Mexico City--With a brand new Americas office in Mexico City, Amnesty International wants to tackle the "hidden crisis" afflicting human rights in the vast region, the organization's head said Tuesday.
In an interview with AFP, secretary general Salil Shetty said the first headquarters based inside the region, covering from North to South America and the Caribbean, will allow the rights groups to react faster to a slew of problems.
Another office will open in Lima this year, as part of the London-based organization's effort to move its regional operations to countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
"There is actually a hidden crisis on this continent," Shetty said from the new Americas office, where a staff of 30 will work on regional issues next to the space used by its Mexico country team.
"The economic growth has been accompanied with growing inequality, so we have large sections of the population who are excluded from economic benefits," Shetty said.
Electoral democracy has not given a voice to indigenous communities, violence is "exceptionally high," human rights defenders are attacked, and women, migrants and people of African descent face discrimination, he said.
"The underlining issue in our view in all of the countries in Latin America on human rights is impunity and the lack of accountability," Shetty added.
"People, particularly if you're rich and you have the right connections, can literally get away with murder."
AFP
