The Latin American Report # 318

Gag

We have already discussed Nicaragua here. Although we are not talking about a super-economy, the economic dynamics there contrast drastically with the political management, which by all accounts is questionable or problematic. A week ago, Guatemala received 135 Nicaraguan political prisoners sent by Daniel Ortega, who subsequently proceeded to withdraw their nationality and confiscate their assets. Washington actively participated in the operation. However, Biden administration officials said they did not enter into any quid pro quo with Managua. By the way, the fact that Guatemala is the destination marks the good harmony between the White House and the government of Bernardo Arévalo, who arrived with the seal of “social democrat” of “progressive” tendency but has orbited around Pennsylvania Avenue in matters of foreign policy.

“We will help provide medical and psychological care, shelter, clothing and hygiene kits, plus other immediate support”, said John Kirby, U.S. National Security Communications Advisor. One of the beneficiaries said he was imprisoned “for spreading on social media the actions taken by the government against the Catholic Church”. “They are leaving their country in conditions that no one can imagine leaving[,] and they are also leaving their families there”, lamented a Nicaraguan refugee already settled in Guatemala. The Nicaraguan Special Law on Cybercrimes was reformed by the parliament this Wednesday to—among other things—punish with penalties of up to five years in prison “whoever (...) publishes or disseminates false, distorted or any other kind of information that deliberately produces alarm, fear, panic or anxiety in the population (...)”.

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Shooting in the Caribbean

The Honduran Navy confronted last Tuesday a go-fast boat in which three Venezuelans and two Hondurans were transporting the representative amount of 3.8 tons of cocaine. When intercepted north of the island of Guanaja, the traffickers “opened fire”, triggering a fierce confrontation that resulted in the death of one of them and the wounding of two others. In addition to the drugs—valued at close to US$45,290,000—a rifle and two pistols were also seized. So far in 2024, close to 17 tons of cocaine have been intercepted in Honduras, whose Caribbean coast continues to be a recurrent bridge in drug trafficking operations with final destination in the United States. The country, afflicted with serious social problems, has been at the center of the regional media agenda in recent days due to the controversial decision of Xiomara Castro's government to “denounce” an extradition agreement with Washington, suspiciously hours before the revelation of a video that implicates a member of her inner family circle with drug trafficking.

_{Cocaine seized (source).}

Mexico: reform and blood

After its approval by the Senate early yesterday morning, the controversial judicial reform that marks AMLO's (formal) farewell as Mexican president continues generating reactions. Moody's warns that it could have “significant repercussions” on the country's sovereign credit rating, echoing the criticisms we have already discussed on several occasions here. The rating agency discusses that the initiative could be disputed by Canada and the United States in the framework of the USMCA/CUSMA/T-MEC, and also that mining and telecommunications sectors would be seriously affected due to their dependence on concessions and large investments. Undoubtedly there is a concerted campaign to pressure the President and perhaps more than him to Claudia Sheinbaum. The reform now requires the blessing of 17 state legislatures—not a problem—and the cheerful and firm signature of AMLO, who again affirmed that the judiciary in its current conformation “does not impart justice”.

Unstoppable violence

In terms of violent events, Culiacán, the capital of the state of Sinaloa, continues to set the tone for the entire nation. In just three days, nine deaths, 14 cases of kidnapping, and 8 people shot and wounded were reported. Photos of burned cars blocking streets and reports of car thefts are circulating on social media. The situation, which seems related to an internal struggle within the Sinaloa cartel following the murky arrest in the U.S. of druglord “El Mayo” Zambada, is so out of control that classes have been suspended and celebrations canceled. Allegedly, Zambada was kidnapped and then delivered as an "unexpected trophy" to U.S. authorities by Joaquín Guzmán López, a son of his former partner Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera (who serves a life sentence in escape-proof ADX-Florence prison). Now Zambada's loyalist forces in Sinaloa are reportedly attacking the so-called “Chapitos” in revenge (last month this dynamic had already resulted in a dozen murders).

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As this report went to press, we learned of the shooting death of an elected mayor, who was just over a month away from taking office in the municipality of San Felipe Xochiltepec, Puebla state. His shot body was found in the vicinity of a dam “in circumstances that are currently under investigation”. An NGO registered thirteen political murders in August, among them those of a councilor and a trustee elected last June.

Alberto Fujimori dies

After being controversially released from prison at the end of last year, Alberto Fujimori has died of cancer in the Peruvian capital, from where he exercised a shadowy and corrupt power in the last decade of the past century. A divisive figure if ever there was one, he suffered from leukoplakia and pulmonary fibrosis, and last May a new malignant tumor was detected.

Peru's Fujimori, divisive head of political dynasty, dies age 86 https://t.co/QwdEx1BsEC pic.twitter.com/QvDFQWgkpM

— Reuters Politics (@ReutersPolitics) September 12, 2024

And this is all for our report today. I have referenced the sources dynamically in the text, and remember you can learn how and where to follow the LATAM trail news by reading my work here. Have a nice day.