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Latin American Program in the News: How Bogota's trash trouble became a national crisis

Cindy Arnson

Cynthia Arnson comments on the removal of Gustavo Petro, Bogota's mayor and a former M-19 guerrillero, and how it could undermine general trust in the political system as a democratic arena for conflict resolution and political participation by leftist parties.

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The peace negotiations are far enough along that they're unlikely to break down _ and Petro has asked the FARC not to fall into what he calls the inspector general's "trap" to derail the talks.

But it's still troubling, said Cynthia Arnson, director of the Latin American Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington.

"The whole point of a peace process is to move the conflict from the military arena to the political arena," she said. But a legal system where "trumped up charges can remove someone arbitrarily from a position" undermines that thesis.

Read more here: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2013/12/12/3370328/how-bogotas-trash-trouble-became.html#storylink=cpy

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About the Author

Cindy Arnson

Cynthia J. Arnson

Distinguished Fellow, Latin America Program
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Latin America Program

The Wilson Center’s prestigious Latin America Program provides non-partisan expertise to a broad community of decision makers in the United States and Latin America on critical policy issues facing the Hemisphere. The Program provides insightful and actionable research for policymakers, private sector leaders, journalists, and public intellectuals in the United States and Latin America. To bridge the gap between scholarship and policy action, it fosters new inquiry, sponsors high-level public and private meetings among multiple stakeholders, and explores policy options to improve outcomes for citizens throughout the Americas. Drawing on the Wilson Center’s strength as the nation’s key non-partisan policy forum, the Program serves as a trusted source of analysis and a vital point of contact between the worlds of scholarship and action.  Read more