The Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Christof Heyns, announced that he will visit Honduras from 23 to 27 May 2016 in order to assess the level of protection of the right to life in that country. In a statement, the South African expert recalled that the Central American nation’s homicide rate is often among the highest worldwide. “An essential aspect of my visit will focus on the current situation of violence in the country, including allegations of killings, attacks and intimidation against human rights defenders, journalists and legal practitioners,” . “I hope to assist the Government and the broader society in Honduras in coping with some of the challenges it faces regarding these issues, and in finding solutions that uphold the rule of law, promote accountability for human rights violations and fulfill victims’ rights to reparation,” he said. He will meet in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula with authorities, representatives of UN agencies, NGOs and civil society.
In the meantime Front Line reported that on 9 May 2016 Ms Ana Mirian Romero and her children received death threats and were intimidated by four men in their home in the municipality of Santa Elena, department of La Paz. Honduran human rights defender Ana Mirian Romero <https://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/profile/ana-mirian-romero> is a member of Movimiento Indígena Lenca de La Paz Honduras – MILPAH (Lenca Indigenous Movement of La Paz, Honduras) and the Consejo Indígena San Isidro Labrador (San Isidro Labrador Indigenous Council). The human rights defender has been fighting for the recognition of the land rights of indigenous communities since 2010, when MILPAH and the Consejo Indígena San Isidro Labrador filed an adjudication lawsuit for the recognition of their ancestral lands in the municipality.[https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/ana-mirian-romero/]
http://bit.ly/Justice4Honduras
Source: Prensa Latina News Agency – UN Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions to Visit Honduras
May 22, 2016 at 13:49
It is good to see celebrities embrace a cause that is not mainstream or as popular as wildlife and climate change,.. Though these are important, lives of human rights defenders gets to be forgotten… Bravo Peter and Susan! You are defenders in your own right.