They face violence from gangs, the national civil police and the military police, members of the public, and their own families, as well as extortion by gangs and discrimination in schools and in the workplace. Im nervous, repeated a young police officer driving a pickup truck crowded with heavily armed special forces officers. Women, children and the LGBTQ+ community are the ones most affected and we have seen the demand for services skyrocket It is essential to address the root causes of forced migration, a strategy that the current U.S. administration is adopting. Death threats and gang violence forcing more families to - ReliefWeb We also provide critical, up-to-date information and support from trained moderators through CuntaNos, a digital platform that is part of the Global Signpost project. In July 2020, gunmen in police uniforms abducted five indigenous Garifuna men in Triunfo de la Cruz, where communities are claiming ancestral land from drug traffickers and developers. 18th Street, also known as Calle 18, Barrio 18, Mara 18, or simply La 18 in Central America, is a multi-ethnic (largely Central American and Mexican) transnational criminal organization that started as a street gang in Los Angeles.It is one of the largest transnational criminal gangs in Los Angeles, with 65,000 members between the United States, Mexico, and Central America and is also allied . 20 Top Safety Tips for Traveling to Honduras. There are taxi ranks in a lot of locations. One example:tajadas(fried plantains, topped with cabbage and served with ground beef). Politicians are manipulated by criminals or other politicians. So whilst its gettingsafer, its a slow process. On average, children living in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador are 10 times more likely to be killed than a child who lives in the United States. SafetyWing is convenient, cheap, and trouble-free Insurance was never this easy! Honduras, in general, is open and welcoming to children. Despite some similarities, the security situation in El Salvador is different from Honduras, which has a much larger territory, higher population, greater poverty and a more diverse set of criminal groups. Inside Honduras' most dangerous gangs - YouTube In Honduras, one of the most violent countries in the world, 60 percent of deaths are attributed to organized crime. There are some safety pointsthat travelers should know for anywhere they travel, but Honduras requires these special considerations. For years, street gangs have charged protection money from bus and taxi drivers and store owners in Honduras, as in neighboring El Salvador. In these demonstrations, more than 1,500 were arrested and30 people were killed. So when it comes to safetyin Honduras, we think youllgenerallybe fine, especially in the Bay Islands. Our work is costly and high risk. It also documented widespread mistreatment of people detained and arrested during the protests. Xiomara Castros crackdown on gangs is also an attempt to counter allegations the government hasnt done enough to combat crime. I agree with Bukele and I want the same here. This is due to negotiationsbetween criminal groups and the government, and possibly because of economic aid from the US. Well Public transportation can be alittle trickyin Honduras, and its not always safe. Corruption, crime, and gang activity inhibits the ability to conduct business activities freely and dissuades entrepreneurs from establishing new businesses. Around 191,000 people were internally displaced between 2004 and 2018, the Honduran government reported, and more than 75,000 Hondurans sought asylum abroad in 2017. Hardline policies, meanwhile, are popular because people think that theyre going to work but inevitably the track record is that they havent, said Malone. Dont eat at tourist traps. An eSIM works just like an app: you buy it, you download it, and BOOM! document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()); Biodiversity is a huge part of Honduras. Travel smart and make sure your safety and security is your number one priority. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Corruption, poor governance, and. TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras -- Honduras became the second country in Central America to declare a state of emergency to fight gang crimes like extortion. Honduras Crime Rate & Statistics 1990-2023 | MacroTrends If San Pedro Sula Is Murder Capital of the World, Who Made It That Way? To reduce overcrowding in response to the pandemic, the legislature approved alternatives to pretrial detention in June and judges released more than 1,600 people. The flavors, spices and. Anyone else would do well with a trusted tour group. The violence is carried out by local drug trafficking groups, gangs, corrupt security forces and transnational criminal organizations mainly from Mexico and Colombia. We are on the frontlines providing critical aid to crisis-affected people in more than 40 countries, including places on the 2022 Emergency Watchlist. We dont want to recommend traveling to the rest of Honduras with your family. So long as violence in Honduras continues without impunity, major displacement will persist in 2022. For years, street gangs have charged protection money from bus and taxi drivers and store owners in Honduras, as in neighboring El Salvador. Seth Sidney Berry / SOPA Images/Sipa USA (Sipa via AP Images), Share this via Facebook World Report 2022: Honduras | Human Rights Watch A local TV correspondent needed to do a live shot for one of the countrys most-watched news programs. The IRC serves people and families in vulnerable situations or at increased risk for violence and displacement, including those who are uprooted by violence or returning after seeking safety in other countries. The vaccine doses arrived in the Honduran capital on October 4 2021. Youll be able to travel around here with relative ease. Note that they are generally safe to visit during the day (with a bit of caution obviously), especially if you have a local guide, but should be fully avoided at night. Support focuses primarily on reintegration into the labor market, rather than assistance for people who fled seeking international protection. Wed,03/01/23-8:26AM, 3 Reads. Extortions generate annual profits of up to $737 million for gangs, nearly 3% of the country's gross domestic product, according to data from Association for a More Just Society, a security-focused non-governmental organization. Not all U.S. presidents are missed once they leave the White House. One good thing I can say about Roatan is that the dive sites are excellent around the island. Estimates of the number of active gang members range from 5,000 to 40,000. Gangs, particularly the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and the 18th Street Gang (Barrio 18), are considered to be largely responsible for Honduras murder rate, and are infamous for extortion and drug peddling. The inmates, all from Honduras, had reportedly escaped custody yesterday in Scott County. Chances are, if you are arriving via a cruise ship, you will be safe. Subscribe. In El Salvador, a Thin Line Between Community Policing and Vigilantism. The government relies heavily on the military for public security. So keep that in mind and have a read of our safety tips for solo female travelers thinking of taking a trip to Honduras. Some are deprived of full legal capacity and are institutionalized in different settings, including psychiatric hospitals. Nope. Honduras recorded 3,496 murders in 2020. People here live in pretty supreme poverty 60%of the population living in poverty really isa lot of people. On 24 November, Hondurass leftwing president, Xiomara Castro, declared war on extortion a very real problem that causes economic stagnation, fuels violence and forces countless Hondurans to flee the country. From 2011 to 2017, the number of killings in Honduras actually dropped, from 87 per 100,000 to 44. Youll get the, If youve got no locals to ask, just use your eyes. Were not going to lie its pretty sketchy. This perception has grown despite a slight reduction in homicides this year, according to preliminary data, and a significant drop over the past decade since Honduras held the ignominious title of the worlds most violent country. Almost 110,000 Hondurans were returned in 2019, mostly from Mexico. Impunity for human rights abuses, violent crime, and corruption remains the norm, even as the prison population has mushroomed. January 26, 2022 At a glance Population: 10.1 million 2.8 million people in need of humanitarian aid While homicide rates have dropped in recent years, Honduras is still the most dangerous country in the region, with 38 homicides per 100,000 people. This is an issue that has not been taken seriously by the Honduran state.. These. With all of its branches of government and its armed forces plagued by corruption, Honduras has evolved into a transit nation in which criminal groups, protected by the political system, have developed the capacity to produce cocaine hydrochloride in local laboratories. Honduras, long one of the poorest countries in Latin America, is now also among the most violent and crime-ridden. As expected, the video went viral and the local newspapers made sure they put this trusted news source on their front page. It was focused on the security, or lack of security in Honduras. Late Thursday, Nov. 24, Castro proposed a measure to limit constitutional rights so as to round up gang members. As of September 2020, the US had yet to begin deporting any third country nationals to Honduras under the agreement. According to a State Department report last year, there are up to 10,000 gang members in Honduras, a country with roughly 8 million people. In January 2020, the OHCHR released a report saying that the armed forces and military police had used excessiveeven lethalforce in response to the protests that followed the 2017 election. By MARLON GONZLEZ November 25, 2022. And when it comes to the extreme violence of Honduras, thosevery highfigures come from gang violence. That said, we only link to the gear we trust and never recommend services we dont believe are up to scratch. The Honduran government on Saturday extended a state of emergency declaration for 45 days, expanding it to additional areas of the country in an effort to fight criminal gangs amid high levels of violence. For Varela, who said she had never been a victim of extortion, but heard a lot about it as of late, human rights are just an obstacle. A study by the National Violence Observatory of the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH) placed the country as the most violent territory in Central America, with a homicide rate of 38.5 per 100,000 inhabitants. In neighboring El Salvador, President Nayib Bukele requested Congress grant him extraordinary powers after gangs were blamed for 62 killings on March 26, and that emergency decree has been renewed every month since then. Dont put yourself through that stress. But Honduras is far from Eden. Even if they graduate high school, they can't get a job." Dont drink the water without treating, and steer clear of ice cubes,too. In Honduras, the types of danger include, but are not limited to, violent gang activity, trafficking, rape, street crime and armed robbery. Iris Argentina lvarez of the Cerro Escondido peasant cooperative, which has been working to recover land currently owned by a sugar company, was killed and three people were injured during a violent and allegedly illegal eviction in Choluteca in April 2020. There are alsopassenger ferriesif you want to go totheBay Islands. In September, two men shot and killed journalist Luis Alonzo Almendares in Comayagua. In October, the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), of which Cceres was president, complained of continued delays and a lack of transparency in the case. In the streets where insecurity lurks around each corner, many ordinary Hondurans want to see extreme measures human rights be damned and believe that anything short of that is not enough. Drug trafficking gangs, corruption, and extreme poverty keep Honduras down. The government bans emergency contraception, known as the morningafter pill, which can prevent pregnancy after rape, unprotected sex, or contraceptive failure. Bukeles example resonates in societies with a fragile institutional framework and with a tendency towards populism and authoritarianism, said Ismael Moreno, a human rights defender. In April, Public Order Military Police (PMOP) officers severely beat three brothers and shot two of themone fatallyfor allegedly violating a curfew in El Paraso in order to sell bread.