The year 2022 was a year of change for Honduras: it was the first time in the country’s history that a woman assumed the presidency. For PBI Honduras, 2022 was also a year of change, but above all a year of growth: we began to accompany the organisations SOMOS CDC and ARCAH and we increased the number of activities carried out compared to 2021.
Forty years after Peace Brigades International was founded and at nine years since we first arrived in Honduras, we are continuing to provide integral accompaniment to organizations and human rights defenders at risk: “International presence is the indigenous communities’ bulletproof vest” (Donald Hernández, coordinator of CEHPRODEC).
When the protests first began in Guapinol, Juana Ramona Zúñiga was in a meeting with the community council. She received a call; they wanted her to join a demonstration in the street. “The struggle is contagious.
2020 was a year defined not only by the questionable handling of the COVID-19 health emergency, but also by the impacts of hurricanes Eta and Iota. According to Centro de Estudios para la Democracia (CESPAD), these events, “have worsened food insecurity due to the lack of employment in the country, the depletion of food reserves, the increase in food prices, land and envi
María Felicita López is an indigenous feminist leader from the Department of La Paz, Honduras and works with the Independent Indigenous Movement of La Paz, Honduras (MILPAH). For many years she has fought for human rights, women’s rights, and in defence of the environment in her native Department, La Paz.
PBI is delighted to welcome Mary Lawlor into her new position as UN Special Rapporteur for human rights defenders (HRDs) and excited to collaborate with her to ensure she can fulfil her mandate; increasing the security for HRDs across the world, drawing attention to their specific needs and challenges and addressing State shortcomings in terms of their protection. We had the pleasure of speaking with Mary about her priorities and goals for her new position.
The difficulties faced by rural communities prior to the COVID-19 health crisis were already alarming. However, with the arrival of this global pandemic, smallholder farmers have seen their problems multiply. Under a state of emergency, where basic rights like access to health and food are limited, the helplessness of many families is concerning. This comes in addition to the intensified militarisation of the countryside under Decree PCM-052-2019, published in October 2019.
PBI accompany human rights defenders in different parts of the world who push for social justice and respect for the rule of law. This work often implies considerable risk. PBI supports many defenders who have been crimianlised for the work they carry out, meaning the legal system is used against them in order to stop their resistance.
This December, and continuously, PBI puts human rights defenders at the centre, in the position they deserve given the fundamental role they play in the protection of human rights and the construction of fair and peaceful societies. Human rights defenders continue to provide voices for the voiceless, pushing for social justice. They often risk their lives to stand up for what they believe in, holding states to account and pushing for human rights to be respected, protected and fulfilled.
At the end of 2018, small-scale farmers became protagonists at the United Nations.