International

DACA program celebrates 11 years in place amid legal turbulence

Photo: Reuters

June 15 |

The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as DACA, which was established by the Barack Obama administration, turns 11 years old Thursday amid calls for permanent protective action.

“Only Congress can provide permanent and lasting stability for these young people and their families. Congress must act to protect our Dreamers,” President Joe Biden, who was vice president of the country at the time the program was instituted, said in written communication.

Since 2012, DACA has provided protections from deportation to some 800,000 people known as “Dreamers,” who entered the U.S. irregularly as children. This program does not offer legal residency status or a path to citizenship, however, it does allow them to have a work permit, driver’s license and social security.

“Dreamers are Americans. Many have spent most of their lives in the United States. They are our doctors, our teachers, and our small business owners,” he said.

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Biden noted in his message that “the first version” of a legislative measure to regulate DACA was presented to Congress more than 20 years ago, and since then, it has been championed by coalitions and organizations. However, Biden said, “Congress has failed to act.”

Under the Donald Trump administration, repeated attempts were made to dismantle DACA. In 2017, the then-president assured that “DACA is a very, very difficult issue for me” and in noted that “(the beneficiaries) are here illegally.”

During the presidential campaign in 2016, Trump promised that he would end “the two executive amnesties” implemented by Obama, in reference to DACA and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans.

On July 16, 2021, a U.S. court ruled that DACA was “unlawful” and issued an order prohibiting the government from continuing to grant applications for the program. However, the nullification order was temporarily stayed.

Under this ruling, it was established that the program would not receive new applications, however, those approved prior to July 16 would continue to be eligible to renew DACA and their work permits.

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Finally, on October 5, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals issued a decision upholding the declaration of illegality of the policy. However, it upheld the partial stay and remanded the case back to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas to consider a final rule on implementation.

With this, the program remains in “limbo” according to organizations such as the National Immigration Law Center, which asserts that “it is another clear and serious reminder of the urgency for Congress to act quickly to provide a permanent legislative solution.”

International

Peruvian presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra dies in campaign road accident

Presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra, representing the Partido de los Trabajadores y Emprendedores (PTE) in Peru, died in a traffic accident while traveling to a campaign event, local authorities confirmed Sunday.

Becerra, who also served as president of the centrist political party, ranked among the lowest in opinion polls in a crowded field of more than 30 candidates competing in the presidential election scheduled for April 12.

Recent surveys place Rafael López Aliaga at the top of voter preferences.

The accident occurred near the town of Ayacucho, in southern Peru, when the vehicle carrying the candidate overturned for reasons that remain under investigation.

“The candidate Becerra has died,” Balvin Huamani, mayor of the district of Pilpichaca, told RPP radio.

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According to Huamani, he personally transported the 61-year-old candidate to a local health center, where doctors confirmed his death.

The Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE) expressed condolences over Becerra’s passing and wished a speedy recovery to the three people who were traveling with him and were injured in the crash.

International

Noboa intensifies anti-cartel crackdown as violence persists in Ecuador

A close ally of Washington, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has pursued a hardline security strategy against cocaine cartels for more than two years, yet homicide, disappearance and extortion rates remain high across the country.

Between Sunday night and the morning of March 31, Ecuador’s armed forces will launch a “very strong offensive” with “advisory support” from the United States, Interior Minister John Reimberg announced Tuesday.

The government has kept details of the operation confidential and has not confirmed whether U.S. troops will be deployed on Ecuadorian soil, as has occurred at times during Noboa’s administration.

As part of the security measures, residents in the coastal provinces of Guayas, Los Ríos, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, and El Oro will be subject to a nightly curfew from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. local time for the next two weeks.

“We are in a war,” Reimberg said, urging citizens to remain indoors. “Do not take risks. Stay home and allow the security forces and our allies to do the work that must be done.”

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Although Ecuador does not produce cocaine, it has become a major departure point for drugs heading to the United States. Meanwhile, the violence associated with trafficking has increasingly affected the local population.

Bordering the world’s largest cocaine producers, Colombia and Peru, Ecuador has gone from being considered a relatively peaceful country to recording one of the highest homicide rates in Latin America—52 killings per 100,000 inhabitants—according to the **Observatory of Organized Crime.

International

Peruvian presidential candidate proposes death penalty amid crime surge

Peru is facing an unprecedented surge in crime ahead of its presidential election scheduled for April 12, with violence fueled by extortion networks and a wave of contract killings linked to organized crime.

Police data show that 2,200 homicides tied to organized crime were recorded in 2025, while extortion complaints increased by 19%, underscoring the growing security crisis in the South American nation.

Amid this backdrop, presidential candidate Álvarez has proposed reinstating the death penalty if elected, arguing that extreme measures are needed to curb the violence.

To implement the proposal, Álvarez said Peru would withdraw from the American Convention on Human Rights—also known as the Pact of San José—which the country signed in 1978. The agreement prevents member states that have abolished capital punishment from reinstating it.

Currently, Peruvian law only allows the death penalty in cases of treason during wartime.

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“We have to leave the Pact of San José and apply the death penalty in Peru because those miserable criminals don’t deserve to live,” Álvarez told AFP during a campaign stop at a market in Callao, the port city neighboring Lima.

“An iron fist against those criminals,” he added, proposing to declare hitmen as military targets.

During the campaign event, Álvarez walked through stalls selling vegetables, groceries, and fish, greeting vendors while musicians played cumbia music nearby.

The 62-year-old candidate, who spent more than four decades working in television as a comedian, is a newcomer to politics and is running for president under the País para Todos party.

Polls place him fifth in voter preference with nearly 4% support in a fragmented race featuring 36 candidates.