Adam Isacson

Neoreich photo at Diálogo (U.S. Southern Command). Caption: “Colombia was the first South American country after Brazil to include the Super Tucano in its Air Force fleet.”

(Even more here)

June 30, 2017

Brazil

• Mac Margolis, “Brazil Needs to Look Beyond Scandal” (Bloomberg, June 30, 2017).

With elections 16 months away and much of the political class discredited or under scrutiny, it’s hard to say who might emerge to squire the country to recovery

• Paul Kiernan, “Brazil Authorities Arrest Rio Police on Bribery Allegations” (The Wall Street Journal, June 30, 2017).

Long known for their violent tactics, Rio state police killed 383 people in first four months of 2017, 60% more than a year earlier

Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador

• Andrea Barretto, “Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Ecuador Exchange Information on Attack Aircraft” (Revista Dialogo (U.S. Southern Command), June 30, 2017).

Through a memorandum of understanding, the four countries laid out a cooperation agreement regarding the deployment and maintenance of the A-29 Super Tucano aircraft

Central America Regional

• Julieta Pelcastre, “Central America Promotes Systematic Efforts of Cooperation” (Revista Dialogo (U.S. Southern Command), June 30, 2017).

The goal of the meeting was to prepare reports that will be further expanded and approved at the Ordinary Meeting of the High Council scheduled for July 11th–14th in Tegucigalpa

Colombia

• Holly K. Sonneland, “Explainer: Colombia’s 2018 Elections” (Americas Society – Council of the Americas, June 30, 2017).

While the peace processes with the guerrilla groups FARC and ELN dominate international headlines, just 5% of Colombians say those are the country’s top issues while 63% say domestic issues of unemployment, healthcare, and corruption are

El Salvador

• Judith Flores, “Congresistas de ee.uu. Piden Investigar a Vicecanciller Salvadoreno” (La Prensa (Nicaragua), June 30, 2017).

José Luis Merino, alias “Ramiro Vásquez”, es considerado el arquitecto financiero del Grupo Alba en El Salvador

Honduras

• “Por Drogas y Pandillas Militarizan Dos Colegios en la Capital de Honduras” (El Heraldo (Honduras), June 30, 2017).

El número 18 de más de un metro de altura dibujado en uno de los pizarrones es imposible de no ver, así como los 18 escritos en números romanos en distintas partes del colegio

El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras

• Franco Ordonez, “Trump Administration Targets Parents Who Paid to Smuggle Children Into U.S.” (McClatchy DC, June 30, 2017).

“The kids are basically being used as bait at this point”

Mexico

• Paris Martínez, , “Pgr No Investigo Posibles Vinculos de Mando Militar y Guerreros Unidos Tras Ataque a Normalistas” (Animal Politico (Mexico), June 30, 2017).

La PGR recibió al menos cinco denuncias anónimas en las que se identifica a José Alfredo Casarrubias Salgado, capitán segundo de Infantería del Ejército Mexicano, como parte del grupo

• Francisco Goldman, , “The Atenco Warning” (The New York Times, June 30, 2017).

In 2006, a brutal crackdown. Today, reports that spyware has been used against journalists, human right groups and lawyers in Mexico

• John Scott-Railton, Bill Marczak, Bahr Abdulrazzak, Masashi Crete-Nishihata, Ron Deibert, “Reckless Redux: Senior Mexican Legislators and Politicians Targeted With Nso Spyware” (CitizenLab, University of Toronto, June 30, 2017).

Three senior Mexican politicians were targeted with infection attempts using spyware developed by the NSO group, an Israeli “cyber warfare” company

• Kirk Siegler, “Desert Aid Camp Turning Away Migrants Following Border Patrol Raid” (Morning Edition, National Public Radio, June 30, 2017).

Aid workers say they can no longer guarantee a temporary shelter for migrants, after U.S. Border Patrol agents raided the camp and made arrests

Guatemala, Mexico

• Adam Isacson, Maureen Meyer, Hannah Smith, “Wola Report: Mexico’s Southern Border – Security, Central American Migration, and U.S. Policy” (Washington Office on Latin America, June 30, 2017).

WOLA based its report on field research in the area surrounding Tenosique, Tabasco, along Mexico’s border with Guatemala

Peru

• “Peru Entre los 5 Ejercitos Mas Poderosos de America Latina” (La Republica (Peru), June 30, 2017).

Perú destaca por tener un total de 120 mil miembros activos y 272 mil de reserva

Venezuela

• Jorge Rueda, “Fresh Charges Highlight Further Rifts in the Maduro Regime” (Associated Press, Time, June 30, 2017).

Ortega Diaz, a longtime loyalist of the socialist government who recently broke ranks with President Nicolas Maduro, said police and military officials are responsible for 23 protest deaths to date

Graphic from El Colombiano (Medellín, Colombia).

(Even more here)

June 29, 2017

Brazil

• Samantha Pearson, “Brazilians Are Too Weary of Scandal to Protest Their Graft-Tinged Leader” (The Wall Street Journal, June 29, 2017).

Many Brazilians are tacitly choosing stability over rule of law. That, many observers say, may help Mr. Temer cling onto power

Colombia

• “El Fin de las Farc Como Guerrilla, Meta Cumplida del Proceso de Paz” (El Tiempo (Colombia), June 29, 2017).

Santos estaba frente al resultado de su apuesta más arriesgada como mandatario de los colombianos: iniciar un proceso de paz

• “Feliciano Valencia Es Inocente: Corte Suprema de Justicia” (El Espectador (Colombia), June 29, 2017).

Los magistrados de la Corte revisaron el expediente del líder indígena y además, tuvieron en cuenta los argumentos de la Fiscalía y la Procuraduría, que habían pedido ya su absolución

• Ricardo Monsalve Gaviria, “Autoridades Deben Enfocarse en los Nuevos Grupos Armados” (El Colombiano (Medellin Colombia), June 29, 2017).

Tras la dejación de armas de las Farc, las autoridades deben enfocar esfuerzos en otros grupos armados que aún cuentan con gran capacidad armada como el Eln, el Clan del Golfo y Los Pelusos

Cuba

• William M. Leogrande, “Does the Cuban Military Really Control Sixty Percent of the Economy?” (The Huffington Post, June 29, 2017).

GAESA’s revenue constitutes 21% of total hard currency income from both state enterprises and the private sector, 8% of total state revenue, and just 4% of GDP (Anuario Estadístico 2015). That’s a long way from 60%

Mexico

• Geneva Sands, “Us Plans to Construct Up to 8 Border Wall Prototypes This Summer” (ABC News, June 29, 2017).

A CBP draft briefing to Congress had previously stated June as an intended start date for prototype construction, but in recent weeks the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees CBP, has said “summer”

• Rebecca Kheel, “Democrats Target Trump’s Border Wall in Defense Bill Debate” (The Hill, June 29, 2017).

The amendment was originally introduced by Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Calif.), but Rep. Steve Knight (R-Calif.) introduced a substitute to Gallego’s amendment, and then O’Rourke introducing a perfecting amendment

South America Regional

• Matthew M. Taylor, “South America’s Turn to Deadlock” (Council on Foreign Relations, June 29, 2017).

Influential social scientists have long warned of the perils of presidentialism, with its tendency toward zero-sum politics and regime breakdown

Venezuela

• Joshua Partlow, Rachelle Krygier, “Amid Venezuela’s Chaos, Protesters Ask: Was Helicopter ‘Attack’ Rebellion or Ruse?” (The Washington Post, June 29, 2017).

Some suspect the brazen swoop over the Supreme Court building was cooked up by the government as a pretext for more crackdowns

• Anatoly Kurmanaev, Kejal Vyas, “Chopper Flight Leaves Venezuelans Mystified” (The Wall Street Journal, June 29, 2017).

In private, opposition leaders say they fear Mr. Maduro will use the alleged chopper attack to further crack down on dissent

Photo by Efraín Herrera, Presidency of Colombia. Caption: “Una escultura que simboliza el paso de la guerra a la construcción de un país en paz fue exhibida durante el acto final de la histórica dejación de armas de las Farc, liderado por el Presidente Juan Manuel Santos.”

(Even more here)

June 28, 2017

Brazil

• Mauricio Savarese, Sarah Dilorenzo, “Brazil’s President Says Corruption Charge Is ‘Soap Opera’” (Associated Press **, June 28, 2017).

The indictment itself was blistering in its assessment of Temer, saying he showed a total disregard for his office and that his actions, including secret meetings not on his official calendar, showed he was trying to cover up “criminal actions.”

Colombia

• Christine Armario, “Colombia Takes Big Step to Peace as Rebels Lay Down Guns” (Associated Press **, June 28, 2017).

Rodrigo Londono, the FARC’s top commander, complained about the bureaucratic, legal and political “traps” in a sternly worded speech in which he called on the government to live up to its end of the bargain

• Kejal Vyas, “Ceremony Marks Colombian Rebels’ Disarmament” (The Wall Street Journal, June 28, 2017).

The election is thus all but assured to be a referendum on the peace initiative, though analysts say the accord will be hard to overturn

• Chris Kraul, “Half a Century of Conflict in Colombia Comes to Close as Farc Rebels Disarm” (The Los Angeles Times, June 28, 2017).

At Tuesday’s ceremony, rebels dressed in T-shirts instead of combat fatigues received plastic ID cards qualifying them for post-conflict aid programs

• “Las Farc Inician Camino a la Politica Sin Armas” (Verdad Abierta (Colombia), June 28, 2017).

A partir de ese día, las zonas se convertirán en Espacios Territoriales de Capacitación y Reincorporación, donde los desde ahora exguerrilleros harán todas las actividades necesarias para reincorporase a la vida legal

• “National Director of Anti-Corruption in Colombia Charged With Conspiracy to Launder Money in Order to Promote Foreign Bribery” (Southern District of Florida, U.S. Department of Justice, June 28, 2017).

In exchange for 100 million Colombian pesos, Moreno and Pinilla offered to give the cooperating source copies of sworn statements taken from cooperators who had testified against the CS

Cuba

• Jorge I. Dominguez, “Can Trump Compete With Obama on Cuba?” (The New York Times, June 28, 2017).

President Obama got dozens of political prisoners freed from Cuban prisons and a dozen criminal fugitives repatriated to the United States. The score thus far for President Trump is zero

Mexico

• Melissa del Bosque, “Over the Wall: How Texas Border Communities Are Gearing Up to Fight Trump” (The Texas Observer, June 28, 2017).

It seemed to be bypassing the wealthy and the politically connected while targeting those who could least afford to fight the federal government in court

Venezuela

• Silene Ramirez, Eyanir Chinea, “Helicopter Attacks Venezuela Court, Maduro Denounces Coup Bid” (Reuters **, June 28, 2017).

Venezuela’s government said in a communique the helicopter was stolen by investigative police pilot Oscar Perez, who declared himself in rebellion against Maduro

• Ernesto LondoÑo, Nicholas Casey, “Police Officers in Helicopter Attack Venezuela’s Supreme Court” (The New York Times, June 28, 2017).

Few in Venezuela saw Tuesday’s attack as having any chances of immediately succeeding in its stated goals

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Alex Daugherty, “The Trump Whisperer: Marco Rubio Has the President’s Ear on Latin America” (The Miami Herald, June 28, 2017).

Implementing the changed Cuba policy, overseeing the deteriorating situation in Venezuela and playing a role in the Colombian peace process are the three issues likely to command immediate political attention

• Daniel R. Mahanty, “The “Leahy Law” Prohibiting Us Assistance to Human Rights Abusers: Pulling Back the Curtain” (Just Security, June 28, 2017).

Anybody who has touched the Leahy Law has an opinion about it, but it’s hard to find anybody fully satisfied by the way it is interpreted or implemented

UN photo.

(Even more here)

June 27, 2017

Brazil

• Peter Prengaman, Mauricio Savarese, “Brazil’s Crisis Deepens as President Accused of Corruption” (Associated Press **, June 27, 2017).

Even stalwart allies have begun to bail on Temer

Colombia

• “United Nations Mission Receives the Balance of Individual Arms From the Farc-Ep in Accordance With the 29 May Road Map” (Mision de la ONU en Colombia, June 27, 2017).

As of today, the Mission has stored the totality of individual arms of the FARC-EP that were registered: 7132 arms

• “Se Agudiza Debate por Propuesta de Vicealcaldias Militares en Antioquia” (Verdad Abierta (Colombia), June 27, 2017).

Aunque la propuesta inicial contemplaba que las Vicealcaldías fueran dirigidas por oficiales activos de las Fuerzas Militares, al final se definió que serán coroneles en retiro del Ejército

• “¿Universitarios, Agitadores o Terroristas?” (El Espectador (Colombia), June 27, 2017).

En total fueron cinco hombres y cuatro mujeres aprehendidos luego de meses de investigación, pero que se aceleraron tras el ataque del pasado fin de semana en Bogotá

El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras

• J. Weston Phippen, “What Trump Doesn’t Understand About Ms-13” (The Atlantic, June 27, 2017).

If indeed there is a connection to immigration by unaccompanied minors, all that may have changed was MS-13 found more vulnerable youth to prey upon in a country where the leadership wants to hold them up not as refugees, but as potential criminals

Mexico

• John Burnett, Merrit Kennedy, “Supreme Court Sends Cross-Border Shooting Case Back to Lower Court” (Morning Edition, National Public Radio, June 27, 2017).

Claiming he was the target of rock throwers, Mesa — who was standing on the U.S. side — pulled his handgun and shot 15-year-old Sergio Hernandez Guereca in the head as he peeked out from behind a concrete pillar

• “Lider de Guerreros Unidos Tiene un Hermano en el Ejercito; Sedena e Inai Reservan su Expediente” (Animal Politico (Mexico), June 27, 2017).

El INAI avaló que el Ejército mantenga en secreto el historial de servicio de Alfredo Casarrubias, hermano del presunto líder de Guerreros Unidos, Sidronio Casarrubias, señalado como autor intelectual del ataque contra los normalistas de Ayotzinapa

• Mark Stevenson, “Charred Body Identified as Missing Mexican Journalist” (Associated Press **, June 27, 2017).

Salvador Adame was director of local cable Channel 6 TV. Armed men grabbed him on May 18 and forced him into a vehicle in the city of Nueva Italia in violence-plagued Michoacan state

• Lizzie Wade, “Mapping Mexico’s Hidden Graves” (Science, June 27, 2017).

In addition to 43 municipalities with hidden graves publicly reported in 2016—mostly in the states of Veracruz and Guerrero—the model identified 45 other municipalities as having a 70% or higher chance of containing unreported graves

Michael Robinson Chavez / The Washington Post photo at The Chicago Tribune. Caption: “A bus originating in Mexico is inspected by Border Patrol agents, including Capt. L. Rinker, center, at a checkpoint south of Falfurrias, Texas, on June 2, 2017. Border Patrol agents check the identification of passengers on northbound buses.”

(Even more here)

June 26, 2017

Colombia

• “Editorial: Sera un Dia Historico” (El Tiempo (Colombia), June 26, 2017).

De no mediar hecho anómalo, para ese día los cerca de 7.000 integrantes de esta guerrilla, ubicados en los 26 puntos de concentración, habrán culminado el proceso de entrega de sus armas

• Marisol GÓmez Giraldo, “Llego la Hora de la Politica Legal para las Farc” (El Tiempo (Colombia), June 26, 2017).

Hoy, que estamos a horas de que las Farc dejen de ser guerrilla después de 53 años, conviene recordar que su aterrizaje en la política y en la vida productiva será un proceso gradual y nada fácil

• “Tintori Dice Que No Le Permiten Ver a Leopoldo Lopez Tras Denuncia de Tortura” (EFE, El Colombiano (Medellin Colombia), June 26, 2017).

El viernes se difundiera un vídeo en el que el opositor gritaba que estaba siendo torturado

• Nicole Chavez, “Police Arrest 8 in Deadly Colombia Mall Explosion” (CNN, June 26, 2017).

MRP, an anti-government militia, is believed to have been created in 2015. Since then, they have pronounced themselves against President Juan Manuel Santos and the ideals of former President and current senator Alvaro Uribe Velez

• “Captura de Abogada Natalia Trujillo Seria Otro Falso Positivo Judicial para Mostrar “Resultados”” (Contagio Radio (Colombia), June 26, 2017).

Entre las personas capturadas hay varios egresados de la universidad nacional y defensoras de DDHH de amplia trayectoria como Natalia Trujillo a favor de quien ya se han escuchado varios pronunciamientos

• William H. Godnick, “Aid to Colombia Is Key to U.S. Security” (The Houston Chronicle, June 26, 2017).

There are at least three reasons that the U.S. should continue its support for Colombia at current levels, even if it decides to make some course corrections

El Salvador, Mexico

• Jessica Contrera, “As Border Quiets, Safe Passage Into the U.S. Is Still Granted to Some Families” (Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, June 26, 2017).

Along the border, the impacts of Trump’s immigration policies are visible everywhere

Honduras, Nicaragua

• “Nicaragua y Honduras Activan Fuerza de Tarea para Combatir Crimen Organizado” (EFE, La Prensa (Nicaragua), June 26, 2017).

La misión de la denominada Fuerza de Tarea Morazán Sandino, en su cuarta fase, será resguardar la frontera entre Honduras y Nicaragua, combatir el crimen trasnacional y el narcotráfico

Panama

• “Panama’s Ex-President Wiretapped Americans, According to Court Documents” (Univision, June 26, 2017).

The list of targets also included the two Americans, political strategist Christian Ferry, and retired U.S. Army colonel Richard Downie , as well as staff at the U.S. embassy

Venezuela

• Javier Lafuente, “Asi se Gesto el Fracaso de la Condena a Venezuela en la Cumbre de la Oea” (El Pais (Spain), June 26, 2017).

La ausencia en el último momento del secretario de Estado, Rex Tillerson, fue un jarro de agua fría. Su participación, coinciden los consultados, incluso entre los críticos, hubiese podido cambiar el panorama

• Andrew Cawthorne, Victoria Ramirez, “Heroes or Agitators? Young Lawmakers on Venezuela’s Front Line” (Reuters **, June 26, 2017).

A group of young Venezuelan lawmakers has risen to prominence on the violent front line of anti-government marches

Western Hemisphere Regional

• “Editorial: Donald Trump’s Bark Is Worse Than His Bite in Latin America” (The Financial Times (UK), June 26, 2017).

The US president speaks loudly and carries a small stick

Fernando Vergara / AP photo at The Nation. Caption: “A United Nations observer shakes hands with a rebel of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), March 1, 2017.”

Colombia

Robert Karl, Greg Grandin, “Will Last Year’s Peace Treaty Survive, or Is the Past Prologue in Colombia?” (The Nation, June 23, 2017).

Two historians, Grandin and Robert Karl, look at Colombia’s hopeful but deeply worrying current moment, drawing on the country’s violent past.

“La Politica Detras de la Sustitucion de Cultivos” (La Silla Vacia (Colombia), June 19, 2017).

As the Trump administration tightens pressure on Colombia to eradicate more coca, La Silla Vacía visits several regions to see how the Colombian government’s “voluntary eradication” plan, foreseen by the November 2016 peace accord, is going. It’s really complicated.

Mexico

Azam Ahmed, Nicole Perlroth, “Using Texts as Lures, Government Spyware Targets Mexican Journalists and Their Families” (The New York Times, June 19, 2017).

A company licensed its anti-terror phone-hacking software to the Mexican government, and to no one’s surprise, the Mexican government has started using it on corruption investigators, journalists, and human rights advocates, effectively turning their phones into mobile bugging devices.

Ginger Thompson, “Who Holds the Dea Accountable When Its Missions Cost Lives?” (ProPublica, June 19, 2017).

In a follow-up to the previous week’s investigation of a massacre in Mexico triggered by U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents sharing information with crooked Mexican cops, Thompson finds that “the DEA lit the fuse that triggered the slaughter, then stood mutely by — as if it had played no role.” Rather than just fan outrage, though, she suggests steps the agency must take to improve accountability.

Western Hemisphere Regional

Jim Rutenberg, “Univision’s Urgent
Sense of Purpose: A Newsroom and a Lifeline” (The New York Times, June 18, 2017).

Univision’s news team includes many Latin American journalists who are exiled because of their work in their home countries. They see some ominous similarities between the Trump administration and the governments of the countries they fled. And now they’re at the vanguard of high-credibility U.S. journalism.

Ariana Cubillos/Associated Press photo at The Washington Post. Caption: “A demonstrator lights a candle during a vigil for a student who was killed during clashes between anti-government protesters and Bolivarian National Guard officers, in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, June 21, 2017. The 17-year-old student was shot dead on Monday the Public Prosecutor’s Office said, bringing the death toll to 72 in two months of demonstrations against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.”

(Even more here)

June 23, 2017

Brazil

• Rene Silva, “Let’s Stop Vigilante Attacks in Brazil” (Americas Quarterly, June 23, 2017).

People who are afraid, angry, or who feel victimized look for enemies that can be eliminated, instead of searching for ways to fix a broken criminal justice system and a failed public security model

Colombia

• Robert Karl, Greg Grandin, “Will Last Year’s Peace Treaty Survive, or Is the Past Prologue in Colombia?” (The Nation, June 23, 2017).

The referendum vote was not the fatal blow to peace that many feared at first, but the ensuing delay in the peace process may yet cause long-term ramifications

• Emilio Huertas, “A Modest Proposal to Advance Peace in Colombia” (The Huffington Post, June 23, 2017).

We are proposing the formation of 16 regional citizen committees to support and accompany the implementation of the peace agreement

• “¿Quien Esta Detras del Asesinato de Guerrilleros Amnistiados y Familiares?” (Semana (Colombia), June 23, 2017).

Cuatro guerrilleros y ocho personas de sus círculos más cercanos han sido asesinados desde que arrancó la implementación del acuerdo de paz

• “‘Martin Sombra’ Queda Libre, Pero su Proceso Ira a Justicia Especial” (El Tiempo (Colombia), June 23, 2017).

‘Martín Sombra’ lideró en los 90 la columna Mario Hernández, encargada de vigilar a los cientos de secuestrados que caían en manos de las Farc

• Natalia Arenas, Juanita León, “El Piloto del General Naranjo” (La Silla Vacia (Colombia), June 23, 2017).

El plan para desmantelar organizaciones criminales es una nueva apuesta por Tumaco y Buenaventura. También es una prueba de fuego para el Vicepresidente

Colombia, Venezuela

• Christine Armario, “Desperate Venezuelans Set Sights on Colombia as Worry Mounts” (Associated Press **, June 23, 2017).

Though many come from Venezuela’s lower and middle classes, Montilla and her friends have seen even skilled professionals like architects and engineers arriving in Colombia and sleeping in bus stations

Cuba

• Tim Padgett, “The Cuban Exiles Are Back! Sounds Like Good News for the Cuban Regime” (WLRN, June 23, 2017).

The old-guard exiles gave their Cuba policy far less chance to succeed because they arrogantly alienated the rest of the world – and just as imperiously neglected the same island-dwelling Cubans

• Andrea Rodriguez, Michael Weissenstein, “Us, Cuba Still Cooperating on Stopping Drug Smugglers” (Associated Press **, June 23, 2017).

U.S. officials say day-to-day cooperation on halting U.S.-bound human trafficking and narcotics has improved significantly since the re-establishment of diplomatic relations

El Salvador

• “Police and Military Death Squads Killed 36 in el Salvador” (Associated Press, The Washington Post, June 23, 2017).

The killings occurred between 2014 and 2016. Some victims were alleged gang members while other killings appeared to be contract hits

Guatemala

• Anita Isaacs, “The Immigrants No One Wants” (The New York Times, June 23, 2017).

Considering them a burden, even an embarrassment, the Guatemalan state and society are unable and unwilling to assist the thousands of migrants being sent back home

Mexico

• Nigel Duara, “Death on the Border: Arizona Used Rancher’s Killing to Justify Harsh Immigration Laws, but the Truth of the Case Is Unclear” (The Los Angeles Times, June 23, 2017).

No incident has hardened feelings about illegal immigration in Arizona more than the unsolved 2010 killing of 58-year-old Rob Krentz, head of one of the oldest ranch families in southeast Arizona

• Luisa Leme, “A Mexico Border Tour With Alfredo Corchado” (Americas Quarterly, June 23, 2017).

In this short video, Corchado shows AQ Editor-in-Chief Brian Winter how integrated both countries are – and talks to Mexicans and Americans about how life has changed (and stayed the same) under President Donald Trump

Nicaragua

• Emiliano Chamorro Mendieta, “Aprobado el Ingreso de 449 Militares Extranjeros a Nicaragua” (La Prensa (Nicaragua), June 23, 2017).

La autorización garantiza el ingreso de naves y aeronaves de las Fuerzas Armadas y ejércitos de la Conferencia de las Fuerzas Armadas Centroamericanas (CFAC), Estados Unidos, Rusia, México, Venezuela, Cuba, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, República Dominicana

Venezuela

• “Maduro Promotes Military in Shake-Up of Cabinet in Venezuela” (Associated Press, The Washington Post, June 23, 2017).

Benavides, who the U.S. government sanctioned in 2015 for alleged human rights abuses during a previous wave of unrest, will now lead an agency created by Maduro to oversee the capital, whose opposition mayor was jailed two years ago

• “Capriles Asegura Que Dentro de las Ffaa Hay un Aire de Cambio Que No Hay en la Gn” (Tal Cual (Venezuela), June 23, 2017).

“Viene una decisión muy importante de los componentes de nuestra FFAA”

• Andreina Aponte, “Venezuelan Soldier Shoots Protester Dead in Airbase Attack, Minister Says” (Reuters **, June 23, 2017).

At least two soldiers shot long firearms through the fence from a distance of just a few feet at protesters who were throwing rocks

• Edith M. Lederer, “Us Envoy Urges Global Action on Worsening Venezuela Crisis” (Associated Press, The Washington Post, June 23, 2017).

“The tragic situation in Venezuela calls out for action,” Haley said in a statement in which she complained about the lack of action from the U.N. Human Rights Council and the Organization of American States

Western Hemisphere Regional

• William Naylor, “Oas Elects Three New Members to the Iachr” (Latin America Goes Global, June 23, 2017).

The decision not to send Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and for the U.S. not to attend the Commission’s 161 hearings on U.S. cases may likely have hurt U.S. candidate Doug Cassel’s chances

William Widmer photo for The New York Times. Caption: “United States Customs and Border Protection agents apprehended a man seen crossing the Rio Grande near Roma, Tex., last month.”

(Even more here)

June 21, 2017

Brazil

• Mauricio Savarese, “Brazil Federal Police Accuse President of Getting Bribes” (Associated Press **, June 21, 2017).

If Brazil’s top prosecutor agrees with the federal police recommendation, Congress will decide whether Temer should be investigated by the Supreme Court

• Simon Romero, Dom Phillips, “Dagger, but No Cloak: Brazil’s Top Spy Exposes c.i.A. Officer” (The New York Times, June 21, 2017).

General Etchegoyen’s staff mentioned the official by name and described the official’s position as the C.I.A.’s “chief” in Brasília in a publicly available agenda of the spymaster’s meetings

Colombia

• “Initiated the Final Stage of the Laying Down of Arms by the Farc-Ep” (Mision de la ONU en Colombia, June 21, 2017).

During his visit to Colombia, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Jeffrey Feltman, visited the Transitory Point of Pondores – La Guajira

• Susana Noguera, ““Este Ano Van Tantos Desplazamientos Como en 2016”: Alto Comisionado para los Refugiados en Colombia” (El Espectador (Colombia), June 21, 2017).

Se han registrado 42 desplazamientos masivos en la costa pacífica, Norte de Santander y Arauca. Son 7.371 personas, 2.056 familias afectadas

Cuba

• William M. Leogrande, Marguerite Rose Jimenez, “Trump Policy Could Cut Remittances to a Million Cuban Families” (The Huffington Post, June 21, 2017).

If all these people are now to be considered “prohibited officials,” then a quarter of the Cuban labor force will no longer be eligible to receive remittances

Mexico

• Rob o’dell, “Video of Teen Killed by Border Patrol Agent Shows He Was Facedown on Ground When Shots Fired” (The Arizona Republic, June 21, 2017).

A video shown in court shows Jose Antonio Elena Rodriguez on the ground when U.S. Border Patrol Agent Lonnie Swartz fired through the border fence

• Ron Nixon, “On the Mexican Border, a Case for Technology Over Concrete” (The New York Times, June 21, 2017).

The equipment is provided to the Department of Homeland Security under the Defense Department program established to repurpose military equipment previously used in Afghanistan and Iraq

Panama

• Frances Robles, “Accused in Spying Case, Ex-Panama President Fights Extradition in Miami” (The New York Times, June 21, 2017).

The United States attorney’s office submitted a motion urging the court to keep Mr. Martinelli in jail until the extradition case is decided

Venezuela

• Gideon Long, “Latin American Heavyweights Exasperated by Venezuelan Deadlock” (The Financial Times (UK), June 21, 2017).

Brazil and Mexico were thwarted by a handful of leftist nations and Caribbean island states which voted against the OAS draft resolutions or abstained

• Geoff Ramsey, David Smilde, “No Oas Venezuela Resolution So Far, but Still Space for Diplomacy” (Washington Office on Latin America, June 21, 2017).

The process itself produces shared understandings, expressed commitments and diplomatic networks that go beyond the actual meetings and can lead to actions beyond the multilateral body

• Joshua Goodman, “Venezuela Chief Prosecutor to Face Charges as Crisis Deepens” (Associated Press **, June 21, 2017).

The government-stacked court in a statement Tuesday it had approved a request from a socialist party lawmaker to lift prosecutor Luisa Ortega Diaz’s protection from prosecution for allegedly committing “grave errors”