On February 9, PBI-Honduras tweeted:
We recently visited the community of #Guapinol , in resistance against a mining project in the Montaña de Botaderos Carlos Escaleras NP [National Park], which according to the community has contaminated its river. We highlight the courageous work of community advocacy.”
They add:
“We remember the importance of protecting these defenders of the environment. Guapinol demands an impartial and rigorous investigation into the murders of Aly Domínguez and Jairo Bonilla, two defenders who were murdered more than a month ago, on January 7 of this year.”
Background
On January 10, PBI-Honduras had also tweeted:
“The Municipal Committee of #Guapinol demands from @MP_Honduras [Public Ministry] an independent investigation of the murder of #AlyDomínguez and #JairoBonilla. In addition, it warns about the risk that other defenders in the community run, pointing out the importance of effective protection.”
The following day, The Guardian reported: “Two environmental defenders have been shot dead in broad daylight in Honduras, triggering fresh calls for an independent investigation into the persecution and violence against a rural community battling to stop an illegally sanctioned mine.”
The article continues:
“Aly Domínguez, 38, and Jairo Bonilla, 28, from Guapinol in northern Honduras, were murdered on Saturday afternoon as they returned home on a moped after finishing work collecting payments for a cable company. They were intercepted by armed assailants and died at the scene, according to relatives.
Domínguez and Bonilla were co-founders of Guapinol’s grassroots resistance against an iron ore mine owned by one of the country’s most powerful couples. Domínguez was among 32 community leaders falsely accused of crimes by the mining company and local authorities.
Local police and prosecutors immediately ascribed the deaths to a botched mugging – even though the assailants fled without taking the victims’ moped, cellphones or money.”
Reynaldo Dominguez, Aly’s brother, says: “We reject the official hypothesis. These two young men were founders of the struggle to protect our natural resources from an illegal mine that is destroying rivers in the national park. For five years we’ve been threatened, criminalised and falsely imprisoned, the only thing left was murder.”
And Michael Phoenix, the head of research for Mary Lawlor, the UN Special Rapporteur for human rights defenders, says: “It’s vital that an independent impartial investigation is carried out which must take into account the possibility that Aly and Jairo have been retaliated against for their work defending human rights.”
Agnes Callamard, the Secretary General of Amnesty International, has also tweeted her support for an independent investigation.
The Washington, DC-based Institute for Policy Studies has also tweeted:
The Guardian adds: “The mine continues to operate, and the community have reported ongoing police harassment.” In February 2022, EFE also reported: “Los Pinares has installed a processing plant for iron oxide pellets in the municipality of Tocoa, department of Colón and has requested an ‘expansion of the area of the concession from 100 hectares to 1,000 hectares.”
We continue to follow this situation from Canada.
