Democratically-elected government of President Xiomara Castro is trying to chart a new direction for Honduras, free from the exploitation, corruption and violence the traditional ruling elites and their partners in the U.S.-led “international community”
Rights Action recommends this solidarity delegation to Honduras sponsored by the Cross Border Network with the Honduras Solidarity Network (HSN), IFCLA St. Louis, IRTF Cleveland and the Task Force on the Americas to investigate the intervention by the U.S. and Canadian governments and the obstacles to democratic development.
The delegation will be led by Karen Spring: Co-coordinator of the Honduras Solidarity Network who has lived and worked in Honduras for over a decade and is the host of the Honduras Now podcast.
In 2021, the Honduran people in an overwhelming vote threw out the US-backed narco-dictatorship that had ruled since the 2009 coup. At last, the Honduran people hoped they could chart their own course, independent of both oligarchs and the U.S. But now after almost two years, the new government of Xiomara Castro is caught in a vice between the Honduran elites and foreign investors backed by the U.S. and its allies.
Why is it so hard for this Central American country to chart its own course without foreign interference?
Dates: January 3-11, 2024. Fly into and out of the new Comayagua/Palmerola international airport near Tegucigalpa (adjacent to the U.S. Soto Cano air base). Do not buy air tickets until you’re confirmed.
Cost (excluding airfare to and from Honduras): $1,530. $800 deposit with registration.
To Register: Fill out application at https://forms.gle/bc5znA93qWebTxdi8.
For questions: Email to info@crossbordernetwork.org
The minimum number of registrations by October 15 is 8 people for the delegation to go. The budget depends on how many over 8 people we recruit. If we get more, we will lower the price. Partial scholarships available to young activists.
Tentative Itinerary:
Guapinol and the Aguan Valley, a mining community devastated by extractive corporations and the campesinos defending their land against palm oil barons.
The Island of Roatan where we will
Meet with Garifuna and other communities that are defending their land against developers
Snatch some beach time too.
Choloma and Choluteca to explore the struggles of melon workers who pick fruit for export to the U.S. and talk to their union.
Tegucigalpa we will
Speak with STIBYS – the bottlers union about union busting by Pepsi
Hear about how the US has intervened in important reforms proposed by President Castro.
Investigate how foreign corporations made dirty deals with the narco-dictatorship to get gifts of territory called ZEDES (Zones of Economic Development and Employment) and are now suing Honduras under trade agreements for taking back its sovereign territory.
Meet with U.S. and Canadian embassy officials and Honduran government leaders to discuss what we’ve learned.
