A group of UN experts called on [7] Honduras Sept. 4 to immediately halt evictions of peasant, indigenous and Afro-descendant communities taking place under Decree No. 107-2026 [8], also known as the Law for the Strengthening and Protection of the Agro-Industrial Sector, Energy Projects, Tourism, Livestock & Small Agricultural Producers. The experts wrote: "We cannot stand by and watch the deliberate closing of every legal door through which a peasant, Indigenous or Afro-descendant family in Honduras can challenge dispossession."
The decree declares specified projects to be of "national interest," expedites administrative procedures, and directs authorities to act against occupations and blockades. It states that it does not apply in recognized indigenous territories without free, prior and informed consultation. The experts nonetheless argued that the law could allow companies to obtain land cultivated by cooperatives and local farmers without agrarian review or adequate consideration of ancestral territorial claims.
The experts also warned that the decree could conflict with Honduras' obligation to respect, protect and fulfill the right to food [10]. They said dispossessing communities of land essential to their food security would undermine access to productive resources.
They especially condemned [7] evictions carried out by Honduran authorities on July 6, including an operation affecting the Garífuna community of San Juan in Tela municipality on the Caribbean coast. According to Amnesty International [11], five members of the Black Fraternal Organization of Honduras were arrested during the operation and now face charges of "aggravated usurpation" related to their defense of the community’s ancestral territory. The operation followed a 2023 judgment [12] in which the Inter-American Court of Human Rights found Honduras responsible for failing to guarantee the San Juan community's collective-property and related rights, and ordered the state to take measures to title, delimit and demarcate territory for the community, and provide reparations.
The experts urged the Honduran government to halt any further evictions and consult affected communities on outstanding land claims before proceeding with additional eviction orders. They also called on authorities to investigate violence against the Garífuna community and urged companies involved in business activities in Honduras to implement human rights due diligence [13] and prevent and mitigate risks to local communities and human rights defenders.
From JURIST [14], Sept. 6. Used with permission.
