Lisa Haugaard

Alexander Quintero campaigned for justice for the victims of Colombia's 2001 Naya River massacre, committed by paramilitary forces. "He brought us all together, indigenous, Afro-Colombian and mestizo communities," said a colleague. "It could have been any of us," a sobbing defender said, as she told me about Alexander's...

Just a few steps south of the U.S.-Mexico border, President Calderón unveiled a towering billboard last week wielding a message written in plain English: "No More Weapons!" Weighing over 3 tons, the billboard itself is made of seized firearms that have been chopped, melted and welded together. Visible...

This post was written by Lisa Haugaard and Vanessa Kritzer.

In Washington, Congress is nearing a vote on the U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement (FTA). In Colombia, Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities, union members and small-scale farmers are bracing for the agreement's economic impact and enduring still more violence and...

In early April, thousands of Mexicans poured into the streets in over 20 Mexican cities to raise their voices in a chorus of protest against the government's ineffective and increasingly unpopular military campaign against organized crime. That same week, authorities unearthed 145 murder victims...

Today, Mexico's President Calderón will sit down with President Obama in the Oval Office. At the top of the agenda is action to address the devastating organized crime-related violence plaguing Mexico. President Calderón has made no secret of his frustration with the United States' failure to take steps...

Is the United States really more secure if its neighbors view it as narrowly interested only in its own security? Do we want our nation's reputation to be more about guns and less about helping to fight diseases and recover from natural disasters? Do we win good will and allies...

As Colombian Vice President Angelino Garzón visits Washington, DC, representing the recently inaugurated government of Juan Manuel Santos, he is saying all the right words. Now Colombia needs to see the deeds.

After eight years of the Uribe Administration's charged rhetoric that put human rights defenders' lives in...

"Disappearances." When you mention the word in the Latin American context, most people think of Argentina, where 30,000 people were disappeared during the dirty war, or Chile, where 3,000 people were killed or disappeared. But the magnitude of the tragedy in Colombia may be even greater.

More than...

Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg and an unprecedented host of high-level U.S. officials visited Colombia on October 24 and 25. One positive outcome was the establishment of a "human rights and good governance working group" between the U.S. and Colombian governments.

The Deputy Secretary praised President...

On September 15, Honduran independence day, crowds gathered in a central park in San Pedro Sula to celebrate. They were also protesting violations of human rights that have taken place since the coup on June 28, 2009, and that continue despite the November 2009 elections won by Porfirio...

When the United States provides massive aid and training to another country's army, our government becomes responsible for the human rights crimes their soldiers commit.

This was brought home to me as I listened to some visitors to our nation's capital.

"I always ask why they took away my son,"...

Nearly three thousand civilians intentionally killed by army soldiers seeking to beef up their body counts and score days off. A massive illegal wiretapping operation targeting Supreme Court judges, journalists, opposition politicians and human rights defenders. Seven human rights defenders and leaders of displaced communities killed in one...