Victims of Honduran Coup Deserve US Support and Protection

CCR Sends Letter to State Department Urging Actions to Ensure Safety of Family of Slain Activist

Parents Are Plaintiffs in Case Against Honduras Military Coup Leader

press@ccrjustice.org

January 23, 2012, New York – Today the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) wrote to the U.S. State Department expressing concerns that David Murillo and Silvia Mencías, plaintiffs in a case against coup leader Roberto Micheletti Baín, face serious risks of harm upon their return to Honduras. They have been staying in Argentina following death threats and frequent surveillance by police and unknown entities since the killing of their 19-year-old son by the military. The letter urges U.S. officials to take all available steps to ensure the Honduran government guarantees the safety of the Murillo family and other human rights defenders.

“It is imperative that the Embassy publicly denounce the threats and harassment already suffered by the Murillos and publicly declare to Honduran government officials the obligation to respect and protect the human right to life and personal security of David Murillo and Sylvia Mencías, specifically, and of all human rights defenders in Honduras.”

Currently, the U.S. is providing funding to Honduran police and military forces. Given Congressional concerns, a percentage of this funding was recently conditioned on the human rights situation and requires additional State Department reporting on human rights.
 
To read the letter in full, click this PDF link.

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The Center for Constitutional Rights is dedicated to advancing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights movements in the South, CCR is a non-profit legal and educational organization committed to the creative use of law as a positive force for social change.

January 23, 2012
Honorable María Otero
Under Secretary
Democracy and Global Affairs
Honorable Michael Posner
Assistant Secretary
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520
Re: Concern for Safety of Honduran Citizens David Murillo and Silvia Mencías
Dear Ms. Otero and Mr. Posner:
I write to you to express my organization's serious concerns about the safety and security of our
clients David Murillo and Silvia Mencías and to urge that your offices take all available steps to
help ensure their safety and strenuously pursue these concerns with government officials in
Honduras.
David and Silvia are citizens of Honduras and the parents of Isis Murillo, a nineteen-year-old
who was shot and killed on July 5, 2009, by Honduran military at Toncontín Airport in
Tegucigalpa. Isis had gathered there with thousands of others to await the return of President
Manuel Zelaya who, as you know, had been illegally ousted and forced into exile the week
before on June 28, 2009. Our organization represents David and Silvia in their civil case against
Roberto Micheletti, who was involved in the coup and subsequently became de facto president,
for the extra-judicial killing of their son and for the political persecution they suffered in the
aftermath.
After suffering the violent loss of their son, the Murillos began receiving harassing and
threatening calls and text messages. They were subjected to surveillance that included being
followed and police helicopters circling over their residence, close enough that they could see
 
police with weapons drawn. At one point, fliers were dropped from the helicopter threatening
that what happened to their son could happen to them. The Murillos fled their home in
Tegucigalpa to a rural area where they hoped they would be less known and visible, but they
continued to experience security concerns. After filing their case against Micheletti, their
concerns grew with more evidence that they were being followed and were under surveillance.
Their own experiences combined with the continued and alarming deterioration of the human
rights situation in Honduras compelled them to seek refuge temporarily in Argentina. They have
recently returned to Honduras and are concerned, understandably and justifiably, for their
personal security and that of their family.
Sadly, the Murillos' experiences are entirely consistent with the current state of affairs in
Honduras, aptly described in the November 28, 2011, letter to the Secretary of State from United
States Rep. Howard L. Berman, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs,
in which he expressed his "grave concern regarding the current human rights situation in
Honduras, and in particular the role of Honduran state security forces in human rights abuses,
which in the past two months has reached a distressing pitch." It is also consistent with the
concerns expressed in a May 31, 2011, letter signed by eighty-seven members of Congress,
which noted in particular that "members of the security forces are implicated in many incidents
of threats, harassment, attacks and extrajudicial executions."
The Murillos' experiences are also borne out by repeated findings of the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights, which has well documented the "disproportionate use of force to
quell public demonstrations against the policies of the current government; the lack of
independence of the judiciary; and the situation of human rights defenders." Indeed, the Truth
and Reconciliation Commission, which was established by the coup government, in part at the
urging of the United States, also noted the involvement of state security forces or "people acting
in [the state's] interest" in the killing of those in opposition to the coup and coup-government.
Additionally, in an expert report submitted in the Murillos' case, Human Rights Watch
investigator Tamara Taraciuk details and documents the complete culture of impunity that
prevails in Honduras for the coup and the human right violations that have multiplied
exponentially since the coup.
The Murillos, having lost their son who was violently killed while peacefully assembling in
Honduras, are victims of a most egregious and tragic human rights violation. But, in seeking
accountability for Isis' killing and the menacing, threats and harassment they have suffered as
part of the political persecution in Honduras, they are also courageous human rights defenders. It
is imperative that the United States continue to reassess its policy toward Honduras and support
for Honduran security forces, as urged by members of Congress. At the same time, it is
imperative that the Embassy publicly denounce the threats and harassment already suffered by
the Murillos and publicly declare to Honduran government officials the obligation to respect and
protect the human right to life and personal security of David Murillo and Silvia Mencías,
specifically, and of all human rights defenders in Honduras.
Please note that my organization has partnered with the Honduran human rights organization El
Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos en Honduras (COFADEH), which serves as
3
local counsel to the Murillos. As such, any communication with the Murillos should be directed
through Bertha Oliva, the Executive Director of COFADEH.
Sincerely,
Vincent Warren
Executive Director
Center for Constitutional Rights
cc Deputy Assistant Secretary Kathleen Fitzpatrick
Senator Patrick Leahy
Representative Howard L. Berman
Representative James McGovern
Enclosures (3):
Human Rights Watch Expert Declaration by Tamara Taraciuk
Letter to Secretary Clinton by Members of Congress
Letter to Secretary Clinton by Representative Howard L. Berman

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