State of the World's Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2015 - Honduras

Honduras has reportedly had the highest murder rates in the world for the past several years, sustained by a widespread culture of impunity and human rights violations. Against a backdrop of violence and insecurity related to gangs, drug cartels and land grabs, many communities have been forcibly displaced. For example, in Mosquitia in north-eastern Honduras, according to reports during the year, five indigenous communities have been forced to abandon some or all of their territories after they were appropriated by drug traffickers. Clandestine landing strips – surrounded by barbed wire and guarded by armed men – have been a particular problem as they block community access to traditional lands and bring gang violence to previously remote areas.

The state's response to this upsurge in violence has focused on increasing militarization, an approach that has contributed to the deteriorating situation in the country. In this context, human rights organizations and the Ombudsman Office have expressed concern about a military police force deployed in 2014 to perform security duties. The judiciary is a largely ineffective channel for accessing justice and recent legislative reforms have further undermined its independence. In 2014, a case involving the killing of murdered four unarmed indigenous Miskito people, two of them pregnant women, during an operation against drug traffickers, was dismissed. The families of the victims appealed the ruling. Violence against women is also widespread, with an estimated 453 women reported to have been killed between January and November 2014.

Journalists and human rights defenders continue to be intimidated or murdered without adequate investigations by police and judiciary. Honduras was recently described in a report by the NGO Global Witness as the most dangerous country in the world to be an environmental activist, with 101 deaths between 2010 and 2014. Most of these victims were indigenous and minority representatives defending their lands against the construction of large-scale development projects, extractive industries or agri-businesses. Examples include opposition to the Agua Zarca hydro-dam on the Gualcarque River; anti-mining resistance in northern Honduras by Tolupán leaders; and the Bajo Aguán movement conflict over palm oil industries. In all these cases, activists have been terrorized or murdered, often with the complicity of security forces.

Nevertheless, there were some positive developments during the year. In August, José Arnulfo Jiménez, a former member of the military who committed abuses against the press and civilians during the coup d'état in 2009, was sentenced to five years in prison. Congress also discussed draft legislation to protect human rights defenders, environmentalists, journalists and other groups from intimidation and violence.

Around 40 per cent of indigenous peoples and Afro-Hondurans are based in urban areas, significantly lower than the proportion (60 per cent) of Latinos and mestizos (mixed ethnicity). Indigenous peoples are spread across different regions of the country, while Afro-Hondurans are located, for the most part, along the Atlantic coast. Both groups, besides facing entrenched discrimination and limited access to essential services, have struggled to defend their lands in a context where land tenure ownership has not been fully resolved: only about 10 per cent of indigenous peoples, for example, have a government-accredited land title. Violence, land grabbing and deep poverty in rural areas has forced indigenous peoples to migrate from the countryside to cities in search of security and employment.

Migration has posed considerable challenges to Honduran cities, which lack adequate planning policies or infrastructure to serve this growing population. As a result, many minority and indigenous migrants have settled in shanty towns or urban belts that lack transportation, public security or basic services. For example, there are more than 400 informal settlements located around the capital, Tegucigalpa, in earthquake-prone areas of the city. Minority and indigenous communities in Honduran cities continue to face ethnic discrimination, poverty and marginalization. In major centres such as Tegucigalpa or San Pedro Sula, a culture of national unity has long been promoted based on mestizo values – another factor promoting discrimination, as it leaves little room for minority and indigenous expression. Indigenous and Afro-Honduran migrants also struggle to access urban labour markets due to discrimination, with many ending up in low-paid or informal employment. An added difficulty is that Honduran cities have among the highest rates of urban violence in the world, exacerbated by rapid urban growth: San Pedro Sula was recently ranked as the most violent city worldwide outside a conflict zone. Due to their marginalization, minority and indigenous urban residents, particularly women, are highly vulnerable.

Nonetheless, living in urban areas can offer opportunities for marginalized groups to access services and other benefits. For example, in terms of education, a 2011 National Survey of the Perception on Human Development revealed that indigenous peoples and Afro-descendants had higher literacy levels in cities: 94 per cent of those in urban areas are able to read and write, with an average of 8.5 years of schooling, compared to 79 per cent and 4.3 years in rural areas.