Rights Action - March 23, 2011
Honduras Military-Backed Regime Watch
ON-GOING REPRESSION OF TEACHERS & PRO-DEMOCRACY MOVEMENT
BELOW
- Repression updates from North American human rights accompaniers in Honduras
- COFADEH (Family members of the Disappeared in Honduras) urgent letter to the OAS (Organization of American States)
PLEASE write your own letter to the OAS (see COFADEH letter, below)
This State repression follows upon the March 18th killing of 59 year-old teacher Ilse Velasquez: http://rightsaction.org/articles/Honduras_teacher_killed_031911.html
(Ilse Velasquez)
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UPDATES
-----Original Message-----
From: presente-honduras-bounces+info=rightsaction.org@lists.mayfirst.org [presente-honduras-bounces+info=rightsaction.org@lists.mayfirst.org]
On Behalf Of Caitlin Power Hancey
Sent: Tuesday, March 22, 2011 10:30 PM
Subject: 8:30PM Honduras: Police are currently surrounding and gassing COPEMH building
Radio Globo in Honduras is currently reporting that police have surrounded about begun throwing tear gas bombs inside of the COPEMH building in Tegucigalpa. COPEMH is the association of secondary school teachers in Honduras. They are reporting that there were approximately 27 teachers and parents inside, eating and resting. Representatives of human rights organizations and the subdirector of the FNRP are on site.
The public offices of the Truth Commission are also located in the COPEMH complex. There are two buildings side by side that are part of the same complex, COPEMH occupies one and the Truth Commission office is located in the tower next to it, which COPEMH rents out. Teachers organizations and the FNRP are calling for a national civic strike tomorrow, Wednesday, March 23.
Please stay tuned for more information.
Caitlin Power Hancey
Honduras Accompaniment Project, Tegucigalpa
capoha@gmail.com
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From: presente-honduras-bounces+info=rightsaction.org@lists.mayfirst.org [presente-honduras-bounces+info=rightsaction.org@lists.mayfirst.org]
On Behalf Of Karen Spring
Sent: Tuesday, March 22, 2011 10:47
The repression that is going on now is after a day (the fourth day) of mass repression in Tegucigalpa by the police & military against the teachers. In all the protests & tear gas I've been in, since July 2009, today's repression by the police was the most indiscriminate & fierce (in terms of use of tear gas) in such a public area. It was also very unexpected as people gathered in front of Congress after the long march when all of a sudden, tear gas canisters started to fly. Along with Caitlin, I will send out updates as I get them.
Karen Spring
Rights Action, Tegucigalpa
spring.kj@gmail.com
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COFADEH URGENT LETTER TO THE OAS:
The Committee of Relatives of the Detained and Disappeared in Honduras (COFADEH) is requesting that letters be written to leaders at the Organization of American States (OAS) and Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR) regarding the current human rights crisis in Honduras, including threats and attacks against specific human rights defenders and violent repression of public protest, as outlined below in the following sample letter:
José Miguel Insulza, Secretary General
Organization of American States (OAS)
1889 F Street, N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20006, USA
svillagran@oas.org
Sr. Felipe González, President
Inter-American Commission for Human Rights
1889 F Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C., 20006, U.S.A.
cidhdenuncias@oas.org
Dear Sirs,
It has come to my attention that the Committee of Relatives of the Detained and Disappeared in Honduras (COFADEH) has made an urgent call to the international community to demand that Mr. Porfirio Lobo's regime cease it's repression and continued criminalization of peaceful protests taking place in Honduras.
On March 17th, in the cities of Tegucigalpa, Comayagua, and Danlí, the preventative police as well as men in civilian clothing driving cars without license plates repressed peaceful demonstrations of teachers and members of the National Front of Popular Resistence (FNRP). According to a preliminary report, as many as 50 people were detained, wounded, and beaten in those demonstrations.
On March 18th, there was another violent eviction of protestors in Tegucigalpa, which resulted in the death of teacher Ilse Ivania Velásquez Rodríguez, who was a founding member of COFADEH.
Earlier the same week, COFADEH released an urgent call-out denouncing "harassment and death threats against human rights defenders, including Blanca Azucena Espinoza, president of the Buenos Amigos peasant cooperative in the Aguán Region; Dr. Leo Valladares Lanza, former Human Rights Commissioner of Honduras (CONADEH); Pedro Vicente Elvir, Dagoberto Posadas and Eduardo Argueta Santos, labour union activists; Kenia Oliva and Karol Cardenas, human rights lawyers at COFADEH; Trinidad Sánchez, director of the Alternative Commerce Network (Red COMAL); and Héctor Renán Soto, director of the Civil Society Group (Grupo Sociedad Civil)."
Considering the above mentioned cases, and numerous previous demouncements, we call on the OAS to maintain Honduras' suspension from the organization, and we call on the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights to institute effective measures to ensure full respect for all human rights in Honduras.
Sincerely,
[Your signature]
Please also send a copy to:
Jorge Alberto Rivera Avilés
President of the Supreme Court of Honduras
Tel (504) 2269-3000 2269-3069
Mail: cedij@poderjudicial.gob.hn
Luis Alberto Rubí
Attorney General of the Republic of Honduras.
Fax (504) 2221-5667
Tel (504) 2221-5670 2221-3099
Mail: lrubi@mp.hn, suazog@mp.hn
Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos en Honduras (COFADEH)
Barrio La Plazuela, Avenida Cervantes, Casa No. 1301
Apartado Postal 1243
Tegucigalpa, HONDURAS
Fax:+504 2220 5280 (ask for: "tono de fax, por favor")
Mail: berthacofadeh@yahoo.com
USA & CANADIAN REPRESENTATIVE TO THE OAS:
CANADA:
H.E. Allan Culham
Ambassador, Permanent Representative to the OAS
wshdc-prmoas@international.gc.ca
Phone: (202) 682-1768
Fax: (202) 682-7624
US:
H.E. Carmen Lomellin
Ambassador, Permanent Representative
Phone: (202) 647-9430
Fax: (202) 647-0911 or (202) 647-6973
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Rights Action holds Canadian and American politicians and government officials partially responsible
for the on-going repression in Honduras. This State repression - predictable and systematic since the June 28, 2009 military coup - is a logical, brutal response by the military and police-backed Honduran regime that is supported and politically-backed most strongly by the governments of the USA and Canada.
Most governments in Latin America do not recognize the legitimancy of the regime in Honduras.
Since the June 2009 military coup, Honduras has not been allowed back into the OAS (Organization of American States).
There is no end in sight to State repression in Honduras. The military and police backed regime is illegitimate, coming to power in fraudulent elections after the June 28, 2009 military coup.
The governments of Canada and USA must change course. In the measure that they continue with "business as usual" with the Honduran regime, promoting "free trade" agreements and North American investor and business interests (mining, sweatshops, tourism, etc), they will help keep in place this repressive, undemocratic regime.
On request, Rights Action can provide extensive background about the on-going State repression in Honduras.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, ENGLISH & ESPANOL
Annie Bird, Washington DC, annie@rightsaction.org
Grahame Russell, Connecticut, info@rightsaction.org
Karen Spring, Rights Action, in Tegucigalpa, spring.kj@gmail.com
Jenny Atlee & Tom Louden, Friendship Office of the Americas, jennya@friendshipamericas.org, toml@friendshipamericas.org
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