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

EL SALVADOR

Freedom of expression under threat?
The Salvadoran journalist Mauricio Funes was dismissed from his post as director of two current events shows screened on Channel 12 TV, "Noticieros Hechos" and "Entrevista al Dia", without being given an official reason for the decision. Two days earlier, seven of Funes' closest collaborators were also fired. According to various national civil society organizations, the dismissals represent a significant blow to freedom of expression.

HONDURAS

Lobo and Zelaya victorious
Elections for the presidential primaries on February 20 ended with Porfirio "Pepe" Lobo and Mel Zelaya being declared clear winners of the ruling National Party and opposition Liberal Party respectively. Over 600,000 total votes were registered to the Supreme Electoral Court. While Lobo crushed his nearest rival, Miguel Pastor - whose political movement "Nuevo Tiempo" (New Time) only won four of 18 departments - Zelaya's victory as Liberal candidate in every department was even more dominant. Zelaya's widely predicted win consolidated the Liberal Party's sense of unity, but Lobo's hard-fought success has come at the expense of various National Party rivals. The latter have pledged their allegiance to the new leader between gritted teeth.

GUATEMALA

The Chixoy case: renewed push for compensation
In the past several weeks, various events have taken place which have been interpreted as intimidation attempts directed both at representatives of the communities affected by the construction of the hydroelectric dam on the Chixoy River and the organizations supporting them. These events have occurred within the context of the public unveiling of a case for compensation presented before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights that seeks to delegate responsibility among the Guatemalan state and the financial backers of the project, the World Bank (WB) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

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REGION

CAFTA: Sure path to ratification
On March 3, Honduras became the second country to ratify the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) between the United States and Central America. El Salvador ratified the agreement in December 2004. For different reasons, final obstacles remain in the US and Costa Rica, but in the rest of the isthmus, the Executive branches are lobbying their respective Legislatures to ratify the text in the coming months. Analysts highlight the dominance of an ideological rather than a technical focus, the lack of unified and coherent opposition and little transparency in the negotiation and ratification processes as factors that undermine the CAFTA debate on both a national and regional level.

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PANAMA

Floods cause job cuts in banana industry
Desolation, unemployment and hopelessness. This sums up the situation following the recent floods in the banana-growing area of the Caribbean, between Costa Rica and Panama. Mainly populated by Ngöbe Buglé Mayans, the area was subject to more than 18 hours of continuous rain which destroyed around 6,000 hectares of banana plantations and left around 1000 workers jobless.

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4 March 2005