This report provides a snapshot of events during 2021 relevant to countries designated as State Sponsors of Terrorism. The government generally respected these provisions. The STSS has the power to declare a work stoppage illegal, and employers may discipline employees consistent with their internal regulations, including by firing strikers, if the STSS rules that a work stoppage is illegal. The law provides for the right to a fair and public trial; however, the judiciary did not always enforce this right. By law all minors between the ages of 14 and 18 in most industries must receive special permission from the STSS to work, and the STSS must perform a home study to verify that there is an economic need for the child to work and that the child not work outside the country or in hazardous conditions, including in offshore fishing. The Ministries of Security and Defense both have human rights offices that investigated alleged human rights abuses and coordinated human rights-related activities with the Secretariat of Human Rights. The government cooperated with UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations that provide protection and assistance to refugees and other persons of concern. CRIME AND INSECURITY IN HONDURAS . There was no information available on any major industrial accidents. LONDON (AP) Britain's domestic intelligence agency didn't act swiftly enough on key information and missed a significant opportunity to prevent the suicide bombing that killed 22 people at a Because labor inspectors continued to be concentrated in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula, full labor inspections and follow-up visits to confirm compliance were far less frequent in other parts of the country. During April, the first full month of the curfew, COFADEH reported 11,471 complaints of arbitrary actions by security forces, mainly abusive detentions for curfew violators. Although 74 percent of births were attended by skilled health care personnel, NGOs reported that there were significant gaps in obstetric care, especially in rural areas. They had limited representation in the national government and consequently little direct input into decisions affecting their lands, cultures, traditions, and the allocation of natural resources. But the movement gained momentum during the pandemic and a partnership of more than 40 organizations hopes to capitalize Powerful special interests, including organized-crime groups, exercised influence on the outcomes of some court proceedings. The West Bank and Gaza Strip. The law permits fines, and while the monetary penalty is commensurate with those for other laws involving denials of civil rights, such as discrimination, the failure of the government to collect those fines facilitated continued labor law violations. Corruption: On March 13, the Supreme Court of Justice ordered a new trial for former first lady Rosa Elena Bonilla de Lobo, spouse of former president Porfirio Lobo, who was convicted in August 2019 of fraud and misappropriation of public funds and sentenced to 58 years in prison. The Military Police of Public Order report to military authorities but conduct operations sanctioned by civilian security officials as well as by military leaders. Section 2. Prisoners suffered from overcrowding, insufficient access to food and water, violence, and alleged abuse by prison officials. As of December 2020, internally displaced people in Honduras represented almost 80 percent of the internally displaced population in Central America and Mexico. In January 2020, the president announced the dismantling of the Mission to Support the Fight against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (Misin de Apoyo Contra la Corrupcin y la Impunidad en Honduras, MACCIH), which was backed by the Organization of American States (OAS). Updated: 7 hours ago. You can add more than one country or area. A specialized anticorruption sentencing tribunal ordered her release from pretrial detention on July 23. Abusers caught in the act may be detained for up to 24 hours as a preventive measure. Penalties include prison sentences of up to five years and monetary fines. Pretrial Detention: Judicial inefficiency, corruption, and insufficient resources delayed proceedings in the criminal justice system, and lengthy pretrial detention was a serious problem. The law provides for freedom of internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, and the government generally respected these rights. Defendants may receive free assistance from an interpreter. The law also imposes prison sentences of three to five years for child labor violations that endanger the life or morality of a child. The law mandates that the Supreme Auditing Tribunal monitor and verify disclosures. Discrimination: Although the law accords women and men the same legal rights and status, including property rights in divorce cases, many women did not fully enjoy such rights. The Public Ministry reported five such cases undergoing trial, with four cases in the sentencing phase of trial. The law provides for criminal penalties for corruption by officials, but authorities did not implement the law effectively, and officials continued to engage in corrupt practices with impunity. COLUMBUS Ohio Gov. According to UNICEF, 8 percent of children were married before age 15, and 34 percent before age 18. Sexual Exploitation of Children: The commercial sexual exploitation of children, especially in sex trafficking, remained a problem. Litigants may sue a criminal defendant for damages if authorized by a criminal court. The law provides that police may make arrests only with a warrant unless: they make the arrest during the commission of a crime, there is strong suspicion that a person has committed a crime and might otherwise evade criminal prosecution, they catch a person in possession of evidence related to a crime, or a prosecutor has ordered the arrest after obtaining a warrant. Persons suspected of any of 22 specific felonies must remain in custody, pending the conclusion of judicial proceedings against them. The country was a destination for child sex tourism. Public-sector trade unionists raised concerns about government interference in trade union activities, including its suspension or ignoring of collective agreements and its dismissals of union members and leaders. There is also a Human Rights Committee in the National Congress. Deportation, Circular Migration and Organized Crime Honduras Case Study; Download the Publication; Honduras: Information Gathering Mission Report; Violence in Honduras: an Analysis of the Failure in Public Security and the State'S Response to Criminality; Opendocpdf.Pdf; Honduras Elites and Organized Crime; Honduras 2019 Crime & Safety Report Freedom of Expression, Including for the Press, b. Freedoms of Peaceful Assembly and Association, e. Status and Treatment of Internally Displaced Persons, Section 3. Nearly 3.3 million people, or one in three Hondurans, were experiencing crisis or worse levels of food insecurity by late 2021. Under the new inspection law, the STSS has the authority temporarily to shut down workplaces where there is an imminent danger of fatalities; however, there were not enough trained inspectors to deter violations sufficiently. The Public Ministry reported five such cases undergoing trial, with four cases in the sentencing phase of trial. On August 5, an appeals court dismissed charges against 22 defendants indicted in the so-called Pandora case, a 2013 scheme that allegedly funneled 289.4 million lempiras ($12 million) in government agricultural funds to political campaigns. CHICAGO (AP) Four years ago, Paul Vallas finished toward the bottom of the pack in a crowded race for Chicago mayor. For years, street gangs have charged protection . Both the STSS and the courts may order a company to reinstate workers, but the STSS lacked the means to verify compliance. Honduras crime rate & statistics for 2018 was 38.93, a 5.01% decline from 2017. The national curfew instituted in response to COVID-19, however, severely limited the freedom of internal movement. Japan also is a member of the G-7 Counterterrorism and Counter-Crime Rome-Lyon Group. Latest News Profile Criminal Actors Investigations News Displaced Children: Civil society organizations reported that common causes of forced displacement for youth included death threats for failure to pay extortion, attempted recruitment by gangs, witnessing criminal activity by gangs or organized-crime groups, domestic violence, attempted kidnappings, family members involvement in drug dealing, victimization by traffickers, rape including commercial sexual exploitation by gangs, discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, sexual harassment, and discrimination for having a chronic medical condition. The law requires a judge to issue an eviction order for individuals occupying public and private property if security forces have not evicted the individuals within a specified period of time. Long periods of pretrial detention remained common and problematic, with many other pretrial detainees held in the general population with convicted prisoners. Government Human Rights Bodies: A semiautonomous commissioner for human rights, Roberto Herrera Caceres, served as an ombudsman and investigated complaints of human rights abuses. On May 5, the DIDADPOL director noted his office had not received a formal complaint, and he asserted two official police reports from the incident did not corroborate the PBIs account. Ensuring that critical security information is shared with those who need it, when they need it, OSAC is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to answer constituents' questions with expert analysis of rapidly evolving security challenges overseas. The emergency decree instituted the Interinstitutional Force as an auditing commission for the penitentiary system. In these sectors employers frequently paid workers for the standard 44-hour workweek no matter how many additional hours they worked. Rape and Domestic Violence: The law criminalizes all forms of rape of women or men, including spousal rape. The law provides for freedom of peaceful assembly, and the government generally respected this right. Women - Honduras has the fifth-highest rate of violence against women in the world. (72 percent of these resulted in a conviction). There were numerous reports of government corruption during the year. 4 Defenders of the land, territory and environment continued to face unfounded criminal charges. They practice "war taxing", which is essentially just demanding money from people. Civilian authorities at times did not maintain effective control over security forces. Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government, Section 5. As of September the Secretariat of Human Rights reported the countrys three pretrial detention centers held 79 individuals. In terms of murder rate, it's the second most violent country in Central or South America, trailing only Venezuela. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot lost her bid for a second term Tuesday, failing to make a top-two runoff in the latest demonstration of growing concerns about crime in one of the nation's largest . The armed forces, which report to the Secretariat of Defense, are responsible for external security but also exercise some domestic security responsibilities in a supporting role to the national police and other civilian authorities. International Child Abductions: The country is a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. Starting November 9, the government temporarily suspended the curfew to facilitate Tropical Depression Eta response efforts. Global AIDS Coordinator and Global Health Diplomacy, Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, Special Representative for Syria Engagement, U.S. Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority, Office of the U.S. The law mandates that authorities release detainees whose cases have not yet come to trial and whose time in pretrial detention already exceeds the maximum prison sentence for their alleged crime. In cooperation with the UN Development Program, the government operated consolidated reporting centers in Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula where women could report crimes, seek medical and psychological attention, and receive other services. The HNPs Violent Crimes Task Force investigated crimes against high-profile and particularly vulnerable victims, including journalists as well as judges, human rights activists, and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) community. Victims were primarily impoverished individuals in both rural and urban areas (see section 7.c.). (SOUTH DAKOTA NEWS WATCH) - South Dakota received nearly $14 billion in federal COVID-19 funding from March 2020 through January, according to an internal state fiscal report . COFADEH reported police beat and smeared a tear gas-covered cloth on the face of an individual detained for violating the national curfew in April in El Paraiso. In security and domestic service sectors, workers were frequently forced to work more than 60 hours per week but paid only for 44 hours. carnival miracle refurbishment 2020; shkola season 1 episode 2 english subtitles; appleseed townhomes huber heights; once popular resort area in the catskills nyt crossword 0. . Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. There was only limited support for persons with mental illnesses or disabilities. Honduras' highest judicial body is the Supreme Court of Justice, which includes chambers for constitutional, criminal and civil cases. Such an order may be effective for up to six days, after which the judge must hold a pretrial hearing to examine whether there is probable cause to continue pretrial detention. Around 191,000 people were. Significant human rights issues included: unlawful or arbitrary killings, including extrajudicial killings; torture and cases of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or detention; killings of and threats to media members by criminal elements; criminalization of libel, although no cases were reported; serious acts of corruption including by high level officials; lack of investigation of and accountability for violence against women; and threats and violence against indigenous, Afro-descendant communities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex persons. TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras -- Honduras became the second country in Central America to declare a state of emergency to fight gang crimes like extortion. Introductory offer for new subscribers only. Violent gang activity, such as extortion, violent street crime, rape, and narcotics and human trafficking, is widespread. Persons with disabilities, indigenous and Afro-Honduran persons, LGBTI persons, and persons with HIV or AIDS also faced discrimination in employment and occupation (see section 6). In January 2020, the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Honduran government failed to reach an agreement to renew the mandate of the Mission to Support the Fight against Corruption and Impunity in . Honduras's peak of violent crime was in 2012, where the country experienced about 20 homicides per day, typically carried out by gun-toting gangs such as Barrio 18 or Mara Salvatrucha. Honduras is somewhat safe to visit, though it has many dangers. Physical Conditions: Prisoners suffered from severe overcrowding, malnutrition, lack of adequate sanitation and medical care, and, in some prisons, lack of adequate ventilation and lighting. Nongovernmental Impact: Some journalists and other members of civil society reported threats from members of organized-crime groups. Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons, Acts of Violence, Criminalization, and Other Abuses Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, a. It prohibits employer retribution against employees for engaging in trade union activities. A wide variety of domestic and international human rights groups generally operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases. Also see the Department of States Trafficking in Persons Report at https://www.state.gov/trafficking-in-persons-report/. Administration: The judicial system was legally responsible for monitoring prison conditions and providing for the rights of prisoners. By comparison, the United States has a global safety ranking of 128. The government continued to prosecute some officials who committed abuses, but a weak judicial system and corruption were major obstacles to gaining convictions. is a specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes the development of international air navigation safety and security . The curfew severely limited freedom of movement and banned large gatherings. The law requires police to inform persons of the grounds for their arrest and bring detainees before a competent judicial authority within 24 hours. Nearly two years after passage of a comprehensive labor inspection law in 2017, the STSS released implementing regulations based on extensive consultations with the private sector and unions. The accused has the right to an initial hearing before a judge, to ask for bail, consult with legal counsel in a timely manner, have a lawyer provided by the state if necessary, and request an appeal. Civil society organizations criticized the governments failure to investigate threats adequately. The law does not permit active members of the military or civilian security forces to vote. The vast majority of children who worked did so without STSS permits. The Public Ministry is responsible for prosecuting violations. El Salvador is not dangerous for travelers as violence has declined to its lowest level in over 30 years. Ethnic minority rights leaders, international NGOs, and farmworker organizations continued to claim the government failed to redress actions taken by security forces, government agencies, and private individuals and businesses to dislodge farmers and indigenous persons from lands over which they claimed ownership based on land reform law or ancestral land titles. In the 2013 census, approximately 8.5 percent of the population identified themselves as members of indigenous communities, but other estimates were higher. The constitution prohibits practicing clergy from running for office or participating in political campaigns. These conditions contributed to an unstable, dangerous environment in the penitentiary system. Unions also raised concerns about the use of temporary contracts and part-time employment, suggesting that employers used these mechanisms to prevent unionization and avoid providing full benefits. The COVID-19 lockdown and curfew affected sex workers income and further exacerbated existing vulnerabilities. Members of the security forces committed some abuses. The Refugee Commission suspended operations shortly after the onset of the pandemic but began reviewing applications again as of June. The law presumes an accused person is innocent. By August it had provided protection to two journalists, among other types of activists and human rights defenders. Statistics from the National Emergency Systems call center showed the country was on pace for more than 100,000 reports of domestic violence during the year. These reporting centers were in addition to the 298 government-operated womens officesone in each municipalitythat provided a wide array of services to women, focusing on education, personal finance, health, social and political participation, environmental stewardship, and prevention of gender-based violence. Bernardez was a leader in the Punta Piedra community. The Federation of Agroindustry Workers Unions reported massive layoffs and cancelation of contracts in the maquila sector during the pandemic without providing welfare benefits. Preliminary data published by the countries in the region comprising Central America and the Dominican Republic shows that there were fewer homicides in 2020 than in 2019. The law applies equally to citizens and foreigners, regardless of gender, and prescribes a maximum eight-hour shift per day for most workers, a 44-hour workweek, and at least one 24-hour rest period for every six days of work. You should be aware that tourist hotspots, public transportation and some streets are places where most thefts and pickpocketing occur, and that violent crime exists on the streets, too. The government relies heavily on the . Estimates of the number of children younger than 18 in the countrys workforce ranged from 370,000 to 510,000. Several anonymous social media sites, possibly linked to political parties, criticized journalists (as well as activists and civil society organizations) who were critical of the government or opposition party policies. Coordinator for the Arctic Region, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance, Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation, Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, Office of International Religious Freedom, Office of the Special Envoy To Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Office of the Science and Technology Adviser, Bureau of the Comptroller and Global Financial Services, Bureau of Information Resource Management, Office of Management Strategy and Solutions, Bureau of International Organization Affairs, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, U.S. TRANSPORT & TAXIS RISK : HIGH Public transport is highly risky in Honduras. The Public Ministry also has the Special Prosecutors Office for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Journalists, Social Communicators, and Justice Officials. Christian James Morrow. Section 1. The Committee of Relatives of the Disappeared in Honduras (COFADEH) reported 28 cases of alleged torture by security forces through September, while the Public Ministry received three such reports. The whereabouts of four Indigenous Garifuna members of the Black Fraternal Organization of Honduras (OFRANEH) forcibly disappeared in July 2020 remained unknown. The STSS approved 43 such authorizations through September. The law does not authorize pretrial detention for crimes with a maximum sentence of five years or less. Participation of Women and Members of Minority Groups: No laws limit the participation of women or members of minority groups in the political process, and they did participate. The legal framework for granting international protection fails to establish long-term safeguards for recognized refugees, since they are issued the same residence permit as other migration categories. The director of Invest-H, Marco Antonio Bogran Corrales, resigned from his position in July and was indicted in October on two corruption charges for embezzling an estimated 1.3 million lempiras ($54,000) in public funds and funneling a contract for mobile hospitals to his uncle. Penalties for forced labor under antitrafficking law range from 10 to 15 years imprisonment, commensurate with penalties for other analogous serious crimes, such as kidnapping, but authorities often did not enforce them. Honduras Honduras, long one of the poorest countries in Latin America, is now also among the most violent and crime-ridden. The Violence Observatory reported 55 killings of women from March 15 to June 6, compared with 102 for the same period in 2019. The law states that sexual orientation and gender-identity characteristics merit special protection from discrimination and includes these characteristics in a hate crimes amendment to the penal code. Source: MY 2020: IHCAFE's Annual Report 2019/2020, MY 2021: IHCAFE Statistical Bulletin 05/04/2021 As of May 4th, 2021 about 4.13 million . Reports of violence related to land conflicts and criminal activity continued. The Secretariat of Human Rights provided training to security forces to increase respect for human rights. Poverty rates are higher among rural and indigenous people and in the south, west, and along the eastern border than in the north . Home. Most women in the workforce engaged in lower-status and lower-paying informal occupations, such as domestic service, without the benefit of legal protections. Individuals and organizations may appeal adverse domestic decisions to the Inter-American Human Rights System. The law permits fines, and while the monetary penalty is sufficient to deter violations and commensurate with the penalties for similar crimes, such as fraud, the failure of the government to collect those fines facilitated continued labor code violations. Even so, many prisoners remained in custody after completing their full sentences, and sometimes even after an acquittal, because officials failed to process their releases expeditiously. On average, children living in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador are 10 times more likely to be killed than a child who lives in the United States.