Author Archives: toml

COFADEH releases statement regarding first 30 days of Porfirio Lobo

The respected Honduran human rights organization, COFADEH, released a statement this week on the "First Thirty Days of the Porfirio Lobo Government" which describes
a continued state policy of social control and repression against political opposition in the country.  COFADEH states that 160 cases of violations of human rights have been documented during the first 30 days of the Lobo government.  The full statement is the attachment in the blue box.

Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the violations of human rights in Honduras since the coup d’état on 28 June 2009

Following Human Rights Council resolution 12/14, entitled “Situation of humanrights in Honduras since the coup d’état on 28 June 2009”, which requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to submit to its thirteenth session a “comprehensive report on the violations of human rights in Honduras since the coup d’état”, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) sent a mission to the country from 18 October to 7 November 2009.

“80% of the complaints to the Attorney General’s Human Rights office are against the police”

LA Tribuna Feb 26, 2010
Sandra Ponce, the Chief Lawyer for Human Rights in the Public Ministry lamented the decision of the National Congress to repeal the decree which created the Technical Direction of Criminal Investigation (DTIC) as an independent investigation body, given that, according to cases on file, 80% of the denunciations of citizens are against police officers. 

IACHR DEPLORES MURDERS, KIDNAPPINGS, AND ATTACKS IN HONDURAS

PRESS RELEASE    N° 26/10
IACHR DEPLORES MURDERS, KIDNAPPINGS, AND ATTACKS IN HONDURAS
Washington, D.C., March 8, 2010—The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) condemns and laments the murders last month of three persons in Honduras who were active in the resistance to the coup d’état or related to activists. It also deplores the kidnappings, arbitrary detentions, acts of torture, sexual violations, and illegal raids to which other members of the resistance have been victims. The IACHR also expresses its deep concern over information it has received indicating that sons and daughters of activists are being threatened and harassed, and that in two cases they have been killed.

COFADEH list of murders since the coup in Honduras

The accompanying pdf document is a list of confirmed political murders since the coup d’état was carried out in Honduras in June 2009. It has been very carefully prepared by COFADEH, as a part of their Third Report since the coup.   Regarding the deaths listed, they have only included in their report the deaths which their staff has personally investigated. It is widely understood in Honduras that the number of murders is much higher than those listed here, but there are many factors which contribute to a reporting of fewer deaths.

III Situational Report from COFADEH in Honduras (Spanish version only)

The Committee of the Families of the Detained and Disappeared in Honduras (COFADEH) release III Human Rights Report for Honduras in the context of the coup d’état. This report provides a contextual analysis and full report on abuses documented by COFADEH for the period of October 2009- January 2010.  (Translation of this document is in process, and we will post the translated version as soon as it is completed.)

Union Leader murdered in Honduras

On February 3, Vanessa Zepeda, a 29 year old nurse and SITRAIHASS union leader (Honduran Social Security Institute) left her home at 2pm. At approximately 6:30 pm, her lifeless body was dumped out of a vehicle in Loarque, a neighborhood well known for resistance movement activities.  Vanessa had received repeated death threats linked to her activism in the resistance movement which had been registered by human rights organizations. She was the mother of three children; the youngest is 4 months old.