During the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, President Xiomara Castro denounced an attempted coup driven by “forces of capital” and the “ten most powerful families in Honduras.” Tensions between the government and the opposition mounted after the release of a video linking the Zelaya family and other members of the ruling party with drug traffickers.
Text: Vienna Herrera
Photography: United Nations’ Archive
“Today I am threatened by the same forces of capital that ousted President Manuel Zelaya 15 years ago,” said President Castro as she began her speech during the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
According to Castro, such threats are due to “structural changes in the economic model,” referring to a tax bill which, since taking office in 2022, has not been presented to the National Assembly. Castro boasted of denouncing “unjust tax laws that perpetuate inequality, benefit the powerful, and exploit the poor,” stressing that the ten most powerful families in Honduras, who reject any structural changes, are scheming to overthrow her government.
Castro said that these threats were denounced during demonstrations called for by the ruling party on September 14 and 15.
“Our sovereignty is a fundamental, unwavering principle of international relations, but in Honduras colonial practices, intervention, and control over the economy, media, and policy continues to be imposed.”
On August 29, President Castro denounced the US extradition treaty, which has been in force since 1912, condemning US “intervention” in Honduras’ domestic affairs.
The decision to denounce this treaty was controversial. It was not only presented under a narrative of “zero international intervention” which sought to strengthen Honduran sovereignty, but also occurred a few days before the release of a video in which her brother-in-law Carlos Zelaya Rosales – a prominent member of the Libre Party and former secretary of the National Assembly – appears negotiating a $650,000 bribe with drug traffickers to finance the party’s presidential campaign of 2013.
Carlos Zelaya admitted in a statement before the Attorney General’s Office that he did meet with drug lords during that period. He resigned from his position as secretary of the National Assembly and has not made any public statements since then. His son, José Manuel Zelaya, stepped down from his position as secretary of defense and was replaced by Rixi Moncada, presidential candidate for the upcoming elections.
Castro also mentioned the second draft of the agreement to install the Commission Against Impunity and Corruption in Honduras (CICIH), which is still under discussion.
What else did President Castro say during her speech?
President Castro announced that on September 20 Honduras’ Supreme Court found the Economic Development and Employment Zones (ZEDE) unconstitutional.
“ZEDE, an international project that sold our territory in pieces as a booty to international capital and which was approved by now stateless individuals from the previous narco-regime, has been terminated by our democratic socialist government,” Castro said. She affirmed that her government denounced the agreement with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), a World Bank court based in Washington. Honduras faces six international arbitration claims before ICSID, among which are the claims of ZEDE Próspera investors.
Castro also said that the plan “Solution against Crime” achieved a “historic 15-point decrease in homicides, the highest reduction in the last 20 years.” However, experts believe that in some areas of the country, such as Rivera Hernandez district in the Cortés department, uninvestigated disappearances conceal the actual homicide rate. Moreover, the state of emergency has facilitated human rights violations and forced disappearances.
She also condemned the murder of environmentalist Juan López, which occurred in Tocoa on September 14: “He repeatedly denounced the extractivist exploitation model. I condemn this vile murder and have ordered law enforcement and justice agencies to investigate, identify, capture and convict the intellectual and material authors of this crime.”
Relatives and organizations close to López demand that his murder be investigated by an international commission and that local actors not be allowed to participate in the process, which can result in an incomplete investigation.
Recently, several farming cooperatives and environmental organizations have protested around the country to demand justice for López. On September 24, the Attorney General’s Office indicted Lenir Pérez and other businessmen of Inversiones Los Pinares and Ecotek for environmental damages to the Carlos Escaleras National Park in Tocoa, Colón department. Those were the companies López fought against.
Before concluding her speech, Castro demanded that the US lift economic sanctions against Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela. She also condemned the genocide against Palestine and the recent Israeli attacks in Lebanon, hoping it would not become a new Gaza Strip. She closed her speech by quoting Honduran environmentalist Berta Cáceres: “Let us wake up. There’s still time.”
