Weekly Roundup, March 13

Photo: Anna Vogt

Urban Violence and the Future of Security in LatAm

It is also worth considering there were other factors that likely played a significant role in Colombia’s drop in urban violence, asides from innovative securiy strategies pushed by the Colombian government — such as the 2013 truce between rival criminal groups the Urabeños and the Oficina de Envigado in Medellin. Nevertheless, other countries in Latin America would be wise to closely study how Colombia reduced homicides in what were once some of the most violent cities in the world. As urban areas comprise an ever-larger portion of the region’s population, the future of citizen security in Latin America may well be determined by what happens in its cities.

Ayotzinapa’s Survivors Will Not Stay Silent

That gives them the motivation to continue to push for lasting change in Mexico, a country where echoes of dirty wars reverberate in its countless disappearances and mass graves. In Iguala, 14 people were murdered in one week in late February alone. “This struggle is not only about Ayotzinapa, but the entire country and the entire world,” says Cruz. “Really, it’s not only about the 43 people who disappeared, but the probably thousands around the country.”

Government neglect drives Mexico’s poppy farmers into drug trade

As for the rural Guerrero communities with a long history of poppy cultivation, Mazzitelli said the U.N. is holding serious talks with the Mexican government about alternative development. “There must be a guarantee of transformation by which, yes, the farmer gets less money but he gets security. He gets schooling for his kids. He gets a pharmacy. He gets a road through which he can market his crop,” Mazzitelli said. “It’s not about bringing more police. It’s not about eradicating poppy fields. It’s about creating finally the conditions for sustainable development.”

The UN’s Top Recommendations for Ending Torture in Mexico

At the end of a report that describes “disturbing” levels of impunity around torture cases in Mexico, the United Nations offers dozens of recommendations to combat the problem, the majority of which have to do with confronting ongoing, severe dysfunction in the justice system.

Just Like Old Times in Central America

If the vicious, anti-democratic record of Hernández’s regime is so clearly documented, then why is the Obama administration celebrating the regime and looking the other way at its militarization and human rights abuses? The White House, it appears, is aggressively locking in support for the current Honduran government in order to solidify and expand the U.S. military presence in Central America, while serving transnational corporate interests in the region.

Women lead struggle against mining and machismo in Guatemala

On March 2, 2012, Yolanda Oquelí was driving her car between San Jose del Golfo and another community nearby when she observed the mining firm’s trucks turning down the road. She made a quick decision, and pulled her car in front of the trucks and blocked their access to the site. It was in this moment that the barricade they called “La Puya,” named after the thorns of the bushes in the hills around the mine, was born. Since 2012, the community has maintained a 24-hour presence at the entrance of the mine. Every day between 16 and 20 community members take turns at the barricade.

Meet The 15-Year-Old From Rural Guatemala Who Addressed The U.N.

And Let Girls Lead lived up to its name. It gave Emelin and her friend Elba a chance to make a difference in their community. Through a Let Girls Lead initiative, the two teenagers met Juany Garcia Perez, who worked with the group and another nonprofit focused on girls’ leadership. Juany became their mentor, teaching them about self-esteem, human rights, community organizing, and public speaking. And they used these skills to make an impression on their village. They were interviewed in the newspaper; television and radio covered their campaign. And ultimately the mayor did pay attention to them. Although they thought it would take longer, it was only seven months from the initial knock on the door to the mayor’s signing legislation to fund education and health care efforts for girls in 2012.

Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero to Be Beatified May 23

The slain Salvadoran archbishop, who was an outspoken advocate for the poor, was murdered March 24, 1980, as he celebrated Mass in a hospital in San Salvador amid the country’s civil war. Romero’s sainthood cause began in 1993, but the process was stalled decades as a result of misunderstandings and preconceptions, due to his political advocacy and apparent links to Liberation Theology.

Kidney Disease Epidemic among Nicaragua Sugarcane Workers

A new study led by School of Public Health researchers suggesting that heat stress or other occupational factors may be playing a role in the high rates of chronic kidney disease disproportionately affecting young, male agricultural workers in northwestern Nicaragua is a step toward identifying the factors responsible. The researchers found that sugarcane workers in the region have experienced a decline in kidney function during the harvest, with field-workers at greatest risk. The study was published online in January in the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health.

Some hope for Haiti

In spite of the world’s multiple crisis, the international community needs to continue supporting Haiti in its long term; sustainable recovery, ensuring enhanced resilience to financial, political and environmental shocks. This is crucial if we want to secure so many hard won social and economic gains. For Haiti, January 12 marked the painful fifth anniversary since the devastating earthquake. But, while the wounds are still there, the page is turning – we are moving beyond the humanitarian stage and onto a hard but promising path towards long-term sustainable development.

Colombia to temporarily halt bombing of FARC rebels

The development is seen as a major stride in Colombia’s peace process aimed at ending Latin America’s longest-running civil war pitting FARC, or the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, against the army.

With FARC somewhat off the hook, ELN embraces for increase in military attacks

Colombia’s military forces will increase military attacks on the ELN, the country’s second largest rebel group, after President Juan Manuel Santos ordered a month-long suspension of attacks upon the FARC.

Bolivia Celebrates National Day of Coca Leaf Chewing

Bolivia will observe the National Day of coca-leaf chewing on Thursday as part of a domestic and international campaign to restore the traditional useof the coca leaf.  “The Bolivian government managed to decriminalize the traditional use of the coca leaf, but only within Bolivian territory and not in other countries,” the Vice Minister of Coca and Integral Development Gumercindo Pucho Mamani stated.