Alex monitors economic and political developments in Latin America and beyond and regularly engages with policymakers and civil society groups. His areas of expertise include global economic governance, Latin American and Caribbean integration, and US policy in the Western Hemisphere. Alex’s analyses have been published in numerous outlets, including The New York Times, Folha de São Paulo, Foreign Policy, the Los Angeles Times, The Hill, Dissent, Pagina 12, and Le Monde diplomatique.
Prior to CEPR, Alex spent more than six years in Latin America working as a foreign policy analyst and an international cooperation consultant. He holds degrees in history and political science from the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, and is fluent in Spanish and French.
All from Alexander Main
Excerpts from Congressional Briefing on the Impact of U.S. Security Assistance on Human Rights in Mexico, Central America and Colombia
During a visit to Washington in late July, Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández and Guatemalan President Otto Pérez Molina jointly called for a regional security initiative modeled on Plan Colombia in response to the rampant violence sweeping their c
U.N. and U.S. Blame Haiti’s Opposition for Delayed Elections, Ignore History
At the United Nations Security Council meeting last week, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power did not mince words regarding who was to blame for Haiti’s electoral impasse. Power, speaking to the assembled members, stated bluntly [PDF]: But a group
The Central American Child Refugee Crisis: Made in U.S.A.
Alexander MainDissent, July 30, 2014
U.S. on Its Own, Once Again, at OAS Meeting on Argentinean Sovereign Debt
Once upon a time, the U.S. government ran a very tight ship at the Organization of American States (OAS), a multilateral institution created by Washington at the start of the Cold War. Though the OAS’ 1948 Charter calls on its members to uphold democrac
The U.S. Re-militarization of Central America and Mexico
Alexander MainNACLA Report on the Americas, June 26, 2014
Hank Johnson on the Two-Year Anniversary of the Ahuas Killings and the Launching of a Joint Inspector General Review of the Incident
Sunday, May 11 marked the grim two-year anniversary of a tragic incident that CEPR has investigated and frequently blogged about: the DEA-related killing of four indigenous villagers in the northeastern Moskitia region of Honduras. The victims – two wome
Honduras: The Deep Roots of Resistance
Alexander MainDissent, April 14, 2014
Leadership of Venezuela’s Student Movement Puts Its Politics On Display in Press Release That is Quietly Removed from Newspaper
On the night of February 22nd, a bizarre incident took place in the Venezuela media-sphere. At around 4:00 pm Venezuela time, a number of the country’s private media outlets posted a release from a protest group identified only as the “student movement.”
US Congressional Appropriations Bill Would Impose New Restrictions on Honduras Support
The new budget appropriations bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday, and set to be taken up by the Senate in the coming days, includes several passages that are relevant for Honduras, including stronger restrictions on U.S. assistance for the police and military. It also includes language opposing involvement by international financial institutions like the World Bank and IADB in the financing of large dam projects, such as those planned in Rio Blanco, and other language that could help victims of the May 2012 DEA operation in Ahuas — that resulted in four villagers killed and several others injured — finally receive compensation.
Under the “Honduras” section, the bill [PDF] reads:
- Of the funds appropriated by this Act under the headings ‘‘International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement’’ and ‘‘Foreign Military Financing Program’’, 35 percent may not be made available for assistance for the Honduran military and police except in accordance with the procedures and requirements specified under section 7045 in the explanatory statement described in section 4 (in the matter preceding division A of this consolidated Act).
- The restriction in paragraph (1) shall not apply to assistance to promote transparency, anti-corruption, border security, and the rule of law within the military and police.
This 35 percent is a significant increase from the 20 percent previously withheld over concerns about human rights violations by Honduran security forces.
The “procedures and requirements” appear under the section (Division J) titled “Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2014”:
Honduras. – The agreement modifies language in the Senate bill regarding Honduras in subsection (e). There is concern with the security challenges facing Honduras, which has become a transit hub for illicit drugs from South America. The assistance provided by this Act is intended to help stem the trafficking and address related violence, corruption, and impunity. The agreement recognizes the need for fundamental reform of Honduran law enforcement and judicial systems. In accordance with section 7045(e) of this Act, 35 percent of funds that are available for assistance for the Honduran military and police may be obligated only if the Secretary of State certifies that-
US Government Misled Public on Critical Role in Colombia’s 2008 Illegal Cross-border Attack
“The territory of a State is inviolable; it may not be the object, even temporarily, of military occupation or of other measures of force taken by another State, directly or indirectly, on any grounds whatever.” – Article 21, Charter of the Organization