Briefings & Intelligence

‘March of silence’ and other Nisman-related events have major political implications

Two events in the past week have marked a watershed in the repercussions of the still unsolved death of Argentine prosecutor Alberto Nisman, who had drawn up criminal charges against President Cristina Fernández, foreign relations minister Héctor Timerman and others. On one side is the strictly legal arena, where two separate developments are taking place: the furtherance of Nisman’s charges and the investigation of Nisman’s death. On the other side is the laterally connected political arena, where the survival of kirchnerismo will be played out in the run-up to the October presidential elections.

Economic storm clouds gather in Brazil

Peru’s Humala responds to “political noise”

Peru’s President Ollanta Humala took drastic action this week to prop up his ailing government. After dismissing as “political noise” the various setbacks faced by his administration, the questioning of its integrity in relation to an illegal spying scandal, and allegations of financial irregulari- ties directed against First Lady Nadine Heredia, Humala responded by inviting political parties to talks with his government. In the past these have borne little fruit. This time they resulted in a concrete development: the temporary suspension of the national intelligence agency (Dini) pending a radical revamp. This is a big gesture. Whether it is sufficient to dampen down the noise is a moot point.

Pope Francis and Giuliani vie for influence in El Salvador

Pope Francis is at it again. The Holy See played an integral part in brokering the accord between the US and Cuba to take a historic step towards renewing diplomatic relations. Now it could be poised to take a decisive role in El Salvador. The Pope has instructed the Roman Catholic Church in the country to set aside religious differences and embrace the ‘Pastoral initiative for life and peace’ (Ipaz) of El Salvador’s Protestant churches to hold a dialogue with rival mara gangs. With El Salvador close to reclaiming the unwanted tag of the world’s most violent country from Honduras, mara gangs revealed a unilateral truce in late January after Ipaz leaders visited imprisoned leaders. Meanwhile, pursuing a decidedly different approach, El Salvador’s private sector has hired the tough-talking former mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani, as a security consultant to come up with a plan for reducing violence in the country.

Mexico’s Peña Nieto might be losing his mojo

Mexico’s President Enrique Peña Nieto has bowed to political pressure to remove a close ally, Alfredo Castillo, as federal commissioner for the western state of Michoacán. He took the decision ostensibly for the sake of democracy: with elections coming up on 7 June for state governor and congress as well as 113 mayoral contests, opposition politicians were publicly raising questions about Castillo’s excessive influence. But there is a sense that mounting conflict of interest scandals are emasculating Peña Nieto, whose governance has transmuted from strong and pro-active, dictating the agenda with myriad reform initiatives to modernise Mexico, to weak and reactive; no longer shaping events but being shaped by them.

Nisman’s death rocks Argentina’s Fernández

“It is very distressing to live in a country where any hypothesis, however absurd it may seem, is found plausible.” Speaking at a rally convened to demand justice of the authorities in their investigation into the sudden death of special prosecutor Alberto Nisman, Leonardo Jmelnitzky, the head of the Amia Jewish association, articulated clearly the febrile atmosphere of rumour and conspiracy theory that has pervaded Argentine public discourse since the discovery of Nisman’s body in the bathroom of his apartment on Sunday evening.