Honduras did not experience civil war in the 1980s, but its geography (bordering El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua) made it a key location for US military operations: training Salvadoran soldiers, a base for Nicaraguan contras, military exercises for US troops. The notorious Honduran death squad Battalion 316 was created, funded and trained by the US. The state-sponsored terror resulted in the forced disappearances and extrajudicial killings of approximately 200 people during the 1980s. Many more were abducted and tortured. The 2009 military coup d’etat spawned a resurgence of state repression against the civilian population that continues today. This article by CovertAction Magazine provides an elaborate overview of honduras recent electoral history, its many struggles with this very crucial democratic procedure and the very recent electoral disaster.
A new nacal article by Laura Blume provides insight on the contradictory copunternarcotic policy the trump administration recently conducts. Occurences such as the bombing of fisherboats in the carribeans contrasting occurences such as the pardoning of fomer president Juan Orlando Hernandez convicted for bplaying a major role in trafficking tons of drug in the us highlight this ambivalence and insinuate ulterior motives, presented in this article.
In Honduras citizens grow more and more sceptical about the legitamacy of their electoral system after officials have failed to provide updates more than a week after election day.
Juan Orlando Hernández, former President of Honduras who last year was sentenced to 45 years in prison for flooding the United States with cocaine was recently pardoned by President Trump. A new article by the New Yok Times illuminates how this political act is in reluctance with the administrations “fight against drugs” and how Donald Trump's longest-serving political adviser and lobbyist Roger Stone has played into this.
Do you and your neighbors and co-workers know what to do if visited, questioned, or arrested by ICE? Do you know you can call the Ohio Immigration Hotline 419-777-HELP (4357) ? There’s also the Ohio National Lawyers Guild Hotline: (614) 654-6477
You can stay up-to-date every day on ICE activities, trends in apprehensions and detentions by following Austin Kocher on Substack https://substack.com/@austinkocher/posts
In northeast Ohio, you can reach out to irtf@irtfcleveland.org for educational resources and trainings for your workplace, congregation, or community group.
Consider your position in your community. What can you contribute to undocumented community members or migrant organizations?
Do you know any legal, mental health, social work professionals?
What about school employees?
We need EVERYONE to consider how they can mobilize support for vulnerable migrant families.
If you yourself don’t hold a professional position that is needed, consider this: Could serve as a first-call, point person for someone who is detained? Reach out to them to initiate a supportive conversation. Are you positioned to do child pick-up and safeguarding? Well-connected with community orgs or professionally situated to help with legal, medical or other needs?
See the attached flyer for more resources and ways to get involved.
On November 30, Hondurans go to the polls on November 30 to elect their next president. But the elections are happening against the backdrop of escalating U.S. interference in the region. U.S. officials in the White House, State Department and Congress have been nurturing a propaganda campaign by the Honduran right wing press and organizations against the progressive forces in the country reminiscent of Cold War propaganda.
Inside Honduras, there have been attempts to undermine the democratic process.
The National Electoral Council (CNE), headed by three coucilors (each representing one of the major political parties) is highly politicized. Conflicts within the Council have caused concerns for the election. During the March 2025 primary elections, some polling stations in the two largest cities were left without any ballots, while others received the materials many hours late. There were accusations made that the military had not done its job of ensuring that election materials were delivered. There were also accusations that one of the CNE councilors contracted a private transportation company to deliver ballot boxes, but some deliveries were not made. The conservative pro-2009 coup press then used the crisis to undermine public confidence in the electoral infrastructure and institutions.
The Garífuna, descendants of Indigenous peoples from the Caribbean and formerly enslaved Africans, have lived on the Bay Islands and Atlantic coast of Honduras since 1797. The State of Honduras has already been condemned three times by the Inter-American Court on Human Rights for violating the Garífuna people’s right to collective land ownership.
Because of the government’s failure to implement the international court’s orders, Garífuna community members have taken matters into their own hands. Outside of Trujillo, Colón Department, they have “recuperated” (recoccupied) a neighborhood where outside investors have illegally begun constructing forty tourist condominiums. On October 23, fifteen masked and heavily armed men arrived in two armored vehicles, surrounded the Garífuna reoccupation site, fired weapons, and threatened to kill residents; the police failed to respond to repeated emergency calls. Days later, the mainstream media published a defamatory and false article accusing the Garífuna of illegally occupying the tourist condominiums.
Then on October 27 there were two more violent incidents. In Vallecito, Colón Department, armed men apparently aimed at Garífuna defender Miriam Miranda. And on the Bay Islands off the coast, Garífuna defender Melissa Martínez received a death threat which included racist slurs and warned her to “watch her steps.”
Garífuna defenders, particularly women, have faced years of armed aggression, threats, and smear campaigns. But the current racist media campaign is fueling hostility and is resulting in armed attacks. The intensification of violence demonstrates the urgent need for decisive state action to protect those defending collective land rights guaranteed under Honduran and international law.
Honduras heads into its November 30 elections after a turbulent decade marked by the post-coup era and the COVID-19 crisis. Under President Xiomara Castro and her LIBRE party, some economic and social indicators have begun to recover: poverty has fallen from its pandemic peak, inequality continues a slow decline, underemployment is at a decade low, and both public and private investment have grown. External public debt has stabilized, and the country remains fiscally sound under an IMF program. Still, Honduras remains Central America’s poorest country, with low per-capita growth and persistent structural vulnerability. Voters will choose among LIBRE’s Rixi Moncada, opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla, and National Party contender Nasry Asfura as the country seeks to consolidate fragile gains and confront ongoing poverty, inequality, and economic exposure.
Honduras holds presidential and legislative elections on November 30, with Libre Party candidate Rixi Moncada—former finance and defense minister—running to succeed outgoing president Xiomara Castro. The country’s entrenched economic elites and traditional parties, long resistant to leftist governments, are accused of plotting to manipulate the vote. Leaked recordings suggest a plan by National Party figures and a military officer to disrupt vote transmission, declare conservative candidate Salvador Nasralla the winner, and push the U.S. Embassy not to recognize a Libre victory. Libre warns of an “electoral coup” and mobilizes supporters to safeguard results. The stakes are heightened by U.S. geopolitical interests, Castro’s break with U.S. positions, and Libre’s social gains since 2022. Polls show a close race, and observers expect intense pressure and foreign interference to shape the outcome.
