New Violence Hits Honduras
At least ten people—including women and children—were killed in a shootout between rival drug gangs in northeastern Honduras on Tuesday. The total death toll in the rural La Mosquita region on Honduras’ Atlantic coast could be as high as 16 according to local authorities, adding to the over 3,000 homicides reported in the first six … Read more
Suspects in Police Massacre Tied to Guatemala’s Villatoro Cano Cartel
Sixteen suspects were captured in recent weeks for their role in the June 13 massacre of an entire police station in Salcajá, Guatemala, a case that has shocked a country with a high threshold for violent acts. Still, many unanswered questions remain. Gunmen killed all eight officers on duty in the assault on the Policía … Read more
Former San José Mayor Leads Presidential Poll in Costa Rica
Only six months away from the February 4, 2014, presidential election in Costa Rica, the former mayor of San José and official candidate of the Partido Liberación Nacional (National Liberation Party—PLN), Johnny Araya, holds a significant lead over his rivals in the most recent poll. According to a local Borge y Asociados poll released on … Read more
Monday Memo: Gay Marriage in Uruguay – Venezuela and Paraguay – Cuban Prisoners – Immigration Reform – Carandiru Prison
Likely top stories this week: Gay marriage begins in Uruguay; Venezuela is not invited to the Paraguayan president’s inauguration; Amnesty International demands the release of Cuban prisoners; U.S. House of Representatives Republicans reject Senate approach to immigration reform; Brazilian police officers are sentenced for the 1992 Carandiru massacre. Same Sex Marriage Starts in Uruguay: The … Read more
Monday Memo: Peru Protests – Bachelet and Matthei – Colombia Peace Talks – Cholera in Haiti – Mexican Vice-Admiral Killed
Likely top stories this week: demonstrators protest in Peru; a Chilean lawyer investigates the death of Michelle Bachelet’s father; FARC–Colombian government peace talks resume; a new report faults the UN for Haiti’s cholera outbreak; and assailants kill a Mexican vice-admiral. Protesters and Police Clash in Peru: Thousands of demonstrators clashed with hundreds of riot police … Read more

Will the Darién Gap Stop the Region’s Electrical Integration?
In April last year, the Colombian government announced its intention to pursue the creation of an interconnected electrical grid from Mexico to Tierra del Fuego. Naming the project “Connecting the Americas 2022” (“Connect 2022” ), the Colombians had picked up the idea from Washington and included it in last year’s agenda at the Summit of … Read more

Central America Unplugged
The integration of Central America’s fragmented electricity market has always seemed a no-brainer—at least to outsiders. A seamless grid for delivery of electricity would not only make regional power generation projects affordable, but would also reduce costs to consumers and governments alike, as well as strengthen energy security at the national level. The foundations for … Read more

10 Things to Do: Ponce, Puerto Rico
Located on the southern coast, Ponce—La Perla del Sur (the Pearl of the South)—is Puerto Rico’s second-largest city. Founded in 1692 by Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the legendary Spanish explorer’s great-grandson, Ponce’s museums and colonial buildings date to when it was Spain’s capital for the island’s southern region. 1. Stroll through Plaza las … Read more

Some Contradictions in Contemporary Cuban Economic Development
In an August 2010 address to the Cuban National Assembly, President Raúl Castro unveiled a plan that would irrevocably alter the Caribbean nation’s trajectory. As part of a broader package of economic changes to increase productivity and exports in a number of sectors, the government planned to lay off 1 million state workers over the … Read more

Civic Innovator: Antonio Sosa-Pascual, Puerto Rico
Puerto Ricans often feel that they are part of an invisible nation. According to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, there are now 4.7 million Puerto Ricans living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia—more than on their ancestral Caribbean archipelago of 3.7 million. But because Puerto Ricans living abroad are … Read more

Panorama
Stay up-to-date with the latest trends and events from around the hemisphere with AQ‘s Panorama. Each issue, AQ packs its bags and offers readers travel tips on a new Americas destination.

Innovators
Some of our hemisphere’s emerging leaders in politics, business, civil society, and the arts.
La prisión preventiva desvirtuada
Cuando se considera a una persona como posible responsable de un delito en un procedimiento judicial, el fiscal puede solicitar su detención provisional, esto es, que vaya a prisión hasta que se le juzgue y decida que es culpable—o que no lo es. Ni el señalamiento que haga la policía, ni siquiera la acusación que … Read more
ALBA and Snowden: It’s Not All about You
The spectacle of certain Latin American countries lining up to offer asylum to National Security Administration (NSA) contractor and leaker Edward Snowden has become a sad reminder of the lack of diplomatic maturity of those countries and a red herring to the whole issue that they want to highlight. Whatever you may think of the … Read more
Monday Memo: Mexico Elections—Peru Protests—Same-Sex Unions—NSA Activities—UNASUR Meets
Likely top stories this week: results in the race for governor of Baja California; protests over legislation in Peru; Costa Rica approves same-sex civil unions; Brazil responds to surveillance reports; and UNASUR divided over Evo Morales’ flight interruptions. Baja California’s Next Governor On Sunday, nearly half of Mexico’s 31 states held elections for mayors and … Read more