It has been a tumultuous year. The human rights crisis and state sponsored terror rage on in Honduras. Torrential rains of climate change wreaked havoc in Nicaragua. U.S. militarization intensified throughout the region. Embolden by the U.S. elections; right-wing extremists have already set an ominous tone in Washington for policy towards Latin America in 2011.
The adverse reality will not impede our struggles and victories; on the contrary, we become stronger. There is no future for Honduras without truth and justice. Truth is the extraordinary opportunity we have to rebalance power. We have hope that the truth will serve Honduran society, enabling us to see each other face to face, without forgetting the past. (Bertha Oliva, Dec. 10, 2010)
In 2011, Friendship Office staff continues to accompany the Commission of Truth as it works to fulfill its mandate to seek the truth, justice, redress and an end to impunity from the perspective of the victims of the coup d’état. We will expand the Honduras Accompaniment Project, placing teams in areas of the country where accompaniment is urgently needed. In January, two new members join the team.