The Andes
Colombia: mine opponents assassinated
Cesar García and Adelinda Gómez, two campesino leaders who opposed the operations of AngloGold Ashanti in Colombia, were assassinated just weeks apart.
The Andes
Peru: government ultimatum to illegal miners
Peru's government has issued an "ultimatum" to small-scale miners, threatening to dynamite their equipment if they do not clear out of the remote areas where they operate.
The Andes
Cajamarca: Conga occupation not moved
Campesinos in Peru’s Cajamarca region announced a new cross-country march that will bring hundreds of new protesters to the occupation camp at the Conga mine site.
The Andes
Cuzco: unrest over water mega-diversion
National Police clashed with villagers at Espinar province in Cuzco, as residents declared a "war footing" to halt construction of the Majes Siguas II irrigation mega-project.
The Andes
Bolivia ready for nuclear power: Evo Morales
At a “Hydrocarbon Sovereignty” conference in Tarija, Bolivia’s President Evo Morales said his country has achieved the conditions to obtain nuclear power for “pacific ends.”
East Asia
China: terror blasts in Shanxi; Uighurs feel pressure
Blasts at the Shanxi Communist Party headquarters left one dead—days after dissident Uighur leader Ilham Tohti said his family was threatened by security agents.
Afghanistan
Musharraf granted bail in Red Mosque killings case
Former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf was granted bail in a criminal case relating to the death of a radical cleric in a raid he ordered on Islamabad’s Red Mosque.
Watching the Shadows
US medical professionals implicated in torture
Doctors and psychologists working in US military detention centers helped to design methods of torture for terrorism suspects, according to an independent report.
Mexico
Mexico: imprisoned Chiapas schoolteacher released
After 13 years in prison, indigenous schoolteacher and activist Alberto Patishtán is finally free, thanks to a presidential pardon–and pressure from around the world.
Southern Cone
Chile: Barrick suspends Pascua Lama construction
As costs rise and gold prices fall, Barrick Gold is starting to reconsider its plan to build the world’s biggest gold mine 16,400 feet in the air.
The Caribbean
Cuba: UN issues 22nd rejection of US embargo
Now the US government can only find one other country that’s willing to back its embargo on Cuba. Even tiny Palau has jumped ship.
Central America
Nicaragua: CIA-contra drug charges resurface
The grisly 1985 murder of a US drug agent is back in the news—and so are allegations of drug running by the CIA and Nicaragua’s US-backed contras.