Interamerican Watch Newsletter - Issue 495
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Inter-American Watch
Thursday 21/05/2026Bolivia
The Bolivian government declared the Colombian ambassador to the country, Elizabeth García, persona non grata and ordered her expulsion on May 20, 2026, for what it considered interference by President Gustavo Petro in Bolivian internal affairs related to the legal situation of Evo Morales. ...Read more >>Source: infobae.com
Cuba
The Cuban regime's prosecutor's office requested sentences of up to 13 years in prison for three women members of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) who participated in a peaceful protest against blackouts on November 15, 2024, in the town of Palmarito de Cauto, municipality of Mella, province of Santiago de Cuba. ...Read more >>Source: cibercuba.com
In its monthly report, the organization Cubalex documented a sustained deterioration of the human rights situation in Cuba during April 2026, marked by increased violence, state repression, and a crisis in basic services, according to its most recent monthly report. ...Read more >>
Source: telemundo51.com
The United States indicted former Cuban dictator Raúl Castro for the downing of two civilian aircraft in 1996, in an unprecedented escalation of pressure by the Trump administration against the island's communist regime. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed the Cuban people on Wednesday with a message in Spanish for the island's Independence Day, offering a “new relationship” with the United States and $100 million in food and medicine, while blaming the communist leadership for the “unimaginable hardships” faced by the population, Axios reported. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
The Cuban Observatory for Human Rights (OCDH) denounced on Tuesday that the Cuban judicial system operates under political control and called for a thorough purge of judges and officials linked to repression in any potential democratic transition process on the island. ...Read more >>
Source: martinoticias.com
Interamerican Institute for Democracy
By our Director: Carlos Sánchez BerzaínPresident Rodrigo Paz has assumed the presidency, but not the power, and is the victim of a conspiracy to overthrow him in order to maintain the narco-state and the impunity of the "boss," Evo Morales. The confrontation is "organized crime against the Bolivian Nation," and the only option is to abolish the laws of the dictatorship, reject impunity, and remove the criminal operatives from politics. ...Read more >>
Source: intdemocratic.org
By our Director: Ricardo Israel
The recent meeting was undoubtedly a summit, a true one, since the word has lost its meaning when applied to any meeting between heads of state, be they presidents or prime ministers. ...Read more >>
Source: intdemocratic.org
By our Director: Beatrice E. Rangel
..what happened in China during the second week of May was much more than a simple diplomatic summit. It was, possibly, the moment when the 21st century definitively left behind the unipolar illusion and began to organize itself around two centers of power. ...Read more >>
Source: intdemocratic.org
By our Director: Luis Beltrán Guerra G.
It is within the context of this ambivalence that we are tasked with gathering evidence to determine whether Venezuela today is truly on the path of "true politics" and thus moving away from "bad politics," in which it has sadly lingered, as several chapters of its history reveal. ...Read more >>
Source: intdemocratic.org
Spain
José Daniel Ferrer, a prominent Cuban dissident, criticized the Spanish government this Thursday for its support of the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement (PDCA) between the EU and Cuba, arguing that it favors the regime and does not resolve the issue of human rights on the island. ...Read more >>Source: infobae.com
The National Court is investigating José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero for criminal organization, influence peddling, and document forgery in connection with the bailout of the Plus Ultra airline. The Central Court of Instruction number 4 has summoned the Socialist leader to testify on June 2. This is the first time in the democratic era that a former head of government has been charged with corruption. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
United States
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche stated Wednesday that he expects former Cuban dictator Raúl Castro to appear before U.S. justice “of his own volition or by any other means” following the revelation of criminal charges against him for the downing of two planes in 1996. Blanche made these statements at a press conference in Miami before an audience of Cuban-Americans who responded with applause. ...Read more >>Source: infobae.com
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that his country will not allow the Bolivian government to be overthrown. He expressed Washington's support for President Rodrigo Paz at a time when Bolivia is facing one of its most delicate political and social crises in recent years, marked by protests, blockades, and growing internal tension. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
The United States announced Wednesday the deployment of the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier to the Caribbean, along with a naval strike group, amid rising tensions with the Cuban regime. This move coincided with the criminal indictment filed against former dictator Raúl Castro for the downing of civilian aircraft in 1996. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
The hearing between Uruguayan drug trafficker Sebastián Marset and the U.S. Attorney's Office was scheduled for Wednesday, the 20th. However, this hearing was postponed until July 1st due to the possibility that the defendant's legal team might accept a plea bargain. The Uruguayan is being investigated for conspiracy to launder money using the country's financial system. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
An internal memorandum from the Trump administration proposes "appointing an independent investigator" to determine whether OAS Secretary General Albert Ramdin committed accounting irregularities when executing the regional forum's budget. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
Former Cuban dictator Raúl Castro was indicted Wednesday by US federal authorities for authorizing a military operation that resulted in the downing of two civilian aircraft belonging to the Brothers to the Rescue organization on February 24, 1996, and caused the deaths of four people. ...Read more >>
Source: infobae.com
Venezuela
Alex Saab, businessman and frontman for Nicolás Maduro, who has been indicted by US authorities since Monday, is also allegedly linked to money laundering for the Venezuelan regime in the bailout of the Spanish airline Plus Ultra, a case for which former socialist president José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was indicted, according to Spanish media. ...Read more >>Source: diariolasamericas.com