Overview
Honduras is a small mountainous country in Central America with a storied history. Originally settled by indigenous tribes, Honduras was colonized by Spain by Christopher Columbus in 1502 and remained part of the Spanish empire until 1821. It was in 1821 when the Spanish granted Honduras its independence. Rich farmland drew foreign investors from all over the world, including America, and many US companies established banana plantations in the region. After much political turmoil during the 20th Century, Honduras's economy fell into recession, and the country was forced to rely on the United States for aid.Hurricane Mitch, in 1988, devastated Honduras, with more than $3 billion in damages. Numerous human rights violations have persisted from the country's 1980s conflicts with Nicaragua and El Salvador. In addition, the country is still reliant on the US Millennium Challenge Grant for help in maintaining infrastructure, developing agriculture, and bringing its products to market.
Basic Information
Lay of the Land: A mountainous country in Central America, Honduras has a long Caribbean coastline but only a short Pacific one. The coastal lowlands are tropical, but the central highlands, where most of the people live, have a slightly more pleasant climate. The country is heavily forested and home to many exotic birds, insects, and reptiles.
Population: 7.6 million
Religions: Catholic 73.4%, Protestant 23.3%, Spiritist 0.95%, Ethnoreligious 0.6%, Baha'i 0.5%, Buddhist 0.1%, Muslim 0.1%, non-religious 0.9%.
Ethnic Groups: Mestizo 90%, Amerindian 7%, black 2%, white 1%.
Languages: Spanish (official) 82.4%, Garifuna 1.4%, English 0.4%, other (Ch'orti', Lenca, Mískito, Pech, Sumo Tawahka, Tol) 0.5%.
History
Honduras was originally inhabited by indigenous tribes, including the Maya. The Lencas inhabited the western-central part of Honduras and maintained trading relationships with other groups as far as Panama and Mexico, as well as the Maya domestically.
Christopher Columbus claimed Honduras for Spain on July 30, 1502. He called the territory Honduras, meaning “depths,” for the deep waters surrounding the coast of the country.
In 1532, the first expeditionary forces arrived under the command of Gil Gonzáles de Avila. Avila hoped to rule the new Spanish territory, but Cristóbal de Olid arrived in 1524 on behalf of Hernán Cortés. Olid founded the colony Triunfo de la Cruz and tried to establish an independent government there. When Cortés found out, he decided to re-establish his authority by sending a new expedition. Francisco de las Casas headed up the expedition and managed to capture Olin, who was betrayed by his men and assassinated. Cortés then traveled to Honduras to establish Honduras' government in Trujillo before returning to Mexico in 1526.
Honduras became part of the colonial era Captaincy General of Guatemala, with the cities of Comayagua and Tegucigalpa as early mining centers. By October 1537, the Lenca chief, Lempira, a warrior, unified more than two hundred native tribes. These tribes banded together to resist Spanish conquerors and colonization.
Many battles ensued, and Governor Montejo gained the Valley of Comayagua, established Comayagua city in another location, and vanquished the indigenous peoples in Tenampúa, Guaxeregui, and Ojuera. In 1821, Spain granted Honduras its independence.
The country was briefly annexed to the Mexican Empire, but in 1823, Honduras joined the United Provinces of Central America. This federation collapsed in 1838. General Francisco Morazan, who had become a Honduran national hero, tried to keep the federation going, but ultimately failed.
Honduras' economy was dominated by agriculture, and many American companies established banana plantations along the country's north coast in the 1900s. This infused the economy with much foreign capital, as well as relatively conservative policies geared toward business owners. The Standard Fruit Company and United Fruit Company controlled land, infrastructure and the banana trade in Honduras. Today, United Fruit Company operates under the name Chiquita, and Standard Fruit Company is known as Dole.
In 1907, the US stepped in to protect its banana interests when the Nicaraguan army entered Honduras in an attempt to overthrow Honduran President Manuel Bonilla. The US presided over negotiations between the countries which resulted in General Miguel Davila replacing Bonilla as president. Four years later, US mediator Thomas Dawson selected a provisional president after Bonilla attempted a coup to reclaim the Honduran presidency from sitting president Davila. In 1912, free elections were held and Bonilla was re-elected president. He died a year later.
In 1910, the United Fruit Company entered Honduras, causing rivalry and competition with other companies. In 1913, United Fruit Company established the Tela Railroad Company and was given massive land subsidies by the Honduran government in order to build rail lines, which the Honduran government expected to link the capital of Tegucigalpa with the Caribbean Sea. Instead, the banana companies used the rails to open additional banana lands, as opposed to connecting existing cities. By 1917, land and rail competition between banana companies were creating border disputes that threatened to escalate into war between Guatemala and Honduras. The US government eventually intervened and diffused the immediate threat of war.
During the Great Depression, General Tiburcio Carias Andino controlled Honduras. His authoritarian government remained until 1948. During the 1950s, the US injected about $27 million into Honduran development programs, including agriculture, education and health care. By 1955, the country had undergone two authoritarian administrations and a strike by banana workers. A group, led by young military reformists, staged a coup and installed a provisional junta. This paved the way for new assembly elections in 1957.
The assembly appointed Ramon Villeda Morales as president and transformed itself into a national legislature with a six-year term. But in 1963, conservative military officers stopped elections from going forward, and Villeda was deposed in a bloody coup.
The 1970s saw another exponential increase in US aid, totaling $193 million, about $19 million of which was earmarked for military assistance. During this time, the Cold War raged between the US and all perceived Communist threats.
The Honduran military forces governed until 1970 under General Lopez Arellano. Change had been in the air since a 1969 border clash with El Salvador, known as “the Soccer War,” and subsequently, Ramon Cruz of the National Party took power briefly. He was unable to manage the government, however, and General Lopez staged another coup in 1972.
Under Lopez, Honduras enjoyed more progressive policies, including land reform. But in the mid-1970s, Lopez's regime was brought down by corruption scandals. General Melgar Castro (1975-78) and General Paz Garcia (1978-82) subsequently came to power and built much of the physical infrastructure and telecommunications system throughout the country.
During this period, Honduras grew rapidly. Foreign investment, international demand for the country's products and the availability of foreign commercial lending helped to spur growth throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. In 1979, Nicaragua's leader Anastasio Somoza was overthrown, leading to regional instability during Honduras' constituent assembly elections in 1980 and general elections in 1981.
Honduras adopted a new constitution in 1982, and the newly elected Liberal Party government of President Roberto Suazo Cordoba took office. The country's economy slid into recession, and Honduras was forced to reply on the support of the US Agency for International Development (USAID). Aid organizations like the Peace Corps brought additional aid to Honduras' people.
In 1985, new elections were approaching. The governing Liberal Party interpreted election law as permitting multiple presidential candidates from one party. One of its candidates, Jose Azcona Hoyo, received 42% of the vote, and the Liberal Party claimed victory, defeating the National Party candidate, Rafael Leonardo Callejas.
Azcona assumed the presidency in 1986 with the endorsement of the Honduran military. This was the first peaceful transfer of power between civilian presidents in more than 30 years. In 1990, Nationalist Rafael Callejas won the presidential election. During this last year in office, the nation's fiscal deficit ballooned.
Honduran citizens grew increasingly disaffected with the rising cost of living, however, along with widespread government corruption. In 1993, they elected Liberal Party candidate Carlos Roberto Reina, with 56% of the vote. Reina actively prosecuted corruption and went after those who had committed human rights abuses in the 1980s. He also created a modern attorney general's office and an investigative police force, increased civilian control over the armed forces, transferred the police from military to civilian authority, and restored national fiscal health.
In 1998, Liberal Carlos Roberto Flores Facusse took office. Flores continued the process of reform, helping Honduras' poorest citizens while developing the country's fiscal health and increasing international competitiveness. In October of that year, Hurricane Mitch devastated Honduras, leaving more than 5,000 people dead and 1.5 million displaced. Damages totaled nearly $3 billion.
In 2001, Ricardo Maduro Joest of the National Party won the presidential elections. He was inaugurated in 2002 and immediately deployed the military to patrol neighborhoods to combat increasing crime and gang problems. Maduro also supported US efforts to fight terrorism, and Honduras joined the United States’ invasion of Iraq with an 11-month contribution of 370 troops.
During Maduro's administration, Honduras also negotiated and ratified the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), received debt relief, became the first Latin American country to sign a Millennium Challenge Account compact with the US, and actively promoted greater Central American integration.
In November 2005, Jose Manuel “Mel” Zelaya Rosales of the Liberal Party won the presidential election, with less than a 4% margin of victory. His campaign vowed to increase transparency in government, while combating narcotrafficking and helping to ensure the nation's economic stability. In the congressional elections, the Liberal Party won 62 of the 128 congressional seats, just short of an absolute majority.
On June 28, 2009, President Manuel Zelaya was ousted from his position in a military coup. Zelaya’s own party supported the coup, which was a result of a move by the president to hold a non-binding opinion poll. Zelaya had intended to assess the population’s desire for the formation of a National Constituent Assembly to be added to elections in November 2009. Some interpreted the gesture as a means for Zelaya to remain in office for a longer period, despite Zelaya’s claim that he intended to step down from his position in 2010. In addition, some believed Zelaya was intending to alter the Constitution, which forbids reforms to certain laws.
Death squad activity is still reported today, particularly in the streets of the Honduras’ capital, Tegucigalpa. Under the auspices of cleaning up the streets, both the Honduran military and private assassins hired by wealthy businessmen target teenagers who are alleged gang members. In 2005, the child rights organization Casa Alianza estimated that since 1998 more than 2,000 children had been killed in death squad encounters.
Honduras History (Honduras.com)
History of Honduras (Wikipedia)
History of U.S. Relations with Honduras
The Peace Corps has been active in Honduras since 1962. During the 1980s, Honduras supported the United States' opposition to the Marxist government in Nicaragua, as well as the leftist insurgency in El Salvador. This strengthened relations between the two countries. The Reagan administration used profits from the sale of arms to the Iranian government to supply money to the Nicaraguan Contras, a rebel group opposed to the leftist Sandinista government. Southern Honduras became the gateway through which the Contras entered Nicaragua.
Although more surreptitious than its neighbors, Honduras was actively engaged during this era in culling its own leftists. Military death squads similar to those in other Latin American countries sought out, interrogated, tortured and exterminated perceived supporters of leftist ideals. The secret army, named Battalion 316, trained and equipped by the United States and Argentinean intelligence agencies, used violent interrogation techniques and committed countless murders, the victims of which were often buried in mass, unmarked graves or disposed of in rural areas. When John Negroponte became the US Ambassador to Honduras in 1981, he replaced Jack Binns, who had been appointed by President Jimmy Carter. Negroponte served as ambassador for only a year, during which he had spoken out against such human rights abuses by the Honduran military.
In 1998, Hurricane Mitch left hundreds of thousands of Honduran citizens homeless, destroyed the roads and crippled the economy. The final toll was $8.5 billion in damages to homes, hospitals, schools, roads, farms, and businesses throughout Central America, including more than $3 billion in Honduras alone.
The United States provided more than $461 million in immediate disaster relief and humanitarian aid between 1998-2001. This helped repair water and sanitation systems, replace housing, schools, and roads, provide agricultural inputs, provide local government crisis management training, grant debt relief, and encourage environmental management expertise.
Additional resources were utilized to maintain anti-crime and drug assistance programs.
Current U.S. Relations with Honduras
Honduras generally supports the international efforts of the US. Shared initiatives between the two nations include counternarcotics and counterterrorism. Honduras was among the first countries to sign an International Criminal Court (ICC) Article 98 Agreement with the US, which Washington uses to protect American citizens and military personnel from being subject to ICC actions (and links to American aid if governments don’t sign the agreements). Also, the Honduran port of Puerto Cortes is part of the US Container Security Initiative (CSI).
Honduras continues to participate in the UN observer mission in the Western Sahara. The country contributed 370 troops for Iraq after the 2003 US invasion, and assists with other UN peacekeeping missions.
In 2004, the United States signed the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) with Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic. The legislatures of all signatories except Costa Rica ratified CAFTA in 2005, and the agreement entered into force in the first half of 2006.
In June 2005, Honduras became the first country in the hemisphere to sign a Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) compact with the US government. The US will invest $215 million over five years to help Honduras improve its road infrastructure, diversify its agriculture, and get its products to market. Honduras failed the corruption indicator required for continued funding into 2008, and the MCC will follow Honduras's progress on reducing corruption under an approved “remediation plan.”
The United States maintains a small presence at a Honduran military base, and the two countries conduct joint peacekeeping, counternarcotics, humanitarian, disaster relief, and civic action exercises. US troops conduct and provide logistics support for a variety of bilateral and multilateral exercises, medical, engineering, peacekeeping, counternarcotics, and disaster relief. The American Embassy in Tegucigalpa provides specialized training to police officers.
According to the last census, 217,569 Hondurans live in the US. However, it is estimated that 450,000 Hondurans are currently living in the US and it is believed that nearly 100,000 are undocumented. The three largest communities of Hondurans in the US are in New York City, Los Angeles, and Miami.
In 2005, there were 220 Peace Corps Volunteers working in the poorest parts of Honduras.
In 2006, 228,002 Americans visited Honduras, 15.4% more than the 197,601 that visited in 2005. The number of American tourists traveling to Honduras has grown significantly every year since 2002, when 137,953 Americans went south.
In 2006, 92,445 Hondurans visited the US. This is the highest number of visitors in recent years; the number of tourists has remained close to 85,000 since 2002.
Honduras–United States Relations (Wikipedia)
Honduran-US Relations (by Peter J. Meyer, Congressional Research Service)
Honduras: US Apathy Made Chavez Appealing (by Freddy Cuevas, Associated Press)
Where Does the Money Flow
The United States is Honduras’ chief trading partner, with two-way trade in goods increasing to over $7 billion in 2006. US-Honduran trade is dominated by the Honduran maquila industry, which imports yarn and textiles from the United States and exports finished articles of clothing.
US investors account for nearly two-thirds of the foreign direct investment (FDI) in Honduras. The stock of US direct investment in Honduras in 2005 was $402 million, up from $339 million in 2004. The overall flow of FDI into Honduras in 2005 totaled $568 million, $196 million of which was spent in the maquila sector. Other substantial US investments in Honduras are in fruit production (particularly bananas, melons, and pineapple), tourism, energy generation, shrimp aquaculture, animal feed production, telecommunications, fuel distribution, cigar manufacturing, insurance, brewing, leasing, food processing, and furniture manufacturing. Many US franchises, particularly in the restaurant sector, operate in Honduras. More than 150 American companies operate in Honduras.
American imports from 2004 to 2008 were dominated by apparel and household goods (cotton), which averaged $1.8 billion annually. Other top US imports from Honduras included green coffee, which increased from $42.6 million to $131.6 million, and fruits and preparations, including frozen juices, which moved up from $174.9 million to $201.7 million
American exports to Honduras during the same time period included fuel oil, which increased from $79.1 million to $561.1 million; petroleum products (other), moving up from $143.6 million to $146.6 million; cotton fiber cloth, up from $696.5 million to $839.9 million; manmade cloth, increasing from $243.1 million to $432.4 million; and pharmaceutical preparations, up from $15.7 million to $160.4 million.
In June of 2005, Honduras signed a 5-year, $215 million compact with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) to alleviate poverty through investment in transportation infrastructure and increasing agricultural productivity.
Honduras received $43.9 million in aid from the US in 2007. The largest recipient programs were Child Survival and Health ($12 million), Education ($7.8 million), and Agriculture ($5 million). Funding in 2008 has dipped to $39.2 million, but aid to Honduras will increase to $49.1 million in 2009. The largest programs to receive aid in 2009 will be Child Survival and Health ($10.1 million), Good Governance ($6.6 million), and Education ($5.9 million).
Trade in Goods (Imports, Exports and Trade Balance) with Honduras (U.S. Census Bureau)
Doing Business in Honduras (BUYUSA.gov)
Honduras (USAID)
Honduras: US Should Compensate Producers (Freddy Cuevas, International Business Times)
U.S.-Dominican Republic-Central America Trade Agreement (America.gov)
Honduras, Nicaragua Join U.S. Trade Pact (Associated Press)
Controversies
Ousting of President Manuel Zelaya
In 2009, President Manuel Zelaya ordered a non-binding poll of public opinion, which led to a political crisis and subsequent military takeover of the government. Zelaya allegedly intended to ask Hondurans about how they felt about adding a fourth ballot box to the November 2009 elections, concerning the formation of the National Constituent Assembly. To pass, the referendum would have had to receive a 2/3-majority vote by Congress. The president was removed by the Army on June 28, 2009, and expatriated to Costa Rica. The Liberal Party, which supported his election, also supported his removal. Some refer to the actions taken by the military as a coup, while others say that it was a legal process.
The Supreme Court of Honduras, Congress, the country’s attorney general, and the supreme electoral tribunal opposed the poll. A first instance court deemed the poll unconstitutional. Zelaya claimed that it was a non-binding poll, referring to the forms of government, presidential period, reelection or Honduran territory. The Honduran Constitution forbids reforms to the articles in the Constitution that refer to such aspects. However, the Constitution does not specifically prohibit making changes to the formation of National Constituent Assembly which would have had a mandate to rewrite the Constitution, if such a ballot measure had passed.
Opponents of the poll claim that Zelaya was pursuing a political method to increase his own presidential term. Zelaya contends that he intended to step down as scheduled in January 2010. Others argue that the opinion poll was actually a binding referendum and that Zelaya had overstepped his power.
Manuel Zelaya (Wikipedia)
Honduran President is Ousted in Coup (by Elisabeth Malkin, New York Times)
Behind the Honduran Coup (by Geoff Thale, Foreign Policy in Focus)
Venezuelan President Accuses US of Mishandling Honduran Immigration
In 2008, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez accused President George W. Bush of retaliating against recent moves the Honduran government made by targeting Honduran illegals in the US. Petrocaribe, a Caribbean oil alliance, has offered Honduras a long-term loan in exchange for half of the national petroleum consumption bills, when many American oil companies are currently vying for oil revenues in that region. This followed on the heels of the Honduran president's decision to postpone the official acceptance of US ambassador credentials for Hugo Llorens. From January to June of 2008, 16,927 Hondurans have been deported from the United States. During the same time period, 16,482 Guatemalans and 12,618 Salvadorans were deported from the United States. According to the Central bank, remittances that Hondurans send from the US back are equivalent to approximately 20% of the Gross Internal Product, or more than $2.6 billion annually. President Manuel Zelaya had suspended the accreditation of the US Ambassador in solidarity with Bolivia, whose president accused Washington of siding with anti-government protesters.
U.S. Embassy Press Release Aims to Clarify Illegal Immigrant Policy (Honduras This Week)
Nomination of John Negroponte Raises Controversy
In February 2005, John Negroponte was nominated as named Director of National Intelligence by President Bush. During his confirmation process, it was discovered that as US Ambassador to Honduras in 1980, he had downplayed reports of human rights abuses conduced by the Honduran army, including “death squad activities.” A CIA report charged that Negroponte may also have been linked to several disappearances in Honduras. Negroponte said that this had all been examined in 1989, when he was appointed as US ambassador to Mexico and denied all involvement. After serving as US Ambassador to the UN from 2001 to 2004, Negroponte was named Ambassador to Iraq from 2004 to 2005. Activists and politicians in Mexico and Central America were outspoken in their opposition to Negroponte's nomination.
Negroponte & Bolton: Beating the Democrats? (by David Corn, The Nation)
Negroponte Draws Criticism South of Border (by Lisa J. Adams, Common Dreams)
FOX's Special Report downplayed concerns over Negroponte's questionable actions in Honduras (Media Matters for America)
Appointees Spark Controversy (by Linda Cooper and Jim Hodge, National Catholic Reporter)
Negroponte's Time In Honduras at Issue (by Michael Dobbs, Washington Post)
Human Rights
The State Department reports that the Honduran government or its agents have committed arbitrary or unlawful killings. NGOs reported killings of youths and children by vigilante groups that also may have included members of the security forces. There were no charges filed against or convictions of any persons in relation to these killings.
Prison conditions were harsh, and prison security was poor. Human rights groups reported that prisoners suffered from severe overcrowding, malnutrition, and lack of adequate sanitation and allegedly were subjected to various other abuses, including rape by other prisoners. In many cases prisoners relied on outside help from visitors to survive because the prison system did not provide adequate food or other basic necessities. Prison escapes, through bribery or other means, remained a frequent occurrence.
Persons with mental illnesses, as well as those with tuberculosis and other infectious diseases, were held among the general prison population. Human rights organizations charged that prison officials used excessive force against prisoners, including beatings, as well as isolation and threats. There were credible reports that security officials condoned rapes and other physical assaults on detainees who were homosexuals.
The Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras (CODEH) estimated that through December security officials had arrested arbitrarily, and sometimes tortured, more than two dozen persons under the government's Operation National program. Police arrested persons based on forms of dress, types of tattoos, and whether they possessed identification materials.
Although the constitution and law generally provide for freedom of speech and of the press, there was government intimidation of journalists, and journalistic self-censorship. The law prohibits demonstrators from making statements that could incite persons to riot. Some journalists acknowledged practicing self-censorship when their reporting could challenge the political or economic interests of media owners. There were no reports that international media were prohibited from operating freely.
A small number of powerful business magnates with intersecting commercial, political, and family ties owned most of the country's news media. The government influenced media coverage of its activities through the granting or denial of access to government officials, creating a situation in which the media was so closely interrelated and linked to the political system that the powerful magnates strongly influenced the news agenda and thereby elections and political decisions.
NGOs reported that the government also gave substantial sums of money to selected members of the media who covered their stories in the manner they requested. The government exerted considerable influence on the print media through granting or withholding publicly funded official advertisements.
The news media continued to suffer from internal corruption, politicization, and outside influences. According to NGOs, ministers and other high-ranking government officials obtained press silence through hiring journalists as public affairs assistants at high salaries and paid journalists to investigate or suppress news stories.
Some media members claimed that when they attempted to report in depth on national politicians or official corruption, they were occasionally denied access to government information. Access to the presidential palace was limited to the "friendly" press and was arbitrarily awarded and withdrawn by presidential palace staff.
The executive and legislative branches were subject to corruption and political influence. There was a widespread perception that the government's anticorruption institutions had not taken the steps necessary to combat corruption and were unwilling or lacked the professional capacity to investigate, arrest, and prosecute those involved in high-level corruption. The World Bank's worldwide governance indicators reflect that corruption was a severe problem.
Many observers argued that a small elite exercised considerable control over the country's economic, judicial, and political institutions, which created the potential for abuse of the country's institutions and democratic governance.
During the year a private security firm harassed journalists and lawyers working for the human rights NGO Association for a More Just Society (ASJ), including by seeking to have the authorities revoke ASJ's operating license. By year's end the Ministry of Governance and Justice and the Office of the Solicitor General found there was no basis to revoke the license. In addition, the government revoked or denied legal registration to gay and lesbian advocacy groups.
Violence against women, including systematic killings, became increasingly widespread. The law criminalizes domestic violence with two to four years' imprisonment. The only legal sanctions for lesser forms of domestic abuse are community service and 24-hour preventive detention if the violator is caught in the act. The law provides a maximum sentence of three years' imprisonment for disobeying a restraining order connected with the crime of intrafamily violence.
The government did not enforce the law effectively with regard to domestic abuse. The Public Ministry stated that domestic violence accounted for most of the complaints it received and estimated that complaints during the year would exceed more than 8,000 recorded in 2007. The Center for Women’s Rights and Studies reported that 171 women had been killed through November 18 and that 90 percent of the deaths went unpunished.
Although the law provides for free, universal, and compulsory education through the age of 13, a 2008 National Institute of Statistics study estimated that 59 percent of children ages five to 18 attended some type of school or leaning center, while 90 percent of those five to 12 attended school. In rural areas there were few schools, some without books or other teaching materials for students. Most children in rural areas attended school only until the third grade and then began work in agricultural activities. There were no high schools in some rural areas.
There were reports that persons were traffickedfrom and within the country. Casa Alianza estimated that there were victims of sexual exploitation in or from the country. The most common purpose of international trafficking was commercial sexual exploitation of women and children. Casa Alianza estimated that 90% of the children trafficked from the country were girls. Women and children were trafficked into Guatemala and also internally, most often from rural to urban settings. Most foreign victims trafficked into Honduras for commercial sexual exploitation came from neighboring countries.
In the Tegucigalpa metropolitan area, an estimated several hundred children were victims of sexual exploitation.
Although the law prohibits retribution by employers for engaging in trade union activity, retribution was a common practice with employers threatening to close unionized companies and harassing or dismissing workers seeking to unionize. Some foreign companies closed operations when notified that workers sought union representation.
Although the law prohibits blacklisting, there was credible evidence that apparel assembly factory employers blacklisted employees seeking to form unions. There were reports of apparel assembly workers allegedly fired for union activity that were hired for one or two weeks and then dismissed with no explanation. Apparel assembly company employees reported seeing computer records that included previous union membership in personnel records. Some employers informed previously unionized workers that they were unemployable because of their previous union activity.
The Ministry of Labor frequently failed to provide effective protection to labor organizers. Corruption and unethical behavior of inspectors included the selling of names of employee union organizers to company management before government recognition of the union. The government did not allocate adequate resources for inspectors to perform their duties.
Debate
In 2009, President Manuel Zelaya ordered a non-binding poll of public opinion, which led to a political crisis and subsequent military takeover of the government. Zelaya allegedly intended to ask Hondurans about how they felt about adding a fourth ballot box to the November 2009 elections, concerning the formation of the National Constituent Assembly. To pass, the referendum would have had to receive a 2/3-majority vote by Congress. The president was removed by the Army on June 28, 2009, and expatriated to Costa Rica. The Liberal Party, which supported his election, also supported his removal. Some refer to the actions taken by the military as a coup, while others say that it was a legal process.
The Supreme Court of Honduras, Congress, the country’s attorney general, and the supreme electoral tribunal opposed the poll. A first instance court deemed the poll unconstitutional. Zelaya claimed that it was a non-binding poll, referring to the forms of government, presidential period, reelection or Honduran territory. The Honduran Constitution forbids reforms to the articles in the Constitution that refer to such aspects. However, the Constitution does not specifically prohibit making changes to the formation of National Constituent Assembly which would have had a mandate to rewrite the Constitution, if such a ballot measure had passed.
Opponents of the poll claim that Zelaya was pursuing a political method to increase his own presidential term. Zelaya contends that he intended to step down as scheduled in January 2010. Others argue that the opinion poll was actually a binding referendum and that Zelaya had overstepped his power.
Manuel Zelaya (Wikipedia)
Honduran President is Ousted in Coup (by Elisabeth Malkin, New York Times)
Behind the Honduran Coup (by Geoff Thale, Foreign Policy in Focus)
Past Ambassadors
John Slidell
Appointment: Mar 29, 1853
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate. Commissioned to Central America; declined appointment.
Solon Borland
Appointment: Apr 18, 1853
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Feb 9, 1854. Commissioned to Central America; did not present credentials in Honduras.
Beverly L. Clarke
Appointment: Jan 14, 1858
Presentation of Credentials: Aug 10, 1858
Termination of Mission: Died at Guatemala, Mar 17, 1860
Note: Accredited also to Guatemala; resident in Guatemala.
William M. Churchwell
Note: Not commissioned; nomination to be Minister Resident in Guatemala and Honduras not confirmed by the Senate.
Hezekiah G. Wells
Appointment: Aug 7, 1861
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate. Declined appointment.
Jacob M. Howard
Appointment: Nov 7, 1861
Note: Declined appointment. Commissioned during a recess of the Senate.
James R. Partridge
Appointment: Feb 10, 1862
Presentation of Credentials: Apr 25, 1862
Termination of Mission: Left post shortly before Nov 14, 1862
Thomas H. Clay
Appointment: Apr 16, 1863
Presentation of Credentials: [Apr 5, 1864]
Termination of Mission: Relinquished charge, Aug 10, 1866
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Jan 18, 1864. Officially recognized on Apr 5, 1864.
Richard H. Rousseau
Appointment: May 14, 1866
Presentation of Credentials: Oct 10, 1866
Termination of Mission: Presented recall, Aug 10, 1869
Henry Baxter
Appointment: Apr 21, 1869
Presentation of Credentials: Aug 10, 1869
Termination of Mission: Probably presented recall about Jun 30, 1873
George Williamson
Appointment: May 17, 1873
Presentation of Credentials: Feb 19, 1874
Termination of Mission: Notified Govt. of Honduras by note, Jan 31, 1879, that he had resigned
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 10, 1873. Commissioned to the "Central American States" but accredited individually to Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; resident at Guatemala.
Cornelius A. Logan
Appointment: Apr 2, 1879
Presentation of Credentials: [Oct 10, 1879]
Termination of Mission: Transmitted recall by note from Guatemala on or soon after Apr 15, 1882
Note: Commissioned to the "Central American States" but accredited individually to Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; resident at Guatemala. Officially recognized on Oct 10, 1879.
Henry C. Hall
Appointment: Apr 17, 1882
Presentation of Credentials: [Apr 21, 1882]
Termination of Mission: Promoted to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Note: Commissioned to the "Central American States" but accredited individually to Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; resident at Guatemala. Officially recognized on Apr 21, 1882.
Henry C. Hall
Appointment: Jul 13, 1882
Presentation of Credentials: [Sep 26, 1882]
Termination of Mission: Transmitted recall by note on or shortly before May 16, 1889
Note: Commissioned to the "Central American States" but accredited individually to Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua; resident at Guatemala. Officially recognized on Sep 26, 1882.
Lansing B. Mizner
Appointment: Mar 30, 1889
Note: Commissioned to "the Central American States"; did not present credentials in Honduras.
Romualdo Pacheco
Appointment: Dec 11, 1890
Presentation of Credentials: Apr 17, 1891
Termination of Mission: Recommissioned to Guatemala and Honduras only
Note: Commissioned first to "the Central American States"; recommissioned to Guatemala and Honduras only; resident at Guatemala.
Romualdo Pacheco
Appointment: Jul 1, 1891
Termination of Mission: Relinquished charge in Guatemala, Jun 12, 1893
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 23, 1891.
Pierce M.B. Young
Appointment: Apr 4, 1893
Presentation of Credentials: [Nov 12, 1893]
Termination of Mission: Left Guatemala, May 23, 1896
Note: Accredited also to Guatemala; resident in Guatemala. Officially recognized on Nov 12, 1893.
Macgrane Coxe
Appointment: Jul 27, 1896
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 17, 1896. Commissioned also to Guatemala; did not present credentials in Honduras.
W. Godfrey Hunter
Appointment: Nov 8, 1897
Presentation of Credentials: [Jan 19, 1899]
Termination of Mission: Relinquished charge at Guatemala, Feb 2, 1903
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 18, 1897. Officially recognized on Jan 19, 1899. Also accredited to Guatemala; resident in Guatemala.
Leslie Combs
Appointment: Nov 12, 1902
Presentation of Credentials: [May 22, 1903]
Termination of Mission: Transmitted recall by note on or shortly before Feb 27, 1907
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 8, 1902. Transmitted credentials by note on May 22, 1903; acknowledgement not found. Also accredited to Guatemala; resident in Guatemala.
Joseph W. J. Lee
Appointment: Jan 10, 1907
Note: Also commissioned to Guatemala; did not present credentials in Honduras
H. Percival Dodge
Appointment: Jul 1, 1907
Presentation of Credentials: Jun 17, 1908
Termination of Mission: Left San Salvador, Feb 6, 1909
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 12, 1907. Also accredited to El Salvador, resident at San Salvador.
William B. Sorsby
Appointment: Jun 5, 1908
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate. Took oath of office, but did not proceed to post.
Philip M. Brown
Appointment: Nov 11, 1908
Presentation of Credentials: Feb 21, 1909
Termination of Mission: Presented recall, Feb 26, 1910
Note: Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on Dec 10, 1908.
Fenton R. McCreery
Appointment: Dec 21, 1909
Presentation of Credentials: Mar 10, 1910
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jul 2, 1911
Charles Dunning White
Appointment: Jul 6, 1911
Presentation of Credentials: Sep 9, 1911
Termination of Mission: Recall presented by Secretary of Legation, Nov 4, 1913
John Ewing
Appointment: Sep 10, 1913
Presentation of Credentials: Dec 26, 1913
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jan 18, 1918
T. Sambola Jones
Appointment: Jun 26, 1918
Presentation of Credentials: Oct 2, 1918
Termination of Mission: Left post, Oct 17, 1919
Note: Legation Tegucigalpa reported Jan 1, 1920, that Jones was no longer persona grata to the Government of Honduras, and he did not return to his post.
Franklin E. Morales
Appointment: Oct 24, 1921
Presentation of Credentials: Jan 18, 1922
Termination of Mission: Left post, Mar 2, 1925
George T. Summerlin
Appointment: Mar 12, 1925
Presentation of Credentials: Nov 21, 1925
Termination of Mission: Left post, Dec 17, 1929
Julius G. Lay
Appointment: Dec 16, 1929
Presentation of Credentials: May 31, 1930
Termination of Mission: Left post, Mar 17, 1935
Leo J. Keena
Appointment: Feb 22, 1935
Presentation of Credentials: Jul 19, 1935
Termination of Mission: Left post, May 1, 1937
John D. Irwin
Appointment: Jul 29, 1937
Presentation of Credentials: Apr 27, 1943
Termination of Mission: Left post, Apr 16, 1947
Paul C. Daniels
Appointment: Apr 10, 1947
Presentation of Credentials: Jun 23, 1947
Termination of Mission: Left post, Oct 30, 1947
Herbert S. Bursley
Appointment: Dec 18, 1947
Presentation of Credentials: May 15, 1948
Termination of Mission: Left post, Dec 12, 1950
John D. Erwin
Appointment: Feb 1, 1951
Presentation of Credentials: Mar 14, 1951
Termination of Mission: Left Honduras, Feb 28, 1954
Whiting Willauer
Appointment: Feb 5, 1954
Presentation of Credentials: Mar 5, 1954
Termination of Mission: Left post, Mar 24, 1958
Robert Newbegin
Appointment: Mar 26, 1958
Presentation of Credentials: Apr 31, 1958
Termination of Mission: Left post, Aug 3, 1960
Charles R. Burrows
Appointment: Aug 27, 1960
Presentation of Credentials: Nov 3, 1960
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jun 28, 1965
Joseph J. Jova
Appointment: Jun 7, 1965
Presentation of Credentials: Jul 12, 1965
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jun 21, 1969
Hewson A. Ryan
Appointment: Oct 9, 1969
Presentation of Credentials: Nov 5, 1969
Termination of Mission: Left post, May 30, 1973
Phillip V. Sanchez
Appointment: May 24, 1973
Presentation of Credentials: Jun 15, 1973
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jul 17, 1976
Ralph E. Becker
Appointment: Sep 13, 1976
Presentation of Credentials: Oct 27, 1976
Termination of Mission: Left post, Aug 1, 1977
Mari-Luci Jarimillo
Appointment: Sep 26, 1977
Presentation of Credentials: Oct 27, 1977
Termination of Mission: Left post, Sep 19, 1980
Jack R. Binns
Appointment: Sep 26, 1980
Presentation of Credentials: Oct 10, 1980
Termination of Mission: Left post, Oct 31, 1981
John D. Negroponte
Appointment: Oct 29, 1981
Presentation of Credentials: Nov 11, 1981
Termination of Mission: Left post, May 30, 1985
NOTE: Negroponte went on to become the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, and the first Director of National Intelligence.
John Arthur Ferch
Appointment: Jul 18, 1985
Presentation of Credentials: Aug 22, 1985
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jul 9, 1986
Everett Ellis Briggs
Appointment: Oct 16, 1986
Presentation of Credentials: Nov 4, 1986
Termination of Mission: Left post, Jun 15, 1989
Cresencio S. Arcos, Jr.
Appointment: Nov 14, 1989
Presentation of Credentials: Jan 29, 1990
Termination of Mission: Left post, July 1, 1993
William Thornton Pryce
Appointment: May 28, 1993
Presentation of Credentials: July 21, 1993
Termination of Mission: Left post, Aug 15, 1996
Note: An earlier nomination of May 7, 1992, was not acted upon by the Senate.
James F. Creagan
Appointment: Jul 2, 1996
Presentation of Credentials: Aug 29, 1996
Termination of Mission: Left post Jul 20, 1999
Frank Almaguer
Appointment: Jul 7, 1999
Presentation of Credentials: Aug 25, 1999
Termination of Mission: Left post Sep 5, 2002
Larry Leon Palmer
Appointment: Aug 8, 2002
Presentation of Credentials: Oct 8, 2002
Termination of Mission: Left post, May 7, 2005
Charles A. Ford
Appointment: Oct 13, 2005
Presentation of Credentials: Nov 8, 2005
Termination of Mission: April 2008
Honduras's Ambassador to the U.S.
Hernandez, Alcerro
For Jorge Ramón Hernández Alcerro, serving as Honduras’ ambassador to the United States seems like old times, having already served in this capacity in the late 1980s and early 1990s. His current stint began on May 5, 2010. The year before, he had spoken out in favor of the overthrow of the elected president of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya.
A member of the conservative National Party, Hernández Alcerro has worn many hats during his 35-year career, from professor of public law to banker to international judge to elected congressman to ambassador and more.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in judicial and social sciences from the Honduras National Autonomous University (1972). He also has a degree in advanced international studies with honors from the Institut Européen des Hautes Études Internationales (1973) and a doctorate in international cooperation law from the University of Nice (1975), both in France.
From 1975 to 1987, Hernández Alcerro was a law professor at the National Autonomous University of Honduras. In 1975-1976 he served as general coordinator on the Honduras-El Salvador Boundary Commisssion. He also served as undersecretary of foreign affairs (1978-1979), chief of staff to three foreign ministers (1976-1978; 1982-1986; 1986-1987), a congressman elected to the National Constituent Assembly in 1980 and to the National Congress in 1982, and a judge at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica (1985-1987).
From 1987 to 1988, he was the Honduran representative at the United Nations in New York and co-agent to the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
His first stint as ambassador to Washington took place from 1988 to 1992.
His banking career occupied much of the 1990s, serving as vice president of the Central Bank of Honduras (1992-1993), executive director for Central America, Belize and Haiti at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, DC (1993-1996), executive vice president and executive president of the Honduran private bank Banco del País (1996-1998), and executive director of the Honduran Business Council for Sustainable Development (1998-1999).
He was again elected to the National Congress, in 2001 and 2005, while also serving as secretary of justice and the interior (2002-2005).
Prior to returning to the U.S. as ambassador, Hernández Alcerro was a judge at the Central American Court of Justice in Managua, Nicaragua (2007-2010).
He is married to Mariza Veiga, who is from Brazil. The couple has a son, a daughter and four grandchildren.Their son, Alejandro, is an investment banker with Goldman Sachs in Houston; their daughter, Morela, is a management professor at the University of Washington.
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U.S. Ambassador to Honduras
Kubiske, Linda
Career diplomat Lisa J. Kubiske received her first chance to become an ambassador on July 26, 2011, when she was sworn in as ambassador to Honduras.
Born Lisa Shapiro, Kubiske attended college at Brandeis University, where during her junior year she spent a year abroad at Universidad La Catolica in Lima, Peru. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology and psychology in 1975, before moving on to Georgetown University and receiving a Masters of Science in Foreign Service.
She joined the Foreign Service in 1983.
Her early overseas assignments included serving as the science/technology officer and consular officer at the U.S. embassy in Mexico; economics officer at the U.S. consulate in Shanghai, China; director for the Office of Economic and Political Affairs at the U.S. consulate in Hong Kong; and deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassy in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
In Washington, Kubiske’s early work included being the staff officer and operations watch officer in the Office of the Executive Secretariat; economic/commercial officer in the Office of China and Mongolia Affairs; financial economist in the Office of Monetary Affairs; and special assistant to the undersecretary of state for economic, business and agricultural affairs.
She also served at Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service.
More recently, Kubiske served as the director of the Office of Regional Economic Policy and Summit Coordination in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, and as the deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassy in Brasilia, Brazil.
Kubiske and her husband, free-lance journalist Dan, have two sons and she has one stepdaughter.
Previous U.S. Ambassador to Honduras
Llorens, Hugo
Hugo Llorens has served as the US ambassador to Honduras since September 19, 2008.
Llorens received a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 1977; a Master of Arts in Economics from the University of Kent at Canterbury, England in 1980; and a Master of Science in National Security Studies from the National War College in 1997. He speaks Spanish, Tagalog, and some French.
Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Llorens worked as an assistant treasurer at the Chase Manhattan Bank, International Division, in New York.
His diplomatic career began in 1981, serving in such varied capacities as economic counselor in Tegucigalpa, Honduras; economic officer in La Paz, Bolivia; commercial attaché in Asunción, Paraguay; narcotics coordinator in San Salvador, El Salvador; and consular officer in Manila, Philippines.
Llorens served as Deputy Director of the Office of Economic Policy and Summit Coordination in the Bureau of Inter-American Affairs, assisting in the launch of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) negotiations in 1998.
He then served for three years as principal officer at the US Consulate General in Vancouver, Canada. From 2002-2003, Llorens served in Washington, DC, as the Director of Andean Affairs at the National Security Council (NSC). At the NSC he was the principal advisor to the President and National Security Advisor on issues pertaining to Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador. His most recent assignment was as Deputy Chief of Mission at the American Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he served for three years from August 2003 until July 2006.
Llorens was the Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) at the American Embassy in Madrid, where he took up his duties on September 1, 2006.
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