Honduras: No Justice for Wave of Killings Over Land
Honduras: No Justice for Wave of Killings Over Land
Government Inaction Feeds Impunity in Bajo Aguán
February 12, 2014
(Tegucigalpa) – Honduran authorities have failed to investigate properly a wave of killings and other abuses believed to be tied to land disputes in the Bajo Aguán region, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today.
The 72-page report, “‘There Are No Investigations Here’: Impunity for Killings and Other Abuses in Bajo Aguán, Honduras” examines 29 homicides and two abductions in Bajo Aguán since 2009, as well as human rights violations by soldiers and police. Human Rights Watch found that prosecutors and police consistently failed to carry out prompt and thorough investigations into these crimes, a failure that Honduran public prosecutors, police, and military officials acknowledged in interviews.
“Even in a country afflicted by alarming levels of violence and impunity, the situation in Bajo Aguán stands out,” said Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas director at Human Rights Watch. “The failure to take rudimentary steps to bring those responsible to justice has helped perpetuate a climate of lawlessness in which more crimes are likely to occur, and has deepened public distrust of the authorities.”
Not one of the 29 homicides documented by Human Rights Watch in Bajo Aguán has led to a conviction, according to information provided by government officials. Only one case went to trial – the November 2010 killing of five campesinos, or small-scale farmers. It was provisionally dismissed in January 2013, pending the discovery of more evidence, after the judge found insufficient grounds to proceed, and has not resumed.
More:
http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/02/12/honduras-no-justice-wave-killings-over-land