Author: Kathleen Staudt

Fortalecer las instituciones judiciales, democráticas y económicas para afrontar la crisis de Ciudad Juárez

November 19, 2010

La fotografía de arriba muestra dos ciudades – El Paso, Texas, y Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua – que existen literalmente juntas, sólo las divide la frontera. A pesar de las diferencias aparentes al examinarlas de cerca, comparten geografía, cultura, clima e historia. Mi vida refleja la relación simbiótica entre las dos ciudades: Durante más de treinta años, mi carrera de enseñanza e investigación, y las realidades que he vivido, se han sucedido en la región Paso del Norte.

Strengthening Law Enforcement, Democratic, and Economic Institutions to Confront the Crisis in Ciudad Juarez

October 18, 2010

More than 6,000 murders have occurred in our neighbor city, Juárez, over the past three years. The numbers climb each year: 1,600 in 2008, and 2,600 in 2009, with 2010 likely to break past records. Contrast these figures with the average 200-300 murdered annually before 2008 and we see that rates have increased tenfold since the “war on drugs” was launched in the city.

Juarenses live in an atmosphere of fear, not only of assassination, but also of kidnappings, carjackings, extortion, and abuse from police often in complicity with criminals. Tens of thousands of people have fled the city and abandoned their homes and businesses.