Authorities suspect that the March 14 murder of Giovanni Villatoro, 20, a cameraman with the Intercable news station, occurred because his company refused to pay extortion money.
Two journalists were murdered in the city of Mazatenango on March 10 and a third on March 13 in the nearby town of Chicacao. Guatemalan Interior Minister Mauricio López said Monday that the recent crimes could be related to a drug trafficking ring that operates in the area.
One of the reporters killed, Danilo López, had been receiving threats after he reported on corruption in the area. Authorities were searching the homes of two mayors and one former mayor as part of the investigation.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, during a visit to Guatemala earlier this week, strongly hinted that keeping the U.N. International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala was a condition for U.S. support of a new regional development plan for Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Barack Obama's administration has asked the U.S. Congress to approve $1 billion in funding for Central America to bolster security and stem illegal immigration into the U.S. from its southern neighbors.
Customs offices are scheduled to be removed along the two countries’ shared border in December of this year. Authorities and business leaders hope the move will cut costs and speed up transportation of goods throughout the region.
Alfonso Portillo left no doubt that he plans to jump into the country's election-year political scene, though not as a candidate. He said he wanted to seek a national agreement aimed at reforming the Guatemalan government.
Latin American countries have been slow to follow Uruguay's lead in legalizing pot. A 2014 survey in Costa Rica found that 53 percent of the population supported the use of medical marijuana.
Eliminating customs duties between the two Northern Triangle countries would be a big step toward implementing the long-planned Central American Customs Union.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Panama’s economy will grow by 7 percent this year, but because of glaring inequality, most Panamanians will never see that prosperity. In Guatemala, corruption is rampant among the “klepto-dictatorship” that runs the country, and in El Salvador, gross domestic product stagnates as politicians stuff their pockets with money from violent gangs.
