Skim for October 24th

Quote of the Day: “The problem with Mexico’s political system is that each time we have elections, one side declares in advance the illegitimate nature of the rules and therefore refuses to accept the results.” -Former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo, quoted in an article titled “Politics Is Looking More ‘Latin American’ These Days”.

Hate Politicians, Love Athletes
The Story:
The race for mayor in Belo Horizonte, Brazil may prove difficult for some politicians in the city that has a growing disgust for politics. The solution? Have former soccer goalie and ex-chairman to the local based soccer club Atletico Mineiro run for mayor. For crazed-soccer loving city, this won’t be an easy election. Former chairman Alexandre Kalil, is considered one of the most successful chairmen in Brazilian soccer history. His opponent, retired goalkeeper Joao Leite, has also had a note-worthy career, reaching his height of fame in the 1980s while playing for Atletico. “We are torn between an iconic player who made us proud for more than a decade and the chairman that gave us our biggest title in 2013,” fan Bruno Soares wrote on the team’s Facebook age. “Not an easy choice.”

What Happened/ Will Happen?
Polling earlier this month showed Leite receiving 33.4% of the vote share. Kalilgot 26.5% in the preliminary round, even though voters were skeptical of him being a Cruzeiro fan (the rival soccer club team). The next round of voting will take place Sunday, October 30th. The most recent poll (last Friday) shows Kalil with his first lead thus far of 41% and Leite with 35%.

The Donald Trump Effect in Brazil
Leite and Khalil have been involved in Brazil’s political sphere for years. Before them, Brazil National Team forward Romario de Souza Faria (known for playing during the 1994 World Cup victory), has been Senator since 2014. He’s so well known, in fact, most constituents refer to him by his first name only. Analysts believe people who don’t start off in politics will become even more popular following the the long impeachment that recently ended involving President Rousseff. “People are not feeling represented and candidates like (Kalil and Leite), with very little political history, could become a trend,” said political science professor Fabio Wanderley, “soccer allegiance should not be an issue, but Brazil’s rotten party system and the current scandals made these two viable options.”

Violence Worse Than Ever
The Story:
Human rights activists in Latin America are experiencing ever increasing incidents of murders and attacks. NGOs are really working to bring attention to this issue now that the record of human rights violations has been broken. In 2015 alone, 122 murders were reported, accounting for 65% of the worlds murders. Specifically, women human rights defenders experience more violence, explained by Latin America’s sexist and patriarchal hierarchy. El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Honduras all reported increased attacks against female human rights activists, with the majority of cases unsolved. 98.5% of attacks in Mexico are not even brought to court; only 6 out of 219 Colombian cases led to convictions.

What is Happening?
NGO Oxfam International believes this violence is related to the economic downturn in Latin America and how this has discouraged governments from adopting more sustainable development strategies. Latin American countries began promoting regional projects without checks or controls, which allowed powerful entities to take control of state institutions, thus limiting countries’ governments from effectively protecting human rights.

Follow These Steps to Save Lives
Oxfam wants governments to take urgent action to prevent these attacks and punish those who commit the violations with a two pronged approach: the public and private sphere. Regarding the public, Oxfam believes governments need to build structural solutions to resolve the economic crisis. In the private sector, they wants companies to respect human rights by complying in all cases with affected communities. These, and other measures, have also been outlined by the United Nations; whom of which also work along with NGOs such as Oxfam.

Deadly Lag of Gender Equality
The Story:
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean in a recent report believe development may be roadblocked by the fact that women in the region simply lack physical autonomy. Women cannot fully make choices on their health or reproductive/sexual lives, with many countries still restricting abortion at anytime during pregnancy. This ban causes many avoidable maternal deaths. Although they have rights to no violence, femicides in the region are increasing. Telesur reports that “every day at least 12 Latin American women die just for being a woman, with over 2,000 femicides reported in 2014.”

Formula to a Woman’s Autonomy
So women need physical autonomy, just like men, to promote development. A woman’s autonomy is also dependent on wealth distribution. Policies need to be introduced that specifically address poverty, equal pay, and the labor market regarding women. Economic gender inequality is fueled by the unpaid domestic work performed largely by women (71%-86%). Some suggestions to the government include giving women shorter work days and control over resources in the region, in order to balance their lives effectively and increase equality.

Upsetting Numbers
29% of Latin American women don’t have their own source of income and only 12.5% of men lack income, so an equal minimum wage was also proposed for women. 26% of women with incomes received one below the minimum wage. Women earn 83% of what men earn, with the wage gap increasing, especially in job sectors requiring higher education.
Women outweigh men numerically and in observed contributions society, yet lack visibility and participation. Political cabinet members range from 5% to 25% participation across Latin America. Less than 2% of Latin American fortune 500 companies have a woman on their board.

News Sources in Order of Appearance:

http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2016/10/25/violence-against-human-rights-activists-latin-america-out-controlhttps://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/06/how-latin-america-can-help-achieve-the-sustainable-development-goals/http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Still-Long-Way-to-Gender-Equality-in-Latin-America-Report-20161024-0026.html
http://www.idea.int/publications/wip/upload/Chapter1-Htun-feb03.pdf
http://www.as-coa.org/articles/weekly-chart-latin-american-women-leadership