February 6th 2012 – In Ciudad Juarez, the violence is a constant, human suffering a given, and trying to understand why the city has so many problems depends on who you ask. The people who live there are justifiably weary of the violence and the near-blanket impunity enjoyed by those who perpetrate it. But then, [...]
Jan 24 2012 – The Rarámuri, or Tarahumara, are going hungry. In the state of Chihuahua in Northern Mexico, where the indigenous tribe lives, drought and cold weather have made food scarce. The government and non-profits are handing out food, but handouts are only a short-term solution to the survival of the Tarahumara. Shot, produced [...]
Dec 14 2011 – Mexico is suffering the worst drought the country has seen in 70 years. In the northern state of Chihuahua, 80 percent of seasonal crops that rely on rain have been lost. For AFP by Deborah Bonello.
November 30 2011 – Miss Bala, a Mexican movie that is a current Oscar hopeful and inspired by true events, follows beauty queen Laura Guerrero in her violent downward spiral into the hands of organized crime. Filmed, produced and edited for AFP by Deborah Bonello.
November 11 2011 – The grieving families of six men who disappeared from a Mexican night club speak to TIME. Their story is among 170 cases of killing, torture and disappearances documented in a new Human Rights Watch report. This report was produced for Time Magazine by Deborah Bonello. Watch the video on Time’s website [...]
November 2 2011 – Day of the Dead in Mexico is usually a time for celebrating and remembering lost loved ones. But in the context of a brutal drug war that has cost 40,000 lives, the commemoration of the dead has taken on a more sombre tone this year. Below, other video edits from the [...]
Anonymity in Mexico is the only form of defence in the increasingly violent conflict involving the country’s drug cartels, government, media and public.
October 25 2011 – A dispatch for Time from a recent trip to Veracruz: In touristy Veracruz, Mexico, drug-related violence has spiked. After a recent wave of 80 killings, the federal government sent troops to patrol the city. But many still don’t feel safe See the video here on Time.com
October 19 2011 – Latest dispatch for AFP from my recent trip to Veracruz. Journalism in Mexico is under fire. As drug-related violence grows, so does the danger for reporters trying to cover it, often forcing them to flee, bow to outside influences or face the consequences. In the city of Veracruz, journalists are feeling [...]
October 18 2011 – A short video documentary by me for Univision on peace activist and poet Javier Sicilia and his potential to create real change here in Mexico. Watch the video here on Univision’s Tumbler.
October 14 2011 – Drug-related violence in many of Mexico’s states is driving businesses to set up shop in the relative safe haven of Mexico City. For AFP by Deborah Bonello. You can also see the video here on AFP’s YouTube channel in English and in Spanish.
The Mexican government has launched a military crackdown in the state of Veracruz following more than 80 killings in the tourist port in the last few weeks.
September 23 2011 It has taken just ten years for América Móvil to become the dominant telecoms company in Latin America, turning Carlos Slim, its founder, into the world’s richest man. But can América Móvil continue to grow? Adam Thomson and Deborah Bonello report. You can see the report here on FT.com.
My latest for AFP from a recent trip to Guatemala. Guatemala is to hold a presidential election in September, and the issues confronting candidates are enormous. Extreme poverty, child malnutrition and corruption continue to be huge challenges. But narco-trafficking groups and organized crime are threatening to become the country’s new bosses. If you can’t watch [...]
Multinational-run factories employing tens of thousands are doing brisk business in Ciudad Juarez, even as local businesses in the Mexican border town wither, devastated by the high murder rate and extortion by drug gangs.
You may remember this story I did a few months ago on survival techniques for journalists. I also produced a video on that course for the non-profit that runs it, Article 19, which you can see here as well as on their website.
Pastor Jose Galvan paints pictures depicting decapitated heads, blood and suffering — a disturbing canvas that he says expresses the suffering of his native Mexico in the throes of drug-fuelled violence. This video was made for AFP, and you can watch it here on their YouTube Channel.
Mexican poet turned peace activist Javier Sicilia meets President Felipe Calderon, who he has much criticized for the strong-arm military tactics against drug cartels that many blame for unleashing widespread violence. This video was produced for AFP. You can also see it here on AFP’s YouTube channel.
Daniel Dominguez, one of the hard-worked crime reporters on El Diario, the biggest newspaper in Ciudad Juarez, was kind enough to let me spend the day with him last week. Here’s the report I produced for AFP, which you can also see here on YouTube. The same video is also embedded below, in case of [...]
Mexico City authorities are counting on new metro lines, improved bus services and toll roads, and cycling initiatives to ease traveling for the city’s 20 million inhabitants
Mexico’s march for peace, led by Catholic poet Javier Sicilia, crossed over from Ciudad Juarez – the violent epicenter of the country’s drug war – into El Paso, Texas Saturday. They were joined by hundreds of Americans in their demands for a change in strategy from both the Mexican and US governments. This [...]
Just to give you a taste of last night: Friday 10th 2011 – Mexican poet Javier Sicilia and his caravan of peace protestors received a warm welcome from thousands of people in Ciudad Juarez when they arrived Thursday evening. It was the final stop on a tour of some of the country’s states worst affected [...]
June 6th 2011 – Since Javier Sicilia’s son was killed by gunmen in March, the left-leaning Catholic poet has become the voice for those left dead or grieving by drug-related violence in Mexico. Some 37,000 people have died since President Felipe Calderon launched his assault against the country’s drug cartels and organized crime networks in [...]
Bono, lead singer of U2, took a moment during a concert the band played in Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca on Sunday to send a message north across the border. The singer – famous for his political and social activism – asked the band’s Mexico fans to “send a message of love across the border to [...]
Is Mexico’s new migrant law enough to help those in transit?
May 8th 2011 – Thousands of protesters marched to Mexico City’s Zocalo Sunday demanding an end to the violence generated by President Felipe Calderon’s ‘war’ against drug cartels. See the video for more.
A recent visit by the UN Working Group on involuntary or forced disappearances questioned the Mexican army’s current role in President Felipe Calderon’s “war” against organized crime and drug gangs.
No Mas Sangre (No More Blood), a social protest group that began life as a cartoon, took to the streets of Mexico City on a recent weekend. They were in protesting what they see as a failed policy – President Felipe Calderon’s campaign against the country’s drug cartels and organized crime. But how representative are they of the Mexican people?
February 25th 2011 – Mexico’s migrant monarch butterflies in the state of Michoacan see less visitors as tourists are put off by press reports of narco violence. After being fired for asking Mexico President Felipe Calderon to respond to rumors that he has an alcohol problem, outspoken broadcaster and journalist Carmen Aristegui returned to the airwaves. And drug-related violence for the first time claimed the life of a US security agent – we ask what it means for US/Mexico relations.
Marc had Gael Garcia Bernal on board as his presenter, and has produced some excellent advocacy work. “Los Invisibles” (the invisibles) series is beautifully produced and shot, giving voice to a community rarely asked it’s opinion.
Arturo Perez, a freelance cameraman based in Mexico’s Ciudad Juarez, was recognised for his work last night at the Rory Peck Awards on London’s South Bank.
National oil company Pemex struggles as oil production drops. Carola Hoyos reports from Mexico for the Financial Times. Filmed, produced and edited by Deborah Bonello.
The remittances that Mexican migrants send home to their families from a recession-bound US has dropped by 14 per cent over the last year.
Agustin Carstens, the recently appointed governor of the Bank of Mexico, talks about his predecessor as well as future plans for the bank and its relationship with Mexico’s federal government. Click here and here for the two videos produced for the Financial Times. Thanks to Greg Brosnan, of Streetdog Media, for being the second cameraman, and the [...]
Most Mexicans think their lives would be better in the United States, and one in three said they’d move to the U.S. if they could, according to the latest findings on Mexican attitudes from the Pew Global Attitudes Project.
Although Mexico is currently in the grip of the worst drought it has suffered since World War Two, houses flooded and streets turned into lakes this week when torrential rainfall lashed down on Mexico City and the neighboring State of Mexico.
Crops are wilting in the countryside, and the capital’s water shortage has turned dire as Mexico grapples with its worst drought in more than half a century. See the Los Angeles Times report here.
For Mexico, which prides itself on a unique artistic tradition, the crisis resulting from the global economic meltdown and swine flu is particularly acute, and is being felt by the country’s artistic community and museums.
For those of you who read the account of my trip to the Yucatan and my experiences with Mexico’s military checkpoints, I thought that you might find this op-ed column in the New York Times of related interest. Written by Kelly M. Phillips, a petty officer third class in the United States Coast Guard, it [...]
Univision: Young angels in Juarez battle the city’s demons
AFP: Mexico City struggles with waste disposal
AFP: Activists under fire in Mexico
AFP: Ambulance attacked in Ciudad Juarez
Time: Evidence of Killings and Disappearances by Mexico’s Security Forces
AFP: Mexicans honor drug war victims on Day of the Dead
