Washington Post - Central America

Date Posted Article 2 hours ago American Baptist group charged with child kidnapping in Haiti PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Ten American Baptists who said they wanted to save orphans after Haiti's earthquake were charged with child kidnapping Thursday in a case that has raised fears about the trafficking of minors. 2 hours ago Haitian earthquake upends country's criminal justice system PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Haiti's criminal justice system was brought to a standstill by last month's earthquake, which leveled the capital city's courthouse. But crime did not stop, and that has left police commanders with jail cells full of frustrated inmates who have not been given a chance to go... 2 hours ago Haiti faces money, labor problems reconstructing buildings wrecked by earthquake PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- The Rev. Celestin Jean Robert tried a brave smile as he went from one room to the next and heard the news about his church and school: The prognosis for Assembly of God was mostly bad. 2 hours ago Haiti's elite sees business opportunities emerging from reconstruction PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Last month's earthquake battered Reginald Boulos's small empire, destroying one of his supermarkets, badly damaging a hotel and killing two workers at his car dealership. 2 hours ago 8 of 10 missionaries freed from Haitian jail, return to U.S. PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Eight of 10 U.S. missionaries jailed in Haiti on charges of child abduction were released on their own recognizance Wednesday pending a continuing criminal investigation and a possible trial in Haitian courts. 2 hours ago Commission starts preparing plans for Haiti's rebirth PETIONVILLE, HAITI -- Here on the hills above Port-au-Prince, a vision for a very different capital city is taking shape. 2 hours ago Chile's coastal towns face double whammy of damage from earthquake and seaquake DICHATO, CHILE -- When one of history's biggest earthquakes hit, Francisco Larenas was shaken awake and then promptly went back to sleep. He wouldn't sleep through what came next. 2 hours ago Blind violinist injured in Haiti quake fighting the odds, once again MIAMI -- As darkness fell on what was left of his music school in Haiti, Romel Joseph found a distraction for his pain and fear. He imagined himself performing Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto. His right hand gracefully slid the bow and his left hand caressed the violin's neck as his fingers glided... 2 hours ago Three with links to U.S. Consulate in Juarez are slain Assailants gunned down three people returning from a party at a U.S. Consulate employee's home in the Mexican city of Juarez, including a pregnant U.S. government employee and her husband, in two attacks a few minutes apart that prompted a furious response from the White House on Sunday. 2 hours ago Corrections -- A March 21 Page One article about the health-care victory's potential costs for Democratic politicians quoted former House speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) as saying that President Obama and congressional Democrats "will have destroyed their party much as Lyndon Johnson shattered the Democratic... 2 hours ago Steady supply of medical services begins to pressure Haiti's doctors Jerry and Marlon Bitar are prominent Haitian surgeons, identical twins who have done everything together for all of their 48 years. They both studied medicine in France, returned to Haiti in 2000 to take over a clinic serving low-income patients, and built a separate private practice that has giv... 2 hours ago In blueprint for Haiti, U.S. takes new approach to aid An internal Obama administration assessment concludes that the U.S. government has provided $4 billion in aid to Haiti since 1990 but "struggled to demonstrate lasting impact," according to a summary of the review, which has not been publicly released. 2 hours ago U.S.-Jamaica relations tested by lobbying dispute Last fall, the blue-chip law firm of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips signed a $400,000 contract to lobby on behalf of the government of Jamaica, spending the next several months talking with White House and other administration officials about why the United States should not extradite an accused K... 2 hours ago In Haiti's shattered capital, metal scavengers take to the streets PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- They pound concrete. Smash it over and over. Smash it until it powders. 2 hours ago Violence surges in Jamaica as troops hunt alleged drug kingpin Thousands of police and soldiers swarmed into slums in Jamaica's capital Tuesday in search of an alleged drug kingpin wanted by the United States, trading gunfire with masked supporters of the fugitive. At least 30 people, mostly civilians, have been reported killed since the battle erupted Sunday. United States - Jamaica - Police - United States Department of Justice - Cocaine 2 hours ago At least $500 million has been spent since 9/11 on renovating Guantanamo Bay GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA -- At the U.S. naval station here, a handsome electronic sign hangs between two concrete pillars. In yellow enamel against a blue metal backdrop is a map of Cuba, the "Pearl of the Antilles," above flashing time and temperature readings. United States - Recreation and Sports - Business and Economy - Thomson Correctional Center - United States Secretary of Defense 2 hours ago Digest BARBADOS Sometimes success breeds new problems. The U.S.-backed campaign against drug dealers in Colombia and Mexico has led gangs to look for new transit routes through the Caribbean. Drug gangs have become so brazen that Kingston, Jamaica, erupted in violence last month when the country's prime... Recreation - Volkswagen - Thing - Makes and Models - Autos 2 hours ago At Guantanamo, fewer assaults on guards after conditions eased SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO -- More prisoners at Guantanamo Bay are sharing meals and recreation time with fellow inmates -- an easing of conditions that has led to fewer assaults against guards at the U.S. base in Cuba, the new commander said Friday. United States - Guantánamo Bay - Navy - Military - Installations 2 hours ago The sad math of aid in Haiti: 6 months, 2 percent We're two weeks into Defense Secretary Robert Gates's new campaign for more "coordination and discipline" in the military's public statements -- and everything seems to be going according to plan. Haiti - Caribbean - Earthquake - Organizations - Port-au-Prince 2 hours ago Despite House ethics probe, Charles Rangel's support remains strong in Harlem NEW YORK -- Whatever troubles Charles B. Rangel has in Washington, they haven't seemed to follow him to the streets of Harlem, where he is the only congressman many people have ever voted for, and where on sidewalks and stoops his recent trials are sometimes chalked up to conspiracy and dismissed... Ethics - Charles B. Rangel - Philosophy - Applied - Democratic 2 hours ago Another emergency in Afghanistan, another Kerry visit AFGHANISTAN The arrival of Sen. John F. Kerry has come to signify a crisis in Kabul. Afghanistan - John Kerry - United States - Hamid Karzai - Government 2 hours ago Hip-hop artist Wyclef Jean could be real contender for Haitian presidency PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- In the space of two weeks, Wyclef Jean has redrawn the map of Haitian politics, emerging as a new force -- and perhaps the leading contender -- in a presidential election scheduled for November. Wyclef Jean - Haiti - Caribbean - Hip hop - Arts and Entertainment 2 hours ago Despite 'all that money,' more than 1 million Haitians remain displaced by January earthquake PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Immacula Pierre had a question. Why, she wanted to know, are she and 50,000 other homeless Haitians still living in a squalid tent city on the Champ de Mars, an esplanade in the heart of Port-au-Prince just across the street from the destroyed National Palace. Earthquake - Haiti - Natural Disasters and Hazards - Earth Sciences - Technology 2 hours ago RNC's Steele visits U.S. territories, prompting talk of a reelection bid For a man hoping to lead his party to major congressional victories in November, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael S. Steele has packed his travel schedule with some unusual destinations in recent weeks: Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Republican National Committee - United States - Michael Steele - Republican - Steele Sep 6, 2010 In Haiti, cooperation among aid groups is unprecedented PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Landina Seignon's arm had been removed an inch below her shoulder. Like most performed in the week after the earthquake, hers was a "guillotine amputation" -- a straight cut through flesh and bone that left little cushion for an artificial arm. Sep 6, 2010 Children taken from Haiti face uncertain fate FERMATHE, HAITI -- It was a couple of weeks after the earthquake when word began to spread in a small, poor village here. Sep 6, 2010 Haiti earthquake relief efforts are still falling short PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Nearly one month after a powerful earthquake brought this country to a halt, Haiti is tumbling headlong through a crisis that has not begun to abate, with evidence everywhere that current relief efforts are falling short. Sep 6, 2010 Haiti's Grand-Rue struggles to recover after quake PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- As long as anyone can remember, the Grand-Rue was the commercial heart of Haiti, a string of stores in the center of Port-au-Prince beating to the rhythm of a people for whom scraping by was the main national industry. Sep 6, 2010 Haiti's day of mourning mixes prayer, anger at government PORT-AU-PRINCE, HAITI -- Reeling from the earthquake that devastated their country one month ago, Haitians have turned to their vivid and sometimes quirky spiritual life in a search not only for consolation but also for an explanation of why such a catastrophe was visited upon them. Sep 6, 2010 Haitian artists express earthquake's tragedy through paintings and music Since it was devastated by an earthquake Jan. 12, Haiti has been synonymous with death, destruction and misery. But a month later, out from under the rubble has come a sign of the irrepressible human spirit that makes this tragic country someplace special.