https://sydneywithhonduras.wordpress.com/2020/04/01/january-and-february-2020-honduras-coup-update/

January and February 2020 Honduras Coup update

New Years Day

New Years day saw the people of Choluteca city in the south protesting on the streets against human rights violations. Only on this day there had been five murders in different parts of the country, the context of each killing is unknown except that, politically motivated or not, killings occur very often and are in impunity.

Indigenous leaders assassinated

It was already reported in December that Tolupán indigenous leader Efraín Martínez Martínez was reported disappeared and then a week later his body was found half buried on 29 December 2019 in Francisco Morazán, and that similarly, Pech indigenous leader Santos Felipe Escobar García (aged 34), was disappeared on 29 December 2019 and his body without life was found on 3 January 2020.

It didn’t stop there. On 10 January 2020, in Morazán, Yoro, Tolupan indigenous leader Vicente Saavedra was found dead, having been killed with gunshots. His body, when found, was very decomposed. Vicente was also a catholic leader, and he is very well known in the municipality. People remember him as a very humble and respectful person who never messed with anyone. They had a funeral for him in a catholic temple there.

Two Campesina organisations attacked

On 26 January 2020, in Bajo Aguan, the office of COPA – Coordinator of Grassroots Organisations of Aguan, was attacked and broken into once again (this occurred on 20 December 2019, and a computer with information was stolen) by unidentified people, who damaged the building to enter, ransacked the archive drawers full of documents and other things. They took a printer with them. COPA member Carlos Leonel George together with COPA leader Haydee Saravía and campesino leader Jaime Cabrera went to the police to place a complaint about this break in – instead of investigating this break-in, the police arrested Carlos Leonel George. The police used the excuse of that there was a capture order against him. Carlos is one of 31 environmentalists who were charged for defending the Guapinol river in Tocoa, but he was part of the first group of arrestees who were released after two weeks and his case had been through the courts and was dismissed. Despite showing that this was the case, the police did not want to release him. It is believed that the mining company Inversiones Los Pinares must have pressured Honduran state authorities to reactivate the judicial files against the environmentalists who were not freed.

On 23 February 2020, unidentified persons destroyed the doors of the office of La Vía Campesina and stole a computer with information inside. La Vía Campesina leader Rafael Alegría arrived that afternoon to find that the doors were broken, and the surveillance camera monitor and a TV were thrown onto the patio, and other things thrown around and ripped up. Rafael called the National Protection Mechanism but they gave no response. From 2009 to date, this has been the 9th attack suffered by the organisation, that had included attacks against the building, its staff, gunshots against its surveillance cameras, threats, knowledge of plans to assassinate Rafael Alegría.

Updates re cases of political prisoners

Rommel Herrera the young teacher



Rommel Herrera, a young teacher who was accused of placing and setting tyres on fire, at the entrance of the US embassy, on 31 May 2019 in the context of protests of the Health and Education Platform, spent three months in maximum security prison, followed by time under custody in the psychiatric hospital – four months and counting. He has been essentially held for being part of the protests. It was the time in the maximum security prison that was traumatic for his mental health and being in a psychiatric hospital is also far from ideal for his emotional state. On 26 February 2020, his defence lawyer sought a change to his bail condition so he can be under the care of human rights organisation COFADEH instead. The judges voted, with all but one judge voting against his release into the care of COFADEH while his court case continues.

Edwin Espinal and Raúl Álvarez

The political prisoners Edwin Espinal and Raúl Álvarez who were in the maximum security prison with Rommel, who were there many months before Rommel, and were released on bail during Rommel’s imprisonment there, have their public hearing set for 14 and 15 May 2020.

Political prisoners of the Guapinol struggle against mining company Inversiones Los Pinares

In February, a Gathering of Peoples for Water and Solidarity was held at the public university UNAH in Tegucigalpa, attended by 23 representatives of different organisations nationally. They came together to share their struggles, define an action plan and also to organise in solidarity with the case of 8 compas politically imprisoned of Guapinol for at least 6 months so far. Actions were taken on 27 February 2020, including a demo outside the supreme court in Tegucigalpa, and a legal action was undertaken by CEJIL organisation. There are also campaigns in social media, calling for international solidarity with the Guapinol political prisoners.

In defence of the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers in Tocoa, People gathered in August 2018 and they began a camp for water and life in the Guapinol community, in reaction to which prosecutors and Inversiones Los Pinares emitted capture orders against 31 leaders of the communities including against Antonio Martínez Ramos, who died three months before he was charged. Amongst these there were two groups of political prisoners. The first group were imprisoned for two weeks and their cases were dismissed after. Those in this group are: Lourdes Elizabeth Gómez Rodas, Marco Tulio Ramos, Reynaldo Domínguez Ramos, Juan Antonio López, José Eugenio Esquivel Villeda, Juventino Cruz Hernández, Ally Magdaleno Domínguez Ramos, Juan Manuel Cruz Hernández, Juan Francisco Cruz García, José Santos Hernández, Carlos Leonel George George (mentioned in the COPA case earlier) and José Adalid Cedillo Mendoza.

The second group, of eight (or nine including the late Antonio Martínez Ramos) has so far been imprisoned for at least 6 months – 14 months in the case of Jeremías Martínez. They are:

Porfirio Sorto: a construction foreman, catholic church member, directive committee member of the water committee in Guapinol, and a father

Arnold Aleman: a football player, campesino, he was new to protests prior to this, and a father

Daniel Marquez: a member of Guapinol water committee, member of catholic church, and the carer for his elderly parents

Ewer Cedillo: a car mechanic, member of catholic church, and a football player

Kelvin Romero: a mechanic, small tourism operator, and a father

José Cedillo: a member of catholic church, barber, small business owner, and a father

Orbin Hernandez: Graduate in sciences and humanities, he was a teacher contracted by the council, and a leader of San Pedro area Committee

Jeremías Martinez Dias: aged 60, a member of campesina cooperative MUCA, Jeremías imprisoned in La Ceiba since 14 months ago, when he was tricked by his police escort who had orders to protect him (in recognition of persecution against him) and routinely came to his home to check on him. This day he was tricked, they came to his home and asked him to go with them to sign a document, and proceeded to arrest him in line with a prosecutor’s summon of someone named Jeremías Martínez with a different ID number whose complete full name did not match his.

As community environmental organising in Marcala La Paz heats up, a councillor was attacked again for his work in support of the environmental defence

On 29 January 2020, the mostly Lenca indigenous community of Marcala La Paz barricaded a highway between Marcala and the highway the the capital city, to blockade trucks carrying logs, during ongoing dialogues with the Forestry Department, against the uncontrolled logging in their communities. On 23 February 2020, Marcala councillor Marlon Calles found his car windows broken and his documents inside regarding the environmental work extracted, in place of the documents, the attacker left a note for him, saying, ‘you are dead now’. Marlon Calles had his car broken into and documents stolen one other time before this, and that time, unidentified persons fired gunshots near his home. Marlon had spoken up about constant threats and attacks against him for defending the environment and common natural resources of La Paz.

Indigenous environmentalists charged for asking for charges against logging company

On 4 February 2020, Iván Juárez and Meregildo Guillén, indigenous defenders of Cuaca Gualaco, Olancho, went to the prosecutors department to request investigation against the logging of forests in their community that is impacting upon their water source. Instead of charging the loggers, Iván and Meregildo ended up facing hearing and charges, accused by Nery Roberto Murillo Montalván, a logger, for the supposed crime of defamation. On 10 February 2020, the defamation case were dismissed in court as the judge recognised that they had a right to request investigation on the logging. One of the charged said, ‘we felt worried, because the forest was day by day being taken away and they are leaving us without water, now we can’t even bathe.’

Moisés Sánchez melon unionist threatened with prison and worse

On 21 January 2020, STAS union (Agroindustry and Similar Industries Workers’ Union) leader Moíses Sánchez, was charged, along with five other La Permuta community villagers, with court processes including conciliation beginning on 22 January 2020. On 6 February 2020, the conciliation process was declared failed and the court process would continue. Moíses was frustrated, ‘I don’t know what they want from me.’ He said. On the face of things, he was being charged by Mrs Dolores Rutilia Rueda, a landowner that rents its lands to Fyffes rockmelon company – he used to work there and organise in the union, he was the secretary general for STAS subsection, until Fyffes fired him for his union organising activities (his paid work was as a melon worker, union organising was on a voluntary basis). Mrs Dolores Rutilia Rueda was supposedly complaining about a road he participated in building previously when he belonged to the community council. He pointed out that it was strange for her to complain about it because she benefits from the new road – she no longer has to cross two creeks to get into her property. Moreover, it was council approved. Moíses knows that the charges are actually threats to put him in prison and threats against his life, for being someone who had organised for the labour and union rights of melon workers. The harassment and persecution he suffered had caused him including to temporarily close his small business in the community and this had made things difficult for him. So its about silencing him and not about what they officially say it is about. He has support and concern from the community about this case. The court hearing was to continue on 25 February 2020.

Priest charged

On 29 Jan, of El Triunfo, Choluteca, catholic priest Florentino Hernández appeared in court, having been sued by the Diocese of Choluteca, Monseñor Guido, a follower of the National Party, of usurping the church building and undued appropriation. Florentino was summoned in the national daily newspapers on 13 December 2019. Outside the court, communities were in solidarity with him in the hundreds. A local teacher explained that Florentino had opened the people’s eyes and helped them to see the terrible consequences mining exploitation will have for humans, and that he helps the poor, ‘he gives what he has to help his neighbour, he helps the sick with medicines even when it meant selling his things to have the money to buy the medicine.’ People know the charges are political persecution, for his work with the communities in opposition to mining projects. One of the seminarians of the church had also been expelled by the same monseñor for being a friend of Florentino. ‘We are very organised, the parish is not alone.’, the teacher said. On 5 February 2020, many villagers and human rights defenders were again with priest Florentino Hernández at the court, after some hours’ delay, were happy and celebrated because the case was dismissed.

Teachers union leader leaves, for now

On 30 January 2020, ex president of teachers union Copemh, Jaime Rodríguez, had to flee Honduras to Mexico after a series of death threats including his kidnapping on 28 October 2019 when he was tortured, his throat slashed, and he was left for dead. He confirmed it cannot be from organised crime, that the ones who have the logistics to have carried this out is the Honduran state. His kidnappers were four people with access to weapons, vehicles, and houses, that is a lot of resources. He knows what happened to him happened because he constantly criticised the government and opposing the privatisation of water, education and health. Jaime tells teachers to keep fighting, to never stop fighting, against the narcogovernment. It’s for his family that he leaves for now, but he will keep fighting and return when he can. He flew away in a plane, before which, some friends came to the airport to see him off, say goodbye, including Cofadeh coordinator Berta Oliva, whose organisation had organised his travel away for now.

Narcostate

A young anonymous guy hiding in the wild spoke to the media. He said back in 2018 he was a protected witness who gave information to the prosecution department about drug traffickers, following which, the cartel went to look for him to kill him, and when they didn’t find him, they started to kill his family. He left fleeing and made contact with the authorities, being a protected witness, and told them where he will hide and who he was with. Within days, his attackers appeared there and massacred his family in a finca, killing his mum, grandparents, two cousins and his little sister aged 2 months – killing ten of his relatives between the two massacres. Since then, he had been in hiding knowing that instead of protecting him, the prosecution department sells his information to the cartel. He wishes for asylum, to not be in the wild hiding forever.

New Migrants Caravan

On 14 January 2020, the first self organised migrants caravan of the year, thousands of Hondurans, left the San Pedro Sula bus terminal of Honduras with the aim of making it to the US, knowing all the barriers and dangers. The first of the series of caravans were around 10,000 who left together in a caravan in October 2018. In 2019, at least 105,000 Hondurans were deported in their efforts to migrate, in search for greater safety and economic opportunities.

On 20 January 2020, from this 2020 caravan, there was an image in the social media of hundreds of migrants crossing a river that has a width comparable to the length of a football field, with water up to their knees, in exodus against the JOH narco dictatorship, over Suchiate river in Mexico.