The Latin America Working Group of the Party of the European Left about Honduras

06/02/2018

02 Februar 2018

The Latin America Working Group of the Party of the European Left (EL) is evaluating very seriously the chaotic situation after the fraudulent elections on 26th November.

The announcement by the US embassy and the TSE, Superior Electoral Tribunal, under the total control of the National Party, of Juan Orlando Hernández (JOH), as the winner has led to a broad series of protests by the Opposition Alliance, the FREE party and social organizations.

Since the coup d’état in 2009, increasing polarization has been created in Honduras, a deterioration in the rule of law and institutions, a regrouping of the military as a strategic actor in public management, a concentration of political and economic power, a broad corruption and reinforcement of drug traffickers and violence, increase of extreme poverty and a criminalization of social protest. Reflecting this has been the postulation for JOH’s re-election in open violation of the Constitution and the manipulation of the election results.

Wide protests against electoral fraud have been confronted with military forces in extraordinarily strong ways, systematic persecution of social and political leaders with a death toll above 30. Facing the attempt to install JOH as the new president on January 27, a series of national strikes initiated.

We want an energetic repudiation by countries of the European Union of electoral fraud, US interference in the elections, the cessation of the use of excessive forces to social protests and no more deaths. A resolution of this conflict requires that JOH does not install itself as a new president and must include all the forces of the country and include an institutional reorganization.