Author: Laura Carlsen

President Obama’s speech in El Paso on May 10 put the immigration debate back on the table. Although Obama’s attempt to reframe the debate moved discussion back into economics, he left out any structural explanation of what pushes migration in a globalized world. What are the conditions that drive thousands of people a year to assume the risks of migrating to the United States to “provide for their families”? How can development policies be coordinated to build employment options for people at home?

En una plaza ensombrecida, a los pies del Monumento a Juárez, Javier Sicilia, líderes civiles y grupos de victimas firmaron el Pacto Ciudadano por la Paz con Justicia y Dignidad.

Striking the podium in anger, Felipe Calderon insists that the explosion of violence in Mexican soil is the sole fault of organized crime. He reiterates his commitment to the war on drugs and his determination to relentlessly pursue those responsible. This vehement defense of his security strategy is directed not at the criminals themselves, but at a society that increasingly rejects the president’s crime policy.

500.000 mujeres violadas en Randa, 64.000 en Sierra Leona, 40.000 en Bosnia-Herzegovina, 4.500 en la República del Congo. “Los números son pasmosos”, advierte la Nobel Jody Williams. “Hay mujeres aquí que han experimentado violencia sexual en conflictos”.

In a darkened plaza at the foot of the Monument to Juárez, Javier Sicilia, civic leaders and scores of victims signed the National Civil Pact for Peace with Justice and Dignity. Hundreds of participants in the caravan and Juarez citizens gathered for the event cheered as pen was finally put to paper.

In this second part of the Americas Program interview with Javier Sicilia on the road with the Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity, we talk about the federal government’s response to the peace movement. Sicilia notes that President Calderon seems to be heading toward a military/police state and responding to the call for peace with violence.

In an interview with Americas Program director Laura Carlsen, Javier Sicilia called on the U.S. government to change its strategy and criticized the Merida Initiative as “an initiative that only has imagination for violence and war.”

Felipe Calderón está enojado. Enfáticamente golpea, una y otra vez, el atril mientras insiste que la violencia desatada en territorio mexicano es culpa del crimen organizado y de nadie más. Reafirma por enésima ocasión su compromiso con la guerra contra el narcotráfico que lanzó en diciembre de 2006 y la decisión de seguir con el combate frontal a los delincuentes.