Displaying items by tag: Latin America

Three retired colonels have been sentenced to fifteen years in prison for orchestrating the 1982 killings of four Dutch journalists during El Salvador’s civil war. They are former defence minister Jose Guillermo Garcia (91), Francisco Moran (93), and Mario Adalberto Reyes Mena (85). The journalists had been filming with leftist rebels when ambushed by soldiers in a planned military trap. A 1993 UN truth commission had previously identified the ambush as orchestrated by Reyes, who remains in the USA despite an extradition request. Garcia and Moran are currently under police watch in a private hospital. The case was revived in 2018 after El Salvador's supreme court struck down a postwar amnesty. Advocacy from the victims’ families and international bodies, including the Dutch government and EU, pressured authorities to bring long-delayed justice.

Colombia is pursuing a peaceful alternative to its enduring drug crisis by offering payments to farmers who agree to uproot coca (the plant used to make cocaine) and replace it with legal crops like cocoa and coffee. About 4,000 families have joined the $14.4 million programme, despite risks from armed groups that profit from cocaine and the uncertainty of sustaining income through legal farming. The government, under president Gustavo Petro, is aiming to eliminate coca from 45,000 hectares in conflict-heavy regions such as the Micay Canyon. However, since he took office in 2022 cocaine production has soared, driven by sustained demand worldwide, and his efforts to negotiate with armed groups, rather than using military confrontation, have faltered.  Now the Trump administration is reassessing Colombia’s status as a partner in the anti-drug campaign, threatening to curtail millions of dollars in military aid.

A German court has dismissed a lawsuit by Peruvian farmer Saul Luciano Lliuya against energy giant RWE, rejecting his claim for damages over flood risks in his hometown linked to climate change. Lliuya argued that RWE’s historic carbon emissions contributed to the melting of Andean glaciers threatening his town of Huaraz. Though the court found no immediate threat to his property, it acknowledged that major emitters may bear proportional costs for preventative climate measures. This ruling, while unfavourable to Lliuya, is seen as a landmark in climate litigation, particularly as it came from a plaintiff in the global south against a global north corporation. The court also said that RWE should have foreseen the effects of its emissions. Although RWE argues that climate change cannot be blamed on a single emitter, legal observers view the case as a potential turning point for holding polluters accountable globally.

Hundreds of residents in Panama’s Indio River region are opposing a proposed dam project that threatens to flood their homes. The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) plans to build a 4,600-hectare reservoir to supply water to the drought-affected canal, a key passage for 6% of global maritime trade. The $1.6 billion project, slated for completion by 2032, aims to stabilise water levels amid declining rainfall. While ACP pledges $400 million for compensating and relocating roughly 2,500 residents, groups warn that up to 12,000 people may be affected. Many villagers, dependent on farming and fishing, feel their livelihoods are being sacrificed for international shipping interests. Recent protests on the river reflect deep opposition, despite ACP’s commitment to dialogue. President Jose Raul Mulino supports the initiative, which has also stirred geopolitical tensions.

Jose ‘Pepe’ Mujica, Uruguay’s beloved former president and leftist rebel, has died at 89 after battling throat cancer. Revered for his humility, Mujica led Uruguay from 2010 to 2015, promoting civil liberties, legalising same-sex marriage and marijuana, and pushing for green energy reform. His decision to live in a simple farmhouse rather than in the presidential palace, and to drive around in an old Volkswagen Beetle, earned him the nickname ‘the world’s poorest president’. Once a member of the armed Tupamaros movement, Mujica spent years in solitary confinement during Uruguay’s military dictatorship. Following the country’s return to democracy, he entered politics with the Broad Front coalition, rising to the presidency by age 74. His death prompted tributes from across Latin America, honoring his courage, simplicity, and hope. Though once a fighter, Mujica later championed peace, dignity, and selfless leadership. In his final interview, he faced death with serenity, saying, ‘A warrior has the right to rest.’

In Brazil’s hottest region, the Maxakali indigenous people are restoring life to their ancestral land through an agroforestry project called Hāmhi Terra Viva. Amid soaring temperatures and rampant wildfires worsened by invasive guinea grass (introduced by cattle farmers) and widespread deforestation of the Atlantic Forest, the Maxakali are reviving traditional planting methods infused with ancestral songs. Once lush with biodiversity, the forest is now over 85% destroyed, leaving their territory dry, scorched, and vulnerable to climate extremes. In response, they have replanted over 215 hectares of fruit trees and native vegetation and formed fire brigades using traditional techniques. Music is central: songs, rich in ecological knowledge, guide daily work and honor the spiritual connections between people and nature. These songs contain forgotten names and behaviours of now-vanished species, serving as living archives of the forest’s past. By combining ritual, reforestation, and community effort, the Maxakali are resisting ecological collapse and calling on both nature and ancestors to help the land heal.

The death of Pope Francis has sparked reflection among church leaders in Argentina who knew him personally. Evangelical pastor Alejandro Rodríguez described him as 'a pastor with the smell of sheep’, deeply connected with the people. Legendary evangelist Luis Palau considered him a friend, despite theological differences, praising Francis’s humility and respect for the Bible. During his time as archbishop and pope, Francis built bridges with Evangelical leaders, supporting Bible engagement and championing unity. He collaborated on projects like the Community Bible Experience and encouraged Catholics to read Scripture. His personal gestures, such as serving others and breaking protocol, left a lasting impression. While not all Evangelicals agreed with his views or reforms, many respected his sincerity, humility, and service to the poor. Many church leaders have expressed sorrow and praised his legacy of service and openness to inter-church dialogue. His life invites reflection on the importance of unity without compromise and the shared mission of lifting high the name of Jesus. See

A US federal judge may hold the Trump administration in contempt for defying a court order which temporarily halted deportation flights carrying over 200 individuals to El Salvador. The administration had invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, typically reserved for wartime powers, to justify the removals. James Boasberg criticised their ‘wilful disregard’ of his ruling, saying their responses were unsatisfactory. Though the Supreme Court later affirmed Trump’s decision, Boasberg insists that does not excuse the violation of his earlier temporary restraining order. If the administration does not provide the information he has requested by 23 April, he will seek to identify the individuals who ignored the order to stop the deportations. Trump officials deny wrongdoing, asserting that the individuals deported were gang members and the flights had departed before the court's intervention: Trump has also called Boasberg a ‘troublemaker and agitator’. El Salvador agreed to take in the deportees in exchange for $6 million in aid: Trump has expressed an interest in sending more deportation flights there.

Former president Ollanta Humala and his wife, Nadine Heredia, have been sentenced to fifteen years in prison for laundering $3 million from Brazilian firm Odebrecht and $200,000 from Venezuela’s former president Hugo Chavez. Humala, who served from 2011 to 2016, was taken into custody immediately after the verdict. Heredia sought asylum at the Brazilian embassy and was granted safe passage to Brazil with her youngest son. The trial, which spanned three years, centred on illegal funding for Humala’s 2011 campaign. Prosecutors allege the funds were funnelled through his Nationalist Party to defeat rival Keiko Fujimori. He is expected to serve his sentence at a facility built for former presidents; Alejandro Toledo and Pedro Castillo are also detained there. Former president Alan Garcia killed himself in 2019 as police arrived at his home to arrest him for alleged corruption. Odebrecht has admitted to paying $788 million in bribes worldwide to secure government contracts.

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 600,000 Venezuelans living in the USA. The administration planned to end protections for 350,000 Venezuelans by 7 April and expedite expiration for another 250,000, potentially deporting them to a nation in crisis. However, district judge Edward Chen ruled that the Biden-era extensions must remain in place, citing racism and legal flaws in the decision made by homeland security secretary Kristi Noem. Chen condemned the use of negative stereotypes and found no evidence linking TPS holders to the criminal threats cited by the administration. He said that data showed Venezuelans under TPS as generally law-abiding, employed, and contributing positively to US society. Chen also criticised the administration’s rationale as lacking evidence and potentially legitimising Venezuela’s authoritarian regime through backchannel negotiations.