Insecurity: the trigger for the declaration of a state of emergency in Peru and Ecuador
Resto de América Latina Impact | Negative The internal commotion in some regions of Ecuador and Peru was the excuse used by the governments of Pedro Castillo and Guillermo Lasso to justify further declarations of emergency. In Peru, it affects the cities of Lima and Callao, the VRAEM area, the Ucayali region and the mining […]
The Assembly extends state of exception and reforms public procurement law
El Salvador Impact | Negative Rating Civicus | Obstructed On April 24, in a special session called by President Nayib Bukele, 67 of the 84 deputies of the Legislative Assembly, from the ruling and opposition blocs, voted in favor of extending the country’s state of exception in support of the government’s continued crackdown on gang […]
Costa Rica passed a law on access to public information; where do other LAC countries stand on this?
Rest of Latin America Impact | Positive CIVICUS Rating | Limited Towards the end of April, the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica passed a general law on access to public information and transparency. The right of access to public information is now enshrined in law across the entire region except for in Bolivia, Cuba and […]
“Opening up the national debate is already a triumph”: a lowdown on the LUC referendum in Uruguay
Uruguay Impact | Positive CIVICUS Rating | Open Any comprehensive assessment of Uruguay’s March 27 referendum – where citizens got the final say over whether to repeal 135 articles of a new flagship law being pushed by the government – should look beyond the turnout and the ‘yes vs no’ voting split. Rather, it should […]
State of emergency decreed, civil rights suspended
El Salvador Impact | Negative CIVICUS Rating | Obstructed On March 27, the Legislative Assembly, with a ruling party majority, declared the beginning of the regime of exception throughout the national territory for a period of 30 days. The measure was approved, with 67 votes in favor, during an extraordinary session after the President, Nayib […]
New ‘NGO law’ – a step closer to institutionalizing harassment of civil society
Nicaragua Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Closed On March 31, the National Assembly, controlled by the Sandinista party, approved as a matter of urgency a new General Law for the Regulation and Control of Non-Profit Organizations (NPOs) by 77 votes in favor, 12 abstentions and none against. This tightens the registration requirements for NGOs, […]
Judiciary blocks decree seeking to classify information on public investments
Mexico Impact | Negative Civicus Rating | Repressed On February 25, Mexico’s top court ordered the ‘definitive suspension’ of a decree under which the President, Andres Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), had declared that federal government-backed investments in strategic areas of public interest were to be matters national security, a move that would have allowed it […]
The National Assembly creates the legal figure of the “Digital Undercover Agent”
El Salvador Impact | Negative Probability | High Civicus Rating | Obstructed On February 1, the Legislative Assembly controlled by the ruling party sanctioned five reforms to the Criminal Procedural Code, by means of which the figure of the “Digital Undercover Agent” is created. With this, the National Police is empowered to carry out undercover […]
Differences within the ruling bloc delay the reform of the Law of Access to Public Information
El Salvador Impact | Negative Civicus rating| Obstructed On February 2, the plenary of the Legislative Assembly returned to committee the controversial bill that allowed public and informal information to be classified as reserved. According to local media reports, the possible political costs of the reform could have generated tensions within the ruling bloc, which […]
Congress approved a law pardoning political prisoners and creating an Anti-Corruption Commission
Honduras CIVICUS Rating | Repressed On February 2, Congress approved the creation of the International Commission Against Impunity in Honduras (CICIH in Spanish), under the advice of the UN, and authorized the signing of the corresponding agreement. The objective of President Xiomara Castro is that the mission will contribute to unveil the corruption network that […]