Latin America

Analysts are raising the alarm over the inclusion of many of the newly inducted members into the BRICS bloc, fearing their lack of tolerance for civic engagement poses threats to multilateralism. ... Neil Melvin, director of International Security Studies at London-based Royal United Security Institute, or RUSI, the UK’s oldest defence and security think tank, told VOA that the selection of these six nations attest to the vested interests being championed by BRICS. "Argentina is there because of its neighbour Brazil. Russia and China also want to bring in Iran. And Egypt is there primarily because of the centrality of the hydrocarbon sector to many of the BRICS countries. And, for South Africa, it’s likely it wanted Ethiopia because of its central area for African diplomacy," he said. "We do see a group of countries that certainly have a democracy problem, and this is strengthening non-democratic trends in the BRICS, and a human rights problem." This, Melvin added, may have an impact on the ability of the selected states to operation in a multilateral context.

A weak political system allowed for more crime to happen and corruption to embed in the state. Besides domestic politics, there is a transnational factor. Ecuador in at the heart of the Andean countries, between coca-producing nations to the north and south. These countries have expelled some of their criminal bands that have found safe haven in Ecuador."

The killing of Ecuadorean presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio by gunmen allegedly belonging to organised crime should be a matter of concern for British politicians and business people (Report, August 11). ... The tragic assassination serves as a reminder that the UK cannot solely focus on bilateral prosperity without support to policy areas that carry significant implications for democratic governance in the Americas.