human rights - Global Exchange

Public Statement: Organizations Condemn Violence Against Garifuna Communities in Honduras

We, the undersigned organizations, condemn the recent attacks against Garífuna land defenders across Honduras, where Honduran National Police, private security forces, and individuals linked to organized crime have come together to harass, intimidate, and profile members of multiple Garífuna communities with the goal of displacing them out of their ancestral territories for the benefit of extractivist and colonial settler projects.

This violence reached a new climax on the night of October 6th, 2024, when Honduran National Police shot at unarmed Garífuna leaders in the Nueva Armenia community, who were peacefully reclaiming their ancestral territory usurped by the Palmas de Atlantida Company, leaving two leaders hospitalized and in critical condition. There has been no official response from the Honduras government on these attempted assassinations, which have also received minimal media coverage. In turn, Garífuna land defenders in Nueva Armenia continue living in a state of emergency, as there have been reports of strong police presence outside hospitals where injured Garífuna leaders are receiving care and in the Garifuna ancestral territory being reclaimed.

This violence is not new, contained, or an anomaly. It is part of an established history of human rights violations from the State of Honduras against Garífuna self-determination. In the case Cayos Cochinos Garífuna Community vs. Honduras, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights established that the Honduran state had not consulted with Garífuna communities for the construction of a marine conservation center in the Garífuna lands of Cayos Cochinos, which restricted the Garífuna access to their homelands and led to countless violations by the military and the Cayos Cochinos Foundation. The IACHR asked the Honduran government to adopt necessary measures to ensure Garífuna self-determination, reparations, and the non-repetition of violations. It has been almost a year since the IACHR filed this case, but state police forces continue protecting tourism projects, international corporations, and the interests of palm oil industries above Garífuna ancestral rights.

As organizations who have followed the violence, persecution, and displacement of the Garífuna for years, we stand in unwavering solidarity with the Black Fraternal Organization of Honduras (OFRANEH) and we:

Publicly condemn Honduras’ police brutality and racist violence against Garífuna land defenders in Nueva Armenia;
Ask the Honduran government, by way of its Secretary of Security, Secretary of National Defense, and Secretary of Human Rights, that it guarantee the life, physical, mental, and moral integrity of Garífuna members in the community of Nueva Armenia and other communities defending their rights;
Urge the government of Honduras to carry out an immediate, impartial investigation into the attempted assassinations of Garífuna leaders in Nueva Armenia and hold accountable those responsible;
Express a deep concern that the actions committed by Honduran police officers and U.S.-vetted and trained special forces increase violence towards all Garífuna land defenders who reclaim their ancestral land rights, violating collective property rights and guarantees of non-repetition warned in the three rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights against the State of Honduras.

For the reasons stated above, as organizations dedicated to the protection and promotion of human rights and the environmental, we raise our concerns about the violations occurring in Nueva Armenia and we remain firm in elevating the struggles of the Garífuna people. From different parts of the world, we reiterate our solidarity with members of OFRANEH, who are not and will not be alone in this fight for their ancestral rights.

Signatory Organizations:

Honduras Solidarity Network (HSN)
Witness for Peace Solidarity Collective (WfPSc)
Inter-Religious Task Force on Central America (IRTF)
Institute for Policy Studies – Global Economy Program
Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America (CRLN)
Hope Border Institute
Root Causes Initiative
Denver Justice and Peace Committee (DJPC)
Nicaragua Center for Community Action
The Cross Border Network for Justice and Solidarity
Rights Action – Canada / USA
Alliance for Global Justice (AFGJ)
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee (UUSC)
Latin America Caucus of Interfaith Council for Peace & Justice
Global Exchange
Massachusetts Peace Action – Latin America Caribbean Working Group
La Voz de los de Abajo
Wisconsin Environmental Justice & Infrastructure Initiative
Walnut Way Conservation Corp
Task Force on the Americas (TFA)
Rochester Committee on Latin America (ROCLA)
Grassroots International
Sustainable Agriculture of Louisville (SAL)

“The poorest country in the hemisphere, a failed state, controlled by violent gangs.”
That is what we hear about Haiti in the news today—that is, when we hear about Haiti at all.

Long-time Global Exchange Board Member, Pierre LaBoissiere, is the co-founder of the Haiti Action Committee and the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund. In this interview, he responds to persistent and erroneous notions about Haiti and turns assumptions about the need for foreign intervention on their head. He calls for increased communication and solidarity with Haiti’s grassroots movements.

How is it possible that Haiti—a country rich in natural resources, including oil, bauxite, silver, gold, iridium, and beautiful Caribbean beaches—is considered the poorest country in the world?

Haiti’s “poverty” is rooted in a history of racist repression that continues today. Haiti’s troubles started in 1492 when Christopher Columbus landed on Ayiti, “the land of high mountains,” the island Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic today.

Spanish colonists first decimated the Indigenous Taino people and then quickly imported kidnapped and enslaved Africans to work their gold mines and sugar plantations. Then came the French, who, in 1697, took over the western part of the newly named Hispaniola Island (where Haiti is today). With the labor of one-third of all kidnapped and enslaved Africans of that era, the French turned Haiti into their richest colony, cultivating half of all the sugar and coffee consumed in Europe. Enslaved people produced all that wealth but did not share in it.

When France’s dispossessed rebelled against the aristocracy in 1789, it is little wonder that the enslaved masses in Haiti also rebelled and organized their own revolution that swept the French from the island. But when Haiti fought against slavery and won its independence from France, it then faced French sanctions that isolated the country economically until it agreed that its population, which had just emancipated itself from slavery, would pay “reparations” to compensate France for its loss of “assets.” During the next 122 years, Haitians were forced to pay an “Independence Tax,” totaling tens of billions in today’s dollars, while local elites with connections to colonial powers consolidated their grip on Haiti.

But Haiti is not only missing what was stolen then; the theft continues today. In the 1990s, the Lavalas movement came to power, and people’s movements around the country demanded long-overdue land redistribution. They fought to redirect their tax payments toward social development, like schools and healthcare. During the Lavalas government, rich people in the business sector were taxed—fairly but like never before—to pay for literacy programs, rural health clinics, and clean water projects.

The U.S. found Aristide and the Lavalas movement (which translates to “an unstoppable flood of water”) to be too much and removed him from office in a coup d’etat in 2004. After that, the U.S., France, and Canada supported one repressive regime after another, and the country remained poor.

We hear about a gang takeover, but you say we should call them death squads or paramilitary groups?

We call them death squads because of how they are organized and operate. Criminal gangs tend to go after individuals with resources or each other for turf, or they shake people down. They don’t move through an area systematically in its entirety—firing into people’s homes, invading homes of people who are disabled or elderly. There was an 82-year-old grandma who was thrown off a balcony and dragged through the street. What would the gangs get out of that?

The most well-known leader, Jimmy “Barbecue” Cherizier, was a former elite police officer who uses his connections to protect other members. Even with warrants for gang members’ arrest, they have received police escorts and have even worked together with the police to “provide protection for a fee.” When you see this collusion between the police and these organized structures, you have to assume that it is organized at the highest level. They target particular neighborhoods, especially those known to support Lavalas or where people have demonstrated against the government. The gangs have declared they will not allow any kind of demonstrations in those areas. They shoot and kill demonstrators. Neither “Barbecue” nor “Izo,” the other major leader, has grassroots support to establish a government, but having a lot of guns can get you a fair amount of cooperation.

Haiti doesn’t manufacture weapons; how are they getting into the hands of these death squads?

According to a United Nations report, the weapons are coming in from South Florida. Some are purchased from straw buyers or from states with lax gun laws. The weapons are coming in containers through various ports of entry. They even brag about the weapons and show off brand-new ones direct from the factory, still in their wrappings.

In July 2022, the hierarchy of the Episcopal Church was caught red-handed when authorities in Haiti seized a haul of 17 semi-automatic weapons, a 12-gauge shotgun, four pistols, and 15,000 rounds of ammunition stuffed in a shipment from Florida bound for a Haitian Episcopal Church. Several high-ranking church members were imprisoned because of this scandal.

Who benefits from all this killing and chaos?

I translated a document revealing that some candidates for parliamentary office have been courted by foreign enterprises interested in Haiti’s mineral wealth. They would help finance electoral campaigns in exchange for votes approving projects giving access to the country’s mineral resources, specifically gypsum, oil, gold, and bauxite/aluminum.

Several of these areas are now controlled by gangs. Haitian grassroots organizations feel this is part of a larger plan that does not include the well-being of the people but destabilizes communities, forcing residents to leave. The people’s movement has mobilized against the push by the “international community” to impose changes in the Haitian Constitution, allowing full multinational access to Haiti’s minerals, including uranium and iridium. In the opinion of many, the gangs are guarding these areas for powerful economic interests. Many Haitians view the policies of post-coup governments to encourage mass legal migration as part of a plan to depopulate coastal Port-au-Prince neighborhoods and turn them into tourist resorts.

What will be helpful? Why doesn’t the people’s movement want foreign intervention?

The problem with foreign intervention is that foreigners only work with the Haitian elite, the business class, which doesn’t benefit ordinary people. The Haitian people remember the cholera epidemic brought by the last UN intervention. They remember the massacres, the sexual violence, and the commitment of foreign forces to keep corrupt governments in power. Many believe the uptick in violence was created to justify foreign intervention.

What is Lavalas proposing as a solution?

Lavalas has been presenting plans since 2018 to resolve the crisis. They have called for the resignation of the current leadership and the formation of a new government by a coalition representing various sectors of society. This coalition would select honest, competent individuals to form a government of public safety, called a Sali Piblik, focused on restoring the functionality of ministries such as justice/security, health, education, environment, and agriculture, and eliminating corruption. The Haitian police have enough equipment and enough honest officers to fight the death squads if they aren’t sabotaged by corrupt leaders and smuggled U.S. weapons of war.

Learn more at haitisolidarity.net.

December 8, 2023

The U.S. veto of the UN Security Council Resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza gives a green light for Israel to continue escalating a murderous military campaign that has reached genocidal proportions in Gaza.

This is wrong and the U.S. now stands visibly isolated on the world stage. And our government’s stubborn refusal to help put the brakes on what UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres termed a “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza is not just wrong, it is immoral.

It not only makes us complicit with every atrocity committed by the IDF, it unnecessarily puts us on a collision course with history and people around the world who should be our friends and allies.

For decades the U.S. has used its Security Council veto power to protect Israel from the consequences of its own excesses – like the invasion of Lebanon in the 1980’s, the use of prohibited weapons, decades of settlement on illegally occupied lands – the list is long. Israel has become accustomed to virtually unconditional U.S. backing, but this week’s veto is perhaps the most bitter one yet.

Over 17,000 people have been killed in weeks of brutal and indiscriminate strikes on Gaza in what Israel justifies as retaliation for the brutal October 7th attacks by Hamas. All life is sacred, but the world is not buying Israel’s story. Not when nearly half those killed in its military campaign are children, not when most of Gaza’s homes are already destroyed, not when more than a million internally displaced people fleeing the conflict go hungry, thirsty, unsheltered.

And the gruesome October 7th assault did not suddenly make the deeply corrupt, authoritarian ultra-nationalist Benjamin Netanyahu a wise leader who the U.S. should support even as he bombs and brutalizes the people of Gaza whose grandparents first fled there 1948 and who, since 1967, have lived under military occupation and domination by Israel.

The shock of what happened on October 7th is undisputed, the lessons are not. The U.S. is not obliged to follow Benjamin Netanyahu on an impossible campaign to “exterminate” his enemies. Joining the world in calling for a genuine and prolonged ceasefire is in the long-term best interests of the American people and of everyone involved. Violence begets more violence. New leaders who understand that are desperately needed.

In a statement explaining why he invoked the rarely used Article 99 of the UN Charter that empowers the Secretary-General “to bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which, in his opinion, may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security,” Guterres lamented the “appalling human suffering, physical destruction and collective trauma across Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” He said, “Hospitals have turned into battlegrounds [and that] without shelter or the essentials to survive, I expect public order to completely break down soon.”

The temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that was abandoned on December 1st should resume. The exchange of captives should resume. The constant deadly bombardment of Gaza must stop; truce and ceasefire must be revived.

Don’t let up the pressure on our leaders. Please tell the White House: Permanent Ceasefire NOW. Call and express your disappointment on today’s ceasefire VETO. America can do better.

Call the White House Today 202-456-1111

Is Peace Still Possible? Yes, but we must change the course we are on.

Last October 7th, Hamas operatives surprised Israeli border defenders who, despite vastly superior military capacities, were caught off guard and unable to contain a ghastly and vindictive wave of mass murder, kidnappings, and other gruesome atrocities. These heinous acts produced a wave of revulsion that swept the world. And that wave was accompanied by the sickening realization that the “total war” plan immediately declared by discredited Israeli strongman – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was guaranteed to bring more – vastly and disproportionately more – suffering to the millions of children, elders, and non-combatants locked in, unable to escape the densely populated confines of the Gaza Strip.

Global Exchange joined millions around the world who have urged restraint. We organized appeals to President Biden and our U.S. Representatives, pleading with them to use wisdom with their immense power and influence to stay the hand of Israeli vengeance and to keep the road of reconciliation open.

But despite broad public support for an urgent ceasefire to spare the lives of innocent civilians and hostages, President Biden instead boosted U.S. naval air support in the region, embraced Netanyahu, and gave the Israeli government a green light to escalate their attack. Biden’s mild requests to “minimize civilian casualties” were not enough to avoid the perception of American complicity with the war crimes implicit in the siege: starvation, bombing of civilians, and invasion of Gaza…a territory just smaller than Las Vegas, Nevada, but far more densely packed, with three times its population.

Another wave of revulsion and protest is now sweeping the world – provoked, this time, by the Israeli government’s disproportionate and sickening response and the U.S. failure to restrain its close ally.

I write on Day of the Dead, knowing this article will be published sometime later this month. I pray that by then, the killing will have stopped, that the deadly fire will have ceased, that mass starvation is averted, that hostages are safe at home, and that saner voices have prevailed. That is a lot to hope for, and I also fear that by the time you are reading this, conditions could be far worse – if the politics of vengeance, dehumanization, and unchecked retribution are allowed to prevail.

Around 2000 years ago when troops moved in to arrest Jesus of Nazareth in Jerusalem, his disciple Peter (the guy who later founded Christianity) drew his sword and sliced off the ear of one of their assailants. “Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him, “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.” Over the millennia, we’ve boiled that down to: “Live by the sword, and you’ll die by it too.” The core truth of that saying could not be more relevant today.

When violence appears to be the only option and the emotional logic of “protection” or “resistance” leads us to plan and carry out inhumane, soul-distorting actions we must pause, reconsider, and seek higher wisdom.

We live in a time when fires are breaking out planet-wide – literally from the equator to the polar circles. Our survival requires concerted global action. We cannot afford to double down on ancient hatreds or the unresolved post-colonial disputes of the 1900s. Yet that is exactly what is happening in the Middle East, in Ukraine, and elsewhere.

But peace isn’t easy. It is more than just the mere absence of deadly conflict. Even if things “calm down,” real peace and reconciliation must be based on justice and a fundamental recasting of the assumptions and interests underlying the conflict.

But for right now, we need to build a coalition for peace among the majority of people across the political spectrum who believe that killing is wrong, that the killing of innocents is worse, and that justice is never served by more indiscriminate killing.

It is easy to feel disempowered in the face of seemingly implacable hatreds and events that seem to be spinning out of control. But, knowing that we are by no means alone in our revulsion to brutality helps. And it gives us a place to start conversations with our neighbors, friends, and our political representatives that go beyond the biased narratives of mainstream media and the shouting matches that dominate on social media.

To bring you a fresh and in-depth perspective from the conflict zone, Global Exchange is working closely with our longtime partner, Ernesto Ledesma of Rompeviento.TV who has started reporting from the occupied West Bank. This reporting is costly and risky, but we do it in the spirit of reaching out and building “people-to-people ties” and human solidarity even in the most dangerous and stressful times.

One observation Ernesto shared in his first days of reporting from the West Bank is that when he asked Palestinians – intellectuals, construction workers, doctors, aid workers and others across the West Bank the question, “Can anyone lead the way to stop this war?”. To my surprise, they all had the same answer: “Joe Biden”.

As American President, Biden could be a force for peace. No one has more power to halt the Israeli onslaught in Gaza, to feed those who are starving, to treat those who are wounded, and to free those who are held hostage. He has the most power to compel the Israelis to halt the ongoing settlement and annexation of Palestinian lands that Israeli anti-peace extremists have cynically used for generations to sabotage Camp David, Oslo, and every other effort for peace.

But Biden’s positions and actions to date confirm that he has chosen war; and worse, has not even publically insisted that Israel – the largest recipient of American military aid in the region – adhere to the rules of war.

The American people, and his Democratic base of voters, are historically supportive of Israel but polls show sharply rising concerns about escalation and overwhelming support for an immediate CEASEFIRE.

President Biden must wake up to this new reality and show true leadership for peace. The course he has set for our country is morally, politically and strategically unsustainable. We must change it, now!

Join us in supporting Cuba through travel, building meaningful connections across borders, and voicing our dissent to the inhumane blockade!

We are excited to invite you on our incredible New Year’s trip to Cuba to celebrate and learn about community, culture, and revolution. We still have a few spots available. Learn more and RSVP here.

Celebrate New Year’s and the 65th Anniversary of the Cuban Revolution with us on this once-in-a-lifetime experience. We’ll spend our days exploring and enjoying people-to-people exchanges with Cubans, visiting community projects, meeting small business owners, exploring urban gardens, touring the fine arts museum, and celebrating the New Year and the Anniversary of the Triumph of the Cuban Revolution with a lovely dinner and music!

On New Year’s Day, we’ll go to the Spanish Colonial town of Trinidad, a designated UNESCO Heritage Site. While in Trinidad, we’ll stroll the cobblestone streets and learn more about the island’s history, including its Afro-Cuban culture. We will then head to Santa Clara and visit the site of the memorial to Che Guevara. We’ll also have a unique opportunity to visit a community gathering where we will meet with Cubans in their neighborhood to learn about how they organize at the local level to support one another.

Now is the time to travel to Cuba! Between the inhumane US blockade and the pandemic, the economic conditions have worsened exponentially, and travel to the island not only supports the local economy but also builds meaningful people-to-people connections.

To view the itinerary for complete details, e-mail us at realitytours@globalexchange.org or call us at 415-575-5527.Register Today

P.S. If you can’t make it on this Cuba trip, plenty more will be added to our 2024 calendar in the next 2 weeks! Including this incredible Cuba Jazz Festival trip.

We will never give up demanding justice for the disappeared.

Right now, the family of Ricardo Lagunes Gasca and representatives of Antonio Díaz Valencia are in Washington DC, meeting with policy makers and the international diplomatic community to push for answers and to demand accountability.

They violently disappeared after participating in a community assembly discussing the next steps after winning the case. There are allegations that both received threats from Ternium, the company operating the Aquila mine – a company that has received scrutiny for its blatant disregard of Indigenous rights in the region.

Unfortunately, the plight of Ricardo and Antonio is far from unusual in the region. Between 2002 and 2023, 96 environmental defenders and 62 Indigenous Rights activists have disappeared.

Since their disappearance, Ricardo’s relatives have been demanding a full investigation from the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances and Inter-American Commission.

Ana Lucía and Antoine Lagunes Gasca, Ricardo’s siblings, are visiting Washington D.C. this week, from November 8 to 11, for a meeting with the U.S. State Department’s Task Force of Environmental defenders, a private hearing with the Inter-American Commission, the Office of the High Commissioner and the Mexican Government, and with several allies.

They are seeking support from the international community and international organizations to advocate for the return of both defenders and achieve international technical assistance in the search and investigation in order to seek their humanitarian recovery, find the truth and seek justice in the case.

Watch a video (in Spanish) featuring the families of Ricardo and Antonio below:

One of the key demands of the People’s Movement for Peace and Justice is accountability and justice for the disappeared. Further, Global Exchange has been an ally of human right defenders in Mexico for over 30 years. Our Mexico Human Rights Senior Fellow, Alberto Solis, was contacted by the families and the lawyers of Ricardo and Antonio to support them in their visit to DC. We will be with them to make sure the US State Department follows up on their commitments with the case and the victims. The People’s Movement for Peace and Justice stands with these families, and with all the families of the disappeared.

Will you stand with us, and sign our petition calling for justice for the disappeared, as well as a set of demands to bring peace and accountability to the region?

Press Statement: Families of Disappeared Mexican environmental and Indigenous land defender visit Washington to Seek Justice.

The family of Ricardo Lagunes Gasca and representatives of Antonio Díaz Valencia will be in Washington from November 8 to 11 to meeting with policy makers and the international diplomatic community to discuss their enforced disappearance for defending the environment and Indigenous land from mining development in Aquila Michoacán, Mexico.

Ricardo Lagunes Gasca, a human rights and Indigenous territories lawyer, and Professor Antonio Díaz Valencia, the leader of the Nahua Indigenous community of San Miguel de Aquila, Michoacán, Mexico, were victims of enforced disappearance on January 15, 2023 for successfully defending Indigenous rights in courts. They violently disappeared after participating in a community assembly discussing the next steps after winning the case. There are allegations that both received threats from Ternium, the company operating the Aquila mine disregarding Indigenous rights.

Since their disappearance, Ricardo’s relatives have been demanding a full investigation with Mexican and international organizations and an humanitarian recovery. They also obtained recommendations from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN Committee against Enforced Disappearance, several UN Special Procedures and the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights.

Ana Lucía and Antoine Lagunes Gasca, Ricardo’s siblings, will be visiting Washington D.C. from November 8 to 11, for a meeting with the U.S. State Department’s Task Force of Environmental defenders, a private hearing with the Inter-American Commission, the Office of the High Commissioner and the Mexican Government, and with several allies. They are seeking support from the international community and international organizations to advocate for the return of both defenders and achieve international technical assistance in the search and investigation in order to seek their humanitarian recovery, find the truth and seek justice in the case.

For more information and to interview the Lagunes, please contact:

Alejandra Gonza, Director Global Rights Advocacy at:
alejandragonza@globalrightsadvocacy.org
Cel. 2063054919

Alberto Solis Castro, Senior Fellow on Mexico, Global Exchange at:
asolis@globalexchange.org
Cel. 7736684593

Ahead of their meeting, demand that APEC leaders and IPEF negotiators listen to the people instead of corporations.

On October 18th Guatemala will celebrate its (non-violent) Democratic Revolution of 1944 with a new, democratic revolution, one that has arisen to defend their newly elected president, Bernardo Arévalo.

President-elect Arévalo does not take office until January 14th – nearly five months after his election on August 20th – and corrupt forces within the existing Guatemalan government have sought to use this long transition period to derail his administration before it even begins. But Guatemalans have risen up to oppose them, mounting a powerful, nationwide campaign of resistance demanding the resignation of the corrupt officials behind what Arévalo calls a “slow-motion coup.”

The resistance campaign, buoyed by the critical leadership of “Ancestral Authorities” of Indigenous communities has been costly but resilient – even in the face of repression like the deadly armed attacks in Malacatan last Monday.

Édgar Gutiérrez who is a former Foreign Minister turned journalist. For years, his opinion columns and analysis published in many media outlets have helped the public better understand how corruption structures operate, as well as the links between corrupt officials, corrupting elites, and organized crime. This has earned him constant legal and media attacks, which is why he now lives in exile in Mexico.
Gregorio “Goyo” Saavedra is a young journalist and lawyer who has specialized in analyzing and denouncing “Lawfare” the corrupt manipulation of the legal system to attack political opponents. He will explain the “absurd” legal tactics being deployed by the losers of last August’s election as they attempt to undo its clear mandate for deep, institutional reform.

It has been nine years and we still don’t know the full truth about what happened in Iguala, Mexico on the night of Sept 26th, 2014 when police disappeared 43 students from the rural teachers college in Ayotzinapa.

Recently, a blockbuster article in the New York Times detailed the complicity and involvement of the Mexican Army and police in cartel activity as well as the disappearance of the 43 students and the murder of 6 people that night. The students had gone to Iguala, Guerrero, Mexico to commandeer buses to travel to Mexico City to participate in protests.

Since 2014, the families of the disappeared, as well as civil society organizations both within Mexico, the United States and beyond, have demanded answers and accountability.

The first, sham investigation from the Peña Nieto administration tried to fool the parents by pointing to a site where the government planted false evidence. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) committed to finding the students and the truth and bringing the perpetrators to justice. And though his administration took early steps to fulfill his promise, it has since shut down the investigation. There is significant evidence that the Army was monitoring everything, was in telephone communication with police and cartel members, and was present as the students were being disappeared.

Independent investigators under-covered the existence of military documents that could further illuminate the full truth of what happened that night. Both the Army and AMLO deny those documents exist. The families are demanding the information be turned over.

The AMLO administration wants to move on, to achieve only a partial truth that papers over the degree of military complicity, and fails to bring all those responsible to justice.

But the families of the disappeared will not give up, and neither will we. To mark the nine year anniversary of the disappearance, civil society organizations throughout the United States and Mexico are taking action to put pressure on the AMLO government to come clean and pursue justice.

Global Exchange and our partners at the People’s Movement for Peace and Justice are organizing actions in Mexico and here in the U.S. Find more information and how you can take action with us here.

If you cannot make it to one of these in person events, we hope you can take a moment of your time to send a letter to Mexican President Obrador calling for a full accounting of the events of September 26, 2014.

Nine years is far too long. The truth must come out, no matter the cost.

Organizations Condemn Violence Against Garifuna Communities in Honduras