Regional Pulse: 23 July 2024

Southern Pulse’s weekly review of need-to-know events curated for people who work in Latin America.

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Editor's Picks:

Brazil

Lethal force by police rising as violent homicide rates decrease

On 18 July 2024, a report from the Brazilian Public Safety Forum NGO showed that Brazil has seen a 27.7% decrease in violent homicide rates nationally since a 2017 peak. Meanwhile, deaths caused by lethal force from police have increased by 188.9% over the past decade. A Folha newspaper article highlights that Jequié is now the Brazilian city with the most deaths caused by police, noting that it was also the city with the highest number of violent deaths in 2022. The NGO attributes Jequié’s increased violence to a territorial dispute between Brazil’s two largest criminal organizations, Rio de Janeiro-based Comando Vermelho and Sao Paulo-based Primeiro Comando da Capital. The NGO said the increased police lethality used to address the issue is heightening tensions between police and civilians.

Colombia

Estado Mayor Central guerrilla threatens to disrupt COP16 summit

On 16 July 2024, FARC dissident group Estado Mayor Central (EMC) posted a threatening message on its X profile suggesting it could target the United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP16) scheduled to take place in Cali from 21 October to 1 November 2024. EMC said that the COP16 summit would fail “even if it militarizes Cali with gringo soldiers.” The message comes amid an uptick in violence perpetrated by EMC in the Valle del Cauca department, whose capital city is Cali. In May, a motorcycle equipped with bombs exploded in a terrorist attack attributed to EMC in Jamundí. Authorities also believe the EMC was behind an attack on Vice President Francia Márquez’s father, whose car was shot at near Jamundí in June 2024. According to El Espectador newspaper, Cali Mayor Alejandro Eder met with officials from the New York Police Department (NYPD)’s Counterterrorism Bureau on 18 July 2024 to discuss security measures for the event following the EMC’s announcement.

Peru

Amnesty International report claims Boluarte knew about human rights violations during nationwide protests 

On 18 July 2024, NGO Amnesty International released a report that claims President Dina Boluarte received intelligence reports showing that police and army officials were using excessive force against protesters — which involved live bullets — during protests between December 2022 and March 2023. The report concluded that Boluarte’s direct communication with high-level police and military officials directly led to grave human rights violations during the protests, despite swearing under oath before the Attorney General that she did not give orders to fire on protesters. Peru’s Ombudsman Office reported that 49 out of the 67 people killed had died in confrontations with armed forces, CNN reported. Boluarte responded to the report by saying that the protesters were violent and authorities acted lawfully.

For the rest of this week's top developments in Latin America's major markets, click here.

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