Washington Office On Latin America Inc

Programs: Human rights:wola is a leading research and advocacy organization advancing human rights in the americas. We seek public policies in the americas that protect human rights and recognize human dignity, so justice may overcome violence. Wola tackles problems that transcend borders and require domestic and international solutions. We create strategic partnerships with courageous people making social change-advocacy organizations, academics, religious and business leaders, artists, and policy makers. Together, we advocate for more just societies in the americas.

drug policy & the andes:wola and its partners successfully inserted the issue of women's mass incarceration for low-level non-violent drug offenses into policy discussions around the region, in response to an escalating human rights crisis. In 2017 we began to see reforms at the national levels to address this inequity. Wola supports drug policy reforms throughout the americas and around the world that emphasize the centrality of human rights and democracy, public health, genuine citizen security, harm reduction, and evidence-driven policy. As venezuela continues its political, economic, and social crisis, wola has become the key source of trusted, fact-based analysis on the country through the venezuelan politics and human rights blog. In 2017 we shaped the debate and worked to oppose unproductive responses from the u. S. Government that would harm civilians.

mexico and border security: wola helped block the most harmful and wasteful u. S. Policy proposals surrounding security at the u. S. -mexico border. We exposed abuses against migrants on both sides of the border as a first step toward ensuring greater accountability by government actors. By producing up-to-date, digestible, and accurate analysis of political progress, wola empowered other advocates with the knowledge and tools to fight for migrant and immigrant rights. In mexico, wola worked with human rights defenders and journalists to hold the mexican government and justice system accountable for human rights abuses, such as the mexican attorney general's failure to investigate the vast majority of complaints against soldiers. Wola's research into this problem motivated a response from the mexican government and brought international attention to the mexican military's obstruction of justice.

colombia:in the second year of peace accord implementation, wola raised the voices of colombian civil society organizations, especially coalitions of afro-colombian and indigenous communities, to make sure their rights were being respected. As violence increased in ethnic minority areas of the country, wola's advocacy provided an extra measure of political protection for activists who have been subjected to threats and assassination attempts because of their courageous work. Wola kept the u. S. Department of state and congress, as well as the national and international press, informed of the need to maintain u. S. Support for the peace process. Citizen security: wola secured crucial political support for the embattled anti-corruption and anti-impunity efforts in central america, where violence and weak institutions have long driven vulnerable families and children to migrate. Wola launched the central america monitor, an innovative tool to monitor foreign assistance and progress toward rule of law, and we began gathering the missing data that citizens, activists, governments, and donors need to advocate successfully for human rights. Cuba:wola successfully advocated during the obama administration for historic u. S. Political opening toward cuba, which normalized relations, increased travel and trade, and created space in cuba for more informed political debate. In 2017 our advocacy preserved some of those gains by ensuring that the trump administration policies that would reverse them were interpreted as narrowly as possible. Dffense oversight: wola challenged the expanding role of the military in foreign and domestic policymaking. We supported accountable civilian control of defense forces, a clear separation between police and military functions, and peaceful collaboration to reduce threats and resolve conflicts.