Brazil's new climate catastrophe normal
May 10, 2024
Catastrophic floods in Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state have caused devastation and, at least, 107 deaths — it is one of the greatest climate disasters in Brazil’s recent history, and experts say its time to plan for a new normal, reports the Guardian.
Four-fifths of the Porto Alegre population remains without running water, a week after major flooding, and more rains were forecast for the region into next week. (Associated Press)
Colombia
An ELN front broke ranks with the group’s central command and has been recognized by Colombia’s government as an independent organization, the guerrilla group’s first dissident faction, reports Reuters.
Regional Relations
Even as Mexican politicians prepare for the upcoming presidential election, officials are also girding themselves for a potential return of Donald Trump in the U.S. “The former president has promised ‘the largest deportation operation in American history,’ floated the idea of 100 percent tariffs on Chinese cars made in Mexico and vowed to deploy U.S. Special Forces to, as he put it, ‘wage war on the cartels,’” reports the New York Times.
Under the current Mexican government, “China’s political and economic activity in Mexico has grown significantly,” under the incoming government “Mexico’s approach to relations with China could shift or continue on a path that is likely to increase tensions with Washington,” argue Connor Pfeiffer and Ryan C. Berg in Foreign Policy. (Via Latin America Risk Report)
The Atlantic delves DEEP into the Venezuela-Guyana Essequibo dispute. (Via Latin America Risk Report)
Mexico
The killings of three tourists “have highlighted the shifting and uncertain fault lines of risk in Mexico, which is simultaneously a major tourism destination and a country with hotspots of extraordinary violence,” reports the Guardian.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador accused the press and volunteer searchers who look for the bodies of Mexico’s many missing people of “necrophilia,” reports the Associated Press.
Mexico has no cases related to financing precursor chemicals or laundering synthetic drug proceeds — InSight Crime explores why.
Regional
Organized crime is gaining ground in Latin America — pushing up support for iron fist policies like El Salvador’s. But the “Bukele model” will likely fail elsewhere in the region, according to the Economist. “Organised crime groups elsewhere are richer, better armed and more globalised than the ragtag outfits in El Salvador. A more patient, focused approach, led by the civilian police forces and the courts, is the best way to curb violence in the long run.”
El Salvador
Security forces detained 22 men on the island of Espíritu Santo, under the framework of a state of exception enabling a crackdown on street gangs — the catch is that there weren’t any gangs operating on the island, reports El Faro.
Haiti
“Shunned publicly by politicians and intellectuals for centuries, Vodou is transforming into a more powerful and accepted religion across Haiti, where its believers were once persecuted. Increasingly, they seek solace and protection from violent gangs that have killed, raped and kidnapped thousands in recent years,” reports the Associated Press.
Venezuela
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is holding a reality show competition to create his official campaign jingle for the July election. It’s not the first time the leader, whose government is under investigation for crimes against humanity, has used “state-controlled media to portray his administration as goofy, fun-loving personalities working hard to save the nation from what they characterize as imperialist enemies,” reports the New York Times.
Migration
A new U.S. asylum change aims to more quickly reject asylum seekers caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border if they pose certain criminal and national security concerns, reports Reuters.
Panama
The runner-up in Panama’s presidential election last weekend “was anti-corruption outsider Ricardo Lombana, who received around 25 percent of votes,” leaving traditional parties’ candidates far behind. “The most unusual result came in Panama’s legislature, where independent candidates collectively won more seats than any political party. This, paired with Lombana’s success, suggests that many Panamanians are hungry for an anti-corruption agenda,” writes Catherine Osborn in the Latin America Brief.
“Ramón Fonseca, who co-founded the law firm at the heart of the Panama Papers leak, died Wednesday night, his lawyer confirmed, while awaiting the verdict in his money-laundering trial in Panama,” reports the New York Times.
Critter Corner
Emergency workers in southern Brazil rescued a horse that had been trapped for days on a rooftop after severe floods. The rescue was broadcast live on television, “providing a rare dose of hope to a beleaguered region,” reports the Guardian.