PARAMARIBO – “”The investigation is ongoing and my superiors mad either clear that I am not allowed to talk to anybody,” said Sabrina Pierre who was only willing to confirm that she recently became the official representative of Haiti in Suriname. A message that was posted on the official Facebook page of the Haitian community in Suriname claimed that Haiti’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs ordered its diplomatic consulate in Suriname to fire all of its diplomats. All but one of the consulate’s Haitian diplomats have reportedly been recalled to Port-au-Prince and all 12 of the country’s locally hired contractors were fired after French authorities raised concerns that diplomatic staff could possibly be complicit in Suriname being used as a way station for Haitian migrants seeking to enter French territories.

Haiti Foreign Minister Dominique Dupuy, who immediately launched an internal investigation, informed French and U.S. officials of her decision last week, multiple sources confirmed to the Miami Herald. Sources told Times of Suriname that the people behind the human trafficking network were identified after Pierre was assigned as the new consul several months ago. In March 2024 Sandy Laguerre, the former consular agent at Haiti’s diplomatic consulate in Suriname died after having received treatment in an illegal wellness clinic located in Paramaribo. In the message that was posted it was suggested that Laguerre was involved in the human trafficking scandal and that an international arrest warrant would be issued. Times of Suriname could not get any confirmation regarding this claim which most likely made it possible to launch an internal investigation. Shortly after being assigned to the diplomatic consulate in Suriname, Pierre found out that illegal activities were taking place at all levels. The employees who were stationed at the Haitian consulate allegedly falsified documents for people who wanted to travel from Haiti to Suriname. Pierre informed her superiors who then instructed her to clean house. When asked to respond to the reports, Pierre made it clear that she did not want to comment…[+]

PARAMARIBO – The new chairperson of the National Democratic Party (NDP), Jennifer Geerlings-Simons, on Saturday visited the Nickerie District to meet the party’s supporters. She urged all of the supporters to look towards the future and to stop looking in the rearview mirror because “looking back is painful.” Simons who is the first woman to lead the NDP explained that in order to move forward things would have to be done differently.

“The current administration has borrowed a lot more money than the previous one but the production sector is still on the road to decline. The healthcare sector and many other things are also on the brink of collapse. The NDP wants to run the country again because it has proven that it had boosted the production sector better than this administration despite all of the criticism and mistakes. People are currently living in poverty. The next step is to change the way the country is run. All administrations make mistakes but the administration of Chandrikapersad Santokhi has gone too far. Change is needed. I want an honest government where transparency and control are important. It is time for good governance. When various political parties from the government, they must all move in the same direction,” said Geerlings- Simons who added that people who steal the taxpayers’ money will be punished when the NDP gets to run the country…[+]

USA – The president of the University of California has announced that the system would enforce bans on encampments as well as the use of masks to “conceal identity” in guidance that comes as schools across the US are planning for protests in support of Gaza similar to those that roiled campuses across the country.

Michael V Drake, the president of the 10-campus university system, said in a statement on Monday that the UC was taking steps to “ensure a safe, inclusive campus climate that fosters a free exchange of ideas”. “Freedom to express diverse viewpoints is fundamental to the mission of the University, and lawful protests play a pivotal role in that process,” Drake wrote. “While the vast majority of protests held on our campuses are peaceful and nonviolent, some of the activities we saw this past year were not.”

Pro-Palestinian protests swept universities across the US and UC saw demonstrations at campuses from San Diego and Santa Cruz to Davis. At UCLA, demonstrators were violently attacked by a group of masked persons as law enforcement and campus security looked on. The protests unfolded differently on the system’s various campuses, and some schools’ responses drew more scrutiny than others. But many of the schools, and the system as a whole, drew criticism, including by those who said the system was permitting an unsafe environment for Jewish students and those frustrated over the treatment of protesters.

Before classes began this week, Drake clarified policies around prohibiting encampments and “unauthorized structures” as well as masking in order to hide identity and refusing to reveal one’s identity to university personnel. He also directed university leaders to strictly and consistently enforce the rules. (The Guardian)…[+]

NICARAGUA – Nicaragua has revoked the registration of 1,500 non-profit organizations, the latest in a years-long crackdown in the small Central American nation.

The organizations, which include hundreds of religious groups, are accused of failing to report their financial statements for a period of between one and 35 years, according to a notice published Monday in the government gazette, La Gaceta.

Some associations effectively shuttered by the announcement were sports oriented, hosting basketball, tennis and soccer teams. There were groups for health, womens’ rights, LGBTQ rights, legal associations and veterans’ clubs. Over 400 of the groups were religiously-tied organizations, most of them Christian. CNN has reached out to the Vatican and Pontifical Commission for Latin America for comment.

Earlier this month, Nicaragua canceled the legal status of the Diocese of Matagalpa’s Caritas for alleged bureaucratic reasons, according to Vatican News. The diocese is headed by Bishop Rolando Alvarez, a vocal critic of the government who lives in exile after being convicted of charges including conspiracy and treason. Civil liberties in Nicaragua have shrunk dramatically under the longtime leadership of authoritarian President Daniel Ortega, who claimed a fifth term in 2021.

In recent years, his government has arrested numerous opposition presidential candidates, journalists and human rights activists under a vague national security law. CNN en Español was forced off the air in Nicaragua in 2022.

Widespread anti-regime protests in 2018 were also met with brutal force, with Nicaraguan security forces killing hundreds of people, injuring thousands and arbitrarily detaining many, according to Human Rights Watch. Tens of thousands of Nicaraguans have fled the country.

In June, the United Nations expressed “grave concern” over the human rights situation in Nicaragua. At least 35 people have been arrested since March as part of a “crackdown on civic space,” said Nada al-Nashif, the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights. (CNN)…[+]