RSSWashington is currently considering three free trade agreements (FTAs) that await congressional ratification. While U.S. lawmakers hesitate to approve deals with Colombia and South Korea, the proposed U.S.-Panama FTA does not seem to generate much controversy. Although the ongoing transgressions in[...]
Archive for the Category: "COHA Opinion"
August 9th, 2010 - 10:49 am § in COHA Opinion, Colombia, Free Trade, Front Page, Uncategorized, Venezuela
COHA Opinion: Misguided Priorities at Mercosur Summit
At a Mercosur summit on August 3rd in Argentina, member states applauded their success in finally making the trade organization into a full customs union, a process that has been heatedly debated since December 1994. Almost completely absent from the agenda, however, was the important matter of r[...]
COHA Opinion: Lifting the Travel and Trade Restrictions on Cuba Closer than Ever
Since 1960, Washington has been seeking ways to punish Cuba for its transgressions, real and imagined. The embargo was also meant to force the Cuban leadership, as well as the island’s population to repent for worshipping their communist canons. Fifty years later, the U.S. has yet to see any si[...]
Response to Washington Post Editorial, “Cuba’s Gesture”
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[...]
Brazil’s Black Gold (But also its Black Stain)
The Brazilian authorities have portrayed a complex issue of huge significance as a simplistic contest between nationalists and sell-outs. On Wednesday, June 9th, the Brazilian Senate passed a bill that alters regulations governing the exploitation of the offshore “pre-salt” oil fields. [...]
U.S.-Mexico Trucking Dispute Rolls On: Sixteen Years and Counting
President Felipe Calderón’s visit to Washington last month carried high expectations for those who hoped for a resolution of the cross-border trade dispute between the United States and Mexico. The Mexican president was expected to address the U.S.’ failure to comply with NAFTA regulations [...]
Argentina’s Bicentennial: Another Take
• The indigenous have little to celebrate “Los pueblos originarios están acá; están presente,” an indigenous woman shouted to the camera of Argentina’s Canal 7 news program on May 18th. She was surrounded by fellow protestors from across Argentina. In a period of eight days this group ha[...]
La Pesadilla de Prohibición – Drug Policy and Violence in Mexico
Two prevailing narratives have emerged in the American discourse over Mexico’s plague of drug violence. On the one hand, there are those who laud President Calderón’s hard-line anti-drug crusade while blaming Mexico’s plight entirely on Mexicans – on their “record of corrupt, weak and inc[...]
Next Year in Havana? Ending the U.S. Travel Ban Should Be First Step in Normalizing Relations with Cuba
Dr. Ashby is a practicing corporate attorney in Miami. He previously served at the Commerce Department as Director of the Office of Mexico and the Caribbean and was acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for the Western Hemisphere. Dr. Ashby, who travels regularly to Cuba, he is [...][...]
Honduras’ Porfirio “Pepe” Lobo: Another Disaster for Central American Democracy Waiting in the Wing
Tomorrow, January 27th, as the world’s eyes continue to be riveted on the unfolding disaster in Haiti, Porfirio “Pepe” Lobo will be installed as Honduras’ president, succeeding de facto president Roberto Micheletti. Lobo, a supporter of the June 28th military coup that ousted P[...]