Central America
Central American officials to participate in COMITRAN intersectoral meeting in El Salvador
May 15 |
Delegations of ministers and vice ministers of Transportation and Infrastructure of Central America arrived this Monday, May 15, in El Salvador to participate in the fourth intersectoral meeting of the Sectoral Council of Ministers of Transportation and Infrastructure of Central America (COMITRAN), in which the Regional Master Plan for Mobility and Logistics until 2035 will be approved.
El Salvador’s Minister of Public Works, Romeo Rodríguez, assumed this year’s protempore presidency of COMITRAN, which is made up of the ministers of transportation and infrastructure of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama.
On Sunday, Panama’s delegation, headed by Rictzy Aparicio, Director of Planning and Budget, entered the country. The Honduran delegation, led by Bayardo Pogoada Figueroa, Undersecretary of Transportation, and the Nicaraguan delegation, headed by Efraín Zeledón, Vice-Minister of Infrastructure, and Oscar Mejía, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, have now arrived in the country. Representing Costa Rica was Efraín Zeledón Leiva, Vice Minister of Infrastructure; and from Guatemala, Admiral Erick Alejandro Sánchez.
Rictzy Aparicio, Director of Planning and Budget of Panama’s Ministry of Public Works.
Technical commissions from the Central American Economic Integration System (SIECA), the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) are also participating in this important meeting.
According to the Ministry of Public Works (MOP), these organizations have played a key role in the formulation of the Regional Mobility and Logistics Master Plan. As part of the agenda, the meeting of the Council of Ministers will begin at 1:30 to 6:30 pm, after which officials will move to the National Palace, where they will enjoy a cultural event.
Central America
Guatemala cracks down on prison corruption with over 20 raids in recent weeks
The Guatemalan government warned on Monday that it will not tolerate corruption within the prison system, highlighting that more than 20 raids conducted in recent weeks have helped regain control over its penitentiaries.
“We will not tolerate any acts of corruption from our personnel,” said José Portillo, Deputy Minister of Security at the Ministry of the Interior, during a press conference.
According to Portillo, 21 raids were carried out in the last 15 days with support from security forces across the penitentiary system, and a total of 140 raids have been conducted so far in 2025.
These operations have resulted in the confiscation of dozens of household appliances and cell phones, as well as weapons and other prohibited items inside the prisons.
“We are firmly controlling bribery and corruption,” emphasized the recently appointed deputy minister, adding that “we will be strong and decisive within the penitentiary system.”
Portillo explained that the purpose of these raids is to tackle structural causes within prisons, which are the origin of much of the violence affecting the Central American country, including contract killings and extortions.
He stated that the recent operations have helped reduce crime and identify “hot spots” in the country.
“We are impacting criminal structures,” the official said.
Data released on June 6 by the Director of the National Civil Police, David Custodio Boteo, reported 1,385 homicides in the first five months of the year, representing a 15 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Experts on the subject point out that thousands of Guatemalan merchants fall victim to extortions that originate precisely within the prisons.
Central America
First woman elected president in the Americas, Violeta Chamorro, dead at 95
Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, former president of Nicaragua and the first woman in the Americas to be democratically elected head of state, passed away this Saturday in Costa Rica at the age of 95. A pivotal figure in Nicaragua’s transition to democracy, Chamorro achieved a historic victory over Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega in the 1990 elections, heading a broad opposition coalition.
The Chamorro Barrios family confirmed her death in a statement:
“Our mother, Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, former president of Nicaragua, passed away today, June 14, 2025, at 2:21 a.m. (08:21 GMT) in San José, Costa Rica, at the age of 95, after a long illness.”
“Doña Violeta died peacefully, surrounded by the love and affection of her children and the extraordinary care of those who looked after her. She is now in the peace of the Lord,” her children Pedro Joaquín, Claudia Lucía, Cristiana, and Carlos Fernando Chamorro Barrios wrote.
Chamorro’s victory in 1990 marked a significant turning point in Central American politics, ending more than a decade of Sandinista rule and initiating a fragile but hopeful democratic chapter in Nicaragua’s history.
Central America
Nicaraguan exile coalition urges Costa Rica to receive U.S. deportees fleeing Ortega regime
The Coalition of Nicaraguans in Exile urged Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves on Sunday to receive opponents and critics of the Ortega-Murillo regime currently residing in the United States who may be deported by the administration of Donald Trump.
“We appeal to you, Mr. President, to kindly consider, as an act of humanity and in accordance with the principles of international refugee law, the reopening of entry and temporary reception pathways for Nicaraguan citizens deported from the United States,” the coalition stated in a letter addressed to Chaves.
They specifically requested the reopening of entry for those Nicaraguans who had previously sought asylum or refugee status in Costa Rica and who express a well-founded fear for their lives and personal safety if returned to Nicaragua.
The organization, which identifies itself as committed to defending and promoting the human rights of Nicaraguans “forced into exile by the repression of the Sandinista dictatorship,” expressed its appeal with “urgency and deep concern.”
In the letter, the coalition emphasized the dramatic situation faced by thousands of Nicaraguans who fled political persecution under Daniel Ortega’s regime and are now at risk of deportation from the United States.
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