Americas
Americas
Fair Observer provides insightful analysis of the widely differing countries on both American continents./div>
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1994 / amia / argentine / attack / Iran / Politics / terrorism / Focus Article / Middle East / Americas / Global SecurityOne cannot help but ask why, after 18 years of mishandled investigations, corruption charges, and cover-ups, are Iran and Argentina discussing the 1994 AMIA Terrorist Attack. The Iranian and Argentine governments recently signed a bilateral memorandum of understanding, establishing a "truth commission" to investigate the 1994 terrorist attack on the Jewish community center in Buenos Aires. The announcement came as a shock to the victims’ families, since the Argentine government had previously officially accused Iran of orchestrating the attack; a charge Iranians have repeatedly denied. One cannot help but ask why, after 18 years of mishandled investigations, corruption...
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United States / Europe / Focus Article / BRIC / Middle East / Americas / Africa / Asia / Oceania / Environment & SustainabilityIn the past few years, the political map of Antarctica, a region rich in mineral-fuel resources, has changed immensely. How can the ongoing geopolitical polarization in this region have unfavourable global effects in the long run? Even after 50 years of peaceful multilateral research initiatives, various nations would still like to seize Antarctica. Although annexation of the continent is now difficult, ongoing geopolitics might disable the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) after it expires in 2048, or even before that date. If Antarctica is seized, either by force or deception, this can lead to a global conflict. The ATS refers to extensive multilateral accords which came into force in 1961....
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The Colombian government has made great strides in expanding the country's education system, but the aperture of higher education to market forces would be an efficient and effective way to improve the system. In recent years, the government of Colombia has faced several obstacles in its attempts to catalyze socioeconomic progress, not the least of which has been working to end a drug war and regain control of most of the territory that had been lost to guerrilla groups. However, as Colombia enters a phase of economic stability and growth, it faces yet another enormous challenge: offering high-quality education to its citizens. All education systems share a common goal: to give...
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Efforts to destroy Colombia’s powerful cartels have only succeeded in fragmenting these once mammoth criminal organizations. Medellín and Cali are Colombian cities that ring familiar for their association with two of the most powerful drug cartels that once provided the vast majority of cocaine across the US, Latin America, Europe and Asia. However, despite the death of Pablo Escobar and the extradition of the Cali Cartel’s main leaders, neither crime, violence nor drug trafficking has disappeared from Colombia’s major cities. Medellín: From Escobar's city to an era of new criminal actors The first wave of violence in Medellin, which began in the...
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Politics / United States / Europe / Finance & Economics / 360° Context / BRIC / Global Change / Arts & Culture / Middle East / Americas / Business & Entrepreneurship / Africa / Global Security / Asia / Science & Technology / Health / Oceania / Environment & SustainabilityFair Observer's Top 15 articles of 2012. Click here to view the "Fair Observer: The Year in Pictures" photo feature. As we wind down the old year and ring in the new, it is time for some reflections. Like any year, 2012 was packed with events, some of which will go down as historic while others will fade away with time. For Fair Observer, it is a time to thank everyone in our team, our contributors and our readers for taking us another step forward. The past year has confirmed that our community is our greatest source of strength. For years, the world has assumed that rigorous analysis of global issues is possible only if there is a huge...
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By Trevor CohenThe FARC rebels emerged from decades as minor insurgency into a major threat. But over the last ten years, a Colombian military offensive has beaten them along the war path and forced them to the negotiation table. For nearly 50 years, a revolutionary movement has been pulsing through the heart of the Colombian Amazon. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC-EP) has grown from a loose band of peasant militias into an authority capable of challenging the sovereignty of the Colombian Government. The tale of the FARC has many chapters. In its first two decades, the movement existed as a relatively insignificant group of no more than 1,000 combatants. Over the...
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Though the near half century of conflict with Colombia’s longest running guerilla insurgency may soon come to an end, the FARC are just one player in a much larger field of violent actors. A New Dialogue with a Long Past After two months of negotiations between the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the prospects for peace are more promising than ever before. October talks in Oslo and November meetings in Havana have focused on the establishment of guerrilla demobilization, in exchange for government efforts at agrarian reform. Additional provisions would allow the rebels a space to participate in civilian political life. ...
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By Trevor CohenThe dynamics of violent conflict in Colombia combine leftist guerillas, drug cartels and former paramilitaries. Over a half-century, violent conflict has displaced 5.3 million Colombians from their homes, creating the world’s largest population of internal refugees. The fighting between leftist guerillas, rightwing paramilitaries, drug cartels and government forces, combined with the systematic expulsion of small-scale peasant farmers from their lands by wealthy landowners has made the Colombian countryside one world’s most lawless and chaotic. The dynamics of violence in Colombia are multifaceted. Drug cartels traffic cocaine into Mexico, bound for the US market. Marxist...
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360° Analysis / United States / Europe / BRIC / Arts & Culture / Middle East / Americas / Africa / Asia / OceaniaThe way we experience events through media has changed dramatically in recent years, and has blurred the borders between reality and fiction. Where were you on September 11? Everybody can easily answer this question, because we all remember what we did and how we felt when the World Trade Center in New York City was attacked in 2001. When thinking about 9/11, people around the world still see the Twin Towers collapsing, hear people’s screams, and feel the fear of when the second plane smashed into the tower. But the paradoxical part of this is that most of us were not in New York City that day. Most of us did not see the collapse of the towers personally. Most of what we...