Police reform: a long overdue issue brought to the fore by the National Strike

Colombia Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Repressed The death toll from police crackdowns on protests since April already exceeds 50 according to Indepaz and the NGO Temblores, while official sources put the figure at 27. With this, an issue that was high on the agenda in 2019 has gained renewed profile: the need to […]

Constitutional Court endorsed a law restricting civil society organizations

Guatemala Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Obstructed On May 12, the Constitutional Court decided to annul the provisional injunction suspending the entry into force of a reform to the Law on Non-Governmental Organizations for Development, enacted in February 2020. With this decision, the government – through the Ministry of the Interior – is empowered […]

INAI and IFT challenged a decree involving data collection from cell phone users

Mexico Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Repressed At the end of April, the National Institute of Transparency, Access to Information and Protection of Personal Data (INAI, in Spanish) filed an action of unconstitutionality before the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) against the decree that creates a registry of cell phone users […]

Reforms to restrict protests during election campaigns already in force

Nicaragua Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Repressed  After an express legislative treatment, on May 5, the government promulgated the reform to the Electoral Law presented by ruling party deputies of Frente Sandinista and endorsed by President Daniel Ortega. Among other points, the new law obliges political parties to request authorization from the National Police […]

The Assembly strips newspapers of tax benefits and closes its doors to journalists.

El Salvador Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Obstructed On May 5, during its second plenary session, the new Assembly approved a reform to the Printing Law eliminating tax exemptions favoring printed newspapers. The initiative, presented by the deputy of Nuevas Ideas Christian Guevara, was supported by deputies of the ruling party and allies and […]

Special committee created by the Assembly to investigate NGOs receiving public funds

El Salvador Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Obstructed The Committee, formed entirely by deputies of the ruling bloc and allies, began working on May 20. The list of the organizations to be investigated has not been made public so far. However, threatening remarks on Twitter by officials and deputies appear to implicate 24 NGOs. […]

La Asamblea creó una comisión especial para investigar a ONGs que recibieron fondos públicos

El Salvador Impacto | Negativo Rating Civicus | Obstruido La Comisión, conformada enteramente por diputados del bloque oficialista y aliados, inició sus actividades el 20 de mayo. El listado de las organizaciones que serán investigadas no se hizo público hasta el momento. Sin embargo, publicaciones de corte amenazador realizadas a través de Twitter por funcionarios […]