Photo: Anna Vogt
Where Women Are Leading the Peace
Dr. Claudia Paz y Paz, former Attorney General of Guatemala and a distinguished scholar in residence at the institute, notes, “The Women’s Sector opened a new space for women’s participation at all levels, from the peace table to the streets. In Guatemala today, women are still in the streets, fighting for justice.“…Despite these powerful examples, the inclusion of women is still not seen as fundamental to peace processes. As we mark the 15th anniversary of the adoption of historic U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325, which recognized the disparate impact of violent conflict on women and girls, and affirmed the participation and representation of women in building peace, it is critical that we reflect on and learn from the experiences of women who have played leading roles in brokering peace at international, national and local levels.
SURPRISING AUGUST INCREASE IN UNACCOMPANIED MIGRANT CHILDREN AT THE BORDER
We expect that when the U.S. government’s fiscal year closes at the end of this month, Border Patrol will have apprehended about 36,500 children, about 26,000 of them from Central America’s “Northern Triangle” countries. This is just over half the 2014 total (67,339 and 51,705), placing 2015 near the same level as 2013, which was the second-highest year ever for apprehensions of unaccompanied minors at the U.S.-Mexico border. The increase in members of “family units”—parents traveling with children—was perhaps more notable in August, as Border Patrol apprehended 5,158 of them, up from 4,506 in July.
Thousands mark anniversary of missing Mexico students
Thousands of people have marched in Mexico City to demand answers over last year’s disappearances of 43 students, piling new pressure on President Enrique Pena Nieto to clear up a case that has battered his image. A year to the day since 43 trainee teachers went missing in the southwestern city of Iguala after clashes with local police, protesters held up banners ridiculing Pena Nieto’s response to the crisis and accusing him of trying to draw a line under it.
Against Odds, Seeking Hope for Mexican Students Who Vanished a Year Ago
Through it all, the day-to-day reminders of his son’s disappearance keep the loss fresh: no extra hands to repair their old taxi, a fragile grandmother who still does not know that he is gone, a daughter without her closest sibling…Exactly one year later, the facts are as scattered and unknown as the whereabouts of the victims. Remains of just one of the students have been identified with certainty, those of Alexander Mora. Investigators know neither the location of the remaining 42, nor what happened to them. The case struck a nerve with the Mexican public, a tragic distillation of the tangle of corruption and complicity that governs life in parts of Mexico. In this case, the suspected involvement of local law enforcement and powerful drug gangs tore open the lives of 43 families whose children were studying to become rural teachers.
El Salvador Debates Security Tax for Cell Phones
Overall, this back-and-forth over how to fund Secure El Salvador suggests that the country’s elites and powerbrokers do not yet feel enough pressure to compromise on a solution. In contrast, in order to raise money for Colombia’s fight against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas, former Colombian President Alvaro Uribe successfully instituted a wealth tax. At the time, the FARC were at their most powerful, and were threatening the very existence of the Colombian state. It seems that Salvadorans do not yet feel they are in a similar position, and do not perceive rising violence and gang activity as posing an existential threat to their livelihood. As a result, they may be correspondingly less willing to be subjected to increased taxation for security purposes.
OAS to establish anti-corruption body in Honduras
The Organization of American States (OAS) said on Monday it will create a mission to tackle graft in Honduras, where protestors have been pushing for an anti-corruption body like one that helped bring down the president of neighboring Guatemala. OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro unveiled the planned Mission to Support the Fight Against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (MACCIH) alongside Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, whom the protestors have been urging to resign.
Chinese mogul behind Nicaragua canal lost 85% of his fortune in stock market
Fresh doubts have arisen over a Chinese billionaire’s plan to build a $50bn (£33bn) interoceanic canal through Nicaragua after it emerged that China’s stock market crisis wiped out nearly 85% of his fortune. Wang Jing, the Chinese telecoms tycoon behind the gargantuan shipping project, has seen his net worth plummet since his country’s stock market meltdown began, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
World Bank support for Haitian mining: far from a gold standard
The social and environmental implications of the Bank’s assistance are staggering, as the draft law, if passed, will determine the rules and regulations for all mineral mining in Haiti. Nonetheless, the Bank’s involvement has utterly failed to produce a fair and transparent consultation process. While private mining companies have been invited to provide input on the draft law, Haitians – including groups such as the Justice in Mining Collective that track mining issues in Haiti – have been largely excluded from the conversation.
In the jungle, FARC rebels prepare for peace
Since peace talks began, FARC units on the ground in Colombia have been almost entirely closed off to journalists. But in a rare opportunity, the organization gave three foreign journalists access to one of its units for a few days in the country’s southern department of Caquetá. There was little risk of combat — the FARC had implemented a unilateral cease-fire to as a good-will gesture to advance the talks, and the military had stepped down its actions. The unit, led by a commander with the alias Federico (all rebels are referred to here by their nom de guerre) was small, but its day-to-day life offered a window into the broader reality of FARC troops on the ground and the challenges posed by the prospect of peace.
Scapegoats of Displacement: Colombia’s Culpability in Venezuelan Border Conflict
Maduro’s reaction to the Colombian-Venezuelan border situation was rough and unnecessary. However, despite his exaggerated response, Maduro has shown an implicit self-critique through his recent behavior, something that has been largely unseen throughout the hemisphere. Venezuela’s reacceptance of the deported Colombians is only a continuation of the support that it has provided to Colombian migrants for decades. Meanwhile, Bogotá has failed to address the structural issues that lay at the base of its impoverished border communities. The sloppy implementation of demobilization and land reform policies has ultimately led to scores of displacements in Colombia, and has contributed to the exacerbation of a situation that is jeopardizing Venezuela’s Bolivarian Republic ahead of parliamentary elections this December. Nevertheless, in spite of the stark political landscapes present in these neighboring countries, the restoration of healthy diplomatic relations between Colombia and Venezuela is a promising sign for future relations. However, as unabated trafficking throughout the Colombian-Venezuelan border persists, Santos and Maduro must begin to work together to solve an increasingly troublesome, but ultimately assailable situation.
Bolivia stands up to US with coca-control policy
Morales dubbed his initiative “Coca Si, Cocaina No” and established a system legalising small plots of coca in some areas such as the Chapare, where it had been targeted, while encouraging farmers to find ways to prevent the leaf from entering the drug market. It was a landmark statement: A poor Latin American country dared to stand up to the US and its “war on drugs” strategy, forgoing millions of aid dollars in the process. Now, nine years since “Coca Si, Cocaina No”, Bolivia is claiming victory. It is even presenting itself as a model to neighbouring Colombia and Peru, the first and second-largest producers of cocaine, respectively.