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Honduras: The challenge of ending twelve years of neoliberalism
November 23, 2021
On November 28, more than 5 million Hondurans will be asked to elect the President of the Republic, 128 deputies to the National Congress, 20 to the Central American Parliament, 298 mayors and more than 2 thousand municipal councillors. As the election date approaches, the political atmosphere has become polarized, conflict has intensified and social tension grown.
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RRN Letter
Guatemala, 11/22/2021
November 22, 2021
We wrote to the attorney general of Guatemala for the second day in a row about more state violence in El Estor. On November 16 the Guatemalan National Police (PNC) forcibly evicted 96 Maya Q’eqchi’ families from Chinebal, in the southern region of El Estor municipality, Izabal Department, which has been under a government-declared state of siege since October 23. The Maya Q’eqchi’ families of Chinebal have resided and farmed on this land at the foot of the Sierra de las Minas mountain range since the 1940s. The eviction (police bulldozing homes, burning families’ personal belongings) stemmed from a longstanding land dispute over rightful ownership of the Palestina Chinebal farm. Businessman Juan Maegeli leases portions of the land to the NaturAceites company to grow African palm trees for palm oil production. Palm plantations are now covering 9% of arable land in Izabal.
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News Article
Honduras: Statement from COPINH on the General Elections
November 22, 2021

The Honduran people will participate massively in these elections as an expression of social exasperation from the deepening of social inequality, the impoverishment that now impacts 73% of the population, the migration crisis, the systematic violation of human rights, the criminalization of social protest, the multiple expressions of violence in general and in particular against girls and women. Honduras will not change at the ballot box but voting against the dictatorship that governs us will be one step. The majority of the Honduran people will vote to reject these accumulated ills.

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News Article
Honduras: Once undocumented, now he's running for mayor and hoping to help fix Honduras
November 22, 2021
Freddy Murio leans against the doorframe to his home, his 10-gallon hat and oversized belt buckle making him look like a Honduran version of the Marlboro man. After 12 years as an undocumented construction worker in New York, Murio is now back in his rural hometown and running for mayor in Honduras' upcoming elections.
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News Article
El Salvador: Top US Diplomat Leaves the Country
November 22, 2021
The U.S. Chargé d'Affaires in El Salvador, Jean Manes, announced her departure from the Central American country without the appointment of a new ambassador in a diplomatic legation, which has been without this position for almost a year and in a context of tensions in bilateral relations. In the last few months, the relationship between the Governments of El Salvador and the United States has been far from improving, according to statements of the Chargé d'Affaires, who denounced that Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele is not giving any sign of interest in the bilateral relationship. In particular, she mentioned the cooperation with Washington and assured that the White House sent her to the country as a bridge to clarify the situation. Still, the Bukele administration decided not to take it, so new ways are being sought to maintain cooperation with El Salvador.
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News Article
El Salvador: Search warrant to search the premises of 7 Salvadoran NGOs
November 22, 2021
U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Jean Manes said today on local television that she will be returning to the U.S. and that relations between El Salvador and the United States are temporarily on hold “due to the Salvadoran government’s apparent lack of interest in dialogue” after several meetings where they wanted to verify whether the Salvadoran government wanted to continue on an “anti-democratic path“. A few hours later, the District Attorney’s Office and national police raided seven NGOs with a search warrant signed by Haydee Flores, one of the newly-appointed judges and former wife of appointed General Attorney.
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RRN Letter
Guatemala, 11/21/2021
November 21, 2021
In our letter to the attorney general of Guatemalan, we joined the voices of our RRN members with organizations from around the world to denounce the state of siege declared by the government of Guatemala and repression carried out against the local indigenous Maya Q’eqchi’ community in El Estor, Izabal Department. Since October 4, residents have been organizing a highway blockade to prevent the passage of machinery on its way to the El Fénix nickel mine, which has been operating illegally since 2005. Police have implemented tactics of intimidation and repression over the past several weeks. Local residents—along with journalists reporting on the protests—have been tear-gassed, beaten and threatened by the excessive number of agents of the National Police and military deployed to the area. Police are enforcing a dusk-to-dawn curfew. Roads in and out of El Estor are controlled by military road-blocks. Lake Izabal is patrolled by naval boats. Drones are flown to monitor neighborhoods and movement of local residents. Tear gas is fired not only at demonstrators but into people’s homes. Some indigenous leaders and journalists have been arrested. Security agents have also been confiscating cellular phones of the residents and journalists to prevent documentation of the events.Both the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights have denounced the state of siege, but the violence continues.
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News Article
2021 IRTF Commemoration program book, recordings, highlights
November 17, 2021
Thank you to the more than 120 people who attended the IRTF annual Commemoration of the Martyrs online on Sunday, November 7. You helped to create a beautiful and moving tribute to human rights defenders throughout southern Mexico, Central America, and Colombia. Here you will find links to (1) Commemoration program book 2021, (2) Zoom recording of the event, (3) Facebook livestream recording, (4) playlist from the social hour, (5) an additional play list, (6) how you can add your name to urgent human rights letters, (7) donations for the Honduras support fund, (8) IRTF Legacy Circle planned giving fund, and (9) highlights from the speakers' presentations. Thank you!
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News Article
Guatemala: Indigenous mine opponents targeted in raids during state of siege in El Estor
November 15, 2021
In the midst of a long conflict and recent protest over a nickel mine in El Estor, in eastern Guatemala, police have carried out more than 40 raids and 60 arrests, and the government has declared a 30-day state of emergency. Indigenous Mayan opponents to the mine say they were never properly consulted about the mine and its impacts on their lands, livelihoods and lake, and protested on the town’s main road, refusing passage to mining vehicles. Four police were shot during the police crackdown on protests by what the government blames as armed protestors, although mine opponents say the assailants were not involved in the protest. There are concerns mining operations will pose environmental damages to Guatemala’s largest lake, home to diverse fish, bird, reptile and mammal species, including the endangered Guatemalan black howler monkey (Alouatta pigra).
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News Article
Colombia: U.S. Media Provides Biased Coverage of Cuban and Colombian Protests
November 15, 2021
An analysis of how two major U.S. newspapers presented the civil unrest in Latin America this year demonstrates how corporate media favors political allies and blames enemies. Although people in both countries protested for many of the same reasons—inequality, poverty, and unemployment exacerbated by COVID; rising cost of living; police violence; and systemic racism—the Colombian protests lasted far longer and were met with a harsher crackdown than in Cuba. According to respected human rights and civil society groups, the death toll ranged from 21 to 44 deaths in Colombia in a population of 51 million and one to five deaths in Cuba in a population of 11 million. In addition to disproportionately killing more people, Colombian police also injured protesters more severely than their Cuban counterparts, such as deliberately shooting at dozens of protesters’ eyes.
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