Social Media Activist Threatened in Mexico; Racial Attack in Uruguay; Cubans Hoping for Better Internet Connection

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Feb. 20-22

Criminal Organizations Target Social-Media Activist in Tamaulipas

Criminal organizations have managed to intimidate many journalists and media outlets in Mexico into suppressing coverage of drug-trafficking activities. Drug traffickers have also targeted citizens using social media, but have not been as successful in their intimidation efforts. In the same week in February that a coalition of international journalist organizations called on President Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration and the Mexican Congress to step up protection for journalists in Mexico, a drug cartel in Tamaulipas offered a bounty on the person or persons who have managed Twitter and Facebook accounts dedicated solely to warning citizens in the state to stay away from areas of risk.  -Carlos Navarro     Read More

Uruguay Examines Hidden Racism Following Violent Attack on Afro-Uruguayan Woman

Peaceful Uruguay, a small corner of South America with slightly more than 176,000 sq km, fewer than 3.3 million inhabitants, and a progressive government, awoke on Dec. 16 to news that, before dawn in the capital Montevideo, four white women had attacked an Afrodescendent woman, screaming "black shit," kicking and punching her, and leaving her unconscious, bleeding, and with a perforated liver. More than a century and a half after Uruguay abolished slavery, 47 years after the country signed the UN's International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and having always lived in apparent peace with the descendants of the men and women brought like animals from Africa--slightly more than 8% of the Uruguayan population has African roots--the cultured and egalitarian country discovered that racism is widespread in its society. -Andrés Gaudín     Read More

New Arrests, Indictments In 40-Year-Old Case Of Slain Chilean Singer Víctor Jara

Protected for nearly four decades by a thick wall of military secrecy, a handful of former Chilean soldiers--including a retired Army lieutenant now living in the US--are finally being called to answer for the 1973 torture and murder of famed folk singer Víctor Jara. The musician, who was also an accomplished poet, theater director, and university professor, remains one of the most iconic victims of the dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990). -Benjamin Witte-Lebhar    Read More

Cubans' Expectations Increase for Better Access to Internet, Information, and World Connection

The Cuban populace began 2013 under the impression that the island's connection to the world was increasing thanks to the first tests of the submarine fiber-optic cable linked with Venezuela, better access to international information through Latin American television network teleSUR, and the commencement of immigration reforms that reduce foreign travel restraints. -Daniel Vázquez   Read More


Billionaires Carlos Slim, Bill Gates Donate Millions of Dollars for Global Food-Security Efforts at Agricultural Research Center in México State>

Billionaires Carlos Slim and Bill Gates have joined efforts to promote long-term global food security by providing millions of dollars to fund research for improved varieties of corn, wheat, and other crops. The two tycoons--who are at the top of the Forbes list of the wealthiest people in the world—were on hand for the opening of a new agricultural research center in Texcoco, México state. Slim donated US$25 million for the effort through the Fundación Carlos Slim, while Gates pledged about US$90 million available over a five-year period through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The funds will be used to expand infrastructure and attract top researchers to the Texcoco facility managed by the Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo (CIMMYT). -Carlos Navarro    Read More

Indigenous Communities in Panama Commemorate March Against Open-Pit Mining in Which Two Protestors Were Killed

A mass celebrated by Father Adonai Cortés in the Iglesia de San Félix on Feb. 5 marked the beginning of a series of commemorative events held by Panama’s Ngäbe Buglé communities--the country’s largest indigenous group--to pay homage to the two protestors killed during an anti-mining march in 2012 . After the mass, indigenous people marched to the junction on the Inter-American Highway where protestor Jerónimo Rodríguez Tugrí was shot by police exactly one year ago.  -Louisa Reynolds    Read More

Cuba to Head Regional Group; Hati Quake Recovery Lags; Violence a Problem for Mexico Tourism

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Feb. 13-15
 
Cuba to Head CELAC in Coming Year of Change

Santiago, Chile, was the stage, on Jan. 27-28, of two political events that will surely go down in the history of Latin American and Caribbean countries as noteworthy. First, the presidents and heads of state of the 33 countries of the region--speakers of Spanish, Portuguese, English, and French--participating in the first summit of the Comunidad de Estados Latinoamericanos y Caribeños (CELAC), stood to pay an emotional tribute to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. And within hours, they applauded for more than two minutes when rightist Chilean President Sebastián Piñera, a conservative, handed the rotating pro tempore presidency to Cuban President Raúl Castro, a Marxist. - Andrés Gaudín     Read More

Is Ecuador's Social Participation an Illusion?

The Ecuadoran Constitution approved in 2008 is described as a guarantor or protective constitution because it incorporates various legal innovations to protect rights and social participation in political debate and public administration. Five years later, not all innovations seem to have met the objectives for which they were created, such as the two branches of government added to the traditional executive, legislative, and judicial branches that make up the general structure of the state.   - Luis Ángel Saavedra   Read More

Violence, Crime in Mexico Remain Obstacle to Growth of Foreign Tourism

While Mexican officials continue to put a positive spin on recent tourism trends, continuing violence remains a significant deterrent to potential foreign visitors. The contrast was especially clear in February, when Mexico received special recognition at the International Tourism Fair (Feria Internacional de Turismo, FITUR) in Madrid, Spain, for the design and effectiveness of its display. At the same time, two reports were releasd that month with updates that very much reinforced the perception of Mexico as an unsafe country. On top of that, an attack on a group of Spanish visitors in Acapulco, including the rape of six women, acted as a further deterrent to foreign tourists. - Carlos Navarro     Read More

Three Years After the Quake that Killed Hundreds of Thousands in Haiti, with 300,000 Still in Tents, a Question Arises--Where Is the Money?

On the third anniversary in January of the earthquake that killed 230,000 to 300,000 people and left 1.5 million homeless in Haiti, approximately 300,000 people are still lodged in tent cities. This, despite the international aid that profusely moved to this Caribbean island nation of some 9.1 million people, labeled the Americas' poorest country, where income for 78% of the people is less than US$2 per day. Reconstruction efforts, including massive housing, face obstacles because of the government’s lack of transparency and efficiency, as well as the absence of coordination between nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), according to various observers involved in assistance. - George Rodríguez   Read More

Guatemalan Army Colonel, Eight Soldiers Will Stand Trial for Totonicapán Massacre

Infantry Col. Juan Chiroy Sal and eight soldiers will stand trial for the killing of seven indigenous protestors in the highland department of Totonicapán, on Oct. 4, 2012. Angered by seemingly arbitrary price hikes imposed by British-owned electricity company ENERGUATE, indigenous leaders had erected two blockades on the Inter-American Highway Chiroy Sal, a member of the Segundo Escuadrón de Seguridad Ciudadana, did not heed a warning issued by deputy chief of police Hugo Catalán, who had informed him that the situation was already under control and that Army presence was not required. - Louisa Reynolds     Read More

Mexico Taking Low-Key Approach on Latest U.S. Immigration-Reform Initiatives

Momentum seems to have picked up in the US Congress for comprehensive immigration reform, but President Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration appears content to take a wait-and-see stance in order not to rock the boat. This low-key approach was evident during Peña Nieto’s visit to Washington a few days before his Dec. 1 inauguration. At a joint appearance with US President Barack Obama, Peña Nieto said Mexicans "fully support" the idea of immigration reform. But he added, "More than demanding what you should do or shouldn't do, we do want to tell you that we want to contribute. We really want to participate with you." - Carlos Navarro    Read More

Coca Leaf in Bolivia; El Salvador Fights Multinational Mining Company; Explosion at PEMEX Headquarters in Mexico

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Feb. 6-8

Bolivia Rejoins UN's Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs

In an unprecedented recognition of the ancient culture of native peoples of the Americas, on Jan. 11, the UN accepted a demand from Bolivia, which had been working hard since mid-2011 for recognition of Bolivians' right to chew coca leaf (aculliar), a common practice among Andean communities. After the UN body refused to modify Article 49 of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs--which criminalizes coca-leaf chewing and classifies the plant as a narcotic--Bolivia withdrew from the agreement . After Bolivia modified its original demand, 169 of the 184 countries that signed the Single Convention agreed that, in Bolivia, chewing coca leaf is a cultural custom.  - Andrés Gaudín   Read More

Colombia's Attorney General's Office Reopens Investigation into Former President Álvaro Uribe's Links to Paramilitaries

In the midst of a relatively peaceful spring in which the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) observed a unilateral cease-fire, and, in Cuba, the government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the FARC rebels continued some auspicious conversations to cement the peace, the nefarious parapolitica scandal returned to the forefront of Colombian institutional life Parapolitica is a popular term coined to describe the murky intrigue in which the interests of rightist politicians and criminal groups (drug traffickers and paramilitaries) overlapped.  - Andrés Gaudín  Read More

El Salvador Seeks International Help to Block Gold Mine in Guatemala

Desperate to ward off what they claim is a "slow and sure danger" to residents in El Salvador, frustrated opponents of Cerro Blanco--a Canadian-owned gold and silver mine under preparation just across the border in Guatemala--are now hoping for help from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).Óscar Luna, El Salvador’s attorney for the defense of human rights, revealed last month that his office is seeking a "special audience" to broach the issue with the Washington, DC-based IACHR. Luna, a vocal opponent of the Cerro Blanco project, made the announcement while presenting a 100-page special report outlining the mine’s potential hazards. Benjamin Witte-Lebhar    Read More

Huge Explosion Rocks Administrative Headquarters of State-Run Oil Company PEMEX in Mexico City; Gas Leak Apparent Cause

A fatal explosion at the PEMEX administrative complex in Mexico City has raised new questions about the ability of the state-run oil company to provide a secure environment at its facilities—even those not directly involved in the production of hydrocarbons. The incident, which occurred on Jan. 31 in the basement of the B2 Building of the PEMEX Tower, destroyed three floors and killed at least 36 people. More than 120 people were injured, including some critically. -  Carlos Navarro     Read More

Geologists Discover Huge Aquifer in Southeastern Area of Mexico City

Mexico City Mayor Miguel Mancera’s administration started the year with a promising announcement for the beleaguered residents of the Mexican capital who have endured numerous water shortages and face the prospect of water scarcities in the future. On Jan. 21, the Mexico City government said a team of geologists had discovered a huge aquifer in the southeastern section of the city, near the city’s wholesale food and produce distribution center (Central de Abastos). The aquifer is 2,000 meters underground in the Iztapalapa borough, the most populated district in Mexico City. - Carlos Navarro   Read More

With Costa Rica at Its Helm for First Half of 2013, SICA Moves Toward Reform

The Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana (SICA) has come a long way since its origin in the 1950s and, in a drastically different regional political scene, is now in need of undergoing thorough change to be efficient, transparent, and equitable. So said the regional bloc’s leaders in the Joint Declaration they signed at the end of the ordinary summit meeting on Dec. 13, 2012, in Managua, the Nicaraguan capital. They ratified that position in their resolution closing their special meeting on Jan. 27.  - George Rodríguez  Read More

Critical Situation for Brazil's Indigenous Peoples; Mexican Cane Growers Take Processing Mills; Mixed Situation for Nicaragua Public Education

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Jan. 30-Feb. 1

Supreme Court Panel Rules that French Citizen Florence Cassez's Civil Rights Were Violated, Orders Her Release

The controversial case of French citizen Florence Cassez appears to have finally come to a conclusion following the decision by a high court (Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación, SCJN) panel to release her from prison because her civil rights were violated. The court emphasized that its decision did not address the merits of the kidnapping charges against Cassez but only the violation of her civil rights and the inappropriate actions by authorities following her arrest. - Carlos Navarro   Read More

Increasingly Critical Situation for Brazil's Indigenous Peoples

Brazil again made headlines in the international press during the entire month of January because of the controversy surrounding the Rio de Janeiro government's decision to raze the Aldeia Maracanã, a building that once housed the Museu do Índio. Indigenous families have lived in the building for years, and the Rio government called on the courts to evict them. Indigenous organizations and civil society throughout Brazil and other countries condemned the attitude of Rio de Janeiro Gov. Sérgio Cabral. The still-unresolved episode is a perfect example of how the country, including the press, still does not understand the way of life, the thinking, and the culture of the first inhabitants of Brazil. - José Pedro Martins   Read More

National Security Response to Crisis with Nicaragua Creates Corruption Scandal in Costa Rica

The territorial dispute that broke out in October 2010 between Costa Rica and Nicaragua set off a chain of actions and reactions by both sides, including the showdown at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where the case has been under study since early 2011. In Costa Rica, a corruption scandal has emerged in relation to a road that was built on the Costa Rican side of the disputed territory. Allegations of irregular handing of construction funds and poor quality of construction have pronted the arrest of several public and private-sector officials. -  George Rodríguez   Read More

Uruguay's President José Mujica's Simplicity Draws Attention Around the Globe

An austere lifestyle has gained Uiuguay's President José "Pepe" Mujica interntional notoriety, with newspapers around the globe requesting interviews with the 78-year-old South American leader. Mujica has no bodyguards, drives himself in his 1971 car, gives 90% of his salary to build low-cost housing, dresses with unusual simplicity, likes to sit and eat with his aides (or alone) in any ordinary bar near the government house, still lives in his modest house in a working-class neighborhood on the outskirts of the Uruguayan capital, and cooks his own meals. - Andrés Gaudín    Read More

Enrollment Is Up, but Quality Problems Persist in Nicaragua’s Public Schools

When Nicaragua’s public schools open their doors next month for the new academic year, 2,500 students and an equal number of teachers will show up for their first day of class on shiny new mountain bikes. The "lucky" recipients can thank the administration of President Daniel Ortega, which is distributing the bikes free of charge as a way to keep impoverished rural students--who would otherwise have to walk at least 3 km to their respective schools--from dropping out. Critics dismiss the project as a "band-aid" measure that has little real value beyond the public-relations buzz it generates for the Ortega administration and its corporate partner, the telecommunications giant Claro - Benjamin Witte-Lebhar   Read More

Sugar Prices Fall Sharply in Mexico, Prompting Sugarcane Growers to Demand Restrictions on Corn-Syrup Imports, Guaranteed Price from Government

A bumper sugarcane harvest and steady imports of competing high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) from the US are making life difficult for Mexico’s sugarcane growers. With prices falling sharply, the Confederación Nacional Campesina (CNC) and related organizations like the Unión Nacional de Productores de Caña (UNPC) decided to take matters into their own hands in January. Sugarcane growers set up protests and partially took over Mexico’s 54 mills to demand action from President Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration, including the imposition of a limit on HFCS imports and the implementation of a guaranteed price for sugarcane. - Carlos Navarro   Read More

Region's Indigenous Leaders Demand Voice; LGBT Civl Unions in Chile; Victims' Compensation Law Enacted in Mexico

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Jan. 23-25

Region's Indigenous Leaders Demand to Be Heard

As large-scale oil, mining, and infrastructure projects go ahead and anger swells across the region’s indigenous communities, it is hardly surprising that the right to prior consultation was the main issue on the agenda during the 10th Indigenous Fund Assembly, which took place in Guatemala City and began on Nov. 26. "In Latin America, indigenous peoples' opinion has been perpetually ignored," said Guatemalan Minister of Culture Carlos Batzín during the opening session. - Louisa Reynolds   Read More



 
Victims’ Compensation Law Goes Into Effect in Mexico

An an unprecedented law requiring the government to compensate victims of violent crime went into effect in January when President Enrique Peña Nieto dropped a legal challenge to the measure filed by t his predecessor, former President Felipe Calderón. The new law mandates creating a relief fund, a national registry of crime victims (Sistema Nacional de Atención a Víctimas), and a special commission to oversee these efforts (Comisión Ejecutiva de Atención a Víctimas).  - Carlos Navarro    Read More


Clock Is Ticking on Chilean President’s Push for Same-Sex Civil Unions

President Sebastián Piñera has proven to be an unlikely ally for Chile’s LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community, most notably by overseeing passage last year of the Ley Zamudio, an equal-rights law that had been promised--but never delivered--by his more leftist predecessors. The conservative leader could cement his legacy as a gay-rights pioneer by making good on a campaign pledge to legalize same-sex civil unions. With just a year remaining in his term, however, time is running out. - Benjamin Witte-Lebhar   Read More

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Unable to Attend Swearing In

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez announced on Dec. 8 that his health had taken a turn for the worse and that he would have to undergo a fourth operation in Havana, Cuba. He asked Venezuelans, if it became necessary to call new elections, to vote for Foreign Minister and Vice President Nicolás Maduro. Since that time, various sources have begun to predict an uncertain and unstable future for the Caribbean nation. -Andrés Gaudín     Read More
 
President Enrique Peña Nieto Launches Ambitious Program to Eliminate Hunger in Mexico

President Enrique Peña Nieto has launched an ambitious campaign to eliminate hunger in Mexico, with initial efforts targeted at 7.4 million people living in extreme poverty. But critics say the program--which will be initially implemented in the 400 poorest municipalities in Mexico--is a shallow measure that will not address the root cause of poverty in Mexico. Under the program, the government will fund food assistance and basic services to the 400 poorest municipalities in the country. A large number of the extremely poor municipalities are in the south, including in the states of Chiapas, Guerrero, and Oaxaca. And many are in primarily indigenous communities. - Carlos Navarro     Read More

Honduran Magistrates Opposed to Police-Purge Law Sacked by Congress; They Appeal to Supreme Court

The Honduran Congress passed a decree on May 24, 2012, that unleashed a complex series of events--as series of events usually are in this Central American nation. The measure, which was ratified by President Porfirio Lobo, implemented a system to purge corrupt police. But in November, a court ruled the law unconstitutional. This prompted the Congress to dismiss four magistrates, which added fuel to the controversy. An appeal was filed, and the complex case is now in the judiciary’s hands. - George Rodríguez      Read More

Controversial Chinese Project in Mexico; Preview of Paraguay Elections; Aftermath of Guatemala Earthquake

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Jan. 16-18

Chinese Government-Sponsored Trade, Commercial Project in Quintana Roo Draws Strong Opposition in Mexico

A planned megaproject near Cancún, sponsored in part by the Chinese government, has drawn strong opposition from a number of federal and state legislators and has caused a split in the Mexican business community. Furthermore, the Dragon Mart project, modeled after a similar complex in Dubai, has put President Enrique Peña Nieto’s administration in a predicament. The controversy about the facility comes at a time when the Mexican government is promoting former trade secretary Herminio Blanco to head the World Trade Organization (WTO).  -  Carlos Navarro     Read More
 
IACHR Orders El Salvador To Investigate Three-Decade-Old El Mozote Massacre

An international court ruling on the infamous 1981 El Mozote massacre has put new pressure on Salvadoran authorities to stop turning a blind eye to widespread human rights violations committed during the country’s dozen-year civil war (1980-1992). The ruling, published early last month by the Costa Rica-based Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR), ruled against the state of El Salvador for its role in the macabre events of Dec. 11-13, 1981, when members of the Army’s now-defunct Atlacatl Battalion slaughtered hundreds of campesinos in and around the remote eastern village of El Mozote. The IACHR described the three-day massacre as part of a "systematic plan of repression" and found the state "responsible for the violation of the right to life and the right to personal integrity and private property." - Benjamin Witte-Lebhar    Read More
  
Petition Asks U.S. Government to Stem Flow of High-Caliber Weapons to Mexico

Just days before US President Barack Obama unveiled a package to reduce gun violence in the US, US Ambassador to Mexico Anthony Wayne received a petition from nearly 54,000 Mexican and US residents urging the US government to take more decisive steps to stem the flow of high-caliber weapons to Mexico. Most signatures on the petition addressed to Obama, US Vice President Joe Biden, and Wayne were gathered in Mexico by the victim’s right’s organization Movimiento por la Paz con Justicia y Dignidad (MPJD) and other Mexican groups like Incide Social and Evolución Mexicana. Some signatures were obtained by US partners, including the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence and the Center for International Policy (CIP).  - Carlos Navarro   Read More
 
Paraguay Looks Ahead to Presidential Elections

In three months, Paraguay will hold a presidential election, called by the de facto regime to clean up its image. The regime was deeply damaged internationally by the hasty June 22, 2012, coup, in which all political parties participated, that toppled the constitutional, democratic government of President Fernando Lugo. Barring a political tsunami, businessman Horacio Cartes will win the election. Multiple accusations and testimonies allege that Cartes amassed his fortune and "paid for" his recent full-bore entrance into politics with proceeds from money laundering and smuggling. - Andrés Gaudín   Read More
 
Guatemala in Aftermath of November Earthquake

San Marcos, one of the departments in Guatemala with the highest rates of poverty, suffered the most damage from a magnitude 7.2 earthquake that occurred in the Central American country on Nov. 7. The quake killed 44 people. The Coordinadora Nacional para la Reducción de los Desastres (CONRED) says that 33,951 people had to be evacuated after the earthquake, 32,797 homes and 286 schools were damaged, and 11 schools were destroyed. Although President Otto Pérez Molina promised a swift and efficient reconstruction operation, aid has slowly trickled through to San Marcos’ impoverished communities. - Louisa Reynolds   Read More
 
Criticism of Anti-Terrorism Bill in Peru

The possible approval of a bill to criminalize denying terrorist acts or inciting others to commit such acts has received significant criticism from those who consider it ineffective as well as from those who see it as violating freedom of speech. The law would set a prison sentence of 6 to 12 years for anyone who "publicly approves of, justifies, denies, or minimizes the acts of terrorist organizations" that have received a final court judgment as well as anyone who incites others to commit terrorist acts. The full Congress must debate the bill, but the last plenary session ended on Dec. 14 without a debate and legislators are now in recess until March.   - Elsa Chanduví Jaña   Read More

Zapatistas Mark 19th Anniversary; Indigenous Consultations in Bolivia; Disasters Worsen Hunger Prospects in Haiti

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Articles in SourceMex, NotiCen, and NotiSur for Jan. 9-13

Ecuador: Made-to-Order Justice

Control of the Ecuadoran justice system has long been an objective of whatever government is in power, and it uses various tactics from imposing judges by force to employing processes that appear democratic but are unable to maintain their independence. The most serious incidents of interference with the Ecuadoran judiciary in the country's recent democratic history undoubtedly occurred during the administrations of rightist President León Febres Cordero (1984-1988), populist President Lucio Gutiérrez (2003-2005), and current President Rafael Correa. -Luis Ángel Saavedra 
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Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional Observes 19th Anniversary of Uprising in Chiapas

On New Year’s Day 2013, the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional (EZLN) marked the 19th anniversary of its uprising with a series of public events in the municipalities of Ocosingo, Palenque, Altamirano, San Cristóbal de las Casas, and Las Margaritas. These are the same communities where the Zapatistas first appeared on Jan. 1, 1994. The takeover of San Cristóbal de las Casas and other communities was intended to bring attention to the extreme poverty in Chiapas and elsewhere in Mexico and the ongoing violation of human and cultural rights for the country's indigenous communities. The uprising was planned to coincide with the start of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which the Zapatistas viewed as a symbol of the neoliberal policies that were behind the economic inequalities in Mexico. -Carlos Navarro    Read More

Controversial Highway a Step Closer in Bolivia

On July 29, the Bolivian government began an unprecedented popular consultation to ascertain whether the 69 indigenous groups living in the Amazonía supported construction of a highway that would bisect the Territorio Indígena y Parque Nacional Isíboro Secure (TIPNIS). The 306 km highway would open the door to developing a vast area of the departments of Beni and Cochabamba, which are now are isolated from the rest of the country The consultation was to have lasted until Aug. 25. but the process did not finish until Dec. 9, and 11 communities refused to participate in the consultation. This raised questions of whether outside forces might have influenced the process. -Andrés Gaudín    Read More

Repeatedly Hit by Nature Since 2010 Earthquake, Haiti Now Faces Massive Food Shortage

With thousands of people yet to recover from the devastating 2010 earthquake, affected by drought halfway through last year, and hit by Hurricane Isaac in August, nature dealt Haiti another blow in late October when Hurricane Sandy plowed through the Americas’ poorest nation. Sandy resulted in 54 deaths, another 21 people missing, and anywhere from 15,000 to 20,000 homeless. The UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) estimates that a drought in May and July 2012, Hurricane Isaac in August, and Sandy together caused about US$254 million in agricultural losses. -George Rodríguez   Read More

Mexican Congress, President Enrique Peña Nieto Reach Easy Agreement on 2013 Budget

The Mexican Congress and President Enrique Peña Nieto had a surprisingly easy time reaching agreement on the expenditures and revenues budgets for 2013. The Chamber of Deputies generally approved the budget blueprints sent over by Peña Nieto, adding about 25 billion pesos (US$1.9 billion) in expenditures to the 3.931 trillion (US$309 billion) that the president proposed. And while the various political parties in Congress avoided a contentious process, they were keeping a close eye on the US Congress and US President Barack Obama’s administration, which during December seemed very far from reaching an agreement on a deficit-reduction package that would avoid the automatic enactment of the Budget Control Act of 2011. -Carlos Navarro  Read More

The Dominican Republic Four Months After President Danilo Medina Took Office

In the Dominican Republic, 2012 was marred by frequent street protests, some directed at outgoing President Leonel Fernández, of the Partido de la Liberación Dominicana (PLD). Other protests were sparked by opposition to mining projects that would purportedly lead to the pollution of water sources, while others were caused by popular opposition to corruption and impunity. Since August, when President Danilo Medina took office, social unrest has worsened, especially after the newly elected president announced that he would put forward a tax-reform bill and after it became known that in 2012 the Dominican Republic’s fiscal deficit reached 8.5% of GDP, the highest in Latin America. -Crosby Girón  Read More