Mexico’s Human Rights Crisis and Canada’s Silence

By Asad Ismi The 21st anniversary of NAFTA in September finds Mexico in the throes of a shocking human rights crisis that, since 2006, has seen more than 150,000 people killed and more than 27,000 disappeared. According to Amnesty International, torture in Mexico is “out of control,” and police and security forces have “blood on […]

Canadian Neocolonialism in Colombia

By Asad Ismi In May, the board of Pacific Rubiales, a Canadian firm and the biggest private oil producer in Colombia, announced its support for a takeover bid by the Mexican conglomerate Alfa and U.S.-based Harbour Energy. Pacific Rubiales operates Colombia’s biggest oil field, in the province of Meta, and during the past seven years […]

The Irresistable Rise of Podemos

By Asad Ismi Rarely has a political party become so popular so quickly. Driven by the economic and political crisis gripping Spain, Podemos (“we can” in English), the country’s anti-austerity leftist party, is topping opinion polls only 15 months after its formation, 11 months since taking five seats in the European Parliament, and fresh from […]

Canada and the U.S. Go Digging for Regime Change in Venezuela

By Asad Ismi U.S. hostility towards Venezuela reached absurd heights in March amidst accusations both Ottawa and Washington are supporting local efforts to overthrow the popularly elected socialist government of Nicolás Maduro. On March 9, U.S. President Barack Obama signed an executive order “declaring a national emergency with respect to the unusual and extraordinary threat […]