Quienes Somos
Honduras for Democracy is an independent, non-partisan Washington, DC-based grass roots organization that was created in July 2009 as a direct result of the June 28 coup d’état that replaced the democratically elected government of President Manuel Zelaya with an illegal, violent, and repressive coup regime – a throwback to the coup regimes of Latin America of the 1960’s, 1970s, and 1980s.
As reported by numerous independent human right organizations, along with the loss of institutional legitimacy brought about by the coup, serious human rights violations have occurred. These include deaths; the arbitrary declaration of a state of exception; the repression of public demonstrations through the disproportionate use of force; the criminalization of social protest; the arbitrary detention of thousands of individuals; cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment and poor detention conditions; the militarization of the territory; an increase in situations of racial discrimination; violations of women’s rights, arbitrary restrictions on the right to freedom of expression; and serious infringements of political rights. The coup regime continues to systematically deny the existence of these violations, a situation that results in a state of inactivity and tolerance that makes it easier for such acts to be repeated with impunity.
Hondurans for Democracy believes that the democratic system is the principal guarantee for the effectiveness of human rights. The on-going violation of these and other rights is indeed a direct consequence of the interruption of the constitutional order. The return to the democratic institutional order in Honduras is absolutely necessary for the effective protection and fulfillment of the human rights of all the people of Honduras.
