Against grim economic news in Latin America, Central America is expected to grow by 4.3 percent this year. But that won’t be enough. Here’s how the region can grow further, leveraging its creative industries.
Can demographics and policy reform help Central America’s creative industries?
By Javier Gutiérrez /
Brazil and the Southern Cone
Will Zika change the region’s attitudes toward abortion?
The Zika virus has raised the issue of abortion in Latin America, where a number of countries such as El Salvador, Nicaragua and Chile restrict the right to terminate a pregnancy in all cases. Will Zika change the debate and policies on a woman’s right to choose in the Americas?
Central America
The new offensive against gangs in El Salvador
By Evan Ellis /
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The government of President Salvador Sánchez Cerén has launched a new, expansive (and expensive) anti-crime package targeting gang leaders, reforming prisons and establishing renewed police presence in select municipalities. Will it work?
In the Media
The gang challenge in El Salvador: Worse than you thought
By Evan Ellis /
In August 2015, El Salvador registered its bloodiest month since its 1980-1992 civil war. There were 907 murders, including 52 in a single day on August 27. The country is on track to end the year with over 6,000 murders in a population of just 6.4 million, making it the most violent country not at war in the world.
Brazil and the Southern Cone
Violence, self censorship and culture
By Rick Rockwell /
This past May, El Salvador suffered its highest murder rate since the end of the country’s civil war 23 years ago. But this grisly flash of news—what journalists in the region call the nota roja—doesn’t give the wider context. There’s another story to be told here beyond the numbers: how Latin American journalists are affected by the violence they cover and how, in turn, their coverage is creating a cultural acceptance of violence.
Central America
El Salvador fails its women
By Stephanie Martinez /
Is there a greater hypocrisy than dedicating yourself to basic human rights, while leaving the possibility of unjust imprisonment and death due to an inhumane and retrograde stance on a critical social and health issue?