Justice for Berta in Honduras
- by: Amnesty International Canada
- recipient: Government of Honduras
- Berta
The courageous, celebrated, beloved Indigenous leader Berta Cáceres was shot dead by gunmen who entered her home in La Esperanza (Spanish for hope), Honduras on March 3. Wounded in the gunfire was Gustavo Castro Soto, an environmental activist from Mexico who had come to work with Berta and the organization she led, the Council of Popular and Indigenous Peoples Organizations of Honduras (COPINH).
It was a tragedy waiting to happen. Berta had repeatedly denounced aggression and death threats against her. They had increased as she campaigned against the construction of a hydroelectric dam project called Agua Zarca and the impact it would have on the territory of the Lenca Indigenous people.
Concerned for her safety, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights called on the government of Honduras to protect Berta. Her family and colleagues hold the government responsible for failing to do so. Now they too are in danger.
Will you stand with Berta's family and fellow Indigenous rights defenders in this time of such danger? Please honour Berta's courageous commitment to human rights by telling Honduras: the world is watching and we want justice for Berta Cáceres and protection for her family, colleagues and the eye-witness to her murder.
Dear President Orlando Hernández,
c/o the Embassy of the Republic of Honduras in Canada
I am shocked and saddened by the murder of Berta Cáceres that resulted from the failure to provide effective protection, as requested by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
I am also deeply troubled by flaws in the investigation to bring Berta’s killers to justice. Impunity will only fuel the deadly violence against defenders of Indigenous rights, lands and the environment with which Honduras has lamentably become synonymous.
I call on you to:
- Ensure truth and justice regarding the murders of Berta Cáceres and Nelson García by making use of all domestic and international resources available to carry out an impartial, exhaustive, timely and credible investigation, as requested by Berta’s family and colleagues. The investigation must examine all the threats and attacks that Berta Cáceres and other members of COPINH had reported in connection to their efforts to uphold their rights, and bring to justice all those responsible, including the masterminds.
- Fully implement precautionary measures requested by the IACHR for the protection of Berta’s relatives, members of the Council of Popular and Indigenous Peoples Organizations of Honduras (COPINH) and for Gustavo Castro Soto, survivor and eye-witness to the deadly attack that killed Berta.
- Ensure that no development project advances without meaningful consultation and the free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous peoples whose lands and rights will be affected, in compliance with international standards including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and ILO Convention 169.
[Your comments here]
Sincerely,
[Your name]
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