HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE CONSIDERS REPORT OF HONDURAS

The Human Rights Committee has considered the initial report of Honduras on how that State party is implementing the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

J. Delmer Urbizo Panting, the Permanent Representative of Honduras to the United Nations Office at Geneva, introduced the delegation and expressed the hope that the Committee would appreciate the wide-ranging efforts undertaken by the Honduran Government to promote human rights in Honduras, in particular with regard to the most vulnerable members of the society.

Introducing the report, Milton Jimenéz Puerto, Minister of Foreign Relations of Honduras, highlighted a number of measures undertaken by the new Honduran Government, including the creation of a unified register for detainees; the establishment of human rights training for those involved in the administration of justice; the reform of the civil and criminal codes of procedure; the strengthening of the institution of the public ministry; reparations payments for victims of human rights violations and their families; reform of the penitentiary system; and the full pardon granted to over 900 persons deprived of their liberty. In addition, Honduras was committed to recognizing the rights of the indigenous population and other minorities, and was putting in place mechanisms to ensure their rights.

In preliminary concluding remarks, Christine Chanet, Committee Chairperson, thanked the delegation and said that it was obvious that there was genuine political will to improve the status of women in Honduras, an example of which was the hotline set up for women victims of violence. She drew attention, however, to the issue of enforced disappearances. The delegation had pointed out that Honduras did not have the necessary legal structure to address all forced disappearances issues, and the same applied to extrajudicial executions. While that might be true, nevertheless there were actions that could be taken and without investigations no headway could be made.

Other Committee Experts raised questions and asked for further information on subjects pertaining to, among other things, reports that people were rounded up en masse for “looking suspicious”; attacks on human rights defenders; the situation of street children; gender equality in the social sphere, in particular regarding nationality and inheritance rights; and whether women had the right to family planning. Of particular concern to Experts was the high rate of murders of women in Honduras and the apparent impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of such crimes, as well as the lack of prosecutions in the 183 registered cases of forced disappearances.
The Committee reviewed the report of Honduras over three meetings and it will issue its formal, written concluding observations and recommendations on the report towards the end of its session, which will conclude on 3 November 2006.

The Honduran delegation which presented the report also included Selma Estrada de Uclés, Director of the National Institute of Women, and Doris García, Director of the Honduran Institute of Children and the Family, as well as representatives of the Public Prosecutors Office, the Ministry of Governance and Justice, the Ministry of Education, the Supreme Court, the Special Prosecutor for Human Rights, the Ministry of the Interior, the National Agrarian Institute, and the Permanent Mission of Honduras to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Honduras is among the 159 States parties to the International Covenant and as such it is obligated to submit reports on its performance aimed at implementing the provisions of the treaty. It is also one of the 107 States parties to the Optional Protocol to the Covenant.

When the Committee reconvenes in public at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, 18 October, it is scheduled to begin its consideration of the initial report of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CCPR/C/BIH/1).

Report of Honduras

The initial report of Honduras (CCPR/C/HND/2005/1) says that, generally speaking, the country’s laws are not characterized by a gender focus. However, women’s rights have recently been recognized. In particular, the Government has enacted the Equal Opportunity for Women Act, which promotes participation by women in decision-making within the power structure. Still, men continue to predominate both nationally and locally. In the last six elections, 152 of the successful candidates were women, while 1,304 were men. With regard to violence against children, approximately 800 young people under the age of 18 were murdered in Honduras between 1998 and 2003 and most of the perpetrators have not been apprehended. In May 2002, President Maduro established a Commission for the Physical and Moral Protection of Children, which has adopted a number of measures including, in 2002, a Special Investigation Unit on Violent Child Deaths. The Special Unit determined that, of the 300 cases of child killings reported in 2002, 74 were linked to gang violence. Of those 74 cases, 43 are currently before the courts, 9 are in the hands of the Office of the Public Prosecutor, and 22 are being investigated.

With regard to criminal justice, in Honduras it is unlawful to commit or to encourage or permit any act of torture, mistreatment or other form of cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment either at the time of arrest or during detention. Inmates are entitled to prompt access to physicians and lawyers to assess, assist and defend them and also receive visits from friends and family. Persons responsible for law enforcement are all provided in the course of their training with full information about the prohibition of torture and other unlawful forms of treatment. In addition, the Preventive Services Directorate operates a penitentiary training centre to train penitentiary personnel in issues of security and other aspects of the penitentiary system. When the Code of Criminal Procedure came into force in February 2002, the inquisitorial system previously in use was replaced by an adversarial system permeated by the concept of respect for human rights.

Presentation of Report

J. DELMER URBIZO PANTING, Permanent Representative of Honduras to the United Nations Office at Geneva, introducing the Honduran delegation, expressed the hope that the delegation’s presentation would enable the Committee to appreciate the wide-ranging efforts undertaken by the Honduran Government to promote human rights in Honduras, in particular with regard to the most vulnerable members of the society.

MILTON JIMENÉZ PUERTO, Minister of Foreign Relations of Honduras, presenting the report, recalled that Honduras had ratified several international legal instruments, such as the Inter-American Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities; the Inter-American Convention on the Forced Disappearance of Persons; and the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture. He also drew attention to the recent visits to Honduras made by Working Groups of the Human Rights Council Rights Council – on arbitrary detention, and on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights.

Mr. Jimenéz Puerto highlighted a number of measures undertaken by the new Honduran Government, including the creation of a unified register for detainees; the establishment of human rights training for those involved in the administration of justice; the reform of the civil and criminal codes of procedure; the strengthening of the institution of the public ministry; reparations payments for victims of human rights violations and their families; reform of the penitentiary system; and the full pardon granted to over 900 persons deprived of their liberty. Honduras was committed to recognizing the rights of the indigenous populations and other minorities, and was putting in place mechanisms to ensure their rights. Today there was no State policy that formed the basis for human rights violations, as had been the case in the past, and the Honduran Government would continue to foster a culture of respect and promotion of human rights.

Constitutional and Legal Framework for Implementation of the Covenant

Responding to the written list of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of the initial report of Honduras (CCPR/C/HND/Q/1), the delegation of Honduras underscored that, under the Constitution, international legal instruments, once ratified, became part of the domestic law and had precedence over domestic legislation, being subordinate only to the Constitution itself. In concrete terms, the Covenant could be directly invoked in the courts.

Regarding the disappearance of 183 persons, which was registered in the report of the National Office for Human Rights in 1993, the delegation said that the Public Prosecutor was proceeding with exhumations in a number of those cases. One difficulty in the investigations was that identification of the victim was a necessary prerequisite in Honduran law for any criminal prosecution to be carried out. Some 68 skeletons were currently being analysed for identification. A team of forensic experts to assist in this procedure was due to arrive in Honduras at the end of October.

There was no State policy that allowed for or gave rise to forced disappearances. Indeed, the delegation underscored, Honduras had ratified the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearances. No authority in Honduras was above the law or able to flout human rights with impunity.

Equality Between the Sexes; Non-Discrimination

With regard to measures undertaken to prevent and combat discrimination against women, the delegation stressed that in the past few years, on all levels, doors had been opened to the participation of women’s organizations. The Honduran Family Code – a pioneer in this area in Latin America – recognized the rights of women, in particular with regard to matters of inheritance and child custody.

Right to Life and Prohibition of Torture

Responding to the issue of juvenile violence and how to prevent extrajudiciary executions of children, in particular street children and adolescents who belonged to economically vulnerable groups, the delegation emphasized that there was no Government policy to eradicate socially or politically undesirable elements of society. Because it had given rise to so many problems, the old policy of zero tolerance for the youth gangs (maras) had been abandoned.

Certainly it was necessary to prohibit criminal activity, but it was also necessary to give children alternatives instead of just punishing them, the delegation insisted. It was necessary to attack the root causes that fostered the existence of youth gangs. In that connection, prevention programmes and programmes for rehabilitation of offenders were indispensable in addressing the influence of youth gangs. In the capital alone, there were some 16,000 children who neither worked nor went to school. The Constitution provided for free primary education for all; but the fact was that often schools, which were underfunded, asked families to pay for enrolment and some families could not afford to pay. For that reason, the Government had instituted a programme to pay all school fees, which had seen a 20 per cent increase in school enrolment as a result.

Prohibition of Slavery and Forced Labour

The delegation underscored that the criminal code specifically prohibited commercial sexual exploitation, and an inter-institutional commission to prevent sexual exploitation of children and adolescents had also been created. The commission also addressed the issue of trafficking and had a special division to implement policies to combat child pornography.

Personal Safety and Protection Against Arbitrary Detention

Responding to the reported practice of arbitrary detentions and, in particular, that persons from certain groups – in particular members of youth gangs – had in the past been arrested en masse on the grounds that they “appeared suspicious”, the delegation stated that, in the past, preventive detention was the norm for youth gang members. Today, judges were required to look at all the factors in a particular case and not to automatically assign preventive detention. However, the delegation specified that no alternatives to detention were possible in cases involving drug trafficking or money laundering.

On the issue of prison conditions and treatment of prisoners or detainees, the delegation pointed out that torture was defined in the Honduran criminal code, and that Honduras was a party to the Convention against Torture. The Government had officially recognized that ill-treatment in prisons and detention centres was a problem. Admittedly, there had even been cases where the Government had had to pay compensation to citizens who had been held for as long as 7 years in preventive detention. Nevertheless, such treatment was not a part of State policy and all perpetrators of inhuman or degrading treatment or torture were criminally liable for their actions.

Oral Questions by Committee Experts

Committee Experts then asked various questions and made comments on a number of topics, including what measures were being taken to overcome delays in reporting; reports that people were rounded up en masse for “looking suspicious”; what measures were being taken to address institutional problems in the police and the military; what was being done to protect human rights defenders, given the information received that human rights defenders had been targeted and killed to stop them from carrying out their work; what was being done to help street children; what was the status of the black population of Honduras; and what were the statistics on female enrolment in education.

On women’s rights, an Expert asked about gender equality in the civil society sphere, for example, regarding transmission of nationality and inheritance rights; whether the prohibition against abortion was absolute in Honduras, even in cases of incest and rape; and whether women had the right to family planning. He also remarked on the high rate of violent killings of women and the seeming impunity the perpetrators of such crimes enjoyed, given the very low rate of prosecutions for such crimes. Also of concern was the heavy burden of proof that had to be overcome in domestic violence cases.

In particular with regard to forced disappearances and abductions, an Expert expressed concern about the requirement that victims be identified before prosecution could be undertaken. What did this mean in such cases? And what was the application of such a rule in cases where no bodies were ever found?

Response by Delegation to Oral Questions

The delegation reaffirmed that torture was no longer part of State policy in Honduras. Regarding impunity, it was clear: the present Administration would not tolerate lies under any circumstances. Whenever it was clear that there were threats against human rights defenders, the Government had stepped in and protected them. For example, in the case of Father Andrés Tamayo, who had been working in the country for environmental causes, he been granted Honduran citizenship in recognition of his work. He had received many death threats, but the Government had undertaken all necessary action to protect him.

Regarding the death of Germán Antonio Rivas, a journalist and owner of a television station who was reporting on the environmental consequences of mining, the delegation said that there were questions surrounding that death, but no direct link to his environmental work had been established. In that connection, the previous policy that had allowed for open pit mining, which caused numerous environmental and health concerns, was not supported by the current Administration. They were looking to revise that law, and the position of the Executive was clear: there would be no more concessions for open pit mining.

In terms of enforced disappearances, the delegation said that there was de facto impunity for the perpetrators, given that there had been no successful prosecutions for that offence. Some of the difficulties the authorities were facing were, first, that there had been no specific criminal offence of forced disappearance in the Criminal Code, and investigations had been undertaken under other, similar offences, such as abduction. That had led to the necessity of identification of the victim, which was part of the elements of the other crimes. The authorities were currently working on the forensic investigation of the bones that had been found and on the legal details of establishing enforced disappearance as a specific crime, which would help in the future investigations.

Honduras had 7 million people and 23 detention centres housing 11,000 people who had been deprived of their liberty. In that context, the delegation said that arbitrary detentions had taken place, and people had been detained on the basis of suspicion alone. That had largely been a response to the serious problems of criminal activity and prevalence of gangs. There was a new national police, and they had new directives. There had never been a law that allowed detention on mere suspicion, but it was a gradual process to change the old practices. Gradually the authorities were correcting the violations of Constitutional law that had occurred in the past.

Concerning the use of firearms and other weapons by the police, there was a clear directive that firearms could only be used in self-defence. That was true for other weapons, such as tear gas, as well. Several members of the police had been taken off the force for abuse of that directive, and 600 police had been prosecuted, some under the old system. Some 140 policemen were currently in detention centres as a result of investigations.

Regarding human trafficking, some individuals involved in those networks had been identified and had fled the country. Honduras had bilateral agreements with a number of Latin American and Caribbean countries on this topic.

A draft penitentiary act was still under discussion. It was in a draft form now, and frankly it was not ideal. The delegation stressed that the authorities would work to ensure that the considerations raised by various bodies, such as this Committee, would be incorporated in that new law.

On women’s equality in the civilian sphere, the delegation noted that the Constitution provided for such equality. Honduran citizenship could be transmitted by both the mother and the father. One quarter of a spouse’s legacy would go to the surviving spouse by law, regardless of whether there was a will or not. That was true for both sexes. In marriages, there were different regimes for the separation of the assets of the couple in cases of divorce, for example, if they had signed an agreement in that regard. Under the general regime, each party received the assets they brought with them into the marriage.

On the topic of ethnic groups, the delegation mentioned that there was special sensitivity in Honduras in this area. The programme “Our Roots” addressed the cultural rights of minorities. But the rights of minorities and the indigenous to social equality, the right to food, for example, were also important. The delegation said that those rights would need to be targeted in the future.

There were a number of different penitentiary models being considered in the context of reform. The delegation said that the present prison conditions were sub-human, often without bedding – which had been converted by prisoners into weapons. There was also the problem of overcrowding as well as leaking ceilings and deteriorating building structures, and lack of potable water and other necessary sanitary services. The authorities were working to provide humane conditions by limiting the number of prisoners and renovating buildings. They were also addressing the problems faced by particular groups of prisoners, for example those with HIV/AIDS, not least by raising awareness among the guards to foster greater tolerance for them. Training on detention matters was also now required for all police officers.

Turning to issues of juvenile justice, the delegation wished to recall that in Honduras there were 2.5 million children under the age of 15. There were 153 juvenile centres throughout the country, with 3,911 children in care of the National Institute of Childhood and the Family. The Institute had three programmes: community development; social intervention and protection; and re-education and insertion. Measures to improve the quality of life in the juvenile centres had focused on living conditions and to set up working programmes for re-education and insertion back into society. Three centres were currently being remodelled. The budgets were insufficient, so they were focusing on how to improve conditions through better management. One of the centres had completely resolved its water problem, as well as problems with light and electricity. Nutritional requirements and health, including psychological health, were areas that were also being worked on.


The right of free association was guaranteed by the Constitution and, in the case of trade unions, was regulated by the Labour Code. There were 496 trade unions in Honduras of different types. The problems that sometimes occurred in registering a trade union appeared to be due to the issues brought by trade unions or workers among themselves, the delegation felt. The actual registration process was rather quick.

Regarding the issue of combating children’s sexual exploitation, the Government had trained 734 employees of the judiciary – including police, judges, prosecutors – with assistance from various non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations such as Save the Children, the International Organization for Migration, UNESCO and the International Labour Organization. The delegation drew attention to the annual report on trafficking issued by the Department of State of the United States. In 2004, Honduras was listed in category 2 of that report – a category that was essentially a watch list of countries where the problem of trafficking was recognized, but only minimal efforts were being made to address it. Now, in the 2006 report, Honduras was off the watch list and the efforts it was undertaking to address that crime had been acknowledged.

Rights of the Child and Minority Rights

Regarding steps planned to ensure birth registration nationwide, especially in rural areas and indigenous communities, a programme for mobile registration sent units to remote areas to provide for registration. In conjunction, there was a joint public awareness campaign with UNICEF that had been launched to explain the benefits and why it was necessary to register babies. The campaign had reached a large number of unregistered children. In addition, the delegation pointed out that 14 new registration centres had been opened in rural areas. The Institute of Childhood was looking to set up a national information database on children and families, which would help both to facilitate programmes and give a better picture of the issues that needed to be addressed in the area of children and families.

On minority rights, the delegation affirmed that access to land was a basic right for people of indigenous origin and for the Garifuna peoples. To further that right, the National Agrarian Institute had developed a mechanism to handle complaints by those of indigenous or African descent. The delegation underscored that ancestral deeds had by and large been recognized. Only the deed of the Suyapa Indians had not been recognized, as that group had not been able to produce documentation. Special agreements had also been signed with the Garifuna peoples, which were not based on ancestral deeds or communal rights, but were individual land grants. Indeed, there were a number of cases that could be cited that showed favourable settlements regarding claims by indigenous communities.

With regard to bilingual education, the delegation observed that Honduras had set up a national education programme for indigenous peoples, including some seven basic indigenous languages and Spanish. The Government was training teachers to provide for the various communities in minority areas and for Garifuna communities. Some 16 community centres for primary and pre-school programmes had been opened. Workshops and seminars had been launched as well to provide follow up to the programme.

Further Oral Questions Posed by Experts

Committee Members then asked other questions and made comments on varied topics, including whether there existed an administrative oversight body for the judiciary; what were the reasons for the delays in criminal cases, in particular involving requests for amparo; access to lawyers and families for minors who were detained; what was the role of the National Institute of the Family regarding minors who were not under parental care; in cases where land was returned to indigenous owners, how were the conflicting land ownership claims resolved; what protections did workers who were not members of trade unions enjoy; and whether there was there any connection between a lack of birth registration and street children.

An Expert asked about age discrimination in the labour market, and wondered, with regard to indigenous peoples and the Garifuna, whether it was Constitutionally possible to have affirmative action policies to address their situation.

One Expert asked for details about the National Commission on Human Rights, how members were chosen and how it was run.

Another Expert welcomed the Supreme Court decision that had required the State to address the urgent situation of overcrowding in prisons. He was concerned, however, that the police and the judicial authorities remained in charge of both pre-trial and prison detention. He hoped that the Government would consider putting another body in charge of pre-trial and prison detention.

Response by Delegation

Responding to these and other questions, the delegation said that, according to law, the Judicial Council was supposed to be established, but in fact the Council had never been set up and its oversight functions were filled by the Supreme Court.

Regarding the selection of judges in the appeals court, that was done with a great deal of openness and flexibility, the delegation said.

Responding to a query about the National Human Rights Commission, the delegation noted that it was established in 1992 by Executive decree. In 1994 it was recognized constitutionally, and the decision to recognize it was ratified in 1995. The Human Rights Commissioner was responsible for monitoring respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The Honduran Institute for Children, as well as the public and private sectors, all had the responsibility to act in the best interests of the child. The Institute was responsible for children placed in its care, which currently included some 250 minors, at one of its four centres. Relatives were allowed to visit those minors on a regular basis. For minors that could not hire lawyers to defend them, the Institute had lawyers available to defend them. There was also legal aid that provided assistance. Adolescent parents who were detained had the right to have their children visit them.

Addressing the issue of how the Honduran Government was able to return lands, in particular recognizing indigenous rights to ancestral lands, without injuring the rights of others, the delegation noted that usually such ancestral lands were part of national parks and belonged to the State itself. Therefore such lands could be restituted to the indigenous peoples by the State. Sometimes, however, there were cases that involved lands owned by others. In those cases, there was a Constitutional provision that gave rise to a remedy of amparo. There had been cases in which the Government had had to purchase the lands from the owners before granting rights to the indigenous claimants.


Turning to people of African descent, the delegation recalled that such people had never been enslaved in Honduras and did not carry the stigma that attached to that condition. Indeed, the Garifuna enjoyed a respected social status and their opinions were valued. In illustration of that, in addition to the Garifuna woman representative in the National Assembly, there were four Garifuna men who had been elected to that body. Regarding Garifuna culture, the delegation imagined a time in which the legal structure of that community would be formally recognized. The idea for the moment was to raise awareness about such issues gradually.

On the case of Germán Antonio Rivas, an investigation into his murder found that it was not related to his work as a journalist. In the case of Janet Kawas, who was an environmentalist, her case was still be investigated, but an interim report from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights had held that there had been undue delay in the proceedings. At the beginning there had been several hypotheses as to who was the perpetrator of the crime, as many different people were affected by her work. Currently the case was in the instruction phase; no one had been accused as yet, but the working hypothesis was that she was killed as a result of her environmental work.

Regarding the question about age discrimination in the workforce, the delegation pointed out that such discrimination was clearly unconstitutional.

For workers that were not part of a trade union, there were still protections in place, including all of the relevant International Labour Organization Conventions, which Honduras had ratified.

Preliminary Remarks

CHRISTINE CHANET, Chairperson of the Committee, said she wished to thank the delegation, whose members had been very expert, and had provided very detailed and comprehensive replies to the questions in a frank and open way. It was obvious that there was genuine political will to improve the status of women in Honduras, and she cited as an example the hotline set up for women victims of violence.

Ms. Chanet next drew attention to certain issues that kept cropping up in the discussions, such as enforced disappearances. The delegation had pointed out that, to date, Honduras did not have the necessary legal structure to address all forced disappearances issues, and the same applied to extrajudicial executions. While that might be true, nevertheless there were actions that could be taken. Investigations had to be undertaken. The Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions, in her 2002 mission to Honduras, had underscored that fact in very specific terms. Even with the legal tools to address such crimes, without investigations no headway could be made.

Regarding unacceptable prison conditions, such as overcrowding, Ms. Chanet wished to underscore that there were specific legal instruments that addressed the problems in Honduras. Article 10 of the Covenant required the humane treatment of prisoners and required that measures be taken for their social rehabilitation and reintegration. The Covenant was not just a guide: it was a legal obligation. The Covenant was to be applied not just in spirit, it contained specific legal requirements that had to be fulfilled by States parties. Article 9 of the Covenant specifically provided that any person deprived of their freedom had the right to be brought promptly before a judge and were entitled to a trial within a reasonable time. This was not a hazy legal framework.

On the issue of state of emergency situations, the report noted that a state of emergency had been declared in the wake of Hurricane Mitch and asserted that no violations of human rights had occurred in that context. However, Ms. Chanet emphasized, it was the Committee who should determine the proportionality of the measure adopted and the conditions that led to it. The link to the Hurricane and the state of emergency was not clear. Nor was it clear that the Secretary-General had been duly informed, as required. It was this type of specific legal reply that the Committee was looking for. She looked forward to receiving such concrete answers in the next report of the State party.

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