Brazil: Court Upholds Lula's Conviction in The Trial of the Century
A Brazilian court has upheld the conviction of the former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva for corruption and money laundering, in a ruling that complicates his plans to run for a third term and marks an extraordinary change…
London's Latin Culture Under Threat
Stefanie Alvarez, who grew up amidst the bustling 'Pueblito Paisa' market, where her mother works, in Seven Sisters, is set on defending the much-loved north London Latin hub from the designs of property developers who…
Belo Horizonte gets a Land Reform Farmers Market
Brazil's Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST) opens a rural market in Belo Horizonte city
Colombia/Venezuela: How Petrol is Fuelling Instability on the Border
The smuggling of petrol and other products from Venezuela is part of daily life in Cúcuta
On The Trail of Che
A wave of nostalgia is sweeping Latin America as the 50th anniversary of the death of Che Guevara approaches. Julio Etchart follows the ‘Che route’ to the remote spot where the revolutionary icon was executed.
Brazil: Bolsonaro – The Lone Wolf Dreams of Glory
Brazilian nationalist demagogue Jair Bolsonaro is bidding to run for President. His views are truly frightening, reveals Lucas Farrez
COLOMBIA: Bogotá’s Recyclers Fight for Inclusion
As the city rises up the development index, Bogotá’s waste services are undergoing structural transformation. Rachel Simon learns how Colombia’s informal waste-picking recicladores are organizing and fighting to play their part…
Things You Should Know About... Day of the Dead
There is still a commonly held view that ‘Day of the Dead’ is Mexico’s ‘Halloween,’ that everyone dresses up as skelatons, and it is truly scary, therefore unsuitable for children. 'Dia de Los Muertos' is in fact a…
Brazil’s MST: challenging power structures and the need for ‘historic patience’
In the wake of an alleged 'political coup' in Brazil, which has seen former left-wing president Ignacio Lula da Silva convicted and his successor Dilma Rousseff impeached, Movimento Sin Terra leader Gilmar Mauro…
Oriximiná: Quilombolas vs The Mines
In Oriximiná, a municipality in the northern state of Pará, traditional people see their lands being invaded by mining, under the conniving gaze of the authorities
Guatemala: a Rotten State
President Morales' anti-corruption pose is dropped as soon as his own family is in the frame
Haiti: Hope as it Braces itself for another Hurricane
As Hurricane Irma head for the Island, Prospéry Raymond, Christian Aid’s country manager for Haiti and the Dominican Republic, reflects on how Haiti has been moving on from one disaster and preparing for another
Brazil: Why is Michel Temer still in Power?
It is always hard to explain Brazilian politics to foreigners. There is a lot of history and many characters and there are 25 political parties represented in Congress alone. It is even harder to explain how illegitimate…
Ana Victoria's Story - Part 4: A Life of Purpose
Ana Victoria is an Afro-Colombian biologist and the first female Colombian Anglican priest. After being kidnapped by armed traffickers while she was working with indigenous communities in the Choco region, she subsequently fled…
Ana Victoria's Story - Part 3: The Search for Kio
Ana Victoria is an Afro-Colombian biologist who will be ordained as the first female Colombian priest of the Anglican church in July 2017 in St Paul Cathedral. After being kidnapped by armed traffickers while she was working with…
Ana Victoria's Story - Part 2: Helena
Ana Victoria is an Afro-Colombian biologist who was ordained as the first female Colombian priest of the Anglican church in July 2017 in St Paul Cathedral. After being kidnapped by armed traffickers while she was working with…
Colombians’ Persistence in the Search for Peace: Interview with ‘Chocolate of Peace’ Producer
Gwen Burnyeat, the producer and co-director of the documentary Chocolate of Peace talks about the ‘persistence’ in peace-building, considering that Colombia is now both implementing the peace agreement with FARC and starting…
Ana Victoria's Story - Part 1: In Exile
Ana Victoria is an Afro-Colombian biologist who was ordained as the first female Colombian priest of the Anglican church in July 2017 in St Paul Cathedral. After being kidnapped by armed traffickers while she was working with…
Mexico: Trump Weakens Fragile Economy
A sober assessment of the economic impact on Mexico of the promises and policies of the new US President.
Argentina: Forty years of the ‘Mad Mothers’
April 30 marked the 40th anniversary of the foundation in Argentina of the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo. Some of them are still searching for their disappeared loved ones.
Sembrando Cultura: This is How We do It!
Maria Luna, a Dominican American residing in London, speaks to four Latinas in the United States, Scotland and England to find out what it means to be a Latina and how a Latina maintains or compromises her culture when she starts…
Brazil: the flesh is weak but the meat is rotten
Police investigations reveal another massive web of corruption involving Brazil's strategic meat industry, inspectors and politicians
The New Voice of Reason
Women are increasingly at the forefront of South America’s fight to defend its indigenous lands and the environment and Patricia Gualinga, an indigenous Kichwa of Sarayaku in the Ecuadorian Amazon region, is one of them. As…
Colombia: What does Peace Mean in Comuna 13?
Gwen Burnyeat visits Comuna 13, the Medellín community blighted by guerrilla, militia and state violence during Colombia's civil war and finds that graffiti and urban escalators have achieved a sense of pride and…
Brazil: Munduruku People Fear Annihilation
The Tapajós River Basin lies at the heart of the Amazon, and at the heart of an exploding controversy: whether to build 40+ large dams, a railway, and highways, turning the Basin into a vast industrialized commodities export…
United Migrations?
Walk around London and it’s hard to avoid the Spanish vowels swirling around the air. The recent influx of Spaniards and Latin Americans arriving through Spain adds yet another layer to the original Spanish speaking communities.…
Register for Ruby
Recently diagnosed with a complex form of blood cancer, friends of Ruby, a Salvadorian mother of two, have started a campaign to find a bone marrow donor of Salvadorian or Latin American descent to save her life. Elspeth Fuller…
Ciro Bustos, Che Guevara’s friend and ally
Artist and revolutionary, Ciro Bustos was a key confident of Che Guevara in his fated attempt to trigger revolution across Latin America, through Argentina and Bolivia. He was wrongly accused of betraying Che, when it is now…
Brazil's prison massacres - a bloody start to the year
A flurry of brutal deaths in Brazil's overcrowded prisons has shocked the country.
Peru: Odebrecht - The Fall Out
David Wright in Lima reports on a scandal that spans three Peruvian presidencies and probably includes the current one...
The Angora Cat, the Saint and the End of the World
The Supreme Court and the Senate found a 'jeitinho' to get around part of their present impasse. But time and their credibility are running out.
Colombia's Plebiscite: Catharsis in Writing
Colombians in the UK blog to express their hope, sadness and determination to keep peace alive
The death of Fidel Castro, what his legacy to Cuba has been, and how he should be remembered.
Richard Gott, historian, journalist and one of the few foreigners who met both Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, recounts his impressions of the 20th century revolutionary icon.
TEN YEARS A GRAVE
More than a decade after the Pasta de Conchos mining disaster killed 65 miners in Mexico, families are asking the UK to help with their struggle for justice, reports Elizabeth Mistry
Belize: Punta Gorda, a forgotten district
Maya and Garifuna communities are resisting over-zealous national park regulation and encroaching oil exploration. Rachel Simon explores indigenous land rights and social issues in southern Belize over three blog posts. Rachel…