LAWG Blog - Latin America Working Group

Sobering Facts: Colombia’s Displacement Crisis in 2010

by Mariel Perez on April 25, 2011

Last year, 280,041 Colombian civilians were forced to leave their homes, fleeing from the extreme violence of Colombia’s decades-long conflict. This statistic is the centerpiece of a February Spanish-language report published by the Colombian human rights NGO CODHES, a group that has worked tirelessly for nearly two decades to shed light on the human rights crisis in Colombia. As CODHES’ report highlights, almost 33 percent of displaced civilians are forced to flee from zones that are a focus of “territorial consolidation,” the signature program of the Uribe administration that aimed to set up military control of areas of the countryside while also, at least in theory, expanding civilian government institutions.

:2011, Blog Posts, Colombia, Guest

Cuba Travel Guidelines

by Paulo Gusmao on April 22, 2011

We’ve all been chomping at the bit waiting for the final piece of the new travel regulations puzzle: the Treasury Department guidelines. The guidelines were issued on Thursday, April 21. Now we have the full picture; let the travel begin.

:2011, Action Alerts

Silencing Democracy: Threats Against Honduran Community Radio

by Alex Gordon on April 21, 2011

:2011, Blog Posts, Guest, Honduras

The Spirit of Perseverance

by Emily Chow on April 20, 2011

This past March in the Rayburn Foyer Room, here on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, images and stories of Haitians were exhibited as a “commemorative piece that captures the ongoing plight of Haitians, their spirit of perseverance, and how grassroots and other civil society leaders are striving to create a more equitable Haiti."

By Ezra Millstein

As Church World Service reported, this exhibit was promoted in conjunction with “Haiti Advocacy Days” in which 50 civil society leaders from Haiti, the Haitian diaspora and U.S. humanitarian agencies came to DC to meet with officials in the U.S. State Department, Obama Administration and U.S. Congress.

By Ben Depp

This exhibit was sponsored by the Haiti Advocacy Working Group (HAWG) which was formed shortly after the devastating January 12th, 2010 earthquake to coordinate advocacy efforts for effective and just disaster relief, reconstruction and long term U.S. development policy toward Haiti.

By Elizabeth Whelan

View more photos and read stories from the catalogue here.

:2011, Being Better Neighbors towards Latin America, Emily Chow, Haiti, Publications

Communities in Danger: Urgent Action Needed!

by Lisa Haugaard and Vanessa Kritzer on April 19, 2011

Many of the communities living in the Curvaradó and Jiguamiandó river basins in Colombia’s northwest Urabá region have come under great threat this past week.

Will you send a message to the Colombian government today to ask for their protection?

:2011, Action Alerts