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	<title>Council on Hemispheric Affairs &#187; Letters</title>
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	<description>COHA is an NGO specialized in monitoring Latin American and Canadian Relations for more than 30 years...</description>
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		<title>Response to Washington Post Editorial, “Cuba’s Gesture”</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/response-to-washington-post-editorial-%e2%80%9ccuba%e2%80%99s-gesture%e2%80%9d/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/response-to-washington-post-editorial-%e2%80%9ccuba%e2%80%99s-gesture%e2%80%9d/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 19 Jul 2010 08:32:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[COHA Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cuba]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Front Page]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Letters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Obama]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=9876</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After a July 7th, 2010 meeting that included President Raúl Castro, Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega, and Spanish Foreign Minister, Miguel Ángel Moratinos, a representative of the Catholic Church announced that the regime would release 52 “prisoners of conscience” over the next several months. The anti-Castro, island-based Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation also released its semi-annual report this month which listed a total of 167 prisoners of conscience who were being incarcerated by Havana. This figure is down 20% from its previous report and is the lowest number since the 1959 revolution. The nation’s entire politically-based detainee population could all but disappear as a result of a steady stream of releases ordered by Cuban authorities in the next several months, which could represent a huge and very welcome development. The pledged releases should demonstrate that the pragmatism associated with Raúl Castro’s rise to power seems to be here to stay and appears to be aimed at small reforms as well as transcending ones. It may not be a small coincidence that the announcement of the release of detainees came on the heels of the U.S. House Agricultural Committee’s approval of lifting the ban on U.S. tourism to Cuba [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>40</slash:comments>
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		<title>A note from COHA regarding yesterday’s release (“Ecuador’s Flirtations with Democracy: Correa Does it Somewhat Differently,” 12/9/09)</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/a-note-from-coha-regarding-yesterday%e2%80%99s-release-ecuador%e2%80%99s-flirtations-with-democracy-correa-does-it-somewhat-differently%e2%80%9d-by-coha-research-associate-sophia-weeks-12909/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/a-note-from-coha-regarding-yesterday%e2%80%99s-release-ecuador%e2%80%99s-flirtations-with-democracy-correa-does-it-somewhat-differently%e2%80%9d-by-coha-research-associate-sophia-weeks-12909/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:53:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Ecuador]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Front Page]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Letters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=7342</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After a careful analysis of FLACSO’s Guillaume Long’s admirable, if highly critical letter on Ecuador, which devastatingly took to task yesterday’s (December 9th, 2009) COHA research release on Ecuador, we decided that the quality of Long’s analysis justified it being sent to our entire mailing list of over 55,000 names. We do this in order to detail its critique of the errors and shortcomings of COHA&#8217;s piece. In order to preserve it as a point of reference for those who may also want to comment on the now withdrawn piece, we are shifting the latter to the COHA forum where it can temporarily still be found. In deciding to ultimately take down and rework the piece, we had in mind the importance of our achieving the necessary fidelity to the facts that we would hope characterizes COHA’s research. The COHA staff and its body of intern researchers spend many hours of our time trying to meet the expectations and research standards that we have set for ourselves and in order to serve the equally high standards of our readers. Occasionally, erroneous conclusions get through the various filters and other quality controls that we have set up to safeguard the accuracy [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>16</slash:comments>
		</item>
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		<title>UN Security Council Must Act on Honduras Crisis</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/un-security-council-must-act-on-honduras-crisis/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/un-security-council-must-act-on-honduras-crisis/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2009 20:24:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Front Page]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Honduras]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Letters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=6629</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Please consider signing this urgent letter to President Obama demanding the U.S. to support Brazil&#8217;s proposal to have the UN Security Council focus and act on the Honduran crisis. This is very important, as Security Council resolutions are binding and could finally result in effective sanctions against the illegitimate interim government, as well as prevent additional injuries and human rights abuses. Thank you, COHA Staff Dear President Obama, We urge you, in your capacity as temporary president of the United Nations Security Council, to support Brazil&#8217;s request for an emergency session of the Security Council to address the political and human rights crisis in Honduras. We note that State Department spokesperson Ian Kelly stated, &#8220;we&#8217;re looking at [Brazil's request] positively,&#8221; and we encourage you to follow this sentiment with forceful action. As you know, the situation in Honduras is very dangerous for both the Honduran people and Honduras&#8217; democratic institutions. Early Tuesday morning, police and military forces violently dispersed thousands of demonstrators that spent the night in front of the Brazilian embassy to peacefully support ousted President Manuel Zelaya following his return to Honduras. Water cannons, tear gas, rubber bullets, beatings, and, according to some reports, live ammunition were used [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>17</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Letter to the President: US-Colombia Military Bases</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/letter-to-the-president-us-colombia-military-bases/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/letter-to-the-president-us-colombia-military-bases/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:23:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[COHA Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Colombia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Letters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Obama]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=6373</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Dear Colleague: In accordance with our organization’s underlying mission to promote rational and constructive U.S. policies towards Latin America, the Council on Hemispheric Affairs has been asked by the esteemed Colombian Support Network (CSN), as well as by the offices of several members of Congress, to distribute the following letter to the President. This letter concerns negotiations now underway between the U.S. and Colombia, which have resulted in an agreement awaiting ratification by the U.S. Congress. Presidents Uribe and Obama have agreed to increase their collaboration in order to improve their anti-narcotics and anti-insurgency efforts in Colombia. Should the agreement pass, the U.S. will have access to several Colombian military bases. However, increased military presence in Colombia can only exacerbate Plan Colombia’s failure in the interdiction campaign against cocaine cultivation. We are concerned that it will also foster additional human rights abuses in Colombia committed by the illegal paramilitary forces that traditionally have worked with the Uribe administration. We encourage you to consider adding your signature. To view the letter addressed to President Obama, please follow this link: http://colombiasupport.net/2009/Baldwin-on-Bases9-3-09.pdf. If it meets your approval, please print, sign, and mail to: President Barack Obama The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Mexico&#8217;s security</title>
		<link>http://www.coha.org/mexicos-security/</link>
		<comments>http://www.coha.org/mexicos-security/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 04 Feb 2009 16:34:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Letters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mexico]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.coha.org/?p=2682</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Jan. 12 story Obama and Mexican president meet in Washington goes into the security threat posed by mounting drug violence in Mexico and the United States. It also notes that both leaders realize that this common threat necessitates a joint effort to combat the drug-trade industry and the widening crime wave associated with it. But the mere fact that the incoming U.S. president and President Felipe Calderón scheduled a pre-inauguration meeting does not automatically signify the level of importance each country places on a common security agenda and commitment to strengthening U.S.-Mexico relations overall. It could only mean that not to stage this pro forma meeting could bring more pressure than pain. Even though Mexico is in a period of unremitting economic strain and hardship, as well as experiencing drug-gang violence spawned by cartels, dealing with such issues could prove distracting. However, such agenda items must be dealt with squarely because drugs and gangs have brought horrific levels of bloodshed and chaos throughout Mexico. The problems are systemic and must be placed on the front burner of U.S.-Mexican policies, where they belong.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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