Honduras is in a state of political turmoil. After terminating the US extradition treaty, the Castro government has shifted key figures to strengthen its “re-foundation plan.” Government officials say they are protecting themselves from an imminent coup, and after making it clear that US extradition requests will no longer be processed, members of the Castro family – who are accused of having ties to drug traffickers – submitted to the Honduran justice system. Adding to the tension, Rixi Moncada was appointed secretary of defense a few days prior to launching her presidential campaign.
Text: Jennifer Ávila and Óscar Estrada
Let’s revisit the events leading to the recent political turmoil in Honduras. Firstly, the Castro government terminated the US extradition treaty after launching an anti-imperialist campaign on social media. This means that Hondurans charged by US authorities will no longer be extradited. Secondly, several government officials who met with drug traffickers in 2013 have resigned: Carlos Zelaya, secretary of the National Assembly; José Manuel Zelaya, secretary of defense and son of Carlos; Adán Fúnez, mayor of Tocoa; and Rafael Sarmiento, head of the ruling party’s caucus. Thirdly, denouncing attempts to overthrow the government, Rixi Moncada, former secretary of finance, announced her candidacy as Libre Party’s presidential candidate but was appointed as Secretary of Defense one day after the announcement.
It’s difficult not to suspect that these decisions were coordinated or are part of a larger plan to strengthen the Libre Party’s political project in the long run.
After the Castro government pledged support for Nicólas Maduro during elections in Venezuela, which could be considered a landmark of socialism in the twenty-first century, the US Ambassador to Honduras harshly criticized the close relationship between the countries’ armed forces. She was “surprised” that Honduran Chief of the Armed Forces Roosevelt Hernández met with his Venezuelan counterpart, Vladimir Padrino. The president’s nephew and Secretary of Defense José Manuel Zelaya also attended the meeting. According to journalistic investigations, Padrino has carried out international business activities suspected of being illegal, which is why he was indicted by US authorities in 2020.
Apologists of twenty-first century socialism, including the Castro government, say the indictment is an example of imperialist intervention. This vision, which is grounded in ideology, conveniently ignores drug trafficking charges against Venezuelan politicians and military officers.
Members of the Castro family and other officials came under scrutiny after a video of a meeting with drug traffickers was released to the public. The meeting was held in 2013 prior to the first elections in which the Libre Party participated.
Carlos Zelaya said he was set up by Ramón “Moncho” Mata and Rafael Sarmiento, who said that people interested in “financing” the campaign would attend the meeting, but he didn’t recognize anyone and had forgotten about it.
It is known in Honduras that the Zelaya family has a long history of owning land controlled by drug traffickers. Of that history, it is worth pointing out what the late journalist David Romero said in 2017, when he uncovered Carlos Zelaya’s direct ties to a criminal organization that controlled the El Aguacate air base. In response, spokespersons of the government said the base was built by the US to smuggle weapons and cocaine during the Nicaraguan counter-revolution.
Accusations against Carlos Zelaya of having ties to drug traffickers are nothing new and go back to his friendship with Ramón Mata and Midence Oquelí Martínez, who was recently found guilty of drug trafficking in a US court. While it’s true that Carlos tried to distance his family from that friendship, his actions led to accusations that have jeopardized the legal situation of his brother, former President Manuel Zelaya.
During a press release outside of the Attorney General’s Office, Carlos Zelaya said he didn’t know drug traffickers attended the meeting, which was recorded by Devis Rivera, leader of the Cachiros. They discussed financing for the 2013 campaign, but he didn’t receive any money, he added. However, it’s not clear who received the money as Carlos Muñoz – then campaign coordinator and congressional alternate of Manuel Zelaya – was present at the meeting.
But reducing the Zelaya family and Libre Party’s ties with drug traffickers to a single meeting is beneficial to them and makes it easy for the justice system to acquit them of any charges. And it seems this is what they are after. In Honduras, political leaders supervise groups of actors throughout the country, controlling every aspect of community life and extracting resources for profit.
An example of such political leaders is Adán Fúnez, mayor of Tocoa and former governor of Colón, who allegedly attended the meeting of 2013. Fúnez was a member of the Liberal Party, one of Honduras’ main political parties, and joined the Libre Party in 2014. Fúnez has been mayor of Tocoa, Colón department, for decades and had ties to the Cachiros for a long time. He is friendly to businesses and has granted mining and energy concessions to powerful groups like those represented by Lenir Pérez, son-in-law of Miguel Facussé, and the Rivera Maradiaga family, with the Zelaya family’s patronage.
The primary elections are drawing near and Hondurans remain distrustful of the justice system. They also question the role of the armed forces, whose constitutional duty is to ensure free elections, but are now led by the ruling party’s presidential candidate. In the meantime, Libre’s propagandists have repeatedly bragged on social media that they have checkmated the opposition – despite the fact that politics in Honduras resemble cockfights and not a game of strategy.
