• The UN Security Council is set to decide today whether to authorize a one-year deployment of an international force to help Haitian police battle violent gangs.

The U.S.-drafted resolution obtained by The Associated Press welcomes Kenya’s offer to lead the multinational security force. It makes clear this would be a non-U.N. force, funded by voluntary contributions.

China and Russia, which have veto power in the council, could block approval. They have expressed concerns about the draft, which was co-authored by Ecuador with input from Kenya, reports the Miami Herald.

The force would be allowed to provide operational support to Haiti’s National Police, which is underfunded and under resourced, with only some 10,000 active officers for a country of more than 11 million people.

Kenya’s plan calls for the deployment of 1,000 Kenyan police officers and several hundred officers or soldiers from Caribbean countries. That would be smaller than past interventions in Haiti, reports the New York Times. It would be the first time an African country led such a mission in Haiti, and there are significant concerns about the Kenyan police’s human rights record.

More Haiti

• The closure of the Haiti-Dominican Republic border has forced Haitian clinics and hospitals to turn patients away as they ration anesthesia and other medical supplies, reports the Miami Herald.

Argentina presidential debate

Argentina held the first of two presidential debates ahead of the Oct. 22 election, yesterday. Frontrunner Javier Milei, who has promised to dollarize Argentina’s hyperinflationary economy proposed “to reform the state, drastically reduce public spending, cut taxes, simplify the tax system, deregulate the economy, privatize to get rid of the harmful state-owned companies, open the economy and close the central bank.”

Ruling party candidate, Economy Minister Sergio Massa apologized to voters for recent economic difficulties, and proposed implementing a digital currency and hardening penalties for tax evaders. (Reuters, Primera Mañana)

Milei’s calm demeanor was the main surprise of the evening, according to the Buenos Aires Times, he “sought to present himself as a viable head of state in the minds of voters.” Milei is known for wild hair and rhetoric, the “lead-up to the debate preview was marked by speculation as to whether he would take to the podium without the outbursts that swept him along in the polls,” reports El País.

Milei dabbled in denying state terrorism carried out under the 1976-1983 civilian-military dictatorship in Argentina, denying the commonly accepted estimate of 30,000 disappeared and advocating for the “two demons” narrative that seeks to excuse violence against civilians. (Buenos Aires Times, Primera Mañana, see Sept. 4’s post)

It is the first time he outrightly espoused denialism, putting him firmly behind his controversial vice presidential candidate, Victoria Villarruel, a dictatorship apologist, reports El País.

Milei’s stance on human rights reflects polarization surrounding the issue: “a part of society not experiencing the return of democracy and the trial of the military juntas … believes that “the human rights of the 1970s” are a symbol that belongs to Kirchnerism and not all society. Those annoyed with this government thus vote for La Libertad Avanza also to confront the human rights organisations as well as many other of the provocations of the politically correct associated with Kirchnerism: abortion, gay marriage, inclusive language, social justice, Abuelas President Estela Barnes de Carlotto, Alfonsín and even Pope Francis,” wrote journalist Jorge Fontevecchia last week in Perfíl.

More Argentina

• Libertad Avanza’s candidates’ reiterated denial of crimes against humanity committed by Argentina’s last dictatorship should make the country’s political parties unite behind an effort to criminalize denialism, argued Fontevecchia last week in Perfil.
  
  
• If victorious, Milei would have a difficult time enacting his policy agenda, because he would lack legislative majorities and there are restrictions on presidential decrees and popular referendums, explains the Buenos Aires Herald.
  
  
• Milei’s attacks against reproductive rights and progressive sex education laws could unite women against him, reports the Buenos Aires Herald.
  
  
• “Argentina’s traditional two-party system is coming undone. Today the differences between Kirchnerism (represented by the technocratic Mr Massa) and anti-Kirchnerism (represented by a rightwing politician, Patricia Bullrich) seem irrelevant to many struggling to make ends meet and experiencing poor public services,” notes the Guardian in an editorial.

Regional

• A G30 report titled “Why Does Latin America Underperform?” identifies four “low-growth syndromes” affecting various countries in the region, as well as factors behind poor governance, writes Peter Coy in the New York Times. (Via Latin America Risk Report)
  
  
• Across the Americas, an older generation of leaders is refusing to cultivate the next generation of leadership, clinging to power instead of handing the top spots off to their successors,” signaling “that something is not quite right with the region’s representative democracies,” writes James Bosworth in World Politics Review.

Bolivia

• Former Bolivian president Gonzalo Sánchez de Losada and his defense minister have agreed to pay damages to the families of people killed by the military during their government. It is a landmark settlement in a U.S. court that sets a precedent by which other foreign leaders could face accountability for human rights abuse, reports the Guardian.
  
  
• They were found responsible by a jury for civilian casualties in a 2003 military crackdown that left 58 people dead and hundreds injured, reports the Washington Post.

Regional Relations

• Cuba’s announcement last month that it had arrested 17 people for involvement in a human trafficking ring recruiting young men to fight for Russia raised questions about the extent of cooperation between the two countries — but “conversations with Cubans in Cuba and Russia reveal a different side of the story: of desperate young men who see enlistment in the Russian army as their best shot at a better life — even if not all of them seem to know what they were getting themselves into,” reports Politico. (Via Latin America Risk Report)

Migration

• The record number of people attempting to reach the United States is being pushed by five factors, argues Ioan Grillo in Narco Politics: Hunger; Tyranny; Crime-War; Coyotes; Information.
  
  
• “Brazil has a long-standing reputation as a leader in refugee protection and is a model in the Americas for welcoming asylum seekers,” says Mother Jones, comparing the country’s asylum system to that of the US. (Via Americas Migration Brief)
  
  
• “Many Caribbean countries’ health ministers are frustrated by continually losing healthcare workers to international markets,” reports Newsday, noting calls for “WHO member states that recruit healthcare workers from the Caribbean to invest in the region to train more people.” (Via Americas Migration Brief)
  
  
• “The impact of climate change on poorer communities in Honduras is having a devastating effect on livelihoods, forcing many people to flee the country to avoid starvation and lack of safe drinking water,” says the UN Human Rights Office. (Via Americas Migration Brief)

Mexico

• The roof of a church collapsed in northern Mexico during a Sunday mass, killing at least 10 people and injuring about 60. The roof’s collapse took place during a collective baptism, according to the Diocese of Tampico. (Associated Press, New York Times)

Colombia

• If you’re an urbanism fan, you’ve (often) read about Bogotá’s subway woes. Now, “after more than 80 years of dithering, Bogotá officials are finally building a metro, with help from China,” reports NPR.

Histories

• A rare 1493 Latin translation of Christopher Columbus’ letter announcing the “discovery” of the Americas is expected to fetch up to $1.5m at a Christie’s auction this month — Guardian.

Jordana Timerman / Latin America Daily Briefing
http://latinamericadailybriefing.blogspot