On Saturday, September 14, environmental defender and coordinator of the Municipal Committee for the Defense of Common and Public Assets (CMDBCPT), Juan López, was murdered as he was leaving his work as a community and religious leader in the parish of San Isidro Labrador in the municipality of Tocoa, department of Colón, northern Honduras. According to public reports, Juan López was shot by an unidentified person on a motorcycle. We demand the Honduran authorities to ensure a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into the killing of Juan López, as well as other killings and attacks against the defenders of the Guapinol river, to refrain from using the justice system to harass them, and to ensure integral protection to Lopez’s family, CMDBCPT members, their legal team, and witnesses.
PLEASE TAKE ACTION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE UNTIL: November 14, 2024
take action:
- Write a letter in your own words or using the sample below as a guide to one or both government officials listed. You can also email, fax, call or Tweet them.
- Click here to let us know the actions you took on Urgent Action 85.24. It’s important to report because we share the total number with the officials we are trying to persuade and the people we are trying to help.
contact information:
Joel Antonio Zelaya Álvarez
Attorney General
Posta Edificio Lomas Plaza II,
Col. Lomas del Guijarro,
Tegucigalpa,
Honduras
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @MP_Honduras / @ofchb
Honduran Embassy in the United States
Ambassador Rafael Fernando Sierra
1220 19th St NW #320,
Washington, D.C. 20036
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (202) 966-7702
Twitter: @EmbHondurasUSA
sample letter:
Dear Attorney General,
I am writing to express my deep dismay and concern about the security situation of the defenders of the Guapinol river in Tocoa. Human rights defender and community leader, Juan López, was killed in the municipality of Tocoa on September 14, 2024. Community members in Tocoa – Aly Magdaleno Domínguez Ramos, Jairo Bonilla Ayala, and Oquelí Domínguez – were also killed in 2023.
The people of Guapinol and other communities of Tocoa have faced continued attacks because they peacefully challenge the legality of a mining project in the Carlos Escaleras National Park, including the unjust detention of eight defenders of the Guapinol river, known as the “Guapinol eight”.
The authorities responsible for the investigation of the killing of Juan López must guarantee the right of the human rights defender’s families to justice, truth, and reparation. Though some progress has been made on identifying those responsible for the murder, I ask for this investigation to continue until all of those involved with the murder of this defender are identified, considering the victim’s human rights work as a hypothesis for these crimes. I also urge you to ensure that authorities refrain from using the justice system to harass the defenders of the Guapinol river and take immediate steps to fully provide appropriate protection to Lopez’s family, CMDBCPT members, their legal team, and witnesses in accordance with them.
Yours sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
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