International

Colombia’s new ombudsman will prioritize gender violence on her agenda

Colombia’s new ombudsman, Iris Marín, will prioritize gender violence and discrimination against women as one of the main axes of her agenda, which will develop over four years of management.

“I want to emphasize that, unfortunately, one of the human rights crises is the crisis of violence and discrimination against women,” said the defender, who took office on September 1 and is the first woman to occupy this position, at a press conference in Bogotá.

Marín assured in the framework of the celebration of the National Human Rights Day that sexist violence is not usually seen “as a human rights crisis” because when thinking about human rights in Colombia “they think of war, but they don’t even think about gender violence.”

Between May 2023 and May 2024, 630 femicides were recorded in Colombia and, so far this year, the National Institute of Health has registered more than 100,000 cases of gender violence, whether physical, sexual, neglect or psychological abandonment. In addition, in 2023 the Institute of Legal Medicine carried out more than 20,000 examinations for alleged sexual offense, of which 14,366 were for children under 18 years of age.

Therefore, since his administration in the Ombudsman’s Office, he wants to strengthen protection programs, access to justice, issue early warnings for gender violence and improve the technical defense of victims.

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Other axes of its agenda will be to monitor human rights in the conflict, in climate change and will place special emphasis on the rights of minors.

Since 2017, the Ombudsman’s Office has issued 320 early alerts in territories due to the situation of violence, of which 143 are still active. This is a system that was implemented after the peace agreement to alert the institutions of a possible aggravation of the conflict and the danger of communities.

In addition, until the end of August, 166 social leaders were murdered in Colombia and the defender considered that “the situation of protection of leaders is not improving,” so she hopes that the Ombudsman’s Office will serve as prevention and that “it is a neutral actor to promote that humanitarian agreements can be adopted in a low-profile way.”

In this sense, Marín asked that the Ombudsman’s Office be taken into account in the peace processes with armed groups and was emphatic in pointing out that the people who signed the peace agreement and then deserted, the Government “must demand the consequences of having returned to arms.”

“There should be no incentives to enter infinite circles of negotiation and return to arms,” Marín said, without referring but alluding to the negotiations that the Government has just undertaken with the Second Marquetalia, a dissent commanded by ‘Iván Márquez’, who in turn was a peace negotiator of the FARC in the 2016 agreement.

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On the other hand, the defender assured about the crisis and climate disasters that it is important to address them, especially from an approach of adaptation of the communities, and that minors will also be a priority, because among other data, she highlighted that between 2019 and 2023 51,553 children and adolescents tried to commit suicide and 1,462 did.

For all this, Marín declared himself independent in the defense of human rights and promised to work hand in hand with the communities and defending the public service of the entity: “I do not want the Ombudsman’s Office to be used for the politicization and polarization of the country,” he said.

International

UK braces for potential CO₂ shortage amid Middle East tensions

The government of United Kingdom is preparing contingency measures amid fears of a potential shortage of carbon dioxide (CO₂), which could impact the agri-food industry if the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, The Times reported on Thursday.

According to the newspaper, officials assessed this scenario during a recent crisis meeting aimed at evaluating the consequences of a prolonged conflict, triggered on February 28 by joint attacks from United States and Israel against Iran.

Under this scenario, CO₂ supplies—primarily a byproduct of fertilizer production using natural gas—could fall by up to 18%, affecting multiple sectors including agriculture and food production.

The gas is widely used in the slaughter of pigs and poultry, as well as in extending the shelf life of packaged foods. Breweries could also face disruptions due to reduced availability.

“I don’t want to comment on a leak, but now that the information is out there, I hope people feel reassured knowing we are working on it,” said Peter Kyle, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, in remarks to Sky News.

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While a drop in CO₂ supply is not expected to cause major shortages in supermarkets, it could limit product variety, The Times noted, citing access to internal government documents.

To mitigate the impact, authorities are considering prioritizing CO₂ supply for critical sectors such as healthcare and civil nuclear energy, where it is used in cooling systems for blood reserves, organs, vaccines, and electricity generation. The government may also request domestic producers to increase output.

Central America

El Salvador and Paraguay approve 2026–2028 cooperation program

The governments of El Salvador and Paraguay approved the 2026–2028 Cooperation Program, which includes six joint development projects, according to Salvadoran Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Adriana Mira.

Mira stated that El Salvador will act as the “main provider of cooperation,” contributing five initiatives focused on road infrastructure, tourism, and local development. She also noted that one of the projects will be led by the Paraguayan side, although no further details were disclosed.

The agreement was reached during the Second Meeting of the Joint Commission on Technical and Scientific Cooperation between both countries.

According to Paraguay’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the First Meeting of the Political Consultation and Bilateral Coordination Mechanism was also held, with the participation of Vice Minister Víctor Verdún.

In an official statement, the Paraguayan government reported that both delegations agreed to identify mechanisms to promote competitiveness, economic growth, and market access. They also committed to signing agreements related to air transport cooperation.

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International

Macron meets Machado, stresses need for democratic transition in Venezuela

Emmanuel Macron met on Monday at the Élysée Palace with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, where they discussed the importance of advancing a democratic transition in Venezuela.

In a message shared on social media, Macron highlighted Machado’s commitment to freedom and stressed the need to achieve a transition that is peaceful and respects the will of the Venezuelan people.

“I received María Corina Machado, Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Together, we discussed her commitment to freedom and the importance of achieving a democratic, peaceful transition in Venezuela that respects the will of its people,” he wrote.

For her part, Machado expressed her “deep gratitude” to Macron and to France for their support of democracy and freedom in Venezuela.

“We have gone through a long and painful journey, and we are now very close to freedom. Venezuela will become a nation of free and equal men and women—prosperous, safe, and united,” she said.