Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras
Encyclopedia
The Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras (CODEH, Spanish: Comité para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos en Honduras) is a human rights
NGO in Honduras
founded in 1981 by medical doctor Ramón Custodio Lopez.
and military governments during the second half of the twentieth century. A civilian government was elected in 1981, but human rights violations continued. The military unit Battalion 3-16, which received training and support from the United States Central Intelligence Agency
both in Honduras
and at U.S. military bases and in Chile
during the presidency of the dictator Augusto Pinochet
, carried out political assassinations and torture
of suspected political opponents of the government. Amnesty International
estimated that at least 184 people were "disappeared"
during from 1980 to 1992 in Honduras, most likely by the Honduran military.
aims were initially narrowly focused, but during the 1990s extended to economic and social human rights.
invited the organization's leader Andrés Pavón to a meeting. The two talked about Zelaya's constitutional modification plans as well as re-election, according to Pavón. Pavón "became pro-Zelaya" after the meeting.
(IACHR), he was shot dead on 14 January 1988. The Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union found that "initial findings" linked the killing with Ángel Pavon's IACHR testimony and stated that former Battalion 3-16 member Fausto Reyes Caballero had declared the names of Battalion 3-16 members responsible for Ángel Pavon's assassination.
The present president of CODEH, Andrés Pavón Murillo, has had three legal cases against him and one attempt was made to kill him because of his human rights activities.
, Alvaro Romero, Erick Sánchez, Onofre Oyuela Oyuela, Napoleón Nassar Herrera
, Vicente Rafael Canales Nuñez, Salomón Escoto Salinas and René Maradianga Panchamé) occupied important positions in the administration of President Manuel Zelaya
.
On 11 November 2009, Andrés Pavón stated that the Honduran military
planned to disguise soldiers as a fake armed wing of the National Resistance Front against the coup d'etat in Honduras
that would massacre members of the Democratic Civic Union on 29 November 2009, the day of the planned Honduran general election
, with the goal of discrediting the National Resistance Front and creating a cycle of lethal violence between pro- and anti-coup civilian groups. Pavón said that military officers "loyal to the Honduran people" had informed him about the plan and stated that the plan is to be carried out by supporters of the de facto government.
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
NGO in Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
founded in 1981 by medical doctor Ramón Custodio Lopez.
Background
Honduras had a history of several coups d'etatCoup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
and military governments during the second half of the twentieth century. A civilian government was elected in 1981, but human rights violations continued. The military unit Battalion 3-16, which received training and support from the United States Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
both in Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
and at U.S. military bases and in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
during the presidency of the dictator Augusto Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
, carried out political assassinations and torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
of suspected political opponents of the government. Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
estimated that at least 184 people were "disappeared"
Forced disappearance
In international human rights law, a forced disappearance occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the...
during from 1980 to 1992 in Honduras, most likely by the Honduran military.
Creation
CODEH was created in May 1981 by Ramón Custodio Lopez, a medical doctor and surgeon and founding member of the Medical College of Honduras. He remained the leader of CODEH until 1999.Aims
CODEH's human rightsHuman rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
aims were initially narrowly focused, but during the 1990s extended to economic and social human rights.
Structure and leadership
Andrés Pavón Murillo has been president of CODEH since 1999. In the spring of 2009 Manuel ZelayaManuel Zelaya
José Manuel Zelaya Rosales is a politician who was President of Honduras from January 27, 2006 until June 28, 2009. The eldest son of a wealthy businessman, he inherited his father's nickname "Mel," and, before entering politics, was involved in his family's logging and timber businesses.Elected...
invited the organization's leader Andrés Pavón to a meeting. The two talked about Zelaya's constitutional modification plans as well as re-election, according to Pavón. Pavón "became pro-Zelaya" after the meeting.
Government responses
During the 1980s, CODEH "withstood harassment and intimidation by Honduran security forces". Following testimony that CODEH regional director in northern Honduras, Miguel Ángel Pavón Salazar, gave against the Honduran government in October 1987 before the Inter-American Court of Human RightsInter-American Court of Human Rights
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is an autonomous judicial institution based in the city of San José, Costa Rica. Together with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, it makes up the human rights protection system of the Organization of American States , which serves to uphold and...
(IACHR), he was shot dead on 14 January 1988. The Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union found that "initial findings" linked the killing with Ángel Pavon's IACHR testimony and stated that former Battalion 3-16 member Fausto Reyes Caballero had declared the names of Battalion 3-16 members responsible for Ángel Pavon's assassination.
The present president of CODEH, Andrés Pavón Murillo, has had three legal cases against him and one attempt was made to kill him because of his human rights activities.
CODEH reports
In mid-2006, CODEH reported that seven former members of Battalion 3-16 (Billy JoyaBilly Joya
Billy Fernando Joya Améndola is a former Honduran military officer who worked in the controversial Battalion 3-16, national security adviser at Manuel Zelaya's government, a post in which he has continued.-Military career:...
, Alvaro Romero, Erick Sánchez, Onofre Oyuela Oyuela, Napoleón Nassar Herrera
Napoleón Nassar Herrera
Napoleón Nassar Herrera is a Honduran military officer who worked in the controversial Battalion 3-16 who successively became leader of the General Department of Criminal Investigation , high Commissioner of Police for the north-west region in the Manuel Zelaya government, and one of the Secretary...
, Vicente Rafael Canales Nuñez, Salomón Escoto Salinas and René Maradianga Panchamé) occupied important positions in the administration of President Manuel Zelaya
Manuel Zelaya
José Manuel Zelaya Rosales is a politician who was President of Honduras from January 27, 2006 until June 28, 2009. The eldest son of a wealthy businessman, he inherited his father's nickname "Mel," and, before entering politics, was involved in his family's logging and timber businesses.Elected...
.
On 11 November 2009, Andrés Pavón stated that the Honduran military
Military of Honduras
-pre-1979:During the twentieth century, Honduran military leaders frequently became presidents, either through elections or by coups d'état. General Tiburcio Carías Andino was elected in 1932, he later on called a constituent assembly that allowed him to be reelected, and his rule became more...
planned to disguise soldiers as a fake armed wing of the National Resistance Front against the coup d'etat in Honduras
National Resistance Front (Honduras)
The National Popular Resistance Front or National People's Resistance Front , frequently referred to as the National Resistance Front, is a wide coalition of Honduran grassroots organisations and political parties and movements that aims to restore elected President Manuel Zelaya and hold a...
that would massacre members of the Democratic Civic Union on 29 November 2009, the day of the planned Honduran general election
Honduran general election, 2009
The Honduran general election, 2009 was held in Honduras on 29 November 2009, including presidential, parliamentary and local elections. Voters went to the polls to elect:*A new President of Honduras to serve a four-year term starting January 27, 2010....
, with the goal of discrediting the National Resistance Front and creating a cycle of lethal violence between pro- and anti-coup civilian groups. Pavón said that military officers "loyal to the Honduran people" had informed him about the plan and stated that the plan is to be carried out by supporters of the de facto government.