Adam Isacson

Only a few years ago, Guatemala was making historic gains in its fight against corruption and human rights abuse. Since then, the country has suffered a severe backlash. A “pact of the corrupt” in Guatemala’s ruling elite keeps pushing legislation that would terminate trials and investigations for war crimes and corruption. A U.S.-backed UN prosecutorial body, the CICIG, has been weakened. High-court rulings are being ignored. Things have gotten so bad that the U.S. government has suspended military aid.

And today, Guatemala has incredibly surpassed Mexico as the number-one nationality of undocumented migrants being apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border.

As a new presidential election looms, Adam talks about the situation with WOLA Senior Fellow Jo-Marie Burt, just returned from one of her frequent visits to the country. See more of Jo-Marie’s recent analysis at:

• The Open Society Justice Initiative’s International Justice Monitor.
• “Why War Criminals Could Walk Free in Guatemala,” at Americas Quarterly on March 12, 2019.

Download the podcast mp3 file directly

(Even more here)

March 20, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Rebekah Entralgo, “The Pentagon Can’t Explain Where $2.5 Billion in Border Wall Funding Is Coming From” (ThinkProgress, March 20, 2019).

Trump announced that in addition to diverting money from the military reconstruction budget, he would also take $2.5 billion from the Pentagon’s counter-drug funding. But as The Washington Post reported, the counter-drug account currently has less than $100 million in it

• Brittny Mejia, “This Agency Helped Catch ‘el Chapo.’ but Association With Ice Can Be a Headache” (The Los Angeles Times, March 20, 2019).

The confusion between the two branches is long running, and HSI has struggled with a “branding problem”

Brazil, Venezuela

• Franco Ordonez, “Trump Declares ‘We Can Go a Lot Tougher’ on Venezuela” (McClatchy News Service, March 20, 2019).

Bolsonaro also appeared to leave the door open to stronger measures when asked about the use of military force

Brazil

• Isaias Dalle, “‘Militias Are Involved in Drug Trafficking and Operate in Rio’s Wealthier Neighborhoods’” (Revista Fórum, RioOnWatch (Rio de Janeiro Brazil), March 20, 2019).

Thainã de Medeiros, a member of Coletivo Papo Reto—a favela-based media collective fighting against police brutality—reveals changes to how [off-duty vigilante police] militias are operating in Rio de Janeiro

• Anthony Faiola, “‘Shame’: As Bolsonaro Visits Trump, Some Brazilians Tweet Their Embarrassment” (The Washington Post, March 20, 2019).

Speaking on Fox News, Boslonaro made the polemic assertion that “the vast majority of immigrants do not have good intentions”

• Dom Phillips, “Brazilian Drug Gang Opens Fire on Convoy of Trucks Carrying Nuclear Fuel” (The Guardian (Uk), March 20, 2019).

The attack is the latest of several violent incidents in the area where Brazil has two nuclear reactors and has raised concerns about its nuclear security

Colombia

• Juan Esteban Lewin, “La Corte Define Que Tan Fuerte Va a Chocar Con el Uribismo” (La Silla Vacia (Colombia), March 20, 2019).

Habría una mayoría en la Corte para responderla, y decir que las objeciones son inviables y que el Congreso debe devolver el proyecto a Duque para que lo firme, incluyendo los seis artículos que objetó

Guatemala

• Jo-Marie Burt, “Another Proposal Threatens to Free Convicted War Criminals in Guatemala” (International Justice Monitor, Open Society Foundations, March 20, 2019).

Another initiative that is on Wednesday’s legislative agenda could have a similar effect as an amnesty, not only for war criminals, but for those accused of corruption

• Carlos Dada, “Una Ley de Reconciliacion Divide a Guatemala” (El Faro (El Salvador), March 20, 2019).

La llamada ley de reconciliación forma parte de lo que abogados y activistas de derechos humanos llaman el desmantelamiento de los avances judiciales de los últimos quince años

• Jose Elias, “Un Juez Guatemalteco Ordena la Captura de la Candidata Presidencial y Ex Fiscal General Thelma Aldana” (El Pais (Spain), March 20, 2019).

“Esto demuestra cómo en Guatemala se utilizan las instituciones para impedir mi participación política, pero no lo lograron”, enfatiza Aldana

Mexico

• Jose Gallego Espina, Lizbeth Diaz, “Asylum Seekers Returned From Mexico Plead to Stay in U.S.” (Reuters, Reuters, March 20, 2019).

Six Central American migrants who crossed from Tijuana through the San Ysidro port of entry had their cases heard at a San Diego courthouse in the program’s first day of hearings on Tuesday. All were told to return to Mexico

Nicaragua

• Octavio Enríquez, “Estados Unidos se Reune Con Socios para Presionar Mas a la Dictadura de Daniel Ortega” (La Prensa (Nicaragua), March 20, 2019).

La presión implicaría imponer más sanciones a la dictadura, entre ellos a “militares” que hayan participado directamente en la represión contra la ciudadanía

Venezuela

• David Luhnow, “Maduro Loses Grip on Venezuela’s Poor, a Vital Source of His Power” (The Wall Street Journal, March 20, 2019).

Support for Mr. Maduro among Venezuela’s poorest fifth of the population has gone from roughly 40% in early 2016 to 18% in February, according to Datanalisis

• Maria Victoria Murillo, “El Incierto Futuro de la Transicion Democratica Venezolana” (La Nacion (Argentina), March 20, 2019).

La idea de una intervención militar puede parecer beneficiosa al senador Marco Rubio (que busca consolidar el apoyo republicano en Florida), pero no parece estar siendo considerada seriamente por el gobierno estadounidense

• Frank O. Mora, “What a Military Intervention in Venezuela Would Look Like” (Foreign Affairs, March 20, 2019).

That would mean a major intervention, including both air strikes and the deployment of at least 150,000 ground troops

I’m working on deadlines and will be hard to reach today. (How to contact me)

I’ll be in the office this morning recording a new podcast. Then I’m going to head home, shut the door to my home office, and work on a list of things that are due soon: a talk I’m giving at NDU Friday, an op-ed I’m collaborating with a colleague on, setting up meetings on Capitol Hill next week and at the border in 3 weeks, and a memo about the border. We’ll see how much I get done; either way, my responses to queries will probably be delayed.

(Even more here)

March 19, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Molly o’toole, Sarah D. Wire, “Pentagon Discloses Military Projects in California That It Could Tap for Trump’s Wall” (The Los Angeles Times, March 19, 2019).

“Now that members of Congress can see the potential impact this proposal could have on projects in their home states, I hope they will take that into consideration before the vote to override the president’s veto”

• Chantal Da Silva, “Trump Administration Accused of Ignoring u.n. Human Rights Expert’s Request to Visit U.S.-Mexico Border” (Newsweek, March 19, 2019).

At least 22 requests from U.N. special rapporteurs have gone ignored by the Trump administration, with the last response from Trump officials having come in May 2018

• Julia Ainsley, “More Lawyers, Reporter Questioned at Border by U.S. Border Agents” (NBC News, March 19, 2019).

DHS officials have said there is no policy that targets lawyers and journalists, but they do have broad authority in who they choose to stop for screening

• Lisa Schlein, “Latin America Is World’s Deadliest Route for Migrants” (Voice of America, March 19, 2019).

International Organization for Migration spokesman, Joel Millman, says since February 1, 79 deaths have been reported along this route. He says this is nearly three times higher than the numbers reported in the Mediterranean

Brazil

• Deb Haaland, Joenia Wapichana, “Protecting Indigenous Lands Protects the Environment. Trump and Bolsonaro Threaten Both.” (The Washington Post, March 19, 2019).

Among the many parallels between their administrations, Bolsonaro and Trump are both taking extreme action to strip the hard-earned rights of indigenous peoples to the benefit of extractive industries and commercial farming

• Dom Phillips, “‘Same Rhetoric’: Bolsonaro’s Us Visit to Showcase Populist Alliance With Trump” (The Guardian (Uk), March 19, 2019).

Much of that rhetoric owes much to another star guest seated beside Bolsonaro at the “opinion formers” dinner: Olavo de Carvalho, a pipe-smoking rightwing Brazilian philosopher

• Ben Fox, “Brazilian President Bolsonaro Visits Cia During U.S. Trip” (Associated Press, Time, March 19, 2019).

Bolsonaro underscored the difference between his administration and that of former President Dilma Rousseff by stopping by CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, to discuss “international themes in the region,” according to his son

Colombia, Venezuela

• Christopher Torchia, “Colombia: 1,000 Venezuelan Forces Crossed Border Since Feb.” (Associated Press, The Washington Post, March 19, 2019).

Some deserters say their small military salaries were the only source of income for their families

Colombia

• “En el Catatumbo ‘Nos Dejaron Con la Burra Enflorada’” (La Opinión de Cúcuta, Verdad Abierta (Colombia), March 19, 2019).

“Hablar de sustitución en la región del Catatumbo se convirtió en un problema, porque prácticamente somos declarados objetivo militar”

Colombia, Venezuela

• Phil Stewart, “As Venezuela Crisis Deepens, U.S. Sharpens Focus on Colombia Rebel Threat” (Reuters, Reuters, March 19, 2019).

U.S. officials see a growing threat from both Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN) and factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) that refuse to adhere to a 2016 peace agreement

Colombia

• Tatiana Duque, “La Guerra Narco en Tumaco Ya Golpeo a los Lideres de Sustitucion” (La Silla Vacia (Colombia), March 19, 2019).

Al menos desde septiembre del año pasado, según una de las fuentes, Argemiro había dicho que tenía amenazas

• “Por Lo Menos 8 Menores de Edad Han Muerto por Confinamiento en Choco” (El Tiempo (Colombia), March 19, 2019).

Desde hace casi un mes, comunidades de tres zonas del Chocó viven en medio de las balas tras la creciente confrontación que sostienen el Eln y el ‘Clan del Golfo’ quienes se disputan el control territorial

El Salvador

• Jason Motlagh, “Inside el Salvador’s Battle With Violence, Poverty, and U.S. Policy” (National Geographic, March 19, 2019).

As migrants flee the decimated Central American nation, changes in the United States could send thousands back into the chaos

Guatemala

• Jo-Marie Burt, Paulo Estrada, “Amidst International Pressure, Guatemala Congress Does Not Pass Amnesty Bill, for Now” (International Justice Monitor, Open Society Foundations, March 19, 2019).

Despite the international rebuff of the amnesty bill, including a resolution by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights ordering Guatemala to withdraw the proposal, its supporters say they are not giving up

Mexico

• Fernanda Echavarri, “Teens Fleeing Central American Gangs Are Stuck at the Border—and Fear for Their Lives” (Mother Jones, March 19, 2019).

Some of the teens have been at this shelter, the Casa YMCA de Menores Migrantes (YMCA Home for Underage Migrants), for a couple of days, some more than three months

• Daniella Silva, “Officially, the Notebook Does Not Exist. But It’s the Key for Migrants to Get Into the U.S.” (NBC News, March 19, 2019).

“If I continue to stay here, I am going to be killed,” said a mother of two from Honduras, who spent two months waiting in Tijuana to cross into the U.S.

• Catherine E. Shoichet, “Investigators Are Scrambling to Solve a Mystery Just Miles From the Us-Mexico Border” (CNN, WTOP, March 19, 2019).

Authorities are investigating what they’ve said may be a mass kidnapping, and Mexico’s top leaders have offered several possible explanations in recent days

• Rafael Carranza, “Mexican Journalist Gunned Down at His Home Near Arizona-Mexico Border” (The Arizona Republic, March 19, 2019).

Reading from a local newspaper report on his show, Barroso chronicled how on Thursday evening a “pollero,” or smuggler, had assembled nearly a dozen migrants at a portion of outdated fencing in the middle of the city of San Luis Rio Colorado

Nicaragua

• “Estados Unidos “No Descarta” Ninguna Opcion en Nicaragua Como Con Venezuela” (EFE, La Prensa (Nicaragua), March 19, 2019).

Washington “no descarta ninguna otra opción”, entre ellas la militar, según declaró este lunes en Madrid el embajador Todd Robinson, enviado especial de Estados Unidos para Centroamérica

Peru

• Fiorella Montano, Monica Cuti, “Golpes, Bullying, Drogas y Licor en el Colegio Militar de Arequipa” (La Republica (Peru), March 19, 2019).

La República accedió a más de 70 testimonios escritos y verbales sobre estas irregularidades en el colegio militar Francisco Bolognesi. Incluso hay una denuncia por tocamientos indebidos en el Ministerio Publico

• Oscar Chumpitaz, “Narcos Usan via Maritima para Burlar Fuerte Control en el Vraem y el Huallaga” (La Republica (Peru), March 19, 2019).

Tienen hasta cinco nuevas rutas. Ya no optan por vuelos debido a que la PNP y las FFAA cuentan con mayor capacidad en las zonas de producción. A la fecha se han incautado siete toneladas de droga en diversos puertos de Áncash, La Libertad, Lambayeque y Piura

Venezuela

• Dion Nissenbaum, Jessica Donati, “Trump Administration Officials Clash Over Relief for Venezuelan Immigrants” (The Wall Street Journal, March 19, 2019).

Mr. Abrams favors offering a form of the Temporary Protected Status or Deferred Enforced Departure programs

• Juliana Gil Gutierrez, “El Camino de la Transicion Saldria de Venezuela” (El Colombiano (Medellin Colombia), March 19, 2019).

Carlos Vecchio, delegado del presidente interino Juan Guiadó ante Estados Unidos, entró a las sedes diplomáticas de su país en Nueva York para tomar control de estas oficinas

• Rafael Croda, “Los Contactos Entre Maduro y Guaido: Discretos y Funcionales” (Proceso (Mexico), March 19, 2019).

Es claro que, desde el momento en que Guaidó abordó el vuelo en Panamá, sabía que podría ingresar sin problemas a su país, tal como ocurrió a su llegada

I’ll be hard to reach in the afternoon. (How to contact me)

I’m guest-teaching a longtime colleague’s class at George Washington University today, talking about Colombia. Later, there’s a meeting of NGOs working on Colombia. Otherwise, I’ll be preparing my next border field-research trip, preparing a lecture I’m giving at the National Defense University Friday, drafting a memo about the border, and if there’s time (there won’t be), moving ahead on an article for a Latin American think-tank about current U.S. policy toward the region.

(Even more here)

March 18, 2019

Argentina

• Pablo Corso Heduan, “Destinan Mas de Us$ 600 Millones para el Ejercito en el Ano Electoral” (Perfil (Argentina), March 18, 2019).

Con la mira puesta en las elecciones de octubre, Mauricio Macri reforzó al Ejército con una millonaria inversión en equipamiento militar para la lucha contra el narcotráfico en el norte del país

Brazil, Venezuela

• “Brazilian Generals in Standing Contact With Their Venezuelan Counterparts, Reveals Defense Minister” (MercoPress, March 18, 2019).

The dialogue is held through military attaches both countries maintain in Brasilia and Caracas

Brazil

• “Sponsored by Us, Brazil Is to Become “a Major Non-Nato Ally”” (MercoPress, March 18, 2019).

Currently 17 countries have MNNA status. Brazil would become just the second Latin American country to join their ranks after Argentina, which received the designation in 1998

Colombia

• Alfredo Molano Jimeno, ““Estan Echando al Sifon la Institucionalidad y Ya Sabemos Eso a Donde Llega”: Sergio Jaramillo” (El Espectador (Colombia), March 18, 2019).

Hoy, ante la encrucijada institucional en que se encuentra el sistema de justicia transicional por la objeción presidencial a la ley estatutaria de la JEP, sale en defensa de lo pactado con las Farc

• “Colombia Dividida: Las Objeciones de Duque Agudizaron la Polarizacion” (Semana (Colombia), March 18, 2019).

La decisión del presidente de objetar parcialmente la ley estatutaria de la JEP ha aumentado la polarización y puede traerle consecuencias que no había dimensionado

• “Colombia’s President Puts a Fragile Peace Deal on Life Support” (Washington Office on Latin America, March 18, 2019).

The Ambassador’s statements are disappointing since it sends the wrong signal about consolidating peace in Colombia

Cuba, Venezuela

• Nicholas Casey, “‘It Is Unspeakable’: How Maduro Used Cuban Doctors to Coerce Venezuela Voters” (The New York Times, March 18, 2019).

16 members of Cuba’s medical missions to Venezuela — a signature element of relations between the two countries — described a system of deliberate political manipulation in which their services were wielded to secure votes

Honduras

• “Journalist Shot Dead in Southern Honduras” (Agence France Presse, Rappler.com, March 18, 2019).

Police says Leonardo Gabriel Hernandez, a TV reporter, was shot and wounded in the street and taken to a clinic, where he died

• “Despues de 39 Anos la Unidad Elite Cobra Paso a Ser Historia en la Policia Nacional” (El Heraldo (Honduras), March 18, 2019).

El lunes 4 de diciembre del año 2017 un numeroso grupo de agentes Cobras protagonizaron una manifestación de fusiles caídos, rehusándose a salir a las calles para dispersar las manifestaciones públicas

Mexico

• Angela Kocherga, “Thousands of Migrants Wait in Juarez” (The Albuquerque Journal, March 18, 2019).

The list is managed by Mexico’s immigration officials, and thousands – like O’Farrill – are now waiting in shelters or elsewhere in Juárez until their number is called

Central America Regional, Mexico

• Nick Miroff, “‘the Conveyor Belt’: U.S. Officials Say Massive Smuggling Effort Is Speeding Immigrants to — and Across — the Southern Border” (The Washington Post, March 18, 2019).

By using the direct-bus method, smugglers can eliminate the need for stash houses along the border where they would normally keep migrants under the watch of armed guards before sneaking them across the border

Mexico

• Jose Raul Linares, “De Amlo a las Fuerzas Armadas, Insolitos Premios” (Proceso (Mexico), March 18, 2019).

Especialistas en administración pública y en las Fuerzas Armadas advierten: en el arranque del nuevo gobierno, éste sigue sin aclarar las causas por las que otorgó al Ejército la atribución como constructor de infraestructura e incrementó su presupuesto

• “Amlo Da Mas Recursos al Ejercito Que Pena, Pero Reduce Presupuesto a Policias y Prisiones” (Animal Politico (Mexico), March 18, 2019).

Al comparar el cambio de 2018 a 2019, la reducción del presupuesto para Seguridad Nacional es de 14 %

• Valerie Gonzalez, “Special Report: ‘La Trampa’, a Trap Laid Out for Migrants in Reynosa” (KRGV (McAllen Texas), March 18, 2019).

“When I arrived they told me, ‘no, here in order to get out you have to pay $3,500 U.S. dollars. Ha! $3,500!” he says

• Fabiola Martinez, “La Jornada: Senala Sg Rezago de 15 Mil Solicitudes de Refugio” (La Jornada (Mexico), March 18, 2019).

En enero y febrero de 2019 se recibieron 7 mil 941 solicitudes, la mayoría de originarios de Honduras y Venezuela; le siguen El Salvador, Guatemala y Nicaragua. En ese bimestre se concluyó el procedimiento en favor de 497 personas

• Luciano Campos Garza, “Ocho Anos Despues, las Balaceras y Ejecuciones Regresan a Nuevo Leon” (Proceso (Mexico), March 18, 2019).

Los mismos capos que ocasionaron aquella espantosa escalada criminal, son los mismos que han regresado a recuperar el terreno que habían perdido durante estos años

• NoÉ Zavaleta, “El Cjng Declara la Guerra al Gobierno de Veracruz; “Nos Vamos a Morir Muchos”, Advierte” (Proceso (Mexico), March 18, 2019).

El Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) abrió un nuevo frente contra el gobierno de Cuitláhuac García Jiménez, en particular contra el secretario de Seguridad Pública, Hugo Gutiérrez Maldonado, tras colocar narcomantas

Nicaragua

• Juan Carlos Bow, “Brutal Represion Policial Deja 164 Detenidos” (Confidencial (Nicaragua), March 18, 2019).

Por primera vez, desde que hace cinco meses se impuso un estado de excepción de facto prohibiendo las marchas, los protestantes se manifestaron en las calles de Managua

Venezuela

• Nicholas Casey, “Venezuela Was Crumbling. A Blackout Tipped Parts of It Into Anarchy.” (The New York Times, March 18, 2019).

For days and nights, unruly crowds sacked 523 stores in Maracaibo as residents stood on their porches wielding weapons to guard against looters. Dozens died in hospitals

• Phil Gunson, “The Darkest Hours: Power Outages Raise the Temperature in Venezuela” (International Crisis Group, March 18, 2019).

Any power-sharing deal will be extremely hard for politicians on both sides to sell. Both have led their supporters to believe that a “winner-takes-all” solution is available

• Amanda Mars, ““Espana Es un Destino Logico para Miembros del Regimen Chavista”” (El Pais (Spain), March 18, 2019).

El veterano halcón Elliott Abrams, representante de EE UU para Venezuela, afirma en una entrevista con EL PAÍS que algunos cargos “tienen a sus familias y su dinero en el país y querrán reunirse con ellos”

I’ll be reachable in the afternoon. (How to contact me)

I’m recording an interview first thing in the morning for a radio show at Colombia’s National University. After that, I have more than 3 hours of internal meetings. (I should buy an extra memory-foam cushion for my chair, because I won’t be getting out of it until lunchtime.)

In the afternoon I’ll be in the office, scrambling to prepare a talk I’m giving to a class at GW University tomorrow, put together my next visit to the border three weeks from now, and finish an article for a Latin American publication that will soon be overdue.

Monday, March 18, 2019

• 12:00–1:30 at American University: Wartime Sexual Violence in El Salvador: the El Mozote Case (RSVP required).
• 12:00–1:30 at the Institute for Policy Studies: Brown Bag: Activists & Poets Against Walls.

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

• 8:30–11:00 at the Inter-American Dialogue: Buying Votes and Lining Pockets: Venezuela’s Petro-Diplomacy (RSVP required).
• 9:00–11:00 at the Wilson Center: Nicaraguan Tragedy: From Consensus to Coercion (RSVP required).

Wednesday, March 20, 2019

• 2:30–5:00 at the Wilson Center: The Aftermath of President Bolsonaro’s Visit to Washington and Prospects for Economic Reform (RSVP required).

Thursday, March 21, 2019

• 9:00–11:00 at the Wilson Center: Fostering Sustainable Tourism Development in Latin America (RSVP required).

Friday, March 22, 2019

• 9:00–6:00 at Georgetown University: Historical Political Economy of Mexico (RSVP required).
• 9:30–11:30 at USIP: Women Leading Nonviolent Movements (RSVP required).
• 10:30–12:30 at CSIS: Report Roll-out: Illicit Trade and the Haiti-Dominican Republic Border (RSVP required).

(Even more here)

March 15, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Erica Werner, John Wagner, Seung Min Kim, “Senate Votes to Reject Trump’s Emergency Declaration, Setting Up President’s First Veto” (The Washington Post, March 15, 2019).

The disapproval resolution passed the House last month, so the 59-to-41 Senate vote will send the measure to the president’s desk. Trump intends to use the first veto of his presidency

• Dan Spinelli, “Congress: Tell Us What the Border Emergency Is Doing to the Military. The Pentagon: Crickets.” (Mother Jones, March 15, 2019).

“I feel completely sandbagged. You’re going to send it to us today after the vote on the emergency declaration?”

• Ted Hesson, “Trump May Send Volunteer Force to Border” (Politico, March 15, 2019).

An administration official told POLITICO that the existing surge force could not be used for a border security mission because it draws on disaster relief funds

• Maria Sacchetti, Nick Miroff, “U.S. Weighs Plan to Phase Out Family Detention at Texas Facility, Despite Migration Surge” (The Washington Post, March 15, 2019).

Families held there would be issued notices to appear in immigration court and would then be released into the U.S. interior

Brazil

• “Bolsonaro Praises Brazilian Military as the Ultimate Arbiters of Democracy” (MercoPress, March 15, 2019).

“Democracy and liberty only exist when your armed forces want them to,” said Bolsonaro, himself a former army captain

• Ernesto Londono, “A Year After Her Execution, Marielle Franco Has Become a Rallying Cry in a Polarized Brazil” (The New York Times, March 15, 2019).

A year after her execution, the call for justice for Ms. Franco — a black, gay, feminist Rio de Janeiro city councilmember who was raised poor — has morphed into a rallying cry in a deeply-polarized nation

• Oliver Stuenkel, “What to Expect When Bolsonaro Meets Trump” (Americas Quarterly, March 15, 2019).

The anti-globalist, pro-Trump faction of the Bolsonaro administration, which includes his foreign minister, will clash with the more prudent generals, led by Vice President Hamilton Mourão, and the technocrats, represented by the Economy Minister Paulo Guedes and Justice Minister Sérgio Moro

Colombia

• Laura Dulce Romero, “Jep Escucho a los Militares Sobre el Uso de Armas No Convencionales por Parte de las Farc” (El Espectador (Colombia), March 15, 2019).

Por primera vez, magistrados y fiscales de la JEP acudieron a una instalación militar, la histórica base de Tolemaida, a recibir capacitación sobre cómo las Farc usaron minas antipersona y artefactos explosivos improvisados

• Juan Carlos Garzón, “Las Peleas y el Consenso en el Debate Sobre el Glifosato” (Fundacion Ideas para la Paz, El Espectador (Colombia), March 15, 2019).

La imagen del Estado para las comunidades no puede volver a ser una avioneta asperjando glifosato

• Juanita Velez, “Las Objeciones de Duque a la Jep Tumban los Animos de la Farc” (La Silla Vacia (Colombia), March 15, 2019).

Los nueve exguerrilleros entrevistados no habían manifestado un miedo tan real de que algunos de sus compañeros prefieran volver a las armas -ni cuando la Fiscalía capturó a Santrich-, especialmente por cuatro de las seis objeciones

• “Colombia’s President Ivan Duque Undermines a Peace Deal” (The Economist (Uk), March 15, 2019).

During his seven months in office, Mr Duque has tried to strike a balance between the hard line of his mentor, Álvaro Uribe, a former president who opposes the peace accord, and Colombians who want to preserve it. Now he seems to have backed Mr Uribe’s policy

• “Situation of Human Rights in Colombia” (UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Colombia Field Office, March 15, 2019).

Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Cuba

• Andrea Rodriguez, “Amid Crisis, Cuba Plans Revamp of State and Legal System” (Associated Press, Associated Press, March 15, 2019).

Cuban legal experts told The Associated Press that they expect the government to send the National Assembly between 60 and 80 new laws over the next two years to replace ones rendered obsolete by the new constitution

Guatemala, Peru

• Simone Dalmasso, “Los Procesos de Reconciliacion Historica: Una Comparacion Entre Peru y Guatemala” (Plaza Publica (Guatemala), March 15, 2019).

Los procesos de dignificación de las víctimas y reconciliación han sido abordados de manera diferente por los Estados

Guatemala

• “Us Suspends Some Military Aid to Guatemala Over Vehicle Use” (Associated Press, The Washington Post, March 15, 2019).

The U.S. Embassy said via text message that since August, Guatemala’s Interior Ministry “has repeatedly used (the vehicles) in an incorrect way”

• Sergio Morales Rodas, “Ee. Uu. Suspende Ayuda Militar a Guatemala por el “Uso Incorrecto” de Jeeps j8” (Prensa Libre (Guatemala), March 15, 2019).

Un vocero de la Embajada de EE. UU. en Guatemala confirmó que el Departamento de Defensa ha cesado, por ahora, la transferencia de equipos y la capacitación a las Fuerzas de Tarea debido al uso incorrecto de los jeeps J8

Mexico

• Arturo Angel, “Cambio el Gobierno, Pero Sedena Insiste en Ocultar Cifras de Civiles Muertos en Operativos” (Animal Politico (Mexico), March 15, 2019).

La dependencia no desglosó, como se había solicitado, el municipio o entidad en que tuvieron lugar dichos enfrentamientos, ni en qué año ocurrieron

• “Congreso Emite Constitucionalidad de la Guardia Nacional; La Envia a Amlo para su Promulgacion” (Animal Politico (Mexico), March 15, 2019).

La Cámara de Diputados y el Senado emitieron la declaratoria de constitucionalidad de la reforma en materia de Guardia Nacional, luego de que fue avalada por los 32 congresos locales

• Gabriela Sotomayor, “Osc Reprueban Gestion de Amlo en Materia de Derechos Humanos Ante la Onu” (Proceso (Mexico), March 15, 2019).

“Nos preocupa que tan sólo a 100 días de su gestión ya han sido asesinados 14 defensores de derechos humanos y periodistas”

• Kate Linthicum, “Mexico Launching Search for Migrants Pulled Off Bus by Gunmen Near the U.S. Border” (The Los Angeles Times, March 15, 2019).

The two cases highlight the risks faced by Central American migrants in Mexico, where criminal groups have diversified well beyond drug trafficking and now help smuggle migrants north and sometimes extort or kidnap them

• Leon Krauze, “Mexico’s President Is Waging a Trumpian War on the Press” (Slate, March 15, 2019).

That he has fallen prey to his worst populist impulses bodes ill for his presidency, and for the country he governs

Venezuela

• Barbara Arvanitidis, Caitlin Hu, Diana Castrillon, Evan Perez, Natalie Gallon, Nick Paton Walsh, “The August Plot to Kill Maduro With Drones” (CNN, March 15, 2019).

In an exclusive interview with CNN, he recounted how they prepared for the attack, and provided cell phone videos of their drones, explosives, and practice flights in the rural farmlands of Colombia

• Christian Lowe, Rinat Sagdiev, “How Russia Sank Billions of Dollars Into Venezuelan Quicksand” (Reuters, March 15, 2019).

Russian oil company Rosneft spent a fortune on joint ventures in Venezuela even though it suspected it was losing out on millions of dollars, documents show. It continued investing, sources say, because the Kremlin wanted to support its ally

• Mariana Zuniga, Mary Beth Sheridan, “Maduro’s Muscle: Politically Backed Motorcycle Gangs Known as ‘Colectivos’ Are the Enforcers for Venezuela’s Authoritarian Leader” (The Washington Post, March 15, 2019).

“I call on the colectivos; the hour of resistance has arrived, active resistance in the community,” Maduro declared in the speech on Monday

I’m out in the early afternoon. (How to contact me)

Other than lunch with a longtime colleague in Congress, I’m in the office with a long to-do list, as I haven’t been able to do as much writing this week as I’d hoped. I’m also going back to the border in just over 3 weeks, and need to start setting that up.

(Even more here)

March 14, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Li Zhou, “If Congress Votes to Block Trump’s Emergency, It Could Be Used Against Him in Court” (Vox, March 14, 2019).

The Senate is expected to vote Thursday on the resolution to terminate the emergency. It’s a move set to have far-reaching political and legal implications

• Rafael Carranza, “Trump Will Visit the U.S.-Mexico Border in Three Weeks to Tout Border-Wall Construction” (USA Today, March 14, 2019).

Details about the trip – his fifth to the southwestern U.S. border as president – are still unclear

• Erica Werner, John Wagner, Seung Min Kim, “Senate on cusp of passing rebuke to Trump on national emergency declaration” (The Washington Post, March 14, 2019).

GOP Sen. Mike Lee says he will vote for a disapproval resolution after Trump shot down Lee’s proposed compromise

• “Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2018” (U.S. Department of State, March 14, 2019).

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• , Adolfo Flores, Hamed Aleaziz, “Ice Can Access Hundreds of Millions of License Plate Scans to Follow Immigrants, These Documents Show” (BuzzFeed, March 14, 2019).

Through these databases ICE has access to a large amount of data without having to get a warrant or a strong basis for searching for someone’s license plate

• Adam Isacson, Adeline Hite, “President Trump’s 2020 Budget Request Proposes a Dark but Unlikely Future for Aid to Latin America” (Washington Office on Latin America, March 14, 2019).

While this budget request is “dead on arrival” in Congress, we should still pay attention to it. It illustrates the Trump administration’s dark, reactive, and uncreative posture

Brazil, Venezuela

• Andres Schipani, “Brazil Seeks Negotiated Exit for Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro” (The Financial Times (UK), March 14, 2019).

Gen Mourão is a member of the pragmatic faction that shares power with technocrats and ideologues in the Brazilian government. He has often contradicted Mr Bolsonaro’s outspoken sons and Ernesto Araújo, the conservative foreign minister, who want a tougher stance

Brazil

• Jill Langlois, “Who Ordered the Assassination of Marielle Franco? A Year After Her Death, Brazil Still Grieves” (The Los Angeles Times, March 14, 2019).

Police have arrested two former military police officers suspected of being involved in the shootings, but have yet to discover who ordered the assassination of the outspoken politician

• Tom Phillips, “Bolsonaro Paramilitary Ties in Spotlight After Photo With Murder Suspect” (The Guardian (Uk), March 14, 2019).

A photograph of Brazil’s president with a suspect in the murder of Rio councillor Marielle Franco has raised disturbing questions

Colombia

• Gerardo Quintero, “Maria Angela Salazar: La Victima del Conflicto Que Buscara la Verdad” (El Espectador (Colombia), March 14, 2019).

Esta chocoana es la Comisionada de la Verdad para el Pacífico y desde su trabajo social de décadas se encargará de escuchar a las víctimas de la guerra en esa región del país. Abanderada de la defensa de las mujeres, María Ángela conoce en carne propia el desastre del conflicto

• “El Golpe Fulminante de la Corte a una de las Objeciones del Presidente Duque” (Semana (Colombia), March 14, 2019).

Fueron seis objeciones las que presentó el Gobierno y la Corte Constitucional acaba de fallar de fondo en uno de los temas: la JEP sí podrá decretar pruebas. Artículo sobre tribunal especial para militares se cayó

• ““Duque se Quita la Mascara y se Va de Frente Contra el Proceso de Paz”: Sergio Jaramillo” (Caracol (Colombia), March 14, 2019).

“Piense en los hombres y mujeres que están haciendo su proceso de reincorporación en las regiones y están mirando este espectáculo. Piense en los riesgos de seguridad nacional. Es una enorme irresponsabilidad del gobierno nacional”

• Daniela Callejas Delgado, “Hacer Politica en Colombia Sigue Siendo una Actividad de Alto Riesgo” (El Espectador (Colombia), March 14, 2019).

Desde el 27 de octubre de 2018 hasta el 25 de febrero de este año, la Misión de Observación Electoral (MOE) reportó 107 líderes políticos, sociales y/o comunales que han sido víctimas de violencia en todo el territorio

• “Grupos Armados Tienen Confinado a un Resguardo Indigena en Choco” (Semana (Colombia), March 14, 2019).

Cinco niños han muerto por falta de atención médica debido a enfrentamientos entre el ELN y el Clan del Golfo. 5.000 personas no tienen cómo salir de un campo minado y la alimentación escasea

Guatemala

• Senator Patrick Leahy, “Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy on Justice in Guatemala” (U.S. Senate, March 14, 2019).

It that happens, the Guatemalan government will join other pariah governments that fail to uphold their most sacred obligation to provide security and justice for their citizens

Mexico

• Emily Green, “Mexican Officials Are Extorting Thousands of Dollars From Migrants Applying for Asylum” (VICE, March 14, 2019).

Tony told them that if they didn’t pay, he would take their passports and rip up their paperwork showing they could legally be in Mexico. Tony demanded $250 per person, which amounted to $1,250 for the group of five.

• Gloria Leticia DÍaz, “Ejercito Oculto Videos Relacionados Con el Normalista-Soldado: Representantes de los 43” (Proceso (Mexico), March 14, 2019).

Los videos que exhiben una supuesta relación laboral entre el estudiante desaparecido Julio César López Patolzin y la institución castrense, “nunca fueron brindados” por la Sedena a la Procuraduría General de la República

• “Marinos Dispararon Desde Helicoptero y Luego Omitieron Auxiliar a Familia Agredida, Confirmo Cndh” (Animal Politico (Mexico), March 14, 2019).

Elementos de la Secretaría de Marina (SEMAR) hicieron uso arbitrario de la fuerza contra una familia cuando dispararon desde un helicóptero en marzo de 2018 en Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, determinó una investigación de la Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos

• “Guardia Nacional, Lista para Ser Declarada Constitucional: La Avalaron los 32 Congresos Locales” (SinEmbargo (Mexico), March 14, 2019).

Con la aprobación de Michoacán y Yucatán, la minuta será enviada a la Cámara de Diputados, donde las y los funcionarios emitirán la declaratoria de constitucionalidad

• “Amlo Pide Informacion a Eeuu y Centroamerica por el Caso de 22 Migrantes Desaparecidos en el Norte de Mexico” (Univision, March 14, 2019).

El presidente López Obrador aseguró en conferencia de prensa que los 22 pasajeros desaparecidos –y no 19 como se había informado inicialmente– son migrantes centroamericanos y podrían haber cruzado la frontera con Estados Unidos

• “Militares Rescatan a un Grupo de 34 Migrantes Centroamericanos en Altamira, Tamaulipas” (SinEmbargo (Mexico), March 14, 2019).

En total, 8 guatemaltecos, 25 hondureños y un salvadoreño fueron hallados en una casa de esa localidad durante el operativo, que no dejó detenidos porque los vigilantes huyeron

• “En los Primeros Cien Dias de Gobierno se Ha Intensificado la Intolerancia a la Critica y al Discurso Disidente” (Article 19 (Mexico), March 14, 2019).

ARTICLE 19 exige al Presidente de la República que se abstenga de emitir declaraciones que descalifiquen o estigmaticen a la prensa y que la ubiquen en una posición de mayor vulnerabilidad en donde puedan ser víctimas de amenazas en el ámbito digital y físico

Venezuela

• “Beijing Offers to Help Venezuela Restore Its Power Grid” (MercoPress, March 14, 2019).

“China hopes that the Venezuelan side can discover the reason for this issue as soon as possible and resume normal power supply and social order. China is willing to provide help and technical support to restore Venezuela’s power grid”

• Javier Liendo, “The Human Network That Saved a Man From Prison” (Caracas Chronicles, March 14, 2019).

When he was effectively missing, the human network he’d woven for years got to work

• Francesco Manetto, ““Hay Mucho Miedo en las Fuerzas Armadas, Mucha Persecucion”” (El Pais (Spain), March 14, 2019).

El presidente del Parlamento venezolano, reconocido como mandatario interino por más de 50 Gobiernos, asegura que todas las opciones para desalojar a Maduro están abiertas

• Luz Mely Reyes, “Ser Periodista en Tiempos de Maduro” (Efecto Cocuyo, The New York Times, March 14, 2019).

Si las noticias son, como se ha dicho, el primer borrador de la historia, el periodismo en Venezuela, uno de los pocos bastiones que quedan de la vida democrática del país, ha sido fundamental para escribir la primera historia del chavismo

I’ll be around in the morning. (How to contact me)

I’ll be in the office this morning, running a bit late finishing a memo about Colombia and an article about U.S. security relations with the whole region. In the afternoon I’m on a call with border groups, meeting with a grad student working on Colombia, and meeting with a philanthropist about Colombia. I may be hard to contact in the afternoon.

The Trump White House sent Congress its 2020 foreign aid request on Monday, and boy is it grim. It’s never going to become law—the steep cuts it proposes will be opposed by both Republicans and Democrats. But it’s still terrifying to see such destructive radicalism coming from an entire branch of the U.S. government.

Adeline Hite and I wrote an overview of the highlights for Latin America, with some colorful charts like this one. We just posted it to WOLA’s website, so go read it there.

This makes three podcasts in three weeks. I can’t believe it, either. Here’s the latest (which you can download directly here):

An update from Cristian Schlick of El Salvador’s IDHUCA

El Salvador is inaugurating a new president amid a severe security crisis. Tens of thousands of Salvadorans are abandoning their homes each year—most displacing internally and many moving to other countries—due to gang violence. Despite incipient recent reform efforts, government institutions have been either too absent or too corrupt to protect people.

This podcast features Cristian Schlick, a lawyer with the Human Rights Institute of the Central American University (IDHUCA) in El Salvador. He will be speaking at an event on “Violence and Hardline Citizen Security in El Salvador,” hosted by WOLA and the Due Process of Law Foundation, this Thursday March 14 at 4:30PM.

(Even more here)

March 13, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Otaviano Canuto, “How Chinese Investment in Latin America Is Changing” (Americas Quarterly, March 13, 2019).

China’s development lending to Latin America and the Caribbean has been larger than lending from the World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and CAF Development Bank of Latin America combined

Brazil

• Ernesto Londono, Lis Moriconi, “Ex-Officers Arrested in Killing of Marielle Franco, Brazilian Politician and Activist” (The New York Times, March 13, 2019).

Officials have yet to outline a motive for the killing or identify the person or people who ordered it

• Dom Phillips, “Brazil: Two Ex-Police Officers Arrested Over Murder of Marielle Franco” (The Guardian (Uk), March 13, 2019).

Investigators said Lessa fired the shots that killed Franco and Gomes on 14 March last year, on the north side of Rio. Queiroz drove the car that ambushed them

Colombia

• Ariel Ávila, “La Destruccion en Escenas” (El Pais (Cali Colombia), March 13, 2019).

Los ganadores fueron una serie de civiles, políticos y empresarios, que en lo fundamental se quedaron con la mayoría de los seis millones de hectáreas despojadas a campesinos y utilizaron los grupos armados ilegales como un mecanismo de competencia política

• “Tres Escenarios Esperan a la Ley Estatutaria de la Jep en el Congreso” (El Tiempo (Colombia), March 13, 2019).

Que el Legislativo rechace las objeciones, que las acepte o que la ley se archive

• Angelica Duran Martinez, “¿Quien Tiene Razon en el Debate Sobre el Glifosato?” (Razon Publica (Colombia), March 13, 2019).

La visión que tiene el Gobierno sobre los cultivos ilícitos es sumamente simplista y moralista, pues como han demostrado varios estudios de gobierno anteriores, los cultivos son producto de una compleja combinación de factores

Cuba, Venezuela

• Bryan Lowry, Franco Ordonez, Lindsay Wise, “Trump Seeks to Slash Democracy Funds for Venezuela, Cuba” (McClatchy News Service, March 13, 2019).

Trump is proposing a 40 percent cut to funds that promote democracy and human rights in Venezuela at the same time that he and Vice President Mike Pence make promises to stick by the Venezuelan people

Guatemala

• “Guatemala Congress Must Not Pass “Amnesty” Bill for Rights Violations, Say un Experts” (UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, March 13, 2019).

The approval of these reforms would seriously affect victims’ rights to justice, truth, reparation and guarantees of non-repetition. It could also lead to reprisals and attacks against victims, judges, prosecutors, lawyers, plaintiffs, witnesses, experts and others involved in human rights trials

• Jo-Marie Burt, “Why War Criminals Could Walk Free in Guatemala” (Americas Quarterly, March 13, 2019).

This is not a recipe for reconciliation; it is a path to disaster for Guatemala and the region

Honduras

• “Aplican Justicia a Medias a Militares Que Violaron Derechos en Choluteca en Protestas del Fraude” (Criterio (Honduras), March 13, 2019).

La noche del 17 de diciembre de 2017, personas de diferentes barrios y colonias de la ciudad de Choluteca salieron a protestar a inmediaciones del bulevar salida a San Marcos de Colón, donde llegó un contingente integrado por al menos 50 militares disparando a bala viva

Mexico

• Arturo Angel, “Con Pena Aumento la Letalidad en Operativos de la Marina: Por Cada Herido Hubo 20 Muertos” (Animal Politico (Mexico), March 13, 2019).

De 2012 a 2019, la proporción es de 23 presuntos infractores muertos por cada lesionado, al enfrentarse con la Marina

• David Agren, “Jobs, Roads and Schools: Mexico’s New President Makes a Play for el Chapo’s Homeland” (The Guardian (Uk), March 13, 2019).

In many corners of Mexico, ordinary people often see crime bosses as less predatory than state governors and congressmen

• Amna Nawaz, “At U.S.-Mexico Border, Migrants Seeking Legal Entry Are Stranded in Hazardous ‘Limbo’” (PBS NewsHour, March 13, 2019).

This is a line of more than 250 families, over 1,000-people-long, sheltered under blue tarps during hot days and sleeping on a freezing sidewalk overnight. Many have been here for months

• Julia Ainsley, “U.S. Has Turned Back 240 Asylum-Seekers Under Remain in Mexico Policy” (NBC News, March 13, 2019).

The policy began at the San Ysidro port of entry, near Tijuana, but has expanded within the last week to include migrants crossing at additional ports of entry in the San Diego sector and at the Calexico, California, port of entry

• Jorge G. Castaneda, “Amlo’s First 100 Days: The Ugly, the Absurd and the Good” (The New York Times, March 13, 2019).

Mr. López Obrador is filling Supreme Court vacancies with his supporters, and the political opposition is in complete disarray. The only opposition exists in the markets and the punditocracy

• “El Gobierno Congela 17 Cuentas Ligadas al Cartel de Santa Rosa, Dice Alfonso Durazo en Informe” (SinEmbargo (Mexico), March 13, 2019).

Destacó que la inseguridad ha dejado de ser atendida con el uso de la fuerza y el autoritarismo como estrategia principal

Venezuela

• Juan Forero, Maolis Castro, “Desperate Looters Ravage Power-Starved Western Venezuela” (The Wall Street Journal, March 13, 2019).

The regime responded to the deepening crisis by ordering the arrest of a prominent Venezuelan journalist, while calling on its violent allies, the paramilitary colectivos, to be on guard

• Anatoly Kurmanaev, “Venezuela, Seeking Blame for Blackout, Finds Culprit in Opposition Leader” (The New York Times, March 13, 2019).

The detention of Mr. Díaz has jolted Venezuelan civil society. Some called it President Nicolás Maduro’s most brazen attempt yet to scapegoat critics for the blackout

• David Smilde, Geoff Ramsey, “How Congress Can Advance Non-Violent, Democratic Solutions to the Venezuela Crisis” (Washington Office on Latin America, March 13, 2019).

The only viable path out of this crisis is a multilateral process that leads to free and fair elections, in which Venezuelans can choose their leaders. This must include a multilateral plan to address the humanitarian emergency on the ground without instigating armed conflict

• Elliott Abrams, Robert Palladino, “Department Press Briefing – March 12, 2019” (U.S. Department of State, March 13, 2019).

Are you going in – is this Saigon ’75?

• David E. Sanger, Edward Wong, “U.S. Runs Low on Options to Oust Venezuelan Ruler” (The New York Times, March 13, 2019).

The move to vacate the United States Embassy in Caracas was a significant setback for the Trump administration. American officials had previously vowed to keep diplomats in Venezuela to legitimize Juan Guaidó