The drug-mafias have become experts in organization and logistical planning for the management of the dispatch and distribution of drugs by sea. The Sea Route 10, the Narco-Highway. The international drugs trade uses, for the most part, a means of transport that has been in use since time immemorial, that of maritime vessels, used today…
In a small town near the heart of the Brazilian Amazon region, two Sisters help support the poor agricultural workers in their struggles for land and better living conditions. In a simple wooden house on an unpaved street in the violent town of Anapu, near the heart of the Brazilian Amazon region, live Sr. Jane…
Every town and city has its own tales, myths, and legends that make up part of the culture of Nicaraguans. Those who appear to be the simplest folk, all the while guarding the treasure of the traditions of their ancestors. León is the second largest city in Nicaragua, after Managua. It was founded by the…
The defense of the environment and its peoples. New ministries for the Christian communities. The role of women. Ahead of the Pan-Amazon Synod to be held in Rome in October, we speak with Mons. Evaristo Pascoal Spengler, Bishop of Marajó. “Some of the aspects that cannot be omitted during this synod: the prophetic and daring…
The maras are characterized by their particular ritualism, their violent initiation rites and the tattoos that proclaim their own members that make them very similar to the members of the Japanese Yakuza. In the initiation ritual of the mareros or pandilleros, the neophyte is approached and placed at the center of a circle composed of…
The phenomenon of organized crime is one of the plagues that most affects both the economy and the quality of life of citizens, since the cost of violence and insecurity has serious consequences on the GDP with the attendant result of the emptying of entire villages and thousands of Salvadorans asking for asylum in foreign…
El Salvador is one of the smallest countries in size of Central America, given that its area is 21.041Km². Despite its small size, the country has a high population density concentrated in urban areas. It borders Guatemala and Honduras and is the only one of the Mesoamerican states to face the Pacific Ocean. It has…
In the general elections last February, Nayb Bukele established himself as the new President of El Salvador, thus marking the historic victory of a third candidate, to the detriment of the two political groups that emerged from the civil war, ARENA and FMLN, which during the last three decades have operated in a monopoly regime.…
The Miguel Agustín Pro Juarez Human Rights Centre (Centro ProDH),founded by the Jesuits, is celebrating its 30th year. A path in defence of human rights especially in the most disadvantaged sectors in Mexico. Father Jesús Maldonado, founder of the Centre tell us its story. During these 30 years we have been accompanying many of those…
Bishop Emeritus of Xingu, Erwin Krautler, traces the history of the Church in the Amazon. “With its feet on the ground”. The history of the Church in the Amazon differs greatly from the history of the Church in other parts of Brazil. Half of Brazil’s area was forgotten for centuries by the dioceses of central,…
A place where children find understanding and dignity. Comboni Missionary Father Saverio Paolillo explains. In the Marcos Moura quarter, in the outskirts of Santa Rita, a town in the state of Paraíba in north-east Brazil, an initiative called Project Legal is in action. A group of men and women take in children and maladjusted adolescents.…
On last 27 April, in La Rioja, Bishop Angelelli, together with two priests and a layman, was beatified: all four were killed during the time of the dictatorship because of their preferential option for the poor. A bishop must always “turn one ear to the Gospel and the other to the people”. The Argentine Enrique…
“What we would like to achieve when we talk about peace. Peace means self-determination. Peace means biological conservation. Peace means revitalization of our culture and…
“Young Africans are playing an active role in bringing social change in the continent. They are contributing daily to the benefit of their communities and nations…