December, 18 2017, 02:15pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Jonathan Leaning, 617-524-1400, jleaning@grassrootsonline.org, Elise Roberts: cell: 920.421.2269, elise@witnessforpeace.org
Honduras: US Rights Groups Condemn Election Result as Not Credible
Call on US to refrain from hasty recognition of results, halt US military aid.
WASHINGTON
On the heels of the announcement of the election win by Honduras' globally discredited Electoral Tribunal amidst turmoil, violence, and mounting evidence of fraud, US rights and civil society groups called on the US Congress and the State Department to halt military aid to Honduras, and not recognize the announced results until a credible, independent investigation into the election has been conducted which addresses all claims of fraud and political violence. The Organization of American States has even called for fresh elections in Honduras, only hours after President Juan Orlando Hernandez was declared the winner.
"This has been a 'coup against democracy' in Honduras," said Victoria Cervantes of the Honduras Solidarity Network. "The levels of violence against the citizens by the government and the suspension of constitutional rights to defend fraud are the acts of dictatorship. 14 people have been killed. The unprecedentedly slow tabulation of final results by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) was blatantly fraudulent with sudden, inexplicable computer shutdowns, and disappearing and reappearing Actas (vote tally sheets). We are further outraged at the support of the US and Canadian governments for legitimizing a dictatorship in Honduras."
The call for an independent investigation follows on the heels of a call earlier this month for transparency in the Honduran elections by over US 100 human rights, faith and civil society rights groups, many outraged by the as-yet unsolved assassination of world renowned Honduran environment and indigenous leader, Berta Caceres.
"We have seen a massive increase in human rights violations, including threats and violence against journalists, Indigenous communities, and human rights defenders, since the 2009 coup," says Elise Roberts of Witness for Peace. "The assassination of Berta Caceres marked a new level of state violence and impunity, and the reported fraud in the November 26th elections, and the violence and repression since, are a reinforcement of this illegitimate and violent government. Throughout this escalation of state repression and corruption, the US has remained a powerful funder and supporter of the government. It is critical that the US immediately suspend all aid to Honduran security forces and not recognize the presidential election results as valid amidst ongoing fraud, violence, and repression."
"The US must not declare a hasty recognition of today's election announcement. That would be tantamount to legitimizing fraud and repression. We remember too well, how the US support of the 2009 military coup ushered in years of brutal dictatorship," said Jovanna Garcia Soto of Grassroots International. "We cannot be part of bulldozing over legitimate objections of lack of transparency, lack of independent oversight and violence against civilians and social movements. Democracy cannot be squelched -- not in our name."
The current administration of the National Party is led by Juan Orlando Hernandez and is in control of the government, military and the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE in Spanish) overseeing the election. Mr. Hernandez originally came to power during the period following the 2009 military coup d'etat supported by the US government.
After the initial release of official results by the TSE showed the opposition candidate leading by approximately 5 percentage points based on more than half the returns, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal did not resume releasing presidential election results for more than a day. For comparison, in the 2013 presidential election, the winner was declared with a similar proportion of the returns in. When the updates resumed, the TSE's numbers began showing that the number of votes for the incumbent, President Hernandez, had passed the opposition candidate, although these results have been widely criticized as not credible. The long delay, and the dramatic shift in the tendency of the vote count reported before and after that delay, raised serious doubts about the integrity of this election.
In addition, international delegations from La Voz de los de Abajo, Code Pink, and Witness for Peace witnessed and heard testimony of violent beatings of civilians, the ongoing intimidation through use of security forces, including US-funded security forces, as well as numerous incidents of fraud and violence at polling places.
On December 1, a presidential decree suspended Constitutional rights, imposed a curfew, and the military has used live ammunition and violence toward civilians, resulting in at least 22 deaths of protesters already, as reported by human rights groups in Honduras.
The coalition is calling on the US Congress and US State Department to:
- Not recognize the announced election outcome due to widespread reports of state involvement in electoral fraud and violence.
- Immediately suspend diplomatic relations with the Honduran government, including recalling our Charge D'Affaires/acting Ambassador, until the rule of law has been re-established, constitutional guarantees are fulfilled, and democratic processes and institutions are actually respected.
- Revoke the State Department's certification that the Honduran government is meeting human rights and anti-corruption conditions.
- End US security aid to Honduras, including police and military aid, and support for Honduran security forces though the so-called "Alliance for Prosperity in the Northern Triangle" program; Pass HR 1299, the Berta Caceres Human Rights in Honduras Act and its companion bill in the Senate.
- Condemn the Honduran government's violent crackdown of protesters and suspension of Constitutional rights, and demand the the Honduran government immediately cease using live ammunition against civilians and remove the military from the streets;
- Extend Temporary Protected Status for the more than 57,000 Hondurans currently in the United States under its protection; and
- Respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples (including Garifuna communities) and peasant communities organizing to defend and protect ancestral territories, land, water and Mother Earth in the face of militarization and repression by the current Honduran regime.
"I spent 10 days in Honduras with a delegation of human rights and election observes with La Voz de los de Abajo. On the day of the elections we witnessed outright voter intimidation, bribery and fraud by representatives of the National Party, the party of the current President, Juan Orlando Hernandez. The days following the election thousands of Hondurans took to the streets to protest the fact that the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE by its Spanish initials) would not announce a winner of the presidential elections. We witnessed first hand repression of protesters. The Honduran military and police fired tear gas and opened water hoses on protestors on the first day of mass protest in Tegucigalpa, Nov. 30th. The following night, after a curfew was announced, the army fired live ammunition at protesters. The death toll since the curfew was announced has risen to 22 people," stated Ana Orozco, Feminisms and Gender Justice Organizer, Grassroots Global Justice Alliance
Grassroots International, www.grassrootsonline.org 179 Boylston Street, 4th Floor, Boston, MA, USA 02130, 617-524-1400
Witness for Peace/Accion Permanente por la Paz, https://witnessforpeace.org/
1115 Massachusetts Ave, NW Washington DC, USA 20005
Honduras Solidarity Network, https://www.hondurassolidarity.org
Grassroots International connects people in the US with global movements solving the root causes of poverty and climate change. We are a trusted link to communities building power to protect their rights to land, food, and water for the well-being of people and the planet.
LATEST NEWS
Sanders: 'The Netanyahu Gov't Should Not Receive Another Penny from US'
The bill passed the Senate in a 74-24 vote at 2:03AM
Mar 23, 2024
Following the passing of the U.S. government appropriations bill early Saturday morning, Senator Bernie Sanders said:
I voted NO on the appropriations bill that the Senate passed last night. While hundreds of thousands of Palestinian children face starvation in Gaza, this bill actually prohibits funding to UNWRA, the key United Nations aid agency delivering life-saving humanitarian support. This will only intensify the already horrific situation in Gaza. This bill also provides another $3.3 billion in U.S. military aid for Netanyahu’s right-wing government to continue this barbaric war. The Netanyahu government should not receive another penny from U.S. taxpayers.
The bill passed the Senate in a 74-24 vote at 2:03AM Saturday morning following hours of intense negotiations.
Later on Saturday, President Biden signed the $1.2 trillion government funding bill to stave off a government shutdown.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Modi Government Crackdown on Dissent Hits 'Crisis Point' Before Indian Elections
"The growing crackdown clearly shows the authorities' blatant disregard for human rights and rule of law," said one Amnesty International campaigner.
Mar 22, 2024
As India's right-wing government cracks down on opposition ahead of next month's general elections, Amnesty International on Friday urged authorities to "stop weaponizing the criminal justice system to intimidate and harass" political candidates, activists, and others.
Protests broke out in the capital New Delhi and other Indian cities after police on Thursday arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, an opposition leader from the Aam Aadmi Party, over corruption allegations AAP members say are politically motivated. Two other AAP leaders were previously arrested in connection with the same case, which involves the alleged favoring of certain alcohol vendors and illegal campaign financing.
Authorities also froze the bank accounts of another leading opposition party, the Indian National Congress, over a tax dispute that dates back to 2018. Party leader Sonia Gandhi accused Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) party of perpetrating "a systematic effort to cripple the party financially."
“They want to know we are corrupt like them, which is not the case.” – AAP chief spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar on the BJP’s crackdown on opposition politicians.
AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal was arrested just today on charges of corruption.
The India Report: https://t.co/rxPr6zKnWx pic.twitter.com/P3eSbxVTVm
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) March 21, 2024
Gandhi, Kejriwal and others have repeatedly accused of Modi's government of misusing federal agencies and resources to repress opposition figures as elections loom. The BJP denies the allegations.
"The Bharatiya Janata Party-led Indian government's crackdown on peaceful dissent and opposition has now reached a crisis point," Amnesty International India board chair Aakar Patel said in a statement.
"The authorities have repeatedly exploited and weaponized various financial and terrorism laws to systematically crack down on human rights defenders, activists, critics, nonprofit organizations, journalists, students, academics, and political opposition," Patel added. "The arrest of Arvind Kejriwal and the freezing of Indian National Congress' bank accounts a few weeks before India holds its general elections show the authorities' blatant failure to uphold the country's international human rights obligations."
Patel continued:
What we are witnessing is a brutal crackdown on human rights including through the misuse of central investigative and financial agencies, attacks on peaceful protests, arbitrary arrests, use and export of invasive spyware for unlawful surveillance, [and] systematic discrimination against religious minorities to feed into their majoritarian Hindutva politics and targeted suspension of opposition leaders from the Parliament who dare to hold the authorities to account.
"The growing crackdown clearly shows the authorities' blatant disregard for human rights and rule of law," Patel added. "Authorities must respect, protect, promote, and fulfill the human rights of everyone in the country including human rights defenders, activists, and opposition candidates before, during, and after the general elections which are due to begin in April 2024. Authorities must also ensure access to justice and effective remedies for victims of human rights violations."
On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives' bipartisan Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission held a hearing on the situation in India.
The commission noted that in recent years, as Modi and the BJP have consolidated power, "concerns about human rights abuses in India have grown" over "a wide range of significant rights issues, including restrictions on religious and press freedoms, violence or threats of violence targeting members of national/racial/ethnic and religious minorities, harassment of and restrictions on civil society and human rights organizations, corruption, and lack of accountability."
Keep ReadingShow Less
House GOP 'Imploding' as Gallagher Resigns and Greene Moves to Oust Speaker
"House Republicans had a bad day," said one reporter, listing challenges and changes to leadership as a government shutdown looms.
Mar 22, 2024
The U.S. House of Representatives started a two-week recess on Friday, but not before a series of events that provoked fresh declarations of what has become a familiar phrase over the past few years: "Republicans in disarray."
Before leaving Capitol Hill, House members passed a spending package intended to prevent a partial government shutdown that could still occur unless the Senate acts. Fewer than two dozen Democrats and over 100 Republicans opposed the bill. Democratic opposition was largely related to Israel's war on the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, far-right Republicans like Texas Congressman Chip Roy have made comments like, "Everyone that I know and trust about the border, about overall spending, see it as a complete and total failure and a capitulation by Republicans. And leadership worked the deal, so it's on leadership."
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) not only opposed the package but also filed a motion to vacate, hoping to remove House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.)—which would only require a simple majority if it came up for a vote.
The \u201cRepublican-controlled\u201d House just passed a $1.2 trillion spending bill that doesn\u2019t secure our border, but funds full term abortion and trans ideology on our youth.\n\nI filed a Motion to Vacate because the House needs a Speaker who\u2019s able to win for Republicans and our\u2026— (@)
House Republicans elected Johnson to the leadership role in late October, after ousting former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.)—who then opted to leave office at the end of last year—and rejecting three other candidates for the post: Reps. Tom Emmer (D-Minn.), Steve Scalise (R-La.), and Jim Jordan (R-Ohio).
Noting that Greene filed a regular motion rather than a privileged one, meaning it could be referred to a committee, "where it would likely languish," NBC Newsreported Friday:
Greene told reporters that her motion to vacate was "more of a warning than a pink slip," saying she does not want to "throw the House into chaos," like the three and a half weeks that the chamber was without a speaker when McCarthy, her close ally, was ousted.
"I'm not saying that it won't happen in two weeks or it won't happen in a month or who knows when. But I am saying the clock has started. It's time for our conference to choose a new speaker," she said.
Johnson's October election led Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.)—who filed the motion to vacate targeting McCarthy—to declare that "MAGA is ascendant," a reference to the "Make America Great Again" campaign slogan of former President Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee for the November election.
While Gaetz voted against the spending package on Friday, he also said that "if we vacated this speaker we'd end up with a Democrat. You know, when I vacated the last one, I made a promise to the country that we would not end up with a Democrat speaker and I was right. I couldn't make that promise again today."
Asked if he thinks Johnson's job is safe, Gaetz responded, "It is."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) also responded dismissively when questioned about Greene's motion on Friday, tellingPunchbowl News, "She's a joke."
A spokesperson for Johnson, Raj Shah, toldPolitico that the speaker "always listens to the concerns of members, but is focused on governing. He will continue to push conservative legislation that secures our border, strengthens our national defense, and demonstrates how we'll grow our majority."
However, Johnson's limited control over the House is dwindling. Congressman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), who backed the spending bill, revealed that he is resigning from his seat effective April 19 after previously saying that he would not seek reelection. Friday was also the last day of Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), who announced earlier this month that he would step down from his seat.
The Washington Post noted Friday that "Buck and Gallagher are the sixth and seventh members of the House who are quitting midterm simply to leave for the private sector, a trend we dubbed 'the Great Resignation' last weekend. It's also the highest number of lawmakers quitting public service altogether in at least 40 years."
Responding to Gallager's announcement on social media, HuffPost's Jennifer Bendery said that "House Republicans are imploding in plain sight."
In yet another disruption to the chamber's GOP leadership, Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas)—who announced last year that she wouldn't seek reelection—wrote in a Friday letter to Johnson that she plans to step down as chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
Granger told the speaker she would stay in the post until the Republican Steering Committee chooses her replacement and then remain on the panel through the end of her term to offer "advice and counsel for my colleagues when it is needed."
The Texas Tribunepointed out that "the Appropriations Committee will need to pass another set of federal funding bills before the end of September to keep the government funded. Congress has failed to meet that deadline for nearly 30 years, and Granger acknowledged in her letter that election years in particular often distract Congress from passing spending bills on time."
GOP members of the upper chamber were also accused of sowing chaos on Friday, as the midnight shutdown deadline loomed.
Senate Budget Committee Chair Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said on social media, "Well, it looks like we're headed for a shutdown at the hands of Senate Republican gremlins who (1) know that amendments can't pass because there's no House to send an amended bill back to (they adjourned) and (2) want amendments anyway."
"And (3) can't decide amongst themselves what won't-pass amendments they want," Whitehouse added. "I sure hope I'm wrong. But the Republican Senate caucus is a rudderless ship right now, so the gremlins are running the show."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular