Action Center - Latin America Working Group

Cuba on the Front Page

by Mavis Anderson and Paulo Gusmao on March 30, 2009

The nation’s policymakers woke up to this on the front page of the Washington Post:

Momentum Grows for Relaxing Cuba Policy, by Shailagh Murray and Karen DeYoung

Here is a snippet of the article:

At a Capitol Hill news conference scheduled for tomorrow, a wide array of senators and interest groups -- including Senate Democratic Policy Committee Chairman Byron L. Dorgan (N.D.); Banking Committee Chairman Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.); Richard G. Lugar (Ind.), the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; and Human Rights Watch -- will rally around a potentially historic bill to lift the travel ban.

:Blog Posts, Cuba, Mavis Anderson, Paulo Gusmao

Shooting the Messengers

by Travis Wheeler and Lisa Haugaard on March 26, 2009

Speaking to reporters after a local “security council” meeting in Norte de Santander earlier this week, President Uribe claimed that only 22 of the many hundreds of cases of “false positives” civilian killings by the Colombian army in recent years have any “judicial foundation.”

:, Blog Posts, Lisa Haugaard

U.S.-Cuba Cultural Exchange Letter and Interviews

by Mavis Anderson and Paulo Gusmao on March 12, 2009

Last week the U.S.-Cuba Cultural Exchange released a letter from over 900 U.S. artists, arts presenters, arts educators and cultural scholars in support of cultural relations with Cuba and “travel for all.”

:2009, Cuba, Mavis Anderson, Paulo Gusmao

An Op-Ed to Lift Travel Restrictions

by Jeanne Lemkau on March 24, 2009

From Ethelbert Miller's E-Notes blog on Tuesday February 25, 2009

At Ethelbert’s suggestion, I would like to invite readers to consider joining an initiative I am coordinating to help pass legislation to assure the legal right of all U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba. With Obama in the White House, the chances of success in this endeavor are better than they have been in years. But energy and passion are needed to get us there.

:Cuba

Respond, Yes, But Only the Right Way: The U.S. Debates Drug Cartel Violence in Mexico

by Lisa Haugaard on March 11, 2009

Day after day we hear nightmarish stories of gangland slayings in Mexico, as drug-related violence expands, affecting the lives of countless families and communities across Mexico, as well as the U.S-Mexico border region. Mexico’s Attorney General estimates that rival drug cartels killed 6,262 people in 2008.

:Blog Posts, Lisa Haugaard

Colombia's Victims' Rights Act

by Adam Isacson on March 17, 2009

Here's a guest blog from LAWG colleague Adam Isacson at the Center for International Policy on the debate surrounding Colombia's victims' law. Colombia needs a strong, fair law on victims rights and meaningful reparations.

:Blog Posts, Colombia

Colombian Civil Society Leaders Go to Washington

by Travis Wheeler and Lisa Haugaard on March 03, 2009

Last week, Colombian Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos visited Washington, DC to meet with lawmakers and top Obama Administration officials, including Sec. of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Sec. Robert Gates, and National Security Adviser Gen. James Jones.

:, Blog Posts, Lisa Haugaard