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Guatemalans Ousted Their President In 2015. Now They’re After His Replacement.
This article has been updated. It took more than 20,000 protesters marching in the streets of Guatemala City to force then-President Otto Pérez Molina to resign and face corruption charges in 2015. Two years later, Pérez Molina is gone – but the thousands of anti-corruption protesters are back, and they’re taking aim at the new president, Jimmy … Read more
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It’s Time to Face NAFTA’s Jobs Myth
A third lightning round of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) talks begins in Ottawa on September 23. Negotiators reportedly made progress during the first two go-rounds in Washington and Mexico City, reaching tentative agreements on intellectual property, e-commerce, and environmental protections, likely following the general outlines hammered out within the Transpacific Partnership agreement, or … Read more
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After Irma, Cubans Are Ready to Get Back to Business
Hurricane Irma was expected to largely skirt Cuba, sweeping over the eastern tip of the island before barreling toward Florida. Instead, the monstrous storm practically ran the length of the nation, leaving a path of destruction along the northern coast. This was the first time the eye of a category five storm reached the island … Read more
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How Mexico’s Anti-Corruption Fight Went Off-Track
Eighteen months ago, I wrote in AQ about the success of Mexico’s citizen-driven corruption fight in Congress. Civil society groups, academics and activists had pushed for the rejection of a watered-down anti-corruption bill and instead presented their own, sharpened version of the legislation. This citizen’s bill, called #Ley3de3 (or #Law3of3) promised not only to help identify, … Read more
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In Irma Recovery, Caribbean Islands on Unequal Footing
As Hurricane Irma blew through the Caribbean last week, it passed over a mishmash of full-fledged nations, overseas territories, and quasi-independent jurisdictions that reflect the varied legacies of colonial powers. The storm treated them with a vicious caprice – sparing some and devastating others – that to a large degree will determine where humanitarian and … Read more
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On Corruption, They Still Don’t Get It
If you were a Mexican attorney general allegedly hiding your Ferrari from tax authorities, a former Brazilian minister trying to squirrel away $16 million in ill-gotten cash, or a Uruguayan vice president accused of using official funds to buy jewelry – well, you just had a very bad week. All of them got caught, in one … Read more
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Argentina’s Milagro Sala: Criminal, or “Political Prisoner”?
SAN SALVADOR DE JUJUY – As Argentina’s crucial midterm elections approach, the country’s growing political divides are on full display. Nowhere is this more clear than in the case of Milagro Sala, a prominent activist in Argentina’s remote northwest who once enjoyed vast influence bolstered by the patronage of then-President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner as well … Read more
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Michel Temer’s Reform Agenda in Brazil: A Rundown
As a foreign correspondent in Brazil, I have spent most of the past year talking about a handful of issues that dominate the headlines. There is an enormous appetite – both abroad and domestically – for news about the “Car Wash” corruption probe and its impact on President Michel Temer’s government. Who will go to … Read more
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Why Politics Won’t Come Easy for the Newly Disarmed FARC
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia’s (FARC) move into politics came to the accordion-rich tune of vallenato. On Sept. 1, the former armed group held a free concert for supporters in Bogotá’s historic Simón Bolívar square, capping off a week-long conference that confirmed its transformation into a full-fledged political party. Many of the 10,000 or … Read more
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Rio’s Olympics Were a Raging Success! Really!
No matter what you may have read elsewhere, Rio de Janeiro’s 2016 Olympic Games were a massive success. OK, so the event was billed by former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as Brazil’s time to shine, “an opportunity without equal, increasing Brazilians’ self-esteem, consolidating recent achievements and inspiring new progress.” On that front, it’s … Read more
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How a Small Town in Brazil’s Interior Reinvented Itself As a World-Class Tech Hub
Nestled among rolling green hills, coffee plantations and dairy farms, Santa Rita do Sapucaí is steeped in the agricultural traditions of Brazil’s Minas Gerais state. But there’s more to this bucolic town of 40,000 than quaint churches, country cooking and great coffee: it has successfully reinvented itself as a technology hub. City officials and heads … Read more
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It’s Not Just Venezuela. Central American Democracies Are Under Threat, Too.
The first sign of trouble on my recent research trip to Nicaragua was that almost nobody would speak to me about President Daniel Ortega on the record. “I just don’t want any problems with Ortega,” one person said. Félix Maradiaga, a social entrepreneur from Managua, told me: “The government leaves you alone as long as … Read more
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After Victory on Abortion, Chile’s President Eyes Marriage Equality
With just six months left in office, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet’s progressive agenda may finally be taking shape. On Aug. 28, Bachelet became the first Chilean president to propose legislation to extend the right to marry to same-sex couples. At a signing ceremony in Santiago, she said it was “neither ethical nor fair to put … Read more
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Climate Change Is Speeding Up Ice Melt in Peru, With Devastating Consequences
MAPARAJU, Peru – Standing on a rocky outcrop some 16,000 feet above sea level, mountain ecologist John All stares intensely at the glacier that leads up to the summit of Mount Maparaju, another 1,500 feet above us. It should form a gentle convex arc from where we stand all the way up to the peak, perhaps half a mile away. For an experienced mountaineer like … Read more
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Trump’s Anti-Trade Rhetoric Is Fueling the Economy – in Tijuana
Juan José Quezada opened his craft brewery, Mamut Cerveza, five years ago in Tijuana. Located a half block off of Avenida Revolución, in the heart of Tijuana’s booming tourism and night life scene, Mamut has quickly become a favorite stop on Tijuana’s craft beer tours. Today 90 percent of his customers are American. Despite 2017 … Read more
