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Defending against Dams - Defensa contra las presas

If built without community participation and careful study of environmental consequences, dams can be a very big problem.  Disputes over dams were what led to the creation of the FMLN and the civil war in El Salvador.

Si se construye sin la participación de la comunidad y el estudio cuidadoso de las consecuencias ambientales, las presas pueden ser un problema muy grande. Las disputas sobre las presas llevó a la creación del FMLN y la guerra civil en El Salvador.

Vease tambien Enlaces/Links

La Prensa/The Press

The Bank Trap: A Statement from COPINH on the Agua Zarca Dam Investors  6/22/2017 Grassroots International: "Since 2013, the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH) has demanded the definitive withdrawal of funds from the FMO [Dutch development bank], Finn Fund [Finnish development finance company] and CABEI (Central American Bank for Economic Integration, or Banco Centroamericano de Integración Económica, BCEI, in Spanish) from the Agua Zarca project on the sacred Gualcarque River because of their association with displacement and death in the Rio Blanco community. To date, none of the three banks have completed their exit from the project, although FMO and Finn Fund banks have been announcing they will withdraw since May of 2016."

Backers of Honduran Dam Opposed by Murdered Activist Withdraw Funding  6/4/2017 Guardian: "The international funders behind the hydroelectric dam opposed by murdered Honduran environmentalist Berta Cáceres are withdrawing from the project, the Guardian can reveal."

Mujeres indígenas y negras hondureñas en defensa de su cultura, territorios y bienes comues  5/24/2017 Nicaragua y Mas: "Los días 24 y 25 de mayo se lleva a cabo el Segundo Encuentro de Mujeres Indígenas y Negras "Por la defensa de nuestra cultura, territorios y bienes comunes". Convocadas por la Coordinadora Nacional de Mujeres Indígenas y Negras de Honduras (Conaminh), más de 550 mujeres de 6 pueblos[1] se dieron cita en la capital hondureña para compartir sus pensamientos y estrategias de defensa de su cultura, sus territorios y los bienes comunes."

Gobierno hondureño, narcos y presas: el alcalde eco-activista Omar Suazo arrestado después de sobrevivir a un intento de asesinato  5/21/2017 GarifunaWeb: "Según nuestra información, elementos dentro del gobierno hondureño decidieron de hacer eliminar a Omar Suazo. Después de intentar matarlo, lo arrestaron por asesinato."

Illegal deforestation of the banks of Cuyamel River - Deforestación ilegal de las orillas del Río Cuyamel  5/21/2017 GarifunaWeb: "The deforestation along the banks of the Cuyamel river, where the Honduran government wants to dam, started the very morning Omar Suazo was arrested. They were ready to go, they knew from previous events that Omar Suazo would prevent them from proceeding were he a free man. La deforestación a lo largo de las riberas del río Cuyamel, donde el gobierno hondureño quiere construir una presa, empezó la misma mañana que Omar Suazo fue arrestado. Estaban listos para ir, sabían de acontecimientos previos que Omar Suazo les impediría proceder si era un hombre libre."

"Berta Didn't Die, She Multiplied": Indigenous Organizers in Honduras Call for Radical Transformation  5/15/2017 Truth Out: "The organization Cáceres founded 24 years ago, the Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), continues multiplying, too. About a dozen new Lenca communities have recently joined the 200-plus communities already united in protecting their territories, waters, communities, and rights from the government and multinational corporations."

Honduran government, narcos, and dams: eco-activist mayor Omar Suazo arrested after surviving an assassination attempt  5/14/2017 Garifunaweb: Summary of the Omar Suazo case - "An eco-activist and singer in the Garifuna tradition, Omar "Babakle" Suazo is mayor of Sambo Creek, a largely Garifuna town in Honduras. In the early hours of Monday May 8th, he was assaulted by a group of special agents and thrown to the ground face down while one stabbed him 4 times in the back. The attackers were shouting genocidal slogans, "Death to the Garifuna." An onlooker opened fire, killing the man stabbing Suazo and wounding at least one other. Regular police then arrived and arrested Omar Suazo for murder. He has been in jail ever since, in a private cell which may not shield him from additional attempts on his life."

Caso de Omar Suazo, alcalde de Sambo Creek, pospuesto durante dos meses mientras permanece en la cárcel, expuesto a nuevos intentos de asesinato  5/13/2017 GarifunaWeb: "La audiencia del viernes 12 de mayo estuvo acompañada por muchos manifestantes que vinieron de las ciudades afectadas por las presas propuestas. El éxito de Omar en parar estos proyectos de la presa se cree extensamente ser la razón por la cual el intento fue hecho para matarlo, como se puede ver de los signos que llevaron."

Case of Omar Suazo, mayor of the Garifuna town of Sambo Creek, postponed for two months while he remains in jail, exposed to further assassination attempts  5/13/2017 GarifunaWeb: "The hearings on Friday May 12th were attended by many demonstrators who came from the towns affected by proposed dams. Omar's success in stopping these dam projects is widely believed to be the reason why the attempt was made to kill him, as can be seen from the signs they carried."

Stop The Murder Of Environmental Defenders In Latin America  5/10/2017 Huff Post: "In the early hours of 22 October 2015 a group of? thirty heavily-armed soldiers, police and civilians forced their way into Ana Miriam Romero’s home, drew their guns ?and beat her and her sister-in-law Rosaura. Both women were heavily pregnant at the time. Ana Miriam spent 11 ?days in hospital recovering. Her unborn child survived, but Rosaura lost her baby. Ana Miriam Romero was the 2016 recipient of the Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk. She had taken a stand against the illegal construction of the Los Encinos hydroelectric dam on her community’s land."

Intento de asesinato de Omar Suazo, presidente del Patronato de Sambo Creek  5/9/2017 GarifunaWeb: "Anoche unos policias especiales trataron de matar a Omar Suazo, presidente del Patronato de Sambo Creek, un pueblo fuertamente garifuna en la costa caribeña de Honduras. Eso ocurio en público, frente a muchos testigos, en Sambo Creek: los agentes de la policia pusieron a Omar con su cara abajo en el suelo mientras que le estaban apuñalando en la espalda. Estaban gritando que todo los garifunas tenian que morir. Uno de los agentes, quien estaba apuñalandolo a Omar, fue matado con una tira de arma por un espectador -- el nombre del difunto es Jose Leonardo Villafranca Mejia. Un otro agente fue herido. Omar Suazo fue entonces arrestado por la policía regular y acusado del asesinato del hombre que le había estado apuñalando en la espalda. A pena una semana atras, Omar Suazo derrotó un otro intento mas de construir una represa en los ríos de Sambo Creek. Fuentes cerca de la defensa piensan que lo mas probable es que se trata en ese evento de los derechos de agua que Omar Suazo defendio durantes muchos años, con exito, igual que Berta Cáceres. El ultimo tentativo involucro al gobierno de Honduras y la organization JICA, the Japan International Cooperation Agency."

Honduras: A Country that Prioritizes Profit over Indigenous Rights  5/4/2017 COHA: "Since 2013, two hydroelectric dam projects have been installed illegally on indigenous land, after the Honduran authorities neglected to inform local communities about the harmful impact that these projects were bringing with them. In 2013, the mayor of the Santa Elena municipality, Alexis Ventura, allowed the company Encinos to explore the area. In turn, this led indigenous groups to organize protest efforts to block the project[i]. The dam project would represent a clear threat to rural communities and it would also affect the local water supply."

Berta Is Dead, but the Movement She Started Lives  4/7/2017 Truth Out: "On September 30, 2016, the State Department certified that government of Honduras is making improvements in human rights, thus allowing 50% of 2016 US aid to be released. (Please ask your congressperson to support the Berta Caceres Human Rights Act, calling for military and police aid to be cut until the Honduran government improves its record.) That was a flashing green light for the Honduran government to increase its brutality. Predictably, more murders, assaults, and arrests of indigenous and rural activists have followed."

La Ceiba pierde donación de represa que iba a ser construido por Japón  3/4/2017 La Prensa, Honduras: "Nos oponemos porque ese proyecto nos va a afectar el medio ambiente y una pequeña represa que tiene la comunidad en el río, de lo cual nos abastecemos de agua potable. No nos dejará nada solo daños", manifestó Omar Suazo, presidente del patronato de la comunidad garífuna de Sambo."

Berta Cáceres court papers show murder suspects' links to US-trained elite troops  2/28/2017 The Guardian: "Leaked court documents raise concerns that the murder of the Honduran environmentalist Berta Cáceres was an extrajudicial killing planned by military intelligence specialists linked to the country’s US–trained special forces, a Guardian investigation can reveal."

Organizations call on the World Bank to Protect Indigenous Rights  2/14/2017 Coalition for Human Rights in Development: "The resettled communities lack land titles and adequate land for grazing, do not have essential infrastructure, and have not been provided with arrangements for livelihood restoration or benefit-sharing. The project is co-financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB), the French Development Agency (Agence Française de Développement – AFD), the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the Development Bank of Germany (Kreditanstalt für iederaufbau – KfW)."

Honduran politicians, US aid implicated in killings of environmentalists  2/1/2017 Monga Bay: "An investigation by NGO Global Witness finds Honduras has one of the one of the world's highest levels of violence against environmental activists, with more than 120 killed since 2010. • Investigators say government corruption surrounding development projects like dams, mines, and oil palm plantations are largely to blame. • Their report also highlights international finance institutions as playing a role in conflicts surrounding hydroelectric projects, as well as U.S. aid to Honduran military and police forces, which have been implicated in numerous human rights violations in the country."

Honduras: the deadliest country in the world for environmental activism  1/31/2017 Global Witness: "More than 120 people have died since 2010, according to Global Witness research. The victims were ordinary people who took a stand against dams, mines, logging or agriculture on their land –murdered by state forces, security guards or hired assassins. Countless others have been threatened, attacked or imprisoned."

Honduras elites blamed for violence against environmental activists  1/31/2017 The Guardian, UK: "High-ranking politicians and business tycoons are implicated in a wave of violence against environmental activists in Honduras, according to an investigation by the anti-corruption group Global Witness, which says the country’s elites are using criminal methods to terrorize communities with impunity."

A punto de perderse construcción de represa donada por Japón  10/24/2016 La Prensa: "El alcalde Carlos Aguilar y técnicos del Sanaa tratan de convencer a los vecinos de Corinto y Sambo Creek. Fotos: Samuel Zelaya El alcalde Carlos Aguilar y técnicos del Sanaa tratan de convencer a los vecinos de Corinto y Sambo Creek. Fotos: Samuel Zelaya La Ceiba, Honduras. Las autoridades municipales y del Servicio Nacional de Acueductos y Alcantarillados (Sanaa) tienen hasta el 30 de noviembre para gestionar el permiso ambiental para la construcción de la represa Cuyamel en la comunidad de Corinto. La obra será financiada por el Gobierno de Japón, que ya tiene los fondos, pero no puede empezar. El atraso está en que los habitantes de las comunidades de Sambo Creek y Corinto se oponen porque aseguran que afectará el ambiente y secará el río Cuyamel. Sin embargo, los japoneses hicieron los estudios de factibilidad y concluyeron que no dañará la naturaleza de la zona."

Attempts to disappear Garifuna people  7/18/2016 Latin America Press: "“The Garifuna people have suffered two displacements and they are now facing another one for living in the coasts that are so coveted by national and transnational capital,” explains Miriam Miranda, coordinator of the Black Fraternal Organization of Honduras (OFRANEH), which defends the rights of the Garifuna communities."

Abaimahani de mujeres Garifunas en Sambo Creek contra represa río Cuyamel  7/14/2016 OFRANEH: "La defensa de los bienes comunes es esencial para la sobrevivencia del pueblo Garífuna. La pretención de la Municipalidad de Ceiba de apropiarse de la cuenca hidrográfica del río Cuyamel, con el pretexto de la destrucción premeditada del río Danto -fuente primordial de agua para la Ceiba- ha colocado en alerta a la comunidad de Sambo que ha padecido de aproximadamente de cinco intentos de apropiación del río desde la década pasada."

In the Aftermath of the Murder of Berta Cáceres: Squashing Indigenous Resistance and Discrediting International Observers in Honduras  7/12/2016 Counterpunch: “The Indigenous peoples were highly disciplined and resistant…They were the most firm on the journey. They have resources that the rest do not have: their long history of resistance.”

Honduras: Gustavo Castro Soto and the Rigged Investigation into Berta Cáceres’ Assassination  3/23/2016 Upside Down World: "The sole eyewitness to Honduran social movement leader Berta Cáceres’ assassination on March 3, 2016 has gone from being wounded victim to, effectively, political prisoner. Now Gustavo Castro Soto may also be framed as the murderer of his long-time friend."

In Honduras The Killing Of Environmentalists Continues  3/22/2016 WBEZ, Chicago: "In Honduras, less than two weeks after the murder of human rights activist and environmentalist Berta Caceres, someone from the same indigenous group has been killed. Nelson Garcia was shot four times in the face in the Rio Chiquito community. His killing is the latest of a string of assassinations of indigenous and other political activists in Honduras who’ve opposed multinational corporate projects such as the Agua Zarca Dam."

Another environmental activist, Nelson García, is murdered in Honduras  3/21/2016 Treehugger: "Mere days after the murder of celebrity activist Berta Cáceres, a fellow member of her group was shot and killed for his participation in the same environmental group."

Dutch bank suspends Honduran hydro scheme after second activist murdered  3/21/2016 Global Construction Review: "The Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) has suspended $86m worth of projects in Honduras after the murder of two activists who opposed a project it was sponsoring."

Another Environmental Activist Slain in Honduras  3/21/2016 Nonprofit Quarterly: "Last week, another environmental activist in Honduras was brutally murdered outside of his home, less than two weeks after the death of renowned activist Berta Cáceres. Like Cáceres, 39-year-old Nelson Garcia was a member of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH). The shooting came following the evacuation of approximately 150 families from the settled community of Rio Chiquito."

Murder of mother linked to ‘green’ bank, mining companies and Hillary Clinton  3/14/2016 The Canary 

For Indigenous Peoples, Megadams Are ‘Worse than Colonization’  3/14/2016 Foreign Policy in Focus: "The power and resource grab going on throughout Latin America has roots stretching back to Spanish colonization. The river Gualcarque — with its deep spiritual significance for the Lenca people — was famously defended against Spanish invaders by indigenous resistance leader and hero, El Lempira. Although the form has evolved, the struggle against powerful foreign forces in the region has continued to this day."

Honduras: the White River, dyed with indigenous blood  3/14/2016 Open Democracy: "The murder of Berta Cáceres, a high-profile opponent of a hydroelectric project in Honduras, confirms the perverse connection between a private company, Chinese capital and the absolute contempt of local communities’ life."

Demonstrators demand Canadian government speak up for murdered Indigenous activist  3/14/2016 Rabble Canada: "The coalition of civil societies leading the demonstration demanded that the Canadian government, which entered into a Free Trade Agreement with Honduras in 2013, condemn the murder. An open letter signed by over 80 organizations from across Canada demanding an independent international investigation involving the Inter- American Commission on Human Rights was also delivered to ministry clerks. NDP members Hélène Laverdière, critic for foreign affairs and Cheryl Hardcastle, part of the Subcommittee for International Human Rights, were two of the signatories. "Change happens when citizens ban together and demand it," said Katarina Kahnert-Wolchak, a member of The Delta Now, a grassroots group led by students out of York University working in Solidarity with Honduran Indigenous-Garifuna communities on genocide and land rights issues."

Oxfam launches public campaign demanding company backers pull out of Honduran dam project  3/14/2016 Oxfam: "Oxfam supporters around the world are pressuring the backers of the Agua Zarca dam project in Honduras to withdraw, and demand an independent investigation into the murder of a local Indigenous leader who opposed the project."

Honduras: Hay indicios para dar con asesinos de Berta Cáceres  3/12/2016 teleSUR: "Las autoridades informaron que todas las líneas de investigación planteadas para el esclarecimiento de los hechos y responsabilidades se encuentran abiertas."

Drugs, Dams, and Power: The Murder of Honduran Activist Berta Cáceres  3/11/2016 The Intercept: "Cáceres told her she was being “seriously harassed” by three local politicians who she believed were acting at the behest of Desarrollos Energéticos, SA (DESA), the private energy company behind the Agua Zarca dam. DESA is partially controlled by the controversial Honduran Atala family, whose members are involved in a variety of business ventures and suspected by many of having backed the 2009 coup. Best known among them is billionaire Camilo Atala, president of Banco Ficohsa, a regional bank that in 2014 acquired most of Citibank’s assets in the region, making it the largest bank in Honduras."

Hidroeléctricas: Berta Cáceres, en el Día de la Mujer  3/8/2016 La Estrella, Panama: "La mataron los que no defienden el ambiente, los que miran para otro lado, los que se prestan para realizar, pagar y abalar estudios de impacto ambiental ilícitos, los que firmaron esos contratos cobrando a los concesionarios privados el uso de nuestro recurso hídrico nacional a unos vergonzosos 0.0000383 de centavos por metro cúbico, los que se reparten y aceptan coimas, los que abusan de su autoridad, los que financian los proyectos, los que se repartieron las concesiones como barajas para jugar ‘Péscalo', el que calla, el que no denuncia, el que no sanciona, el que construye las hidroeléctricas destruyendo ríos, el que no custodia nuestro patrimonio arqueológico, aquel al que no le duele que dejen como caudal ecológico un mísero 10 %; dejando sedientas las piedras, el que defiende las hidroeléctricas sabiendo que ya no son rentables, el que no hace buen uso de la electricidad y las despilfarra, el que no dice ¡basta ya!"

Berta Cáceres: Denouncing the structures of terror  3/7/2016 Huff Post: by Eric Holt Gimenez, Executive Director, Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy - "The point of terror, of course, is to immobilize people with fear. It is used to send a message to the peasant and indigenous communities being brutally displaced by the expansion of sugar cane, palm oil and soy plantations, by dams and by land speculators. The message is simple: do not resist."

Alerta: manipulación de investigación en el crimen contra Bertita  3/5/2016 Pasos de animal grande: "La Plataforma de Movimientos Sociales y Populares de Honduras (PMSPH) y la Coalición Contra la Impunidad (CI), en relación al asesinato Bertha Cáceres, ALERTA a la comunidad nacional e internacional sobre los siguientes extremos."

Who Killed Berta Cáceres?  3/4/2016 Huff Post: "But we need to call out the actors who share a moral responsibility for the murder of our friend and partner: • the Honduran government, which leads the country with the world's worst track record of environmental killings, and which did not protect Berta Cáceres even though it had been ordered to do so by the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights; • the dam builder, Desarrollos Energéticos S. A (DESA), which has close contacts with the country's security forces and has orchestrated an intimidation campaign against Berta Cáceres in recent months; • and finally, the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), FMO, Finnfund and Voith-Siemens, the funders and corporations which underwrite the Agua Zarca Project with their loans and equipment contracts."

Murder of activist Berta Cáceres sparks violent clashes in Honduras  3/4/2016 The Guardian: "The police initially reported the case as an attempted robbery, but the victim’s family believe the killing was an assassination ordered by people behind the dam project. Cáceres and other members of the group she founded – the Council of Indigenous Peoples of Honduras (Copinh) – have been in conflict with the operators Desa, the local mayor, police and soldiers. Last week, members of the group were detained and threatened, Copinh said in a statement."

Honduran Indigenous Leader Berta Cáceres Assassinated, Won Goldman Environmental Prize  3/3/2016 Democracy Now: "According to Global Witness, Honduras has become the deadliest country in the world for environmentalists. Between 2010 and 2014, 101 environmental campaigners were killed in the country. In 2015 Berta Cáceres won the Goldman Environmental Prize, the world’s leading environmental award. In awarding the prize, the Goldman Prize committee said, “In a country with growing socioeconomic inequality and human rights violations, Berta Cáceres rallied the indigenous Lenca people of Honduras and waged a grassroots campaign that successfully pressured the world’s largest dam builder to pull out of the Agua Zarca Dam."

Murdered While She Slept: Shocking Death of Berta Cáceres, Indigenous Leader and Activist  3/3/2016 Indian Country: "Cáceres was the Director of the National Council of Indigenous and Popular Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), which has been in the forefront of protests against the dam being constructed by the DESA Company of Honduras. Cáceres and other activists assert that the Agua Zarca project would cause great harm to the Lenca community known as Rio Blanco through displacement of the people and environmental damage to an area considered sacred by the Lenca. In a press statement from 2013 Cáceres outlined the reasons for the protests. “There is a displacement of the population that has traditionally lived on those lands, practically an eviction,” Cáceres said. “...DESA [of Honduras] and SINOHYDRO (a transnational Chinese hydroelectric project builder no longer involved in the project) have exerted brutal pressure against the communities, with maneuvers such as co-opting leaders and the offering of bribes, and on the other hand repression, systematic harassment, and the occupation of the territory by the army, the police and security guards and gang members."

The Struggle Continues: Garifuna land defender shot in Honduras  12/6/2015 IC Magazine: "Leiva is president of the Land Defense Committee of Cristales and Rio Negro, two Indigenous Garifuna communities at either edge of the town of Trujillo, on the Caribbean coast of Honduras. He is also a candidate in the local elections later this month for the leadership of the community council (patronato) of Cristales and Rio Negro. The outspoken Garifuna land defender believes his three attackers were hired to kill him due to his involvement in the local struggle to recuperate and defend Garifuna lands. Collective lands belonging to Cristales and Rio Negro and to other Garifuna communities along the Trujillo Bay are being taken over by Canadian developers for tourism projects."

How Many More?  4/20/2015 Global Witness: "New report shows killings of environmental activists are increasing, with indigenous communities hardest hit. We shine a spotlight on Honduras - the most dangerous country to be an environmental defender."

Geothermal Development in Honduras  4/19/2015 Stanford University: "The main on-going activities related to geothermal development in Honduras are described. They will serve as lessons learned for potential public and private investors in this field. Description of development activities and update mapping of geothermal resource potential nationally, the activity is implemented altogether with the IDB and JICA which aims to capture the majority of geothermal areas in Honduras who are still in the phase of recognition." [JICA = Japan International Cooperation Agency ].

Priorizan construcción de represa para abastecer de agua a La Ceiba  11/23/2014 La Prensa: "Con la construcción de una represa en el río Cuyamel se solucionará el problema de los racionamientos de agua potable en esta ciudad durante el verano. Este embalse también servirá para la generación de energía hidroeléctrica. El proyecto, que ya fue priorizado por el Gobierno, tiene un costo de 303 millones de lempiras, su perfil ya fue entregado a la Agencia de Cooperación Internacional del Japón (Jica), la que ha ofrecido dar apoyo a la iniciativa." [No se habla nada de Sambo Creek, que seria eradicado por la represa.]

The Garífuna of Honduras and Belize: Land disputes and encroachments into indigenous territories in Central America  3/20/2014 The Violence of Development: "The communally-held titles grant the Garífuna communities rights to their area in perpetuity, and land may not be sold or transferred to owners outside the community. Not all of the Garífuna land titles, however, are recognised by the Honduran government, which in 1998 reformed the Constitution to permit foreigners to acquire land less than forty km. from the coast, an entitlement previously prohibited. The constitutional change prompted Garífuna fears that big hotel investors would push the Garífuna out of their homes. In 2004 Eva Thorne reported that in some cases these fears had been well-grounded."

Honduras Dam Project Shadowed by Violence  12/22/2013 Upside Down World: ""The army has an assassination list of 18 wanted human rights fighters with my name at the top. I want to live, there are many things I still want to do in this world but I have never once considered giving-up fighting for our territory, for a life with dignity, because our fight is legitimate. I take lots of care but in the end, in this country where there is total impunity I am vulnerable… when they want to kill me, they will do it." The threats, she told Al Jazeera at her home in the pine-covered mountains of La Esperanza, are from private security guards working for the dam company, as well as the police and army protecting the project."

Berta Cáceres Is Still Alive  10/20/2013 Truth Out: "Honduran authorities want Berta Cáceres in prison. Even more, they want her dead. Berta, as she is fondly known by her many friends in Honduras and beyond, is a Lenca indigenous woman, and one of the founding directors of the National Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH). She is now the face of social movement resistance in Honduras, which in recent months has seen an escalation of state repression against social movement leaders, indigenous peoples’ organizations, environmentalists, and political dissenters. She went into hiding on September 20. But as I write, against all odds, Berta Cáceres is still alive. COPINH, one of the strongest voices in Mesoamerica for the defense of indigenous peoples’ rights, was founded in the early 1990s to fight logging companies in the territories of the Lenca people. After decades of struggle, COPINH has expelled dozens of logging operations from Lenca territories, recovered over 100 indigenous communal land titles, and served as a critical voice in international forums advocating for the right of indigenous communities to give or withhold their binding consent to any megaprojects planned for their territories. Today, COPINH is struggling against a mega-complex of four large dams in the Gualcarque River basin, called the Agua Zarca dam project, being undertaken by a Chinese corporation called Sinohydro and a Honduran company called Desarrollos Energéticos S.A. (DESA)."

Honduras: Indigenous Peoples Ready to Mobilize Against Hydro Dams  10/29/2010 IntercontinentalCry: "Indigenous and Black Peoples from across Honduras have said they are ready to mobilize against 41 dam concessions which they say violate their rights, threaten the environment and endanger their communities. Representatives from several organizations and members of the Tulupanes, Pech, Miskito, Maya-Chortis, Lenca and Garifuna Peoples met from October 2-3, 2010 to discuss the current state of human rights and the environment in Honduras."

The Honduran Dam Controversy and Micheletti’s Legacy  2/20/2010 America's Quarterly: "Just before relinquishing power, Micheletti and the Congress rushed to approve a $160 million contract to operate and improve the José Cecilio del Valle Dam (better known as the Nacaome Dam). In January, the Honduran Congress sped through the process of granting the contract to a Honduran-Italian consortium. Then-President of the Congress, José Alfredo Saavedra, argued that Congress had recently fast-tracked laws, including the general amnesty passed in January, so the contract should not raise concerns. After the congressional vote, Roberto Micheletti signed the contract into law in his last cabinet meeting. Almost immediately after Micheletti left power and Congress changed hands, however, the contract came into question. Only days after President Porfirio Lobo took office, the new government placed a hold on the publication of the decree in the country’s official newspaper, La Gaceta. Two weeks later, however, it became clear that La Gaceta had published two versions for January 22, 2010, with the same issue number. One version contained 16 pages, with no mention of the dam contract; the other included an additional 16 pages covering the dam contract and the creation of a new government office of criminal investigation. To make matters worse, the office in charge of publishing La Gaceta, Empresa Nacional de Artes Gráficas (ENAG), apparently only published 20 copies of the second version, and then denied publishing them at all once these copies had disappeared."
 

Enlaces/Links

Berta Caceres, asesinada por el gobierno de Honduras

intercontinentalcry.org

www.facebook.com/SaveSarawakRivers

grassrootsonline.org

saveriversnet.blogspot.com

www.internationalrivers.org

Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos

www.facebook.com/reddedefensoras

www.afrocubaweb.com/sambo-creek.html

movimientom4.org, Mexico

chiriquinatural.blogspot.com, Panama

Problemáticas comunidades Garífunas en Honduras

Proyectos hidroeléctricos en Honduras
Centralamericadata.com

Represas Hidroelectricas de Honduras

Contactarriba

garifunawebmailatgmail.com

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