2016 – Page 7 – Upside Down World

Murder of Indigenous Activist Berta Cáceres Exposes Reality of War on Honduran Social Justice Movements

March 5, 2016 Sarah Blaskey 0

Yesterday the world woke to the terrible news that Berta Cáceres, world-renowned Honduran indigenous activist and mother of four, was murdered in her home in La Esperanza, Intibuca, Honduras. It was a shock to many who knew and worked with her. Cáceres was a founder of the Civic Council of Grassroots and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), a powerful coalition active in various struggles around Honduras. The violence and impunity against indigenous activists like Cáceres cannot be fully understood outside of the context of the 2009 military coup, which paved the way for multinational interests and free market policies to be implemented at any cost in Honduras.

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Indigenous Communities in Guatemala Fight Against the Privatization of Sacred Sites

March 5, 2016 Jeff Abbott 0

In recent years, the popular tourist attraction of Semuc Champey in the Guatemalan department of Alta Verapaz has become a point of social conflict for the indigenous Q’eqchi’ Mayan communities surrounding the site. On February 8, tensions erupted and led to the occupation of the municipality building of Lanquín by over 200 members of the communities near the tourist attraction. Community members demanded the recuperation of the site. Since that day, residents have maintained management of the park. As the indigenous-led recuperation of this park continues, the conflict has shed light on a longstanding dilemma in Guatemala around indigenous communities’ access to sacred sites. […]

Honduras: Indigenous Leader Berta Cáceres Murdered

March 4, 2016 TeleSUR English 0

Source: TeleSUR English Berta Caceres, the coordinator and co-founder of the Council of Indigenous Peoples of Honduras, or COPIHN, was killed by unknown assailants early Thursday morning at 1:00 a.m. local time inside her home […]

The Clinton-Backed Honduran Regime Is Picking Off Indigenous Leaders

March 4, 2016 Greg Grandin 0

Source: The Nation Hillary Clinton will be good for women. Ask Berta Cáceres. But you can’t. She’s dead. Gunned down yesterday, March 2, at midnight, in her hometown of La Esperanza, Intibuca, in Honduras. Cáceres […]

Hillary Clinton’s Dark Drug War Legacy in Mexico

March 4, 2016 Jesse Franzblau 0

Source: Foreign Policy in Focus Clinton’s State Department overlooked human rights abuses and corruption while keeping a lucrative flow of contracts moving to U.S. security firms working in Mexico. Mexico, John M. Ackerman wrote recently […]

Honduras: Berta Caceres, “nos enfrentamos a poderes grandes”

March 4, 2016 Santiago Navarro F 0

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Mexico: Why Ayotzinapa Still Matters

February 29, 2016 Nidia Bautista 0

In a country where political crises are ignored by the government until they fade into oblivion, the families of the missing students of Ayotzinapa have kept their search alive for seventeen months.

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Women Farmers and Land Grabs in Haiti: An Interview With Iderle Brénus

February 25, 2016 Beverly Bell 0

Source: TowardFreedom.com Beverly Bell conducted the following interview with Iderle Brénus from which this text is drawn. Brénus is an economist with a master’s from the University of Havana in small business and community development, and another […]

Indigenous land and forest rights in the spotlight during pope’s visit to Mexico

February 25, 2016 Sandra Cuffe 0

Source: Mongabay During the pope’s recent five-day visit to Mexico, indigenous and community groups from throughout Latin America gathered to discuss land rights issues. Green wooden crosses line the edges of the open air auditorium […]

Mexico: Charges Against Zapatista Subcomandante Marcos Ruled Invalid 20 Years Later

February 25, 2016 Democracy Now! 0

Source: Democracy Now! In Mexico, a federal court has ruled criminal charges against Zapatista leader Subcomandante Marcos are no longer valid—more than two decades after they were first lodged. The Zapatistas launched an uprising on […]