls to seek unsafe and illegal abortions, contributing to maternal injury and death, and imposing obstacles for women seeking “potentially life-saving medical care.”
Center for Strategic and International Studies
The renewed Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has launched a series of new reports and initiatives. A policy brief issued in July predicted that Asian commerce will play an increasingly important role in shaping Pacific Alliance member states’ intra-regional relations and affairs with China. Another, on declining Mexican immigration to the United States, warned that the improving economic environment in Mexico could reverse current immigration trends and hurt the U.S. economy. Future reports will examine rule of law, finance, politics in Argentina, and the state of press freedom in the Americas.
Centro de Investigación para el Desarrollo, A. C.
Mexico’s dependence on non-renewable energy sources threatens to curtail its unprecedented economic growth and limit its ability to satisfy growing domestic and commercial demand for energy. Renovando el Futuro Energético de México, a new report by the Centro de Investigación para el Desarrollo, A. C. (Development ResearchCenter—CIDAC), finds that Mexico increased its greenhouse gas emissions by 330 percent from 1970 to 2010, while taking little action to develop institutions that can formulate a blueprint for sustainable long-term energy security. The report recommends developing a national policy framework to incentivize use of renewable energy sources; strengthening the authority of regulatory energy agencies; designating additional resources to develop improved infrastructure for sustainable energy production; and eliminating state subsidies for fossil fuel energy production.
