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As Concern Over Crime Rises, Chile’s Boric Shifts Right
The deaths of three police officers in the space of a month has added to the already acute security woes facing the government.
![Colombia's Defense Minister Iván Velásquez has to contend with armed guerrillas and military corruption.](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/AQ0223_VELAZQUEZ-THUMB-300x183.jpg)
Iván Velásquez Is Facing His Toughest Challenge Yet
As Colombia’s defense minister, the former anti-corruption crusader is challenging criminal groups—and the military tasked with confronting them.
![GUAYAQUIL, ECUADOR - APRIL 25: Wreckege of a car after a suspected car bomb exploded this morning outside "La Roca" prison on April 25, 2022 in Guayaquil, Ecuador. The cause of the explision is under investigation. (Photo by Mariana Miller/Agencia Press South/Getty Images)](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/GettyImages-1240232294-300x200.jpeg)
Ecuador’s Crime Wave and Its Albanian Connection
Criminal groups from the Balkans are helping turn the country into a major hub for illegal exports.
![Security concerns are increasingly top of mind for voters ahead of Argentina's October elections.](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/GettyImages-1247622854-300x199.jpg)
As Argentina’s Economy Sputters, Security Concerns Shape Its Campaign
Even as inflation nears triple digits, opposition politicians see opportunity in Argentines’ concerns over safety and organized crime.
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Nayib Bukele’s Growing List of Latin American Admirers
The Salvadoran president’s gang crackdown has fueled allegations of human rights abuses and erosion of democratic freedoms, but many in the region see it as a model to emulate.
![President Andrés Manuel López Obrador attends a parade marking Mexican independence amid an expansion of the military's powers.](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GettyImages-1243287263-300x200.jpg)
AMLO’s Expansion of the Military Undermines Mexico’s Civilian Tradition
As Mexico’s president gives the military more and more roles, public opinion seems worryingly supportive.
![Chilean President Gabriel Boric with the new interior minister, Carolina Toha. Toha is tasked with getting Boric's administration back on track and dealing with security issues.](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/GettyImages-1242990079-300x197.jpg)
Gabriel Boric Once Criticized Her. Now, She Must Turn Around His Administration.
Veteran politician Carolina Tohá, Chile’s new interior minister, faces rising crime and a government in some distress.
![In August, a wave of violence swept Ciudad Juárez and several cities in Mexico as President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has increasingly militarized security.](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GettyImages-1242459021-300x205.jpg)
Is Mexico’s Security Policy Backfiring?
Criminal groups seem emboldened despite the militarization of security.
![A 1646 drawing of the Parlamento of Quilín negotiations between the Mapuche and the Spanish.](https://www.americasquarterly.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/AQ0222_LONGVIEW-300x176.jpg)
When Chile’s Indigenous Made the Spanish Back Down
Behind today’s conflict in southern Chile is a long history of resistance to outsiders, a historian writes.
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A Major Roadblock in Future U.S.-Venezuela Talks: the ELN
The guerrilla group’s growing power is an obstacle to democratic and economic stabilization in Venezuela.
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AMLO’s Risky Strategy: Put Mexico’s Military Everywhere
Long-term deployment and an ever-expanding mandate may harm the reputation of Mexico’s most trusted institution.
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Problems Mount for Ecuador’s Lasso
A shocking rise in crime accompanies institutional division and a stalled government agenda, even as the economy recovers.
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The Self-Defeating Politics Behind Bolsonaro’s Pro-Gun Agenda
Brazil’s president tries to please his base ahead of the 2022 election – to their likely detriment.
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When Politics and Crime Collided in Peru
The rise and fall of a powerful governor allegedly shows the influence of criminal groups.
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Q&A: Brazil’s Pioneering Fight Against Gang Money Laundering
If you want to fight organized crime, defund it.