Elections 2019: Five Things to Know About Panama’s May 5 Vote
Reading Time: 4 minutes
Corruption has taken center-stage in Panama’s first presidential election since the release of the Panama Papers.
Panama
Meet the Candidates: Panama
Reading Time: 6 minutes
Ending corruption is top on voters’ minds in Panama, but they’re split over who offers the most credible promise of change.
Meet the Panama City Environmentalist-turned-Politician Fighting Climate Change
Reading Time: 4 minutes
Raisa Banfield, a TV host-turned politician, raises her voice in defense of the environment.
AQ Top 5 Urban Visionaries: Raisa Banfield
Reading Time: 4 minutes
A Panama City TV host-turned politician raises her voice in defense of the environment.
Why Ambassador Feeley’s Resignation Is So Devastating
Reading Time: 4 minutes
When the ambassador to Panama resigned his post, U.S. diplomacy lost one of its most talented Latin America hands.
Ayude a los boomers a retirarse en América Latina
Leer en inglés Estimado(a) Sr(a) Presidente(a): Los baby boomers de Estados Unidos a menudo parecen representar las importaciones de mayor crecimiento en México. En la región del Lago de Chapala, en donde vivo, una cifra estimada de más de 10,000 estadounidenses –o el doble de ese número dependiendo de la época del año– llaman “su … Read more
Help Boomers Retire in Latin America
Leer en español Dear Mister / Madam President, U.S. baby boomers often seem like Mexico’s fastest-growing imports. In the Lake Chapala region where I live, an estimated 10,000-plus Americans — or double that number, depending on the time of year — call the area between the cities of Chapala and Jocotepec home. While most come … Read more
Central American Refugees Turn South as U.S. and Mexico Tighten Borders
In July 2014, at the peak of the Central American migration crisis in the U.S., officials in Mexico announced a plan to stem the tide of illegal entries on the country’s porous southern border with Guatemala. Dubbed Programa Frontera Sur, the new policy was partly responsible for a dramatic drop in the number of unaccompanied minors arriving … Read more
Leaks Bring New Information about Surveillance in Latin America to Light
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff recently concluded her first state visit to the U.S. after abruptly canceling a trip scheduled for October 2013 due to allegations that the NSA had spied on her. While in the U.S., President Rousseff responded to questions about the spying issue, saying, “Some things have changed […] I believe President Obama.” … Read more
How Guns N’ Roses brought down Manuel Noriega
It was thanks in part to rock and roll hits from bands such as The Doors and Guns N’ Roses that Manuel Noriega, the former military dictator of Panama, fell from grace. In December 1989, with Noriega holed up at the Vatican embassy in Panama, the U.S. military installed a line of stereo speakers around the building blaring songs such as “Dead … Read more
Panama’s success isn’t just about economics
Over the past decade, Panama has often been in the international spotlight thanks to robust economic growth rates that consistently outrank those of its neighbors in Latin America and the Caribbean. On Wednesday, the country received a different kind of attention after taking the top spot in the Gallup-Healthways Global Well-Being Index for the second year in a row. The index, which uses public surveys … Read more
Monday Memo: Brazil Protests—Colombian Generals Investigation—Obama-Castro Meeting—Puerto Rico Debt—Chilean Mining
This week’s likely top stories: Brazilians demonstrate against corruption; Colombian generals investigated; Obama and Castro hold meeting; Puerto Rico seeks debt help; Chilean communities fight mining companies over water. Hundreds of Thousands Protest Corruption in Brazil: Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets on Sunday to protest government corruption. Estimates of participants vary, but police say … Read more
Summit of the Americas: U.S.–Cuba Rapprochement, But What About Cuba–Cuba?
As a crowd gathered outside the entrance of the Summit of the America’s Hemispheric Civil Society and Social Actors Forum on Wednesday—one of four sponsored gatherings being held on the margins of the summit—a small parade of youth hoisting large Cuban and Venezuelan flags approached. Chanting revolutionary slogans such as “Viva la revolucion! Viva Cuba … Read more
Tension Mounts as Dissidents Join Regional Leaders at Panama Summit
Clashes between Cuban and Venezuelan dissidents and pro-government supporters marked the initial proceedings of the Summit of the Americas in Panama City on Wednesday, two days before the summit officially begins. Cuba’s participation in the summit for the first time has sparked encounters between pro-Castro supporters and the Cuban exile community, many members of which … Read more
