Latin America
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It’s been a year to the day since Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro took office. The anti-government protests that began in early February and left dozens dead and hundreds injured over the past few weeks appear to be on the wane. The split between the moderate and hardcore opposition has deepened. Negotiations between the moderate faction, led by…
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In Brazil, illegal settlements, known as “favelas,” exist in most major cities. Migrants from rural Brazil flooded into rapidly-industrializing cities during the early 20th century and created a housing crisis. The explosion in demand drove up the price of real estate and with their meager wages, most laborers were forced to live in “vilas-cidadelas” (“company neighborhoods”…
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Last week Vicente Jesus Zambada-Niebla (aka “Mayito”) pled guilty to drug trafficking charges in a US District Court in Chicago. “Mayito” is the son of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada-Garcia, the man who is believed to be the current head of the Sinaloa Cartel, Mexico’s most powerful criminal organization. El Mayo likely assumed the top spot in the cartel after the recent…
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Cross-posted with Conflict Journal This is a weekly roundup of events from 6 April to 12 April 2014 This week, the LA Times called the spread of vigilante groups in Michoacán and other states “the greatest security-policy test of the 16-month-old” government of President Enrique Peña Nieto – a telling statement when one considers the situation in Tamaulipas state…
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Cross-posted with Conflict Journal This is a weekly roundup of events from 6 April to 12 April 2014. Colombia commemorated the National Day of Victims this week, remembering those who have suffered in the country’s decades-long internal armed conflict between left-wing guerrillas, right-wing-paramilitaries, criminal gangs and state security forces . Many citizens took the opportunity to reflect on the…
Mike LaSusa 