Tell your Congressional representatives and Senators:

Support Justice for Honduran Democracy Defenders Edwin Espinal and Raul Alvarez!

On September 13 and 14th, democracy defenders Edwin Espinal and Raúl Alvarez will stand trial on trumped up charges stemming from widespread protests that occurred in Honduras during the 2017 electoral crisis

Stay alert on this important human rights case in Honduras!

On September 13 and 14th, two democracy defenders, Edwin Espinal and Raúl Alvarez, will stand trial on trumped up charges stemming from widespread protests that occurred throughout the country during the 2017 electoral crisis in Honduras.

Espinal and Alvarez are accused of property damage caused to the Marriot Hotel building during a protest. They were falsely accused, arrested days after the protest, put before a military judge, and sent to pre-trial detention for 19 months in a maximum-security prison. They were released in August 2019 after international outcry, but face going back to prison for 15 to 30 years if found guilty.

The National Jurisdiction Court hearing Espinal and Alvarez’s case does not have authority over their cases as this particular court was created to try cases brought against dangerous organized criminal groups. Amnesty International extensively outlined Espinal and Alvarez’s case in their report “Protest Prohibited: Use of Force and Detention to Suppress Dissent in Honduras” and expressed concern for the misuse of judicial proceedings, the lack of due process, and the inhumane conditions of their detention.

Take action now! Fill the form and ask your representatives to demand a fair, transparent, and public trial as required by Honduran law

In the context of the 2017 electoral process, thousands of Hondurans went to the streets to protest electoral fraud and the illegal re-election of current President Juan Orlando Hernandez. The elections were wrought with fraud causing election observers with the Organization of American States (OAS) to state that the “irregularities, mistakes, and systemic problems plaguing this election made it difficult” to be “certain about the outcome.”

During the protests, over 20 Hondurans were imprisoned, the majority were sent to maximum-security prisons. In addition, over 30 Hondurans were shot dead in the streets during protests by state security forces resulting in dozens of injuries. In less than 3 months, Hondurans will again vote in the November 26th, 2021 general elections despite several unresolved human rights cases stemming from the previous elections four years ago. This situation continues as the Juan Orlando Hernandez government continues to send land and human rights defenders to prison, including the 8 Guapinol water defenders who have been imprisoned for over 2 years.

Since 2017, Honduras has become increasingly known for its systemic judicial and institutional corruption. US Prosecutors at the New York Southern District court have publicly stated that the current and former Presidents of Honduras have been involved in large-scale “state sponsored drug trafficking.” It is by no coincidence that shortly after the 2017 electoral fraud, thousands of Hondurans began to flee in migrant caravans seeking better lives in neighbouring countries and in the U.S. It is also not a surprise that a government that is deeply embedded in organized crime and drug trafficking would take such measures against protesters and their political opponents as a way of maintaining their illicit criminal interests through political power.

In regard to Edwin Espinal and Raúl Alvarez’s case, we are asking for their assistance in:

• Contacting Honduran Ambassador Luis Suazo in the Honduran Embassy in Washington, D.C.  to:

1. Express their concern about Espinal and Alvarez’s cases.
2. Demand a fair, transparent, and public trial as required by Honduran law
3. End the prosecution of Edwin Espinal and Raúl Alvarez and stop the imprisonment of political opponents, protesters, and land and water defenders

• Contacting Ariel Jahner, the Human Rights Officer in the U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa or the State Department in D.C. and ask them to:

1. Attend the trial on September 13 and 14th  either in person or remotely.
2. Speak with the Honduran Foreign Affairs Ministry and remind the office about the United States’ ongoing interest in Edwin and Raul’s case and the importance of a fair trial.

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