BBC News
Tuesday, May 31, 2011 - 00:00
Ministers held an emergency meeting on violence in the Amazon, where three activists were killed last week.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011 - 00:00
A Mexican nursery teacher has received an award for bravery after she calmed down her students during a shoot-out near her school.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011 - 00:00
The Colombian government says almost 7m hectares (17m acres) of land have been stolen by armed groups involved in the country's civil conflict.
Thursday, May 26, 2011 - 00:00
The gunfight took place at a crossroads near Ruiz in the Pacific coast state of Nayarit, some 800km (500 miles) north-west of Mexico City.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 - 00:00
Colombia's Senate has approved a law to compensate victims of the country's long-running civil conflict and return land to millions of displaced people.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 - 00:00
The moves were "imperialist aggression", Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro said.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 - 00:00
Brazil's Chamber of Deputies has voted to ease restrictions on the amount of land farmers must preserve as forest.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011 - 00:00
Sniffer dogs found more than 12 tonnes of the drug hidden in a shipment of brown sugar destined for Mexico.
Friday, December 10, 2010 - 00:00
Drug laws in eight Latin American countries have exacerbated their prison overcrowding problems and failed to curb trafficking, a study says.
Friday, December 10, 2010 - 00:00
Mexican police have been involved in fierce gun battles with suspected drug traffickers blockading the main roads into Morelia, the capital of Michoacan state.