Colombian Rebel Groups Compromise Ongoing Peace Process
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced today that six members of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia—FARC) and two policemen were killed in an attack near the Venezuelan border. The announcement comes only days after the president requested that the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (National Liberation Army—ELN) set free two … Read more
Monday Memo: Parliamentary Elections in Cuba – Argentina’s IMF Censure – Mexico Investigates Pemex Explosion – and more
Top stories this week are likely to include: Cubans re-elect President Raúl Castro in one-party elections; Argentine Foreign Minister Héctor Timerman travels to London; Paraguay investigates the death of Lino Oviedo; Argentina reacts to the IMF after being censured; Mexican authorities conclude rescue efforts after PEMEX explosion. Parliamentary Elections Begin in Cuba: Cuba’s nearly 8.5 … Read more
Canadians’ View of Obama’s Inaugural Speech
As Canadians, we tend to watch the Inaugural activities with interest. Sometimes, as in 1961 or in 2009, we marvel at the significance and the majesty of the event. Many times, we are indifferent and see it merely as a news story in the heart of winter every four years. We do not pretend to … Read more
What Secretary of State John Kerry Could Mean for Latin American Affairs
John Kerry, the longtime Democratic U.S. senator representing Massachusetts from 1985 until this week, was confirmed on Tuesday as the next secretary of state. He assumes the post today, and has some pretty big shoes, or heels, to fill after Hillary Rodham Clinton’s tenure. What does this mean for Latin American affairs? What change awaits … Read more
Nightclub Fire in Brazil Prompts New Inspections Ahead of Carnaval
Brazilian authorities inspected and closed doors on nightclubs throughout the country yesterday as part of an agreement between São Paulo’s governor, Geraldo Alckmin, and Mayor Fernando Haddad in response to Sunday’s deadly nightclub fire that claimed 235 lives and injured 143 in the southern city of Santa Maria. Alckmin stated that the joint response from the … Read more
New Commission in Colombia Considers Decriminalizing Synthetic Drug Use
A new commission known as the Comisión Asesora de Política de Drogas (Drug Policy Advisory Commission) convened on Tuesday for the first time, tasked with reviewing Colombia’s drug policy and issuing recommendations for a new National Drug Statute. Colombian Justice Minister Ruth Stella Correa leads the commission—composed of former President César Gaviria, academics and topical … Read more
UN Condemns Venezuela Prison Violence
The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) voiced concern on Tuesday over the increasing trend in violence within Venezuela’s prisons. The office called for an investigation into a clash between inmates and National Guard troops at Uribana prison in Barquisimeto last Friday that left 61 inmates dead and 120 injured. … Read more
Mexico’s Crusade against Hunger
Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, inaugurated to a new sexenio last month, is doing everything in his administration’s power to abate a problem that affects close to 52 million poverty-stricken Mexicans: hunger. Well before becoming president, Peña Nieto promised mothers, children and the poorest of communities that he would work to end poverty, inequality and … Read more
New [i]AQ[/i] Special Section Offers Broad Recommendations for Extractive Activity
Natural resource extraction is a key contributor to economic growth in various parts of the Western Hemisphere, but governments, businesses and civil society are faced with how to improve extractive activity and its effects on broad-based socioeconomic development in respective communities. A special section in the Winter 2013 issue of Americas Quarterly, released today, includes … Read more
Monday Memo: Immigration Reform Plans Announced – CELAC Summit Concludes – Argentina and Iran Plan Truth Commission – and more
Top stories this week are likely to include: Cuba takes over the chairmanship of CELAC on Monday as the summit wraps up in Santiago; a bipartisan group of U.S. senators release a plan for comprehensive immigration reform a day before Obama lays out his proposals; violence in Colombia increases following the end to the FARC’s … Read more
Reflexiones durante mi visita a La Habana
El Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano de La Habana comenzó en 1979 y se repite cada diciembre. Es una oportunidad única para conocer a cineastas reconocidos y prometedores en América Latina. Es el lugar donde recién conocí al actor René Esquivel. René Esquivel está “en la cresta del anonimato,” leo por ahí, intentando saber … Read more
Colombian Government Again Rules Out Truce
Thursday marked the conclusion of the third round of peace talks between the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia—FARC) and the Colombian government in Havana, Cuba, with no major progress made toward ending this long-standing conflict as the Colombian government continued to rule out a ceasefire with the FARC to gain … Read more
Brazil Truth Commission Investigates Former President’s Death
Brazil’s Truth Commission said yesterday that it planned to investigate the death of former Brazilian President Juscelino Kubitschek, a centrist politician popularly known as “JK,” who died in a car accident in 1976. According to a report released late last year by the Minas Gerais chapter of the Ordem de Advogados do Brasil (OAB), a … Read more
Chávez Supporters and Opposition Take to the Streets of Caracas
Thousands of members of both Hugo Chávez’ Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela (PSUV) and the opposition are marching in Caracas today in simultaneous demonstrations since January 23 marks the end of Venezuela’s 1945-1958 military dictatorship. However, this year the date has acquired a new meaning for each side of the political spectrum. For members of the PSUV, today’s demonstration is an opportunity to show their solidarity with Chávez, who is recovering from cancer surgery in Cuba. Meanwhile, the opposition plans to protest the Venezuelan Supreme Court’s January 8 resolution to … Read more
Roe vs. Wade’s 40th Anniversary and Reproductive Rights in the Americas
On January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court passed Roe vs. Wade, a landmark decision that guaranteed a woman’s right to legal abortion services. In the 40 years since its passage, the ruling has allowed thousands in this country to avoid the dire consequences of unsafe and illegal procedures, and has also catalyzed four decades … Read more
