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Remembering Oscar Romero in a Time of War

March 23, 2011
Remembering Oscar Romero in a Time of War

By Scott Wright On March 24, we commemorate the anniversary of the martyrdom of Archbishop Oscar Romero. One day before, President Barack Obama will visit Romero’s tomb in the cathedral of San Salvador, to conclude his first visit to Latin America and El Salvador. It is an occasion that lends itself to reflection – and action – as Christians, human rights organizations, and people committed to peace and justice – and to remember the legacy of the prophet-martyr of Latin America, Archbishop Oscar Romero. It is, as well, a moment to imagine what Archbishop Romero might say to President Obama on this occasion. We recall Romero’s words to President Carter, in 1980, pleading with...
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Bishop Samuel Ruiz García, Defender of Mexico’s Mayans, Dies

January 27, 2011
Bishop Samuel Ruiz García, Defender of Mexico’s Mayans, Dies

By JULIA PRESTON New York Times, January 26, 2011 Bishop Samuel Ruiz García, an impassioned defender of the Mayans in southern Mexico and a mediator in peace talks between Indian rebels and the government, died on Monday in Mexico City. He was 86. Pascual Gorriz/Associated Press Bishop Samuel Ruiz García on his way to Mass in late 1997.
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Featured Website – Oscar Romero Faith and Solidarity Network in the Americas

January 26, 2011

The Oscar Romero Faith and Solidarity Network in the Americas (SICSAL-USA) is the U.S. representative of SICSAL (Servicio Internacional Cristiano en Solidaridad con los Pueblos de America Latina): http://www.cathnewsusa.com/article.aspx?aeid=16953
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Witness against Torture Fast to Close Guantanamo

January 19, 2011
Witness against Torture Fast to Close Guantanamo

            Dear Friends, Greetings from Washington, DC and Day Seven of the Fast for Justice. We are 40 or so in Washington, DC and over 100 throughout the country. In this brief note, we hope to share with you some sense of what our...
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TASSC International Hosts U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture

January 13, 2011
TASSC International Hosts U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture

  UN Special Rapporteur Juan Mendez with TASSC Executive Director Demissie Abebe   It was TASSC International’s honor to host the newly elected United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture on Thursday, January 13, 2011. Dr. Juan Mendez was welcomed with a luncheon followed by an opportunity to address survivors...
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Haiti: One Year After the Earthquake Killed Over 250,000

January 12, 2011

    January 9, 2011. By Roger Annis. Of all the commentaries and interviews coinciding with the anniversary of Haiti’s earthquake, none are likely to exceed in significance the interview granted by OAS Representative to Haiti, Ricardo Seitenfus, to the Swiss daily Le Temps on December 20. The critique...
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Ninth Anniversary of Guantanamo Shames United States

January 10, 2011

Press releases 11-01-2011 Today, nine years on from the opening of the United States detention facility at Guantanamo, the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) condemned US authorities for their failure to close the camp and to bring to account those who designed and carried out torture there....
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Argentine Military Dictator Jorge Videla Jailed for Life

December 22, 2010
Argentine Military Dictator Jorge Videla Jailed for Life

22 December 2010 Last updated at 18:43 ET Argentine military dictator Jorge Videla jailed for life The judges ruled that Videla would serve his life sentence in a civilian prison Former Argentine military ruler Jorge Videla has been sentenced to life in prison for crimes against humanity. A court in the...
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New UN Convention against Enforced Disappearances

December 22, 2010
New UN Convention against Enforced Disappearances

SICSAL-USA remembers, in a special way, Patrick Rice - survivor of torture and involuntary disappearance in Argentina – whose entire life was devoted to organizing family members and survivors to strengthen international protections against torture and enforced disappearance. Patrick led TASSC International’s first Human Rights Training in June 2010 before his tragic and...
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Global News

RSS News from Latin America & the Caribbean

  • RIGHTS-CUBA: Dissident Group Reports Uptick in Arrests September 8, 2011
    The Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation criticised the situation in this Caribbean island nation in a report released three days after government media warned that a new smear campaign was being organised against the country. […]
  • MEXICO: Traditional Maize Can Cope with Climate Change September 8, 2011
    Maize, Mexico's staple food as well as a symbol, has the potential to adapt to climate change and mitigate its effects without any need for genetically modified seeds, according to agricultural scientists. […]
  • ARGENTINA: Against the Current in Nuclear Energy September 8, 2011
    While the tendency in the industrialised world in the wake of the Mar. 11 nuclear meltdown in Japan is to abandon plans for further nuclear energy development, in Argentina the capacity of existing plants is being strengthened, and new reactors are being built. […]
  • US-LATAM: Human Trafficking Scourge Needs More Than Policing September 7, 2011
    South American experts and officials met in Washington this week to discuss current policy initiatives to combat human trafficking in their respective countries, part of a broader U.S.-wide tour to share information and strategies to deal with the issue. […]
  • Nicaragua's Antidote to Violent Crime September 7, 2011
    The so-called "Northern Triangle" of Central America, plagued by poverty, violence and the legacy of civil war, is considered one of the most violent areas in the world. But neighbouring Nicaragua has largely escaped the spiralling violence, and many wonder how it has managed to do so. […]
  • Q&A: Mighty Maya Cities Succumbed to Environmental Crisis September 7, 2011
    The latest archeological findings in the Mirador Basin of Guatemala lend further credence to the theory that the Maya civilisation that once flourished there was brought down by environmental causes such as deforestation. […]
  • OP-ED-RIGHTS: "We Just Want to Know Where They Are" September 7, 2011
    The last time Supaya Serrano saw her sisters Erlinda and Ernestina, they were just three and seven years old, respectively. […]
  • ARGENTINA: Purging the Legal System of Dictatorship Accomplices September 6, 2011
    As human rights cases from Argentina's 1976-1983 military dictatorship move ahead in the courts, cases of judges and prosecutors who were accomplices in the crimes are coming to light. […]
  • BOLIVIA: Rainforest Road Will Have Environmental and Cultural Impacts September 6, 2011
    A richly biodiverse rainforest the size of 3,000 soccer fields in central Bolivia will be the first victim of the road planned to run through the Isiboro Sécure Indigenous Territory and National Park (TIPNIS), say environmental activists. […]
  • CUBA: Catholic Church Takes the Pulse of Religious Sentiment September 6, 2011
    The Catholic Church seems to be expecting a rise in religious sentiment among the Cuban population as a result of the climate of dialogue and more relaxed relations with the government seen since the 1998 visit of Pope John Paul II. […]