Full Coverage: Central America

30.08.2007 In an attempt to derail indigenous rights activist Rigoberta Menchu’s political party ahead of September 9 elections, a party member and local council candidate was recently assassinated.

30.08.2007 Since 1998 over 2,500 migrants died while trying to cross the seemingly infinite desert along the U.S.-Mexico border. A woman that traveled to the region with a group dedicated to ending this humanitarian crisis recalls the stories of the migrants whose lives she helped save.

30.08.2007 An in depth look at the justice system of an indigenous community in Guatemala illustrates why traditional legal customs can be much more constructive and well-suited to some societies than conventional law enforcement structures. Guatemalan journalist Lucía Escobar explains.

28.08.2007 Twenty-five years after 177 indigenous women and children were massacred in central Guatemala, the search for justice is encountering red tape, a shortage of money and outright intimidation.

24.08.2007 An American human rights organization hosts unique educational travel experiences that focus on human rights and social justice issues. Discover the autonomous indigenous community of northern Mexico through a photo essay detailing UUSC’s latest trip.

23.08.2007 In 1994 the signatories to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) welcomed the convention as a means to help Mexican living standards reach those in the United States and Canada. But the last 13 years have been rather unfavorable for Mexicans.

21.08.2007 The U.S., Mexican, and Canadian heads-of-state are convening this week to discuss "NAFTA plus"; rights advocates are expressing serious concerns that the meeting will not generate "democratic, locally controlled, and earth-friendly policies."

14.08.2007 Women in Bolivia, Colombia, and Mexico are forcing the indigenous movements they work with to recognize that they can sometimes be as undemocratic and unjust as the societies they're challenging.

03.08.2007 In the years following the ratification of the extremely controversial USA PATRIOT Act, other countries across the world, including the Philippines and El Salvador, have introduced equally contentious counter-terrorism statutes that have had serious implications on civil rights, say advocates.

02.08.2007 Records and archives containing critical information about Guatemala’s 36 years of internal armed conflict, which resulted in 200,000 deaths and disappearances, were uncovered in an abandoned building last year. Now the uncovered information is helping families discover what happened to their loved ones.