Say Cheese! Best Photos From Latin America

Best Pix From Latin America

From a memorial service for Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez to clashes in Venezuela, here are the best photos from Latin America the past week.

After the death of Colombian literary giant Gabriel García Márquez, Associated Press photojournalists in Latin America captured celebrations last week of a life well lived rather than mourning his passing. Swarms of yellow paper butterflies and rapturous smiles outweighed sadness and desolation.

Another passing was remembered with the canonization of two popes, especially John Paul II, who is warmly regarded and remembered in Latin America.

In Bolivia, the government dismissed 702 enlisted personnel from the military following protests by soldiers demanding the option of rising to the rank of officer.

Malls in Venezuela's capital stood forlorn and nearly empty due to the country's economic struggles. Argentina's most famous cartoon character, Mafalda, turned 50 years old, while Argentine fans of motorcycle racing stacked up to see the races.

Clashes continued in Venezuela between the government and the political opposition. In El Salvador, a family mourned their father, a policeman slain by a street gang, the victim of one of the 61 attacks on officers so far this year.