Drug-trafficking has been on the rise in Central America since 2008, justifying the expansion of the U.S.-led drug war into the region. In a place where Washington has historically wielded tremendous power, the United States plans to continue using the same failed drug war strategy as it has in Colombia and Mexico. 7,000 U.S. Marines have already been approved for Costa Rica, and other countries, such as Honduras, are asking for an increased U.S. military presence. There is a broader geopolitical strategy, critics say, for the United States to tighten its hegemonic grip in the region.

On September 20, Haitian prime minister Jean-Marc Bellerive, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and the World Bank announced their partnership with a South Korean garment firm to establish an industrial park that will create 10,000 garment assembly jobs in Haiti. Without a doubt, earthquake-ravaged Haiti needs jobs, mainly to provide the country’s 1.3 million homeless with the means necessary to rebuild their destroyed homes. However, rather than solve the housing problem, the factories will depend on the vast pool of low-wage labor present in the homeless camps. Haiti's meager minimum wage of $3.09 per day will be barely enough to cover the worker's food expenses.

Congressman Sam Farr (D-CA), joined by 29 other Members of Congress, sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today calling on the Obama Administration to suspend aid - ‹particularly military and police assistance‹ - to the government of Honduras, while murders of political activists and media workers and other attacks in that country continue with near impunity.