Honduras: Death threats against human rights defenders, Ms Bertha Oliva de Nativí, Mr Carlos H Reyes and Mr Rafael Alegría
Front Line is deeply concerned following reports of harassment, defamation and death threats against human rights defenders Ms Bertha Oliva de Nativí, Mr Carlos H Reyes and Mr Rafael Alegría.
Further Information
Bertha Oliva de Nativí is the general coordinator of the Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos en Honduras – Cofadeh (the Committe for relatives of disappeared detainees in Honduras). Carlos H Reyes is the president of Sindicato de Trabajadores de la Industria de la Bebida y Similares - STIBYS (the Union of Beverage and Related Industry Workers) and Rafael Alegría is a member of the International Coordinating Committee of La Vía Campesina (International Peasant Movement).
Front Line issued previous appeals concerning death threats and a defamation campaign against Bertha Oliva de Nativí on 5 February 2009.
On 28 May 2009, at approximately 7pm, a member of STIBYS, Rolando Lagos Alvarado, arrived at the offices of the union located on Boulevard de las Fuerzas Armadas in the city of Comayagüela. While he waited to be let into the offices, he noticed that a black vehicle, with tinted windows, was parked about a meter and a half away from him.
Three men were in the vehicle, two of whom were wearing balaclavas, one in the driver's seat and two in the back seat. The man sitting on the back right pointed a gun straight at him. Rolando Lagos Alvarado heard the man beside him shout “No ese no es” (no he's not the one) and the man lowered the gun and the vehicle sped away.
It is believed that the assailants were in fact looking for Carlos H Reyes due to the fact that, on 26 May 2009, a confidential source informed Cofadeh that Bertha Oliva de Nativí, Carlos H Reyes and Rafael Alegría were named on a hit list of people who were to be assassinated.
On 30 May 2009, Rafael Alegría noted that he was being watched by an unidentified person on a motorbike while he visited his private doctor in the Colonia Kennedy de Tegucigalpa.
On 16 March 2009, Carlos H Reyes was also photographed by two unidentified men at the bus station on the road to the Los Robles district, at the junction near the Las Torres district. The incident was reported to the National Human Rights Commission and to the District Attorney's office. On 11 March 2009, Bertha Oliva de Nativí also reported being watched while she was meeting with a representative from the Center of Justice and International Law (CEJIL).
Over the last number of weeks an ongoing defamation campaign against the three leaders, and in particular against Bertha Oliva de Nativí and Cofadeh, has also intensified. This campaign to discredit Bertha Oliva de Nativí began after President Manuel Rosales issued an executive decree in December 2008 to create a national programme of reparations for victims of human rights violations in the 1980s and to order the peaceful settlement of two cases with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The campaign has accused Bertha Oliva de Nativí of benefiting financially from the executive decree.
Front Line believes that the harassment, defamation campaign and death threats against Bertha Oliva de Nativí, Carlos H Reyes and Rafael Alegría, are directly related to their work in the defence of human rights. Front Line is seriously concerned for the physical and psychological integrity of the aforementioned human rights defenders.
This Urgent Appeal has now ended. No further action is requested at this point. Thank you for taking action on this case.
Front Line issues Urgent Appeals on behalf of human rights defenders at risk on a daily basis. These Appeals normally remain active on our web site for a period of up to six weeks, depending on the situation. After this time they will be archived. Front Line maintains a watching brief on all these cases but no further action is requested after the six weeks, unless there is a significant development in the case.
