A truer picture of Colombia’s recent history
Nick Caistor reviews Juan Gabriel Vásquez' new novel Volver La Vista Atrás, based on the extraordinary life of director Sergio Cabrera.
Abimael Guzman: death of the ‘fourth sword’
The death in prison of 86 year-old Abimael Guzmán, the self-styled ‘President Gonzalo’ who was the leader of Peru’s Sendero Luminoso guerrilla group marks the end of the most violent chapter of that country’s recent history. LAB’s Nick Caistor looks back at Guzmán’s life and its impact on Peru.
Quesera – El Salvador’s forgotten massacre
El Salvador's civil war featured a number of brutal massacres by the army, especially the one at El Mozote in Morazán. Much less well-known is the butchery of peasants and children at Quesera in Usulután, on the River Lempa, carried out by the Army's US-trained Atlacatl Batallion.
Colombia: Indigenous Guard’s murder was premeditated
Following the murder of Colombian Indigenous leader Albeiro Camayo Güetio in January 2022 by FARC dissidents, independent digital media outlet 070 interview a human rights activist and a researcher at Conflict Responses Foundation to understand the crime and the government’s and FARC dissidents’ responsibility for it.
Colombia: transitional justice must include GBV
Transitional justice is not just about bringing perpetrators to justice, it is also about giving a voice to those who lost one, rebuilding societal trust, and fostering reconciliation.
Massacre at Trelew: 50 years on
50 years on from the Trelew massacre where Argentine naval officers killed captured guerrilla prisoners in cold blood, one of the officers is found guilty by a US civil court
El Salvador: you couldn’t just sit there and watch
Cornelia Gräbner describes an extraordinary set of documents which capture the most intense and dangerous phase of repression in El Salvador, leading up to the 1992 Peace Accords.
Colombia: can Petro achieve lasting peace?
In Caldono, residents are torn between optimism and a weary acceptance of the conflict that has plagued their community for decades.
CAMeNA: archives on Pancho Villa and El Che
Paco Ignacio Taibo II, is famous for his crime fiction and his popular historical writing; including biographies of el Che Guevara , and Pancho Villa, narratives like Patria about social and political movements, and the anecdotal books about those agents of history who never became famous, like Arcangeles or La libertad. He has donated parts of his archives to CAMeNA.
Transfariana: the love story that helped ‘queer’ Colombia’s peace process
Transfariana, a new documentary by director Joris Lachaise, explores a transitional period in Colombia’s history through the lens of trans identity. It focuses on the unexpected collaboration between the since-disbanded FARC group and the trans activist movement in Colombia.