source: Conra Corriente
Between 2015 and 2025, 113 environmental defenders were murdered, and approximately 90% of these crimes remain unpunished, according to data from the Association for a More Just Society (ASJ). This places Honduras fourth in the total number of environmental defenders killed in the last 10 years. The list is topped by Colombia, followed by Brazil and Mexico, which have the highest number of environmentalist deaths.
ASJ reports that among the departments most affected by this violence are Colón, with 39 murders; Yoro, with 20; and followed by Atlántida, with 14 cases, territories where conflicts over land and natural resources have persisted, generating attacks against those who defend the environment.
In this context marked by violence against those who protect rivers, forests and territories in the country, their work is described as "high risk" according to a report by the National Commissioner for Human Rights (Conadeh).
Environmental defender Pedro Landa, in an interview with Contracorriente, pointed out that there is concern within human rights organizations and environmental defenders in Honduras, due to the lack of concrete actions by the Public Prosecutor's Office and other justice operators, and questioned why the progress in the judicial processes related to the murders of environmental defenders is almost nonexistent, and that most cases remain unpunished.
For its part, ASJ points out that violence against environmental defenders follows a series of recurring patterns, which demonstrate persistent risk conditions. These include community leadership and the public visibility of the victims. According to the organization, many of those killed were "community leaders, members of Indigenous and native peoples, and defenders of the environment and their ancestral lands."
Another pattern identified by the organization is the presence of socio-environmental conflicts in the territories where the events occurred. The organization points out that the victims often lived in areas plagued by disputes over the control of natural resources and exploitation projects.
ASJ also maintains that the existence of previously reported violence adds to the recurring patterns. In most cases, prior to their deaths, the defenders had reported threats, harassment, and constant tension, without any effective intervention from the State; and although other environmentalists were granted protection measures, ASJ argues that these “arrived late, were ineffective, or were not implemented with an approach that considered the victims’ vulnerable situation.”
All these patterns faced by environmentalists culminate in one final point highlighted by ASJ: impunity. The lack of response to complaints filed by defenders, the absence of identification of the masterminds behind these crimes, and the limited actions taken by the justice system to punish those responsible, result in high levels of impunity.
For example, a representative case that adds to these patterns of violence faced by environmental defenders in the country is the murder of environmentalist Juan Silva and his son Antonio Silva , which occurred on February 26, 2025 in Comayagua.
Silva had denounced illegal logging in the Las Botijas area of Villa de San Antonio for years, filing at least eight complaints between 2005 and 2020 with the Environmental Prosecutor's Office and other institutions, most of which went unchecked. In 2020, he was attacked with a machete while carrying out surveillance work, but the authorities neither investigated the incident nor implemented any protective measures. Despite being aware of the risks and threats associated with his work, the State failed to take preventative action to guarantee his safety.
After more than a year since the crime, on March 10, the Police Directorate of Investigations (DPI) together with the National Directorate of Special Forces (DNFE), during an operation carried out in the La Botija mountain sector, captured Juan Joel and Noé Rivas Durón involved in the murder of the environmentalist and his son.
According to police commissioner Rolando Ponce, the arrests were carried out through arrest warrants issued by the Tegucigalpa Sectional Court of Letters, coordinated with the Public Ministry, which accuses them of the crimes of ongoing murder of the victims.
Impunity in the Juan López case
Another emblematic case that remains unpunished is that of Tocoa councilman and environmental defender Juan López , who was murdered on September 14, 2024. López was a renowned community leader who for years denounced the environmental impacts of the mining company Inversiones Los Pinares in the Carlos Escaleras National Park, and alleged links between local political power, corruption and criminal structures in the Aguán Valley.
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) granted precautionary measures to López; however, these measures were not complied with, as the environmentalist faced harassment, smear campaigns, and criminalization prior to his death.
A month after the crime, the Public Prosecutor's Office charged three alleged perpetrators: Óscar Alexis Guardado Alvarenga, Daniel Antonio Juárez Torres, and Lenín Adonis Cruz Munguía, who are currently awaiting their trial. However, almost two years after the murder, the process has been marked by delays, rescheduled hearings, and incomplete investigations by the prosecution.
In an interview with Contracorriente, lawyer Rita Romero, legal representative of the Municipal Committee in Defense of Common and Public Goods (CMDBCP), explained that, on the other hand, the fact that the intellectual authors of the crime have not been identified or brought to justice demonstrates the weaknesses of the investigation in these cases by the authorities and reinforces the climate of impunity that surrounds crimes against environmental defenders in Honduras.
According to Pedro Landa, the State incurs a "double responsibility", since the victims were under its care and protection when the crimes occurred.
Meanwhile, Daniel Cáceres, director of the Human Rights Observatory at CONADEH, agrees that the lack of investigation and resolution of these complaints generates recurring patterns of violence. He explained that the attacks begin with threats and assaults, then progress to the criminalization and stigmatization of human rights defenders' protests, which can even end in murder. In this regard, he explained that "when there is no judicial or preventative action before the harm is done, the message sent to the intellectual and material actors is that the crime will be tolerated by the State and that there are no legal actions that will hold those involved accountable."
Budget execution in a prosecutor's office questioned for its inaction
The questions about the lack of progress in the investigation of crimes against environmental defenders also contrast with the resources available in the justice system.
According to data from ASJ, the Special Prosecutor's Office for Human Rights managed a budget of 123 million lempiras between 2015 and 2025, of which it spent 115 million, equivalent to 93.7% of the total allocated. Compared to other specialized prosecutor's offices, this agency ranks first in budget execution, ahead of the Special Prosecutor's Office for the Environment, which spent 93% of its budget, and the Prosecutor's Office for Ethnic Groups and Cultural Heritage, with 88.8%. However, the difference between the allocated and actual expenditures amounts to 7.7 million lempiras, which, according to the organization, reflects a lack of planning and administrative management. They point to "the need to strengthen institutional capacities, improve monitoring mechanisms, and promote greater efficiency in the use of public resources."
On the other hand, environmental defender Pedro Landa explained that the lack of adequate budget allocation and clear direction within the National Protection Mechanism and the National Protection System has limited their effectiveness. Landa pointed out that, in the previous period, approximately 80% of the mechanism's budget was allocated to protecting public officials who already had security details due to their positions, instead of prioritizing human rights defenders and environmentalists at risk.
"It could have served to guarantee the lives of many environmentalists and human rights defenders who had nothing more than a number to call for emergencies, and the police response has been, well, delayed or nonexistent in many cases," Landa stated.
For Landa, the current situation for environmentalists in the country reflects complete abandonment by the State. “Right now, protection is practically nonexistent. State measures have been insufficient, ineffective, and inoperative, forcing many organizations to resort to self-protection mechanisms or seek support from the international community. Many defenders have even had to leave the country; last year alone, more than 70 left Honduras, and at least 15 have not been able to return. They know that if they come back, their lives hang by a thread,” he concluded.
This report was produced with support from the "Silenced Guardians" campaign, funded by the Association for a More Just Society (ASJ) and the British Embassy in Guatemala.
