Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff
“Faced with the highest rates of violent crime in the world, leaders in Latin America have turned to increasingly harsh tactics in recent years to rein in drug cartels and gangs. For a while, their people went along. Declining homicide rates have meant children can play in public parks again. But on Sunday, when voters in Ecuador forced a runoff between the two top presidential contenders, they effectively hit pause on the region’s embrace of hard-line approaches to law and order. Polls show that most support emergency measures to make streets safer, but many reject what they see as attempts by politicians to manipulate them through fear. As the main opposition candidate, Luisa González, said Sunday night, ‘We do not want a state of war, but a state of peace that is built with social justice.'” (02/12/25)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/the-monitors-view/2025/0212/A-vote-for-safety-in-Latin-America