A Honduran community is outraged over the abduction of four Black Indigenous men who were taken from their homes by gunmen in police uniforms.
According to The Guardian, witnesses say men with guns wearing face coverings arrived in the town of Triunfo de la Cruz in the early morning of July 19 in three different vehicles. The gunmen went into the homes of the men and forced each of them out before fleeing the scene. None of the vehicles carried license plates.
The four men captured are fishermen from the Afro-Indigenous Garifuna community. The Garifuna people, also called the Garinagu, are the descendants of Afro-Indigenous people from the island of St. Vincent who were exiled in the 18th century and migrated to Belize, according to the Minority Rights Group.
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The abducted men have been described as “land defenders” by Democracy Now, or a group of people who speak up on environmental issues on behalf of their communities. Local leaders said the kidnappings illustrate the government’s lack of concern for the Garifuna community.
According to The Bay State Banner, for decades, large mining companies and other businesses have disrupted the Garifuna community by intimidating, threatening and even killing activists who have tried to stop their land projects. Since President Manuel Zelaya was overthrown in 2009, activists say corporations and drug cartels alike have increased their activity and intimidation.
On July 21, protesters were seen gathering in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, to demand the men’s safe return in video captured by Al Jazeera.
“We have been demanding that the Honduran state respect Black people in Honduras,” one protester said.
Local leaders believe the environmental activists were targeted by the government. Al Jazeera pointed out that in 2017, Honduras was named one of the most dangerous countries for environmental activists by Global Witness.
