Blog entries Archive - Page 60 of 198

Foreign Ministers Meet in Chiapas

Foreign ministers from Mexico, Colombia, Dominican Republic, and select Central American countries are meeting today in the Mexican town of San Cristóbal de las Casas in Chiapas to discuss security, narcotrafficking, bilateral trade, and agricultural production. The meeting is a follow-up to the commitments made at the December 5, 2011, Tuxtla Summit as well as … Read more

Beyond Obama’s Second Term Blues

Those who never voted for Barack Obama when he ran for President in 2008 or when he sought reelection in 2012 will conclude that Obama’s current second-term blues are just a case of the “chickens coming home to roost.” They never liked him and may actually rejoice in his misfortunes. All of the Republicans’ post-2012 … Read more

Venezuelan and French Presidents Meet in Paris

On Wednesday, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro met with his French counterpart, François Hollande in Paris, on the second stop of his first official trip to Europe, to discuss forging a “strategic alliance” between the two countries. During the hour-long meeting in the Élysée Palace, Maduro and Hollande agreed to sign an accord before the end … Read more

Rio, the Olympic City, Is a Hub for Progress in Brazil

If you walk today through Complexo do Alemão—an enormous Rio de Janeiro shantytown, or favela, that was once the frequent scene of gun battles—you can see the changes. Last Christmas eve, the Brazilian Symphony performed a classical music concert in the community that, until recently, was so dangerous that police were afraid to enter it. … Read more

Protests Continue as Brazilian Real Reaches Four-Year-Low

The real depreciated to a four-year low (R$2.1815 per U.S. dollar) on Tuesday as protests against corruption and bad governance continued to swell in the streets of 12 Brazilian cities. The real has declined 9 percent since March forcing the Central Bank to take action to reduce inflationary pressure. While the Brazilian police were preventing … Read more

Opposition Journalist’s Corruption Investigation Highlights Argentine Media Fight

With his signature in-your-face style, influential Argentine opposition journalist Jorge Lanata continued his quest on Sunday night to single-handedly take down the Argentine government. Since April, Lanata’s weekly Sunday night news program, “Periodismo Para Todos” (Journalism for All–PPT) has aggressively reported on allegations that businessmen close to Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner and her … Read more

Britain and Ecuador Discuss Solutions to Assange Case; Diplomatic Stalemate Continues

British Foreign Secretary William Hague and his Ecuadorian counterpart, Ricardo Patiño, met in London on Monday to discuss the unresolved asylum case of the Australian journalist and founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange. One year ago, Assange, 41, sought refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he faces allegations of … Read more

Monday Memo: Brazilian Protests – Ecuador Media Law – FARC Negotiations – U.S. Immigration – Patiño in London

Top stories this week are likely to include: Brazilian protests expand across the country; Ecuador approves a controversial new media law; FARC negotiators aspire to Northern Ireland-style ceasefire; U.S. Senator Marco Rubio says immigration bill needs to contain stronger border security provisions; Ecuador’s foreign minister travels to London. Brazilian Protests Grow: Hundreds of protesters gathered … Read more

Nicaragua’s Chinese Canal Plans: Fulfillment of a Dream, or Prelude to a Nightmare?

Amid loud protest that President Daniel Ortega is “privatizing Nicaragua’s dream,” handing over the country to a Chinese businessman and indulging in the same type of “savage capitalism” that he has railed against during his entire political career, Nicaragua’s Sandinista government this week used its supermajority muscle in the legislative National Assembly to give a … Read more

Human Trafficking in Mexico

On June 4, the Mexican Army raided a house in the border town of Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Tamaulipas and rescued 165 people being held against their will by a 20-year-old identified as Juan Cortez Arrez. Testimonies from some of the victims show that they had been kidnapped for nearly three weeks. News of their rescue … Read more

Asamblea General de la OEA y reformas a la CIDH: de la reflexión a la implementación

El mensaje enviado por los Estados miembros de la Organización de Estados Americanos (OEA) durante su 43ª Asamblea General, realizada la semana pasada en la ciudad de Antigua, Guatemala, fue claro: después de dos años de reflexión y reformas a la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH), es necesario pasar a la implementación de las … Read more

Brazil Steps up Security in Preparation for Confederations Cup

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff inaugurated a new safety system yesterday, the Integrated Command and Control Center (Centro Integrado de Comando y Control—CICC), that will increase security in several cities—and soccer stadiums—through a coordinated effort among the police (federal, military and civil), the armed forces, the fire brigade, and public utility companies. This new safety system … Read more

Hope Amid Disappointment After Postponement of Ríos Montt Trial

Magdalena Pacheco lives in Chajul in the remote Ixil region of Guatemala. She is expecting a child and was recently hopeful about the direction of justice in Guatemala after former dictator Efraín Rios Montt’s genocide sentence. But her optimism has shifted after the guilty verdict was overturned. “I am very bothered by this, it … Read more

Estados Unidos y Venezuela: Acciones por encima de la retórica

Turbulentas han sido las relaciones entre Estados Unidos y Venezuela desde que Hugo Chávez dio rienda a su proceso revolucionario en 1999. En medio de altas y bajas, John Maisto, embajador norteamericano en Caracas entre 1997 y 2000, pareció entender con rapidez el fenómeno bolivariano y apuntó que “hay que fijarse en lo que Chávez … Read more