Re-opening the Meredith Kercher murder case is a last-ditch effort by Italy to save face.
What Does Italy Hope to Gain by Re-trying Amanda Knox?
read more
Mexico
NAFTA at 20: The New Spin
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which went into effect on January 1, 1994, was touted as the cure for Mexico’s economic “backwardness.” Promoters argued that the trilateral trade agreement would dig Mexico out of its economic rut and modernize it along the lines of its mighty neighbor, the United States. Fat chance.
Living in a Constitution-Free Zone
While a militarized enforcement regime has long existed in the U.S-Mexico borderlands, its far more intense post-9/11 version is also proving geographically expansive. Now, the entire U.S. perimeter has become part of a Fortress USA mentality and a lockdown reality. Unlike on our southern border, there is still no wall to our north on what was once dubbed the “longest undefended border in the world.” But don’t let that fool you. The U.S.-Canadian border is increasingly becoming a national security hotspot.
Republicans Use Border Control to Obstruct Immigration Reform
Conservative and liberal media alike highlight the opposition of the president to any provision linking citizenship to a “secure” border.
Obama Misses Opportunity to Stem Gun Flow to Mexico
Unveiling the most extensive gun control proposal in generations, U.S. President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed nearly two dozen executive orders and called on the U.S. Congress to enact a legislative package to blunt the country’s growing trend of gun violence.
While many progressives are lauding the new moves, some are expressing regret that the president didn’t include basic initiatives to curb the significant flow of weapons from the United States into Mexico.
In Mexico, No Matter Which Party Holds the Reins, the People Lose
Part 2 of an interview with Drug War Mexico co-author Peter Watt.
Deregulation and Free Trade a Win-Win for Mexican Narcotraffickers
The Mexican government’s heavily militarized fight against narcotraffickers has helped keep the country mired in violence and inequality.
Killing Spree on the Border
On October 13, 2012, Mexican teenager José Antonio was hit by a hail of bullets coming from the U.S. side of the metal fence that lacerates the border city of Nogales. Some seven shots penetrated the boy’s body through the back and the head. He died instantly. The culprit? The U.S. border patrol.
Enrique Pena Nieto and Mexico’s Drug War Opening
On December 1, Enrique Peña Nieto of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) assumed the Mexican presidency amid a flurry of protests against the party, whose previous 70-year rule defined the country’s authoritarian past. Yet it’s difficult to imagine that the new president’s term could be worse than the unmitigated disaster of his predecessor’s, which was marked by a dramatic militarization of Mexico’s drug war, widespread human rights abuses, and tens of thousands of deaths.
Endangering Women Human Rights Defenders
While a significant chunk of USAID spending goes to education and health programs, pockets of aid enlarge the already bloated military budgets of recipient governments. The result: less security and more violence against women, particularly women human rights defenders.