Latin America and the Caribbean are home to just 9 percent of the global population but account for a third of the world's homicides. A lethal mix of drugs, readily available firearms, and unemployed youth is fueling a wave of violence that has taken on epidemic proportions. Ecuador is now ground zero for the region's gang brutality. Whether Quito succeeds in containing the violence will depend as much on how it manages corruption and political instability as it does on the brute force called upon to suppress organized crime. The region's downward spiral need not be a chronicle of a death foretold. In Ecuador, newfound national resolve and emerging offers of international cooperation can be an effective antidote to expanding gang violence. Indeed, the success of one of South America's smallest countries in dismantling gangs and the corrupt institutions that protect them could be a promising start in turning the tide on Latin America's new crime wave.
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In the past decade, South American vulnerable populations have increasingly become victims of human trafficking via cybersex venues like live webcam sites such as Chaturbate and My Free Cams. Given the increasing prevalence of cybersex trafficking, the complicated nature of addressing the crime, and South American governments’ previous reliance on militaries to address other forms of trafficking (i.e., drug trafficking), this paper answers the following question: should the region’s militaries be called upon to confront the pervasive crime? Ms. Nelson’s paper defines what human trafficking, sex trafficking, and cybersex trafficking are, and their distinctions; it discusses the advent of cybersex trafficking and its contemporary proliferation, challenges in fighting the crime, and possible responses.
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A moderated discussion with two of the authors of the recently published English-language book Adversarial System Analysis of the Salvadoran Gangs which examines the organizational dynamics and evolution of the Salvadoran gangs.
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A moderated discussion with two of the authors of the recently published English-language book Adversarial System Analysis of the Salvadoran Gangs which examines the organizational dynamics and evolution of the Salvadoran gangs.
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The spread of such transnational gangs as Mara Salvatrucha presents an ongoing threat to the security and stability of Central America. These gangs have proven remarkably adaptive, moving up the ladder of criminal enterprises since their inception in the late 1980s in Southern California. The model of the "three generations" of gangs has provided a clear picture of their past and given a glimpse into their future operations. This model combined with the increasing influence of the Mexican Cartels, the globalization of the Maras, and the new sophistication of Maras modus operandi demonstrate an even more dangerous threat to regional security: the possibility of increasingly sophisticated and cohesive Maras becoming more closely allied with the Mexican Cartels, or perhaps developing their own Cartel-like system in Central America.
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