Africa
Somalia: who controls Kismayo?
A string of bombings rocked Somalia’s port of Kismayo—five days after the city was taken from al-Shabaab rebels by a Kenyan-led force following a lengthy siege.
Southeast Asia
Cambodia: rights activist sentenced to 20 years
Prominent Cambodian rights activist Mam Sonando was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment after being convicted of insurrection and inciting rebellion against the state.
The Andes
Peru: indigenous consulta rejects mineral project
The village of Cañaris in northern Peru held a consulta rejecting a proposed open-pit copper mine—but the Canadian firm that holds the contract rejects the vote as illegitimate.
The Caribbean
Haiti: protests follow Martelly to New York
A series of demonstrations that started in Cap-Haïtien to protest rising food prices and alleged government corruption continued in various cities—including Brooklyn, NY.
Central America
Honduras: second human rights attorney murdered
Unidentified assailants gunned down Public Ministry prosecutor Eduardo Manuel Díaz less than two full days after the similar murder of activist attorney Antonio Trejo.
Southern Cone
Chile: Mapuches block roads to protest court decision
Huilliche activists blocked a highway, burning rubbish and setting up barricades to protest a Supreme Court decision denying them access to a sacred site.
Mexico
Mexico: center-right bloc pushes ‘labor reform’
The Chamber of Deputies passed changes to the labor code that union lawyers said would take the labor movement back to where it was before the 1910 Revolution.
Watching the Shadows
US transfers Gitmo detainee Khadr to Canada
Canadian citizen Omar Khadr was transferred to Canada from Guantánamo Bay to serve out the rest of his prison sentence under the authority of the Correctional Service of Canada.
Peru: court rules for indigenous sovereignty
Peru’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of an indigenous rainforest community seeking to bar a road that illegal miners and timber cutters want to build through their territory.
The Andes
Peru coca crop rises for sixth year: UN
A new report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime says that Peru has now achieved rough parity with Colombia in coca production, with vast new areas coming under cultivation.
Mexico
Mexico: Zetas’ ‘El Taliban’ busted by federals
Mexican naval forces announced the arrest of Iván Velázquez, AKA “El Taliban”—said to be a top commander of Los Zetas who had recently defected to the rival Gulf Cartel.
Central America
UN report: drug trafficking threatens rule of law
Drug trafficking and violent crime in Central America and the Caribbean threaten the rule of law in those regions, according to a report by the UN Office of Drugs and Crime.