Human rights defenders continued to be subjected to attacks, including killings and the misuse of criminal proceedings against them. Lilian Johann Mercado Sorian, who is 26, stopped to let her 7-year-old daughter, Andrea Johana Bardales Mercado, sleep for a bit under an empty food stand along the road. Counterfeit Honduran lempiras (currency) are common, especially in the 100 and 500 denominations. NGOs have reported anonymous attacks via social media, alleging that civil society actors are engaged in, or supportive of, criminal activity in Honduras. The government has a police investigative unit dedicated to investigating violent crimes against the LGBTI and other vulnerable communities, comprised of Public Ministry prosecutors, members of ATIC (prosecutor’s investigative agency), and the Honduran National Police; however, it has limited resources and functions primarily in the major urban areas. Federica Valabrega We incorporated that ideal into international treaties and our own immigration laws. U.S. Embassy Location and Contact Information, U.S. Embassy Tegucigalpa, Avenida La Paz, Tegucigalpa, Hours of Operation: Monday-Thursday, 0730-1630; Friday, 0800-1500, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/embajadahonduras/, Nearby Post: Consular Agency San Pedro Sula. Only after their oldest daughter visited him in jail, and heard him vow, “When I get out I’m going to kill her,” did a judge add attempted femicide charges and tack on 20 more years. Edelsa Muñoz Nuñez, 47, lives in an apartment near the two murder victims, Irma Quintero López, 21, and Dunia Xiomara Murillo Reyes, 34. APRIL 5, 2019. Cinthia Soriano, 30, Kenneth, 2 (bottom right), Joseph, 5 (center), and Jennifer, 7 (left), from Villa Nueva Cortes, Honduras. hide caption. And the ways they are being killed — shot in the vagina, cut to bits with their parts distributed among various public places, strangled in front of their children, skinned alive — have women running for the border. Karen Paz hugs her daughter, Liliana Saray, 9. But no one believes the government’s numbers. Whether they know it or not, reaching the U.S. border was only half the battle. “She didn’t let them. Women tell me some of their responses: You like getting hit, don’t you? Melania Reyes speaking with a woman seeking help at the Women’s Movement of the Neighborhood of López Arellano and Surroundings. The police had laughed at her husband when he reported his wife missing. And this city, Choloma, is probably the deadliest. Exercise extreme caution driving on isolated stretches of road and passing other vehicles on mountainous curves. Most of her left foot was gone. It also kills women. I cannot go back.". My daughter could not witness that," she said. For more information, review OSAC’s Report, Security in Transit: Airplanes, Public Transport, and Overnights. Ms. Carranza sobbed as she described what happened on Dec. 19, 2017. She disappeared that day and was later found burned, inside a bag, on the banks of the Chamelecón River. (Left) Maria Luisa Vasquez, 36, holds her children Brittany, 6, and César, 2. Women and girls are also increasingly being recruited by gangs and criminal organizations to sell drugs in Honduras. Even as an outsider visiting Choloma for two weeks, I came to understand that deeply. But the Trump administration has persisted and is appealing the decision. The contents of this (U) report in no way represent the policies, views, or attitudes of the United States Department of State,
It often worked. Her tongue was sticking out, and there was froth around her mouth, signs of asphyxiation. The night I visited her, she was trying to keep Rosa Concepción Castellano Coello alive. U.S. Embassy, Tegucigalpa, American Citizens Services Unit is open to walk-in services Monday-Friday, 0730-11:00 and can be reached directly at: After Hours: (504) 2236-9320 ext.4100 or Duty Officer (504) 9990-1372. Due to the remote nature of these areas, the government’s ability to respond to violence or other problems is often very limited, as is access to medical facilities. Most major cities (e.g. For the first time, she felt he might finish her off. Mr. Claro bolted. Embassy employees and others have experienced skimming at well-known restaurants, hotels, and retailers. “There’s a lack of interest in doing the work,” said Ms. Domínguez, who has an image of the North Star on the wall of her cramped office. hide caption. The ACS Unit cannot recommend a particular individual or location and assumes no responsibility for the quality of service provided. Occasional highway assaults and carjackings involve criminals posing as Honduran law enforcement, including in remote areas of Choluteca, Olancho, Colon, and Copan departments. Always carry a mobile phone in case of emergency. And we are perfectly capable of saving their lives. Cinthia Soriano, 30, Kenneth, 2 (bottom right), Joseph, 5 (center), and Jennifer, 7 (left), from Villa Nueva Cortes, Honduras. Nonetheless, the women kept coming. Local law allows the police to detain someone for up to 24 hours for administrative processing. Her heart had stopped twice. Mr. Garcia, who did not respond to a request for comment, has been reassigned to an administrative post pending an investigation into the death, said a spokesman for the Public Ministry in San Pedro Sula. Counterfeit medicines are mainly found in pulperías (private home-operated convenience stores), but have also been reported in Farmacias del Ahorro. Medical care is limited. She was shot five times in the head right next to the Catholic church down the street, probably by gangsters. Cruise ship passengers should take safety precautions, avoid unfamiliar areas, and book only with reputable tour companies during their stopover in Honduras. They dragged her into tall grass and, with one holding a machete to her throat, took turns raping her from behind. Most protests remain peaceful, but demonstrations have escalated into violent confrontation with police. But the impunity for violent men is the same. As a result, there is no longer free travel between Honduras and Nicaragua, After court-ordered forceful eviction operation in Bajo Aguan in August 2018, police and military clashed with the. Typically, these are random calls that originate from imprisoned gang members using mobile phones. “Now they talk.”. So I kept quiet," Regalado said. The Embassy cannot secure the release or act as legal representation for any U.S. citizen. (Right) Fanny Gabriela Regalado, 20, is from Honduras. Long before there were any domestic violence laws, Ms. Velásquez and her friend would knock on the doors of abusers. For them it was a challenging, almost two-month journey to answer the question: What does it take for a Central American woman to give her children a better future? There are limited facilities for individuals with disabilities. Those planning travel to Gracias a Dios should consider postponing their travel. At 9 p.m. on Jan. 14, at a bus terminal in San Pedro Sula, I watched one of the latest caravans leave for the United States. “They see women as property,” Ms. Regalado said. They went on foot down the dark road north, about 1,500 people, pushing carry-on luggage, strollers, a shopping cart, carrying babies in their arms. I am not scared someone will come and attack me, like I used to be.". However, there can be communal tension over land ownership, natural resource allocation, and exploitation. Honduras decided in late 2018, based on reciprocity, to institute the same reporting requirement. Maybe you didn’t give him what he needed last night? The government places specially trained police forces in areas tourists frequent (e.g. There was much pressing her and her husband to leave Honduras, she said: no stable jobs, the rising cost of food, corruption, the fact they lived in a shack. At least one of the Central American women I met, Maria Lidia Meza Castro, 39, later managed to enter the United States — escorted by a group including two U.S. Congress members — and reportedly asked for asylum along with five of her children. Last year, 23 women were murdered in Choloma; some say the toll is a third more. "He wanted to burn my face, but my daughter started screaming when she saw him taking the pan with boiling butter. In July 2018, a thief stole the mobile phone of a USAID implementing partner visiting a project. In 2017, 41 percent of women and girls killed in Honduras showed signs of mutilation, disfigurement and cruelty beyond what was needed to kill them, according to the Violence Observatory at the National Autonomous University of Honduras. By chance, two police officers happened to be turning down the street right as it happened. The police generally treat detained foreigners well. How to Handle Incidents of Police Detention or Harassment. “I thought he was going to kill her.”. hide caption, Karen Paz hugs her daughter, Liliana Saray, 9. Those planning travel to Gracias a Dios should consider postponing their travel. For more information on self-driving, review OSAC’s Report Driving Overseas: Best Practices.