Summary – The US state department released their annual report on human rights, and countries facing criticism include Mexico and Nicaragua. The report criticized human rights abuses, discrimination, and violence as a result of drug trafficking. The report also noted low rates of prosecution for all crimes, as culprits are rarely brought to justice for crimes such as murder. Nicaragua, has seen a recent increase in human right violations under the government of President Daniel Ortega. The president has taken on a fourth term as president by preventing all electoral challenges. The report also noted that Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has engaged in attacks against journalists, environmentalists and more.
Analysis – I find it important to note that this is the first report under the Biden administration, and we are seeing that secretary of state Antony J. Blinken is taking a more critical approach towards Latin America. Under the last administration, Mexico especially faced little criticism, as it was in the US interest at the time to ensure the migrant border crisis was resolved with Mexico’s cooperation. I believe it is important to alert people about the potential electoral fraud in Nicaragua, that also has potential to happen in Brazil in the October presidential election. The rise of authoritarianism in Latin America should concern the US and in our foreign policy, we should work on containment of these authoritarian regimes, as human rights abuses and election fraud run rampant.
This relates to International relations because the state of human rights is critical to making foreign policy decisions, because the rise of authoritarian leaders is also a threat to democracy in neighboring countries. For the sake of democracy and a peaceful international stage, these issues should be analyzed and brought to light.