Year: 2011
Washington, Peru and Ollanta Humala: You Can’t Always Believe What You Read in WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks-released State Department cables have shed fresh light on the reality of US foreign policy. Many of them have been extremely accurate situation reports from a given country at a given time. More often than not they are considered the absolute truth written by all-knowing and completely unbiased officials. But this is not always the case.
With Increased US Aid, Honduras Militarises Anti-Drug Fight
The United States appears to be strengthening its anti-drug strategy in Central America, whose focus in the case of Honduras will include military operations with troops from both countries, to begin in the jungle region of Mosquitia on the Atlantic coast.
Governing by Obeying the People: Bolivia’s Politics of the Street
From across North Africa to Wisconsin, activists are navigating a new terrain of global protest and relationships with their governments. Whether in ousting old tyrants or dealing with new allies in office, the example of Bolivia holds many lessons for social movements.
Ecuador: Still a Ways to Go, After Historic Ruling Against Chevron
(IPS) – The plaintiffs in the case against Chevron tried in Ecuador, who won a historic 9.5 billion dollar verdict after a nearly 18-year struggle over environmental and health damages caused in a quarter-century of […]
Colombia: World Leader in Forced Displacement
(IPS) – “We want to shout out to the world, and no one will be able to keep us silent: forced displacement is still happening in Colombia, which is why we are asking for solidarity. […]
In Brazil, Peasants Claim Farmland
The Landless Workers Movement has given 350,000 families a new livelihood since 1988 Source: On the Commons Like in so many other Latin American countries, Brazil’s national history is rooted in colonialism, exploitation and […]
Mexico’s Federal Police Open Fire on Protesters, Throwing Merida Initiative Accountability Into Question
Mexican Federal Police allegedly shot radio journalist Gilardo Mota Figueroa as he covered a protest last Tuesday against President Felipe Calderón’s visit to Oaxaca City. Mota Figueroa told Crónica de Oaxaca that during clashes with Oaxaca’s teachers union, a Federal Police officer opened fire on the crowd from a distance of about six meters (or about twenty feet). One of the bullets struck Mota Figueroa in the leg. Another 2-4 bullets were embedded in an armored SUV that authorities had left parked on the street.
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The New Latin American “Progresismo” and the Extractivism of the 21st Century
The advent of progressive governments in South America in the last decade gave environmentalists the hope that this would be the beginning of a truly sustainable economic development. But post-neoliberal “progresismo” has brought new complications in the environmental front, according to numerous activists and experts.