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Genocide in Guatemala
In 1954, the elected, mildly progressive president of Guatemala, Jacobo Arbenz, was deposed in a coup orchestrated by the CIA. Arbenz planned modest land reforms that threatened the interests of the United Fruit Company. His successor reversed the reforms and put to the firing squad an estimated 8000 opponents. The coup launched 42 years of dictatorship…
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A murder every 74 minutes
According to official records, there were 54 murders in Honduras on Christmas Eve. With a violent death every 74 minutes, a rate that more than doubled over Christmas, the country is four times more dangerous than Mexico. In 2012, 7172 murders were recorded. That’s nearly one per thousand inhabitants, by far the highest murder rate in the…
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Chávez’s legacy of change
From Guardian Weekly letters, 22 March Your editorial and Tariq Ali’s piece on Hugo Chávez (15 March) had a fairness and balance. To understand Chávez’s significance, it is vital to be aware of the role the US has played in Latin America for well over a century, deposing or assassinating elected leaders and carrying out…
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Why they love Chávez
You would expect the New York Post to say Glad to see Hugo (get it?). Or Britain’s Daily Mail to label him a brutal despot (ignoring the fact that he won four elections). Toby Young in the Daily Telegraph, looking for the most obnoxious comparison possible, said he was the Latin American Kim Jong-il. More…
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A Bridge between Continents
Central America is one of the worlds connecting points. The land bridge that now exists through Panama (though one that even today is not open to vehicles) is – in geological terms – brand new. It was created only about five million years ago. Few such bridges currently exist (although many have been built and…
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Solar electricity – keeping people connected
It’s coming up to seven years since we installed the first solar kit in one of the rural communities near Masaya which don’t have electricity. Our original volunteer engineer, Marc Ricart (from Barcelona – centre in photo), left installers like Norman Padilla (right) with the skills to continue the scheme. ‘Proyecto Sol’ has now brought…
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The Masaya Volcano’s amazing butterflies
Here are some slightly surprising figures. In the whole of the British Isles, there are currently 59 known species of butterfly. In the national park that covers the Masaya volcano, the edge of which is a kilometre or two from our farm, so far over 180 species of butterfly have been identified. The park covers…
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