Let's Talk About Latin America

Today the Special Jurisdiction for Peace in Colombia charged 8 former commanders of the FARC rebel group with war crimes. The BBC, whose article is linked above, reports that the 8 commanders "are accused of kidnapping thousands of people, and torturing and killing some of them. It is the first major result for the court set up after the 2016 peace deal". The FARC was a marxist rebel group in Colombia that had been waging a war against the government since 1964. A peace deal was signed in 2016 between the rebels and the Colombian government, bringing an end to Latin America's longest conflict. The FARC employed many tactics during its 50 year struggle. In order to make money to keep the rebel group operational the FARC routinely kidnapped prominent Colombians and held them for ransom. They were also known to steal and sell oil as well as traffic illicit drugs. The group operated mainly in Colombia's mountainous southeast.  The 2016 peace deal allowed the FARC to rein...

A lot has happened in the world of Latin American politics since I last posted here in August of 2020. There is absolutely no feasible way for me to cover everything in the in-depth way that I would like to. Instead, here I will cover the highlights, writing a few sentences about each, as well as link an article about each one if you would like to read more about any particular event.  We'll start in Bolivia . Bolivians went to the polls in mid October to participate in a much anticipated presidential election. This was the first election since the ousting of long time president Evo Morales. Months before the election, Morales, who had held power since 2006, resigned the office of the presidency amid pressure from the armed forces and a growing mass protest movement. However, his party was still able to prevail at the polls as Bolivians chose Luis Arce to be their next president. Arce was a key member of the Morales Administration, and his victory signaled the continued prominence ...