What Happened in Latin America? Monthly Bulletin of the ALERTA LATAM Observatory – October 2026
PERU following the murder of journalist and political candidate Susy Aponte Polo: violence against the press and electoral risk.
Journalist and candidate for the Áncash Regional Government (Peru), Susy Ysabel Aponte Polo, was murdered on 19 September in the province of Caraz while giving an interview to a local media outlet. She was the founder and presenter of a digital news programme with a wide local reach, where she brought visibility to issues affecting the Áncash region, such as alleged irregularities in public works, institutional corruption, organised crime and illegal mining. Days before the incident, she had already formally requested police protection after receiving multiple death threats.
In its Statement No. 055/DP/2026, the Office of the Ombudsman of Peru stated that this incident constituted a flagrant violation of human rights and a direct attack on the exercise of political rights and democracy. It also warned that violence against candidates, in the context of the current electoral process, posed a critical threat to the legitimacy, transparency and proper conduct of regional and municipal elections.
As a journalist and political candidate, Susy Aponte represented freedom of expression and democratic participation. Her murder did not merely take a life; it struck at the essential pillars that sustain democratic coexistence.
Colombia: The JEP faces budget cuts as a milestone is reached in the progress towards establishing justice by attributing responsibility to a former executive of the company Ecopetrol.
Various international bodies, including the OECD and the International Criminal Court, as well as United Nations experts, regard the JEP’s restorative justice model as a global benchmark in transitional justice and territorial transformation.
Despite this, the JEP is currently facing budgetary changes. The new government’s joint economic committees approved a reduction that would leave its resources approximately 22.8% lower than in the current financial year. In response, the JEP has asked Congress to maintain the budget earmarked for its operation in 2027, considering that this budget reduction would affect the conduct of its judicial activities and protection measures and, above all, would limit hearings and proceedings in the territories where the crimes took place, as well as victims’ legal representation and psychosocial support. In response to this development, the UN has also called on the Colombian Congress to continue guaranteeing the resources considered essential for the institution’s operation.
In this context, the JEP continues to demonstrate the importance of its work. In this regard, in the context of Case 08 (Magdalena Medio sub-case), it has issued its first Order Determining Facts and Conduct, opening the door for private companies to participate in reparation for the harm caused to victims. Although the Constitutional Court ruled that companies such as Ecopetrol fall outside the JEP’s compulsory jurisdiction, the tribunal invited the company to take part in a “dialogue to build truth through a restorative approach”, which seeks to prioritise the legitimate demands for reparation made by affected communities.
NICARAGUA: The IACHR grants precautionary measures to human rights defender Thelma Montenegro amid growing repression of the opposition
On 30 September, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) granted precautionary measures to Thelma del Rosario Montenegro Centeno, a Nicaraguan lawyer and human rights defender, who is also a member of the Mothers of April Association (AMA), which supports relatives of victims of repression in Nicaragua. The IACHR considered her to be in a situation of gravity and urgency, with a risk of irreparable harm to her rights to life and personal integrity.
Thelma Montenegro was initially detained on 19 August 2026, when she went to a police station in Pantasma to carry out a procedure related to her driving licence. After being released, she was detained again on 23 August by armed individuals. Since then, her relatives have received no official information about her whereabouts or the conditions of her detention. The IACHR noted that the State had provided no information on the measures taken to clarify her enforced disappearance.
In a 2025 report, the UN Group of Human Rights Experts concluded that the current Nicaraguan regime had deliberately transformed the country into an authoritarian State, where no independent institutions remain, dissenting voices are silenced, and the population faces persecution, forced exile and economic reprisals. For its part, the IACHR’s 2025 Annual Report, in Chapter IV.B, devoted entirely to Nicaragua, confirms the consolidation of an authoritarian regime. It considers that the latest constitutional reform — in force since 18 February 2025 — marked the end of the rule of law by eliminating the few remaining institutional checks and creating an executive branch with absolute control.
In this context, President Daniel Ortega, who stated that he would not allow new elections in order to prevent the opposition from trying to “seize the Government” and “seize power”, was re-elected in 2021, after the authorities imprisoned candidates from opposition parties in a wave of repression that also affected politicians, businesspeople, activists and journalists. In other words, restrictions on the opposition and the persecution of critical voices had already revealed an authoritarian drift, which his more recent statements and actions appear to be deepening.
The situation of Thelma Montenegro raises a question that goes beyond her individual case. If national institutions do not clarify a detention, provide verifiable information or ensure an effective investigation, while the State restricts international cooperation, what avenues remain to protect those affected?
Brazil: Elections, digital platforms and democratic safeguards
Brazil’s presidential elections were marked by deep political polarisation and by the contrast between two political projects representing opposing positions on democracy, the country’s dictatorial past and human rights. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, whose political career began in the trade union movement during the military dictatorship, faced Flávio Bolsonaro, the political heir to Jair Bolsonaro, a defender of that regime and of the military officers identified by the National Truth Commission as responsible for serious human rights violations, including torture and executions.
The challenges posed by disinformation and the use of artificial intelligence in electoral processes added to this polarisation. During the campaign, allegations emerged of possible bias by Meta in favour of Flávio Bolsonaro, relating to the generation and dissemination of political content and the unequal handling of requests concerning the two candidacies. These controversies prompted the intervention of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), which requested information from the platform about its recommendation systems and the measures adopted to ensure equal treatment in the distribution of electoral content and advertisements. United Nations observers also questioned Meta’s conduct during the elections. The episode highlights the growing need for public oversight of major digital platforms, whose ability to influence the circulation of information can directly affect the formation of public opinion and the guarantees of democratic electoral competition.
The controversies also extended to polling day. Lula’s campaign reported restrictions on public transport services in various cities and states, which may have made it more difficult for voters to travel to polling stations. Flávio Bolsonaro’s campaign also reported mobility problems, attributing them to heavy rainfall in some regions of the country. In response to the reported difficulties, the Superior Electoral Court intervened to extend polling hours.
Finally, Lula da Silva was re-elected with 51.79% of the valid votes, compared with 48.21% for Flávio Bolsonaro, thereby securing a fourth presidential term, due to begin on 5 January 2027. The result represents an electoral setback for the advance of the far right in Brazil.
Venezuela: The UN calls for digital blockages to be lifted
On 28 October, a group of United Nations experts urged the Venezuelan Government to lift all arbitrary blockages that continue to restrict access to websites belonging to media outlets, human rights organisations and various digital services. Although access to some websites and platforms was restored during September, total or partial restrictions remain in place on national and international media outlets, privacy tools and civil society organisations.
The experts warned that these restrictions limit access to information, freedom of expression, the right to privacy and the ability to communicate securely. They also expressed concern about the lack of transparency regarding the legal basis for the blockages and the mechanisms available to challenge them. In this regard, they recalled that telecommunications companies have an independent responsibility to respect human rights and that the State must ensure that its instructions do not contribute to violating them, in accordance with the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
The United Nations’ call makes clear that digital blockages are not merely a technological restriction, but also a means of limiting civic space and the exercise of fundamental rights. Ensuring free and secure access to the internet is essential for media pluralism, journalism and the work of human rights organisations. The lifting of restrictions must therefore be accompanied by institutional safeguards to prevent their reintroduction and ensure that freedom of expression can be exercised without arbitrary interference.
