32 years of economic and political information and analysis on the region

GUATEMALA

Attacks continue against human rights groups
A report compiled by the Human Rights Technical Unit (UTD) reveal the precarious situation in which human rights groups find themselves today in Guatemala, despite the hopes pinned on the new government's campaign promises of better security. The document, `Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders 2004', lists 122 attacks against 44 different organizations up from 117 last year. 2005 has shown little signs of improvement for human rights groups. Despite the Human Rights Ombudsman (PDH) only receiving two official denunciations, the UTD has already registered 12 attacks this year.

HONDURAS

Global Fund may cut AIDS money
The Global Fund (GF) to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria recently published a report on the HIV/AIDS situation in Honduras suggesting that the country's GF grant should not be extended beyond its second year. According to the GF Secretariat, certain objectives outlined in the initial proposal have not been met. However, the Country Co-ordinating Mechanism (CCM) a country-level partnership which submitted the proposal claims the report is seriously flawed and omits to consider many recent improvements to GF-funded AIDS programs.

NICARAGUA

Renewable energy goes to waste
While there is much potential in Nicaragua for the generation of renewable energy, it is estimated that 80% of its electricity production is based on bunker fuel, a crude oil derivative with record high prices in 2004. According to the Nicaraguan Energy Institute (INE), the development of renewable energy could prove beneficial for the country, as well as providing lucrative investment opportunities. However, the lack of a legal framework and the resultant political uncertainty have discouraged potential private investors, who argue that the state fails to provide enough support.

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COSTA RICA

Arias: multi-party system problematic
Nobel Peace Prize winner and ex Costa Rican president Óscar Arias (1986-90) is the only presidential pre candidate representing the National Liberation Party (PLN); a party coming apart at the seams in the wake of numerous corruption scandals last year. A year from the presidential elections, the newspaper "Extra" has released a poll pitting Arias as favorite with 31.8% of the potential vote, eight points ahead of Ottón Solis (23.8%) from the Citizen Action Party. Arias' candidature sparked off a crisis within the party, convincing various heavy weights of the upper party ranks to resign (CAR, XXXII, 7). Arias' critics accuse him of erring too far on the right and breaking with the party's social democratic ideology in his advocating of neo-liberal policies, such as privatization and the Free Trade Agreement. However, Arias sweeps critics aside, saying that they simply do not understand the meaning of neo-liberal.

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EL SALVADOR

Murder rate prompts legal reforms
El Salvador's violence problem is bad and getting worse: in January 2005, there were more murders than in any month in 2004, and 100 more than in January of last year. Confronted with this situation, the government plans to approve 16 reforms to the Firearms Law, with the intention of limiting firearm possession. The reforms, however, are not retroactive, meaning that many people will not be affected, even when the new laws prohibit them from carrying firearms. The Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) immediately announced its opposition, condemning the changes as cosmetic.

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REGION

South American Community of Nations: the third largest global block
Driven by the impulses of globalization and seeking to settle a century old debt left over from leaders of the independence movement, in December 2004, 12 countries formalized the South American Community of Nations (CSN). Conscious of differences and similarities, weaknesses and strengths, these countries set themselves the challenge of adjusting their economic, political and commercial frameworks in order to consolidate themselves as a third global block. Despite the conciliatory rhetoric of most of the participants, internal contradictions persist which need to be tackled in the immediate future. For now, the main challenge for the new entity will be the US, with its traditional hostility to any global initiative from which it is excluded. Some analysts warn of a conflict of the "Two Americas", with Central America aligning itself more with North America than the integrationist intentions of the Latin American block.

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25 february 2005