Regional Youth Network, Juventud LAC, Holds 5th Regional Forum

In June 2017, the Latin American Youth Network for Democracy (Juventud LAC) organized their fifth Regional Forum, bringing together over 50 activists from 18 countries from across Latin American and the Caribbean.

Participants engaged in several workshops and debates on critical issues in the region such as populism, anti-corruption, and support for human rights defenders. The meeting explored ways to build on their advocacy initiative, #UnitedAgainstCorruption, which was launched in 2016 to issue statements and carry out national dialogues and events in over ten countries in the region with various stakeholders.  

As civic space continues to shrink and become more restrictive for human rights defenders, Juventud LAC developed a campaign, #Libérenlos that advocates for the release of political prisoners in the region. The Forum served as a platform to brainstorm and exchange ideas on how to bolster their advocacy strategies and establish strategic partnerships to pressure governments in the region to respect democratic principles and free political prisoners. Participants at the Forum came together to express solidarity with Venezuelan Congressman, Wilmer Azuaje, who was kidnapped, imprisoned, and initiated a hunger strike to raise awareness about the situation of political prisoners in Venezuela.

At the 2016 fourth Regional Forum, Juventud LAC cultivated a relationship with the Office of the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), which resulted in a signed cooperation between the entities to facilitate election observations and joint actions on political incidents. During the fifth Regional Forum, the network engaged with OAS Secretary General, Luis Almagro again to strengthen their efforts on addressing human rights issues in Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua.  

The Forum took place on the heels of the Organization of American States General Assembly so network participants leveraged that opportunity to meet and cultivate relationships with other youth activists, political leaders, and representatives from the OAS. Former President of México, Felipe Calderón, former President of Colombia, Andrés Pastrana, former President of Bolivia, Tuto Quiroga, and former World Bank Vice-President Nicolás Ardito Barletta all engaged with network participants via panel discussions, closed-door meetings, and informal networking sessions.