22 July 2003
Further Information on UA 144/03 issued 21 May 2003
Fear for safety/Death Threats / HONDURAS
Jose Andres Tamayo (m),priest and environmental activist
Gilberto Flores (m), community leader
Orlando Najera (m), community leader
New names:
Father Osmin Flores (m), priest and environmental activist
Carlos Arturo (''Oscar'') Reyes (m, aged 23, killed)
Other environmental activists in Olancho department
Amnesty International remains gravely concerned for the safety of environmental activists in Olancho, northern Honduras, following continued death threats and the murder of activist Carlos Arturo Reyes on 18 July. The activists are thought to be under attack because of their work to protect the local environment against the interests of loggers and other commercial exploitation.
On Monday 14 July, armed men inside a dark blue car without license plates and with blacked-out windows were seen taking aim at Gilberto Flores as he entered the offices of the Catholic Church's Pastoral Social offices in Juticalpa. The men were unable to carry out the assassination, however, as they were reportedly distracted by a young child who approached Flores to greet him. Over the next two days, the same vehicle and another with similar characteristics were seen parked outside the same offices. Although police protection had been ordered for Gilberto Flores by the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights in May, following a campaign of harassment against him (UA 144/03), this protection was withdrawn on 20 June 2003 by the Ministry of Security.
On 18 July, environmental activist Carlos Arturo Reyes (also referred to as Oscar) was murdered at his home in the municipality of El Rosario. Having just arrived home at 8pm, he went outside to his backyard to wash his face when six gunshots were fired from the darkness. One of the shots entered his right temple, killing him instantly. Three heavily-armed men were seen fleeing from the scene via a canal that leads to a local river. Carlos Arturo Reyes, who worked to defend the environment with the Pastoral Social, had been transferred by the organization from the municipality of Guata to El Rosario following death threats.
At the same time as Carlos Arturo Reyes' murder, the home of environmental activist Father Osmin Flores was under surveillance by men armed with AK-47 guns who were parked outside. Following a telephone call by Father Flores to the police, two officers came to his residence, in the municipality of Catacamas. However, they said that although the car looked suspicious they could not arrest the occupants as they had not done anything illegal.
Father Andres Tamayo continues to be active in his efforts to protect the environment and was one of the leaders of the ''Marcha por la Vida'' (''March for Life'', see Background below). As such, he remains in a position of great personal danger.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The continuing attacks are believed to be connected with a list of environmentalists who have been placed under threat of death for their activism. The list, which was allegedly drawn up by sawmill owners in Olancho, appeared following a 2,500-strong march in June 2003 by environmental and religious groups from Olancho to the capital, Tegucigalpa. On the 200-kilometre, seven-day ''Marcha por la Vida'' (''March for Life''), demonstrators called for a moratorium on further logging in central Honduras until a ''forest audit'' can be conducted and plans developed for sustainable use of forest resources. They claim indiscriminate logging has dried up water sources and worsened poverty in the region. The names of Carlos Arturo Reyes, Osmin Flores and Gilberto Flores all appeared on the death threat list.
The killing of environmental and grassroots activists, including indigenous people, is part of a pattern of human rights abuses against those involved in defending the environment. Illegal logging of the forests in Honduras and the construction of dams are causing grave environmental damage. In October 2002 the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights acknowledged that environmental
degradation has a serious impact on human rights.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- expressing concern for the safety of Father Osmin Flores, Gilberto Flores, Jose Andres Tamayo, Orlando Najera and other environmental activists placed under threat of death;
- urging the authorities to take action to protect these persons according to their wishes;
- requesting an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the campaign of harassment and threats to those named above, and that the results be made public and those responsible brought to justice;
- calling for a full and impartial investigation into the killing of Carlos Arturo Reyes, with the results made public and those responsible brought to justice;
- reminding the authorities of the right of human rights defenders to carry out their activities without any restrictions or fear of reprisals, as set out in Declarations from the United Nations and the Organization of American States;
- asking for the Honduran authorities to reply to the concerns made by community leaders on the recent Marcha por la Vida.
APPEALS TO:
President of Honduras:
Lic. Ricardo Maduro
Presidente de la Republica de Honduras
Casa Presidencial, Boulevard Juan Pablo Segundo
Palacio Jose Cecilio del Valle
Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Telegram: Presidente de Honduras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Fax: 011504 2214552
Salutation: Dear President/ Sr. Presidente
Minister of Security:
Dr. Oscar Alvarez, Ministro de Seguridad Publica
Ministerio de Seguridad Publica.
Edificio Poujol, 4o piso, Col. Palmira (Blvd. Morazan)
Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Telegram: Ministro de Seguridad, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Fax: 011 504 220 4352
Salutation: Dear Minister/Senor Ministro
Attorney General:
Dr. Roy Edmundo Medina, Fiscal General de la Republica
Fiscalia General de la Republica, Colonia Loma del Guijaro
Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Telegram: Fiscal General de la Republica, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Fax: 011 504 221 5666
Salutation: Dear Attorney General/ Senor Fiscal General
COPIES TO:
National Commissioner for the Protection of Human Rights:
Comisionado Nacional de Proteccion de los Derechos Humanos
Ramon Custodio Lopez
Avda. La Paz No. 2444
Contiguo a Galerias
La Paz, Tegucigalpa,
Honduras
Fax: 011 504 232 6894
Comite de Familiares de Desaparecidos de Honduras (COFADEH):
Apartado Postal 1243
Barrio La Plazuela, Ave
Cervantes, Casa 1301, a la par de JM Stereo
Tegucigalpa
Honduras
Fax: 011 504 220 5280 (if someone answers ask for the fax: ''me da
tono de fax, por favor'')
Ambassador Mario Miguel Canahuati
Embassy of Honduras
3007 Tilden St. NW Suite 4-M
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 966 9751
Please send appeals immediately. Check with national office if sending appeals after September 2, 2003. [ver acção urgente anterior]
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