There’s no question about it – Argentina “lost” when they announced the renationalization of oil company YRG, seizing the 51% stake from the Spanish energy giant Repsol. In the weeks since, they have been taking a beating in the global media. If it was President Kirchener’s plan to take the oil company all along, the [...]
With only three weeks left to go before the first round of Guatemala’s 2011 general elections, a number of candidates for president are being denied access by the Guatemalan media, casting a negative pall over the fairness of the proceedings. From the censorship of TV spots, to the manipulation of newspaper polls, and limited participation [...]
Haitian police led ex-dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier out of his hotel and took him to court today without saying whether he was being charged with crimes committed under his brutal regime. His longtime companion has continued to deny that he had been arrested. A contingent of police led the former dictator known as “Baby Doc” through [...]
During one of his interminable appearances on national television, perhaps even on his own broadcast Alo Presidente on Telesur, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez demanded to know last month why Guillermo Zuloaga, the majority owner of Venezuela’s last remaining opposition television station, was not in jail. “How is it possible that he can accuse me of [...]
The tone of this blog has sometimes veered off its original intent, every so often appearing similar to that of an international human rights watchdog. Quite frequently however, we refer to the geopolitical and economic ramifications from the actions of an erratic authoritarian, of which there are unfortunately many, and not only the human cost. [...]
Operating in Brazil comes with inherent risks; yes we’re talking about a nation on the rise, strong economic potential and a major boost in infrastructure that will raise the collective eyebrows of the international community. However, when mining a precious metal, one must heed caution. Many times, risks include corruption and political unrest. In some [...]
Marifeli Pérez-Stable is vice president for democratic governance at the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington, DC and a professor of sociology at Miami’s Florida International University. Dr. Pérez-Stable chaired the Task Force on Memory, Truth, and Justice which published the report, ‘Cuban National Reconciliation‘, in April 2003. On both the website of the Inter-American Dialogue and indeed [...]
Free and fair elections are a pillar for tangible change in government. Many have long strived to see the fruition of democracy in all of its values reach contemporary Latin America, more recently in the Arcadia Foundation taking to task the former Honduran government of dubious dealings and questionable practices. Their anti-corruption campaigns shone a spotlight [...]
This article was first published in The Wall Street Journal. Human rights are under attack, and language is the weapon. The very grammar of justice has fallen into the wrong hands, instrumentalized in the elaborate and sensational theaters of due process. A trial without any rights of defense is still called a “trial,” a conviction [...]
There are scant signs of help from the Haitian government during the ongoing crisis that has truly shook the world. The government appears scattered by the 7.0-magnitude earthquake Tuesday evening. The streets were filled with beleaguered residents milling about, left with no jobs, no instructions on what to do, and no place to buy food [...]
