(Even more here)

April 30, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Debbie Nathan, “Border Patrol in New Mexico Stood by as Right-Wing Militia Terrorized Migrants” (The Appeal, April 30, 2019).

Benvie and armed men in camouflage then remain on the scene with Border Patrol agents as they begin to process the migrants

• Daniel Gonzalez, “While Shelter Beds in Phoenix Go Empty, Groups Wonder Why Border Patrol Overwhelms Yuma” (The Arizona Republic, April 30, 2019).

At the end of March, the arrangement suddenly changed when the Border Patrol apparently began transferring fewer migrant families to ICE custody and instead began releasing large numbers of migrant families in Yuma

• Doug Cassel, “Human Rights, Diplomatic Wrongs” (Harvard International Law Journal, April 30, 2019).

In December 2018, Cruz, Lee and seven other anti-abortion Senators asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to cut off all US funding of the Commission, because of its support for women’s reproductive rights

• Felicia Sonmez, Maria Sacchetti, Nick Miroff, “Trump Tightens Asylum Rules, Will Make Immigrants Pay Fees to Seek Humanitarian Refuge” (The Washington Post, April 30, 2019).

Trump in recent weeks has increasingly mocked asylum seekers as fraudsters trying to game the system by making up stories about their hardships and fears of return to their native lands

Colombia

• Angela Maria Silva Aparicio, Juan Carlos Garzon Vergara, “Trump tightens asylum rules, will make immigrants pay fees to seek humanitarian refuge” (The Washington Post, April 30, 2019).

The move is an attempt to address one of the most confounding aspects of the surge of Central American migrants — families seeking safe passage using long-standing protections

• “Tras Polemica Votacion, Discusion de Objeciones Continua el Miercoles” (El Tiempo (Colombia), April 30, 2019).

A esta hora no se sabe a ciencia cierta qué pasará con esa votación, clave para definir las reglas de Juego con las que arranca en firme la JEP y habrá que esperar hasta el miércoles qué sucede

Mexico

• Arturo Angel, “Guardia Nacional Ya Opera Con Militares, Pero Con una Regulacion Incompleta” (Animal Politico (Mexico), April 30, 2019).

Al carecer de una ley propia, de requisitos definidos de reclutamiento y, por ende, de elementos propios formados y capacitados, su despliegue solo puede llevarse a cabo con militares transferidos

• Israel Davila, “Preparan Alerta por Desapariciones de Mujeres y Ninas en el Edomex” (La Jornada (Mexico), April 30, 2019).

El 25 de julio del año pasado se entregó la solicitud de la segunda alerta para los municipios referidos, donde el delito de desaparición forzada se ha disparado en años recientes y las autoridades no han enfrentado el problema

• Kevin Sieff, “Why Is Mexican Migration Slowing While Guatemalan and Honduran Migration Is Surging?” (The Washington Post, April 30, 2019).

Migration from Mexico has dropped 90 percent over the past 20 years; this year, for the first time ever, Guatemala and Honduras are on pace to surpass it

• Kate Morrissey, “One Year After Notebook Appears in Tijuana, Confusion and Anxiety Continue in Asylum Line” (The San Diego Union-Tribune, April 30, 2019).

Yards from their intended destination, after long and dangerous journeys to the border, they find themselves stuck in a de facto system not officially recognized by either the United States or Mexico

• David Agren, “Mexico: President Amlo’s Criticism Sparks Death Threats to Newspaper” (The Guardian (Uk), April 30, 2019).

The story listed López Obrador’s address. It was in the public domain anyway but the president publicly complained and an onslaught of threats and harassment followed against Reforma’s editor

Venezuela

• Luke Taylor, “Venezuelan President Maduro Often Uses ‘Colectivos’ Rather Than Military to Maintain Order” (PRI’s The World, USA Today, April 30, 2019).

Colectivos run entire apartment blocks and neighborhoods as criminal empires

• Nicholas Casey, “Juan Guaido Calls for Military Uprising in Venezuela” (The New York Times, April 30, 2019).

The appearance of Mr. Guaidó and Mr. López, with the apparent support of some national guards officers, prompted immediate rumors in Caracas that the armed forces could be shifting loyalties

• Nicholas Casey, “Venezuelan Opposition Leader Steps Up Pressure, but Maduro Holds On” (The New York Times, April 30, 2019).

While the highest ranks of the military dig into their support for Mr. Maduro’s government, many rank-and-file soldiers appear willing to defy their commanders and come to the aid of the opposition

• Tom Phillips, “Venezuela Crisis: Maduro Claims Victory Over ‘Deranged’ Coup Attempt” (The Guardian (Uk), April 30, 2019).

Bolton named three senior officials who he said had been negotiating with the opposition and accepted that the president had to be replaced

• Aram Roston, Matt Spetalnick, “Blackwater Founder’s Latest Sales Pitch: Mercenaries for Venezuela” (Reuters, Reuters, April 30, 2019).

Erik Prince – the founder of the controversial private security firm Blackwater and a prominent supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump – has been pushing a plan to deploy a private army to help topple Venezuela’s socialist president, Nicolas Maduro

• Alan Pyke, “Rick Scott Calls for U.S. Military Intervention in Venezuela” (ThinkProgress, April 30, 2019).

Not everyone in public office here has been so openly itchy for injecting U.S. troops into the troubled nation’s constitutional crisis