Week in Review

05/13/11
Abigail Poe
Latin America and the Caribbean
  • Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Arturo Valenzuela announced that he will step down from his post this summer and return to his teaching position at Georgetown University.
  • Amnesty International released its 2011 Annual Report, which covers the state of the world's human rights. The section on the Americas is here.
  • Mexican President Felipe Calderón was in the United States this week, where he was honored by the United Nations Environmental Program for his leadership in addressing climate change. President Calderón also delivered the keynote address at the 41st Annual Washington Conference of the Americas. Mexico's El Universal compiled a list of the 13 most important phrases used by President Calderón during his trip. They include "I also want a Mexico with peace," "We must have dialogue so that all points of view can be expressed," "It is necessary to stop the flow of weapons to Mexico," and "We respect Carlos Slim a lot, but..."
  • Commander of U.S. Southern Command, General Douglas Fraser, met with Central American defense leaders to discuss proposals and cooperative solutions to counter the growing threat of narcotrafficking in the region. The Southcom-sponsored Central American Security Conference, held last week, focused on how "regional security forces can better tie their efforts together to counter TCOs and the illicit trafficking of drugs, humans and weapons in Central America that form the backbone of their existence."
  • Multiple news outlets looked into Brazil's efforts to prepare for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics:
  • Good article by InSight Crime's Hannah Stone about the controversy in Colombia that arose after President Juan Manuel Santos spoke of an "armed conflict" in the country.
  • Colombia's El Espectador writes about the ideological differences between former President Alvaro Uribe and current President Juan Manuel Santos.
  • A recent Gallup Poll shows that 54% of Colombians think that things are getting worse in the country. According to the poll, 58% of those questioned disapprove of the way President Santos is confronting corruption, while 65% think that insecurity is getting worse.
  • On Tuesday, London's International Institue for Strategic Studies launched a new report, "The FARC Files: Venezuela, Ecuador and the Secret Archive of 'Raul Reyes.'" The almost 250-page report looks at the thousands of documents that were retrieved from Farc leader Raul Reyes's hard drives after authorities bombed his camp in 2008. Various news outlets focused on reports of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's and Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa's links to the FARC, however, The Guardian was less than impressed. Santos, Correa and Chavez did not let the revisting of Raul Reyes' hard drives sour their improved relations. After the release of the report, the three presidents announced they were going to "turn the page" on the issue.
  • Walid Makled, alleged drug kingpin, was extradited to Venezuela on Monday. He had been in Colombian custody since August, when he was picked up on a U.S. drug warrant. Colombia extradited him to Venezuela, where he was wanted on charges of murder and drug trafficking, instead of the United States.
  • Ecuadorians voted over the weekend on a list of ten questions related to possible legal and constitutional reforms. The questions covered a range of topics, including a ban on bull fighting and judicial and media reform. Results from the referendum are not final, but so far, it appears that the majority of the reforms proposed by President Correa are on course to be approved, though the margin of victory is much slimmer than expected. Earlier in the week, it appeared that the "no" vote may have won two of the most controversial questions on judicial reform and press freedom. By Thursday, after votes from pro-government zones were counted, the "yes" vote had gained ground, yet the margins are still slim. With 67% of the ballots counted, "Yes" votes range from 44-49%, while "no" votes are between 41-44%.
  • A Guatemalan court acquitted former President Alfonso Portillo of charges that he embezzled state money. The International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala, the United Nations-sponsored effort to reform Guatemala's corruption-laden judicial system, announced on Tuesday that it would join a possible appeal by Guatemala's attorney general.
  • An appeal court in Honduras dropped all corruption charges against former President Manuel Zelaya, in a move that clears the way for his possible return. Zelaya, who has been in exile in the Dominican Republic for nearly two years, could possibly return to Honduras within a month, according to one of his aides. After the court's decision was made, the Organization of American States announced that the principal condition for the return of Honduras to the OAS had been met, a move that pleased the United States.
  • President Obama went to El Paso, Texas on Tuesday, where he spoke about border security and immigration reform, and announced his plans to keep the National Guard on the border past the current June deadline. The text of Obama's speech is here.
  • According to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico's Secretary of Public Security, Julian Leyzaola Perez, at least 25% of the Juarez police force are connected to organized crime.
  • On Sunday, a four-day anti-drug war march that started in Cuernavaca came to end as tens of thousands came together in Mexico City's main Zócalo square. The march was led by Mexican poet, Javier Sicilia, whose son was killed by drug traffickers. Sicilia spoke to the large crowd on Sunday. CIP's Laura Carlsen was at the march, and her coverage can be found here.
  • U.S. Ambassador Carlos Pascual announced he will leave Mexico by May 18th, two months after he announced his resignation. According to Pascual, part of the reason for his resignation was that "President Calderón made me a bilateral relations issue."