In response to a wave of assassinations against water and land defenders in the Guapinol and Bajo Aguan areas of Honduras, 20 members of Congress led by Rep. Jan Schakowsky sent a letter to Secretary of State Blinken calling for an independent investigation into the murders and the definitive cancellation of the illegal Los Pinares mine which is linked to powerful corporations engaged in corruption. The House Members call for U.S. support of the Honduran government’s initiatives to investigate violent networks tied to such corporations.
The Guapinol water protectors, have been criminalized, threatened and killed for protesting an illegal mine, which was initially a joint venture between US steel company Nucor and the Honduran conglomerate EMCO Group, owned by one of the richest, most powerful families in Honduras. The EMCO Group was also implicated in the 2013 kidnapping of two PROAH accompaniers.
Please see the full letter attached and share with your members of Congress:
8.15.2023-schakowsky-garcia-omar-grijalva-letter-to-state-re-guapinol