Children of the Mixteca community in Zimatlan, Mexico, who were under state of siege by an armed group. A humanitarian caravan organized by the Centro de Derechos Humanos y Asesoria a Pueblos Indigenas A.C. made it possible to transfer the children under safe conditions.

Latin America and Caribbean

See the 2010 Grantee Spotlight on CubaNet News.

The mood in and about Latin America turned positive in 2010. In early September 2010, The Economist portrayed an upside down map of the hemisphere with Latin America on top, and devoted its special report to the region’s significant institutional and socioeconomic progress. The December 2010 edition of the Latinobarómetro survey reported that 71 percent of Latin Americans are satisfied with their lives. Satisfaction with democracy also reached 44 percent in 2009 and 2010, its highest level since 1995.

In the economic realm, countries in the region managed the international financial crisis successfully. After a brief downturn in late 2008 and early 2009, a steady recovery got underway with an expected growth rate of 5 percent by the end of 2010. The region is still the most unequal in the world in terms of income distribution. However, between 2002 and 2008, its favorable economic performance and more effective social policies helped lift around 40 million Latin Americans from poverty and reduced inequality almost everywhere.

While there is evident and measurable political, social and economic progress in the region as a whole, significant differences continue to exist. Countries such as Brazil, Costa Rica, Chile and Uruguay are thriving representative democracies, based on effective transitions of power, political pluralism, and respect for human rights and the rule of law. They coexist in sharp contrast with Cuba, the only dictatorship in the Western hemisphere. However, timid changes are taking place in the island. The tragic death of political prisoner and civil rights activist Orlando Zapata on February 2010 after an 85-day hunger strike triggered international and domestic outrage. It lead the government to engage with the Catholic Church to release most of the 75 political prisoners held in jail since the “black spring” crackdown of March 2003, and force them to exile to Spain. The regime is facing deep economic hardship and decided to progressively lay off 1.5 million government workers and allow limited types of self-employment.

Innovative institutional reforms to promote government effectiveness and transparency in countries such as Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Peru run parallel with regressive reforms passed to curtail civic and political rights, extend executive power, and promote capricious state intervention in countries embracing so-called “21st Century Socialism.” Such is the case with Venezuela, where in December 2010, the President was granted unlimited decree powers for 18 months, and the functions of the newly-elected legislative branch were drastically curtailed in order to limit the effectiveness of the opposition representation in the National Assembly.

Additionally, the common challenges of organized crime and a lack of citizen security continue to distress the region and challenge democracy. Twenty-seven per cent of the world’s intentional homicides happen in Latin America, a region that holds only 8.5 percent of the global population. Countries such as El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica, Guatemala and Venezuela (where intentional homicides range from 49 to 71 per 100,000 inhabitants) exhibit the highest ratios regionally and globally. The region has also been affected by devastating natural disasters. The year started with destructive earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, and ended with damaging torrential rains and landslides in Colombia and Venezuela.  :: MORE