Category Archives: Latin America

Chile and Wales lead renewed drive for opt-out organ donation scheme

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Organ Donation Community

Here’s my latest blog for Huffington Post UK:

While World Cup qualification is arguably the most prominent thing in most Chilean and Welsh people’s minds right now, the two countries have another topic of conversation in common: organ donation.

Chile and Wales are the two latest countries to vote in favour of introducing the controversial opt-out organ donation system, where individuals are presumed to have given consent for their organs to be donated unless they choose to opt out.

Wales made history in July this year when it became the first country in the UK to adopt the system in a bid to counteract a shortage of organ donors. The new law, which is due to come into force in 2015, aims to increase the number of organs available in Wales by around 25%.

Just the previous month Chilean President Sebastián Piñera signed into law an amendment to convert the country’s existing opt-in system – la Ley de Donante Universal, which was first adopted in 2010 – into an opt-out system.

Published on 07-09-13. Read on here

Guatemala: historic Ríos Montt conviction overturned

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Here is my latest piece published in the IBA Global Insight newsfeed:

On 10 May it looked as if history had finally been made when former Guatemalan dictator General José Efraín Ríos Montt became the first person ever to be convicted of genocide in a domestic court.

86-year-old Ríos Montt, who came to power in Guatemala following a coup on 23 March 1982, stood accused of implementing a counter-insurgency policy that massacred more than 1,700 and displaced thousands of other members of indigenous group the Ixil Maya in 1982.

The three-judge panel ruled that Ríos Montt should be sentenced to 80 years in prison, which includes 50 years for genocide, with an additional 30 years added to his sentence for crimes against humanity.

The verdict in itself was of unparalleled historic significance for Guatemala, Central America and human rights as a whole. However, despite the damning 718-page judgment released on 17 May, just ten days later the country’s Constitutional Court dramatically overturned the ruling, effectively resetting the trial back to 19 April.

Published on 22-05-13. Read on here

Chávez inauguration absence causes constitutional uncertainty

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Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images

Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images

Here is my latest piece published in the IBA Global Insight newsfeed:

Following his winning bid for re-election in October 2012 – beating nearest rival Henrique Capriles by a nine per cent margin – Venezuela waited with bated breath to see its President, Hugo Chávez, sworn in for another six-year term last Thursday.

However, on 10 January 2013, or ‘10E’, as it has often been referred to by the press and on social networking sites, Chávez was nowhere to be found in Venezuela. Instead he was reportedly still in Cuba, recovering from complications following a fourth cancer operation which took place on 11 December 2012.

Unlike Chávez’s previous trips to Cuba for medical treatment, no up-to-date images of the President have been released since the operation and a prolonged silence – notably even on his Twitter account – has provoked widespread concern over the President’s health, his succession plan and a rumoured impending power vacuum.

Published on 15-01-13. Read on here

Chávez re-election unlikely to spell victory for the rule of law

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Here is my latest piece published in the IBA Global Insight newsfeed:

After a record 80 per cent of the population turned out to vote in the Venezuelan national elections last month, on 7 October it was finally revealed that Hugo Chávez, head of the ruling Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela (PSUV) was to be re-elected, this time winning 55 per cent of the vote, giving him a nine per cent margin over rival Henrique Capriles.

Although this is the fourth time in 14 years that Chávez has been re-elected, his lead in 2012 is considerably smaller than in the 2006 elections, when he gained some 63 per cent of the vote. As the Western media continues to cast doubt on the fairness of the elections, lawyers and analysts have questioned the significance of this year’s election results, and the impact they will have on the rule of law in the country going forward.

‘It’s worth highlighting that around 75 per cent of those that voted for the first time in these elections voted in favour of Capriles, which I think gives out a clear message,’ stresses former IBA President Fernando Peláez-Pier, Partner at Hoet Peláez Castillo & Duque in Caracas.

Published on 14-11-12. Read on here

Mining Conflicts are a Great Challenge Facing Humala’s Government

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My latest blog for Huffington Post UK:

Last month UK-based company Monterrico Metals agreed to an out-of-court settlement to 33 Peruvian farmers over claims of abuse during protests in Rio Blanco in northern Peru in 2005. As incoming President Ollanta Humala lines up his cabinet, there are still many questions hanging over the exploitation of Amazon territory and the treatment of indigenous communities.

As with many other Latin American countries, Peru is no stranger to protests over mineral exploitation or other energy-related projects. Yet as a country which has some of the most sought after mineral resources in the world, the recent case with Monterrico has exposed the ugly side of foreign investment in Peru. In August 2005, 33 farmers were taking part in a protest over human rights when they were detained and tortured at a copper mine owned by Monterrico in Rio Blanco. Five protesters were shot and two female protesters were sexually abused in the attack. Although the exact amount of compensation has not been disclosed, the settlement marks a significant milestone in accountability and corporate social responsibility for mining companies in the country. Richard Meeran, a partner at UK firm Leigh Day & Company that represented the farmers, said “This constitutes a salutary lesson for multinationals operating in developing countries.”

Published on 08-08-11. Read on here

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