Latin American Security & Strategic Review
Security & Strategic Review - December 2020
Click here for full report
- Central America demands ‘climate justice’ as hurricane season hits
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- COLOMBIA: Entrapment scandal puts peace process at risk
- VENEZUELA: Human rights debate reaches international stage
- PERU: Struggle for land drives indigenous murders
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- BRAZIL: Political violence on the rise
- BRAZIL: Concerns grow over press freedom
- CHILE: No end in sight to public protests
- PARAGUAY: Grappling with cocaine
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: ‘El Padrino’ case marks unprecedented test for security cooperation with US
- MEXICO: Money laundering risks remain high
CENTRAL AMERICA
- HONDURAS: Counting the costs of pandemic-related corruption
- REGION: Biden victory fans expectations
CARIBBEAN
- BELIZE: The PUP roars back
Still reeling from the impact of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, Central America is now facing further devastation following the recent passage of hurricanes ‘Eta’ and ‘Iota’ in what has been the most active Atlantic hurricane season in recorded history - a phenomenon linked to climate change.
Security & Strategic Review - November 2020
Click here for full report
- Argentina’s strong stance against new IDB president
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- REGION: Environmental defenders seek international action
- PERU: Vizcarra bogged down in corruption claims
- COLOMBIA: Growing concern over judicial independence
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- BRAZIL: PCC finances targeted in apparent change of strategy
- BRAZIL: Bioterrorism or brushing?
- PARAGUAY: Changing tack on marijuana?
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: Dealing with a multidimensional water conflict
- MEXICO: Syndemic concerns multiply
- MEXICO: Facing accusations of pursuing ‘tax terrorism’
CENTRAL AMERICA
- EL SALVADOR: Steps forward and back in addressing civil war impunity
- NICARAGUA: Opposition decries new wave of repression
- GUATEMALA: The cost of inadequate nutrition
CARIBBEAN
- REGION: Disaster-hit Caribbean moves up US agenda
For the first time in the 60-year history of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the institution is now led by a US citizen, breaking the unwritten rule that its president be from a Latin American country.
Security & Strategic Review - October 2020
Click here for full report
- Where next for Brazil’s Lava Jato investigation?
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- COLOMBIA: Popular protests revive police reform debate
- VENEZUELA: War on drugs takes on a political edge
- BOLIVIA: Disinformation campaign prompts election concerns
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- PARAGUAY: EPP guerrilla group causes trouble
- ARGENTINA: Dealing with oil theft
- CHILE: Reckoning over police violence continues
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: Extrajudicial killing reveals failure to reform security policy
- MEXICO: Upping the ante on money laundering?
- MEXICO: Seeking new ways to fight obesity
CENTRAL AMERICA
- REGION: Using the pandemic to roll back freedom of expression
- GUATEMALA: Eviction of indigenous families reignites familiar concerns
- COSTA RICA: Raids expose illegal gold mining network
CARIBBEAN
- BELIZE: PUP looking to break UDP’s three-term winning streak
- SURINAME-GUYANA: Mixed reactions to historic Pompeo visit
Brazil’s ‘Lava Jato’ (Car Wash) investigation faces an uncertain future.
Security & Strategic Review - September 2020
Click here for full report
- Galápagos dispute drives diplomatic tensions
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- BOLIVIA: Protest response provokes human rights concerns
- REGION: Eradication figures dominate counter-drug debate
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- CHILE: Renewed Mapuche conflict raises fresh concerns
- BRAZIL: New intelligence body prompts questions
- BRAZIL: Sending the army to the Amazon
- ARGENTINA: Large cash seizures puzzle authorities
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: Pandemic puts treatment of Mexicans in Canada in the spotlight
- MEXICO: Romanian skimmers settle in the Riviera Maya
- MEXICO: Challenge of ensuring transparent electoral campaigning begins
CENTRAL AMERICA
- HONDURAS: A worsening situation for human rights defenders
- EL SALVADOR: Transparency concerns mount over pandemic response
- NICARAGUA: Drug money seizures raises eyebrows
CARIBBEAN
- HAITI: Moïse under fresh international pressure to address impunity
- JAMAICA: JLP looks to extend its run
- TRINIDAD-SURINAME-GUYANA: Stability at last
In August, Ecuador’s government found itself dragged unexpectedly into the spiralling geopolitical tensions between the US and China, as a fishing dispute off the country’s Pacific coast escalated quickly, leading US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo to pledge protection to all countries whose “economies and natural resources are threatened” by China’s “predatory fishing practices”.
Security & Strategic Review - August 2020
Click here for full report
- López Obrador opts to treat Trump with pragmatism
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- REGION: Threat of exclusion looms over elections
- BOLIVIA: Pro-government militia draws international criticism
- COLOMBIA: Sexual assault scandal adds to military malaise
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- BRAZIL: Taking part in the vaccine race
- ARGENTINA: Spying scandals and corruption cases
- PARAGUAY: Illicit enrichment under scrutiny
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: Returning to the top table
- MEXICO: Hoping to clear up past corruption
CENTRAL AMERICA
- GUATEMALA: Judges’ election sparks high level tensions
- NICARAGUA: International community piles on the pressure
- REGION: US under pressure to stop deportations
CARIBBEAN
- TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Violence and racial tensions as Trinidad heads to the polls
- SURINAME: Tempered relief at the departure of Bouterse
Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has conducted a much-anticipated official visit to the US, where he met his counterpart, Donald Trump.
Security & Strategic Review - July 2020
Click here for full report
- Testing the limits of democracy
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- COLOMBIA: Coca crackdown threatens lives and livelihoods
- VENEZUELA: Pandemic puts sanctions in the spotlight
- BOLIVIA: Electoral fraud question hangs over coming vote
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- BRAZIL: Police violence under scrutiny, but unchanged
- BRAZIL: The war on ‘fake news’
- CHILE: Concerns over drug trafficking
- URUGUAY: Another security shock
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: Presence of Cuban doctors stirs controversy
- MEXICO: Outdated communications network - another security weakness
- MEXICO: ‘Chino Antrax’ case worries US law enforcement
CENTRAL AMERICA
- REGION: Prison systems helpless before pandemic
- PANAMA: Pandemic adds to Canal’s woes
- HONDURAS: Hernández hails new steps to fight drug trafficking
Suriname and Guyana, two countries on the verge of possibly great oil wealth, have both held general elections this year: Guyana on 2 March and Suriname and 25 May.
Security & Strategic Review - June 2020
Click here for full report
- Fears of another ‘pandemic’
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- REGION: Pandemic poses existential threat to indigenous peoples
- PERU: Health strategy at risk of collapse
- COLOMBIA: Army spying scandal sparks outrage
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- BRAZIL: How has Covid-19 impacted crime?
- PARAGUAY: Corruption threatens coronavirus response
- ARGENTINA-CHILE: Prisoners cause political problems
- URUGUAY: Reform bill sparks public security debate
MEXICO & USMCA
- MEXICO: Militarisation of public security formalised
- MEXICO: Shortage of resources becomes more acute
- MEXICO: Water shortages could exacerbate pandemic
CENTRAL AMERICA
- EL SALVADOR: Bukele’s pandemic response sparks human rights concerns
CARIBBEAN
- CUBA: Activation of Title III of Helms-Burton Act - one year on
- REGION: Caricom at odds with the EU over blacklisting
The United Nations (UN) World Food Programme (WFP) and Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) are among various international bodies warning of a risk of a “hunger pandemic”, citing fears that the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic could almost double acute hunger by 2020.
Security & Strategic Review - May 2020
Click here for full report
- Pandemic does not stop violence in Mexico
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- COLOMBIA: Erratic ELN brings confusion to peace process
- VENEZUELA: Drug charge bombshell escalates political crisis
- BOLIVIA: Border crisis exemplifies panicked pandemic response
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- REGION: The challenges of a regional response on public health
- BRAZIL: Indigenous politics during the pandemic
- BRAZIL: Top drug trafficker captured in Mozambique
MEXICO
- MEXICO: Shady ventilator procurement
- MEXICO: Fears rise over measles outbreak
CENTRAL AMERICA
- REGION: Pandemic reignites corruption concerns
- HONDURAS: Cocaine production takes hold
- NICARAGUA: New human rights concerns on key anniversary
CARIBBEAN
- SURINAME: Pre-election distrust multiplied by coronavirus crisis
- ST KITTS & NEVIS: Coronavirus emergency to delay elections
- REGION: Upcoming hurricane season shaping up to be a bad one
Despite the social distancing guidelines introduced by the government in late March to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19), and even though this has reduced drug trafficking activity, the levels of violence in Mexico have not subsided.
Security & Strategic Review - April 2020
Click here for full report
- Migrants pay the price for security shortcomings
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- COLOMBIA: Danger escalates for social leaders
- PERU: New challenges in the fight against illegal mining
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- ARGENTINA: Fernández declares war on ‘lawfare’
- BRAZIL: Prisons in times of a pandemic
- BRAZIL: Behind the femicide figures
MEXICO
- MEXICO: CJNG in a vulnerable position
- MEXICO: Rising death toll of environmental defenders
- MEXICO: Falling opium poppy production
CENTRAL AMERICA
- EL SALVADOR: Executive-legislative tensions escalate
- NICARAGUA: Press freedom concerns intensify
- REGION: New reports highlight migrants’ plight
CARIBBEAN
- REGION: Covid-19 could overwhelm Caribbean’s health services
- GUYANA: Pressure mounts for resolution
As governments across the Andean region have increasingly demonstrated a willingness to scapegoat Venezuelan migrants for problems of crime and insecurity, the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic threatens to add to this rising tide of xenophobia.
Security & Strategic Review - March 2020
Click here for full report
- Power, police and politics in Brazil’s paramilitaries
Andean Countries
- BOLIVIA: Interim government faces indigenous challenge
- ECUADOR: IACHR considers landmark sexual violence case
- PERU: Vizcarra seeks anti-corruption coalition
Brazil & Southern Cone
- PARAGUAY: Authorities under pressure to protect the press
- CHILE: The social dimension of the ‘mega-drought’
- ARGENTINA: Pushing for change in the public security sphere
Mexico
- MEXICO: Extraditions to the US continue
- MEXICO: Russian minister’s visit bothers US
- MEXICO: Guanajuato, where life has become worthless
Central America
- GUATEMALA: Giammattei’s initial moves
- NORTHERN TRIANGLE: Measuring the direct and indirect costs of crime
- HONDURAS: Hernández ends speculation over Maccih
Caribbean
- REGION: Mitigating Caribbean disaster vulnerability key to progress
The intersection of politics and crime at local level is nothing new in Brazil, but looks set to come under increased scrutiny as the country prepares to elect mayors and municipal councillors in October.
Security & Strategic Review - February 2020
Click here for full report
- Paramilitary resurgence going under the radar
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- PERU: Transnational turn for war on drug trafficking
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- CHILE: Seeking ‘social peace’ through tougher security
- ARGENTINA: Wrestling with organised crime in Santa Fe
- PARAGUAY-BRAZIL: The PCC strikes again
- BRAZIL: The revised anti-crime package
- BRAZIL: Police brutality in São Paulo
MEXICO
- MEXICO: Turning the tide on corruption?
- MEXICO: Questions about FGR’s independence emerge
CENTRAL AMERICA
- COSTA RICA: Alvarado claims further security progress
- EL SALVADOR: Bukele hails further fall in homicides
CARIBBEAN
- HAITI: Ten years on since the earthquake
- REGION: US accused of ‘divide and rule’
As violence in Colombia has surged to the highest levels since the country’s 2016 peace agreement, President Iván Duque’s government has been unequivocal in attributing responsibility to the remnants of the country’s guerrilla forces.
Security & Strategic Review - January 2020
Click here for full report
- A big year for elections in Caricom
CENTRAL AMERICA & CARIBBEAN
- NORTHERN TRIANGLE: Migration accords continue to attract concern
- PANAMA: Seeking to address a major priority
- REGION: The ongoing struggle against femicide in Central America
ANDEAN COUNTRIES
- REGION: China shifts approach to infrastructure investment in the Andean region
- VENEZUELA: Gold rush driving violent crime
BRAZIL & SOUTHERN CONE
- ARGENTINA: Where to on security?
- BRAZIL: Indigenous violence on the rise
- PARAGUAY: Under pressure over corruption
- URUGUAY: A year of record cocaine seizures
MEXICO
- MEXICO: Homicide data underlines failure of security strategy
- MEXICO: Seeking more international cooperation on arms trafficking control
Six of the Caribbean Community (Caricom)’s 15 member states are scheduled to hold elections in 2020.