Rights of victims in the Berta Cáceres murder trial are not respected

Tegucigalpa-Paris-Genève,November 9, 2018 - Our organisations, involved in the international trial observationmission of the trial for the assassination of human rights defender BertaCáceres on March 3, 2016, express their deep worries concerning the seriousviolations of the human rights of the victims and the flaws observed during thetrial, which started on October 19, 2018.

Our organisations denounce theunacceptable treatment of the victims in this case. During the investigation,which lasted more than two years and which was marred by numerousirregularities, the victims were denied access to the totality of theinvestigative reports, including key evidence. Furthermore, at the start of thetrial on October 19, the lawyers chosen by Berta Cáceres’ family to representthem were excluded from the trial without being given a legitimate reason. Thistrial for murder, which is being held at the First Chamber of the TegucigalpaCriminal Court, is however emblematic of the violence experienced by those whodefend human rights in the Americas.

“By excluding the victims’ lawyersfrom the trial and by forcing them to be represented by the Public Prosecutor’sOffice, the court has left them without a voice and has violated their rightsto a fair trial, to truth, and to effective justice, as demanded byinternational standards. The victims’ lawyers must be re-admitted as soon aspossible,” said Juan Francisco Soto, CALDH Director and FIDH Vice-President.

“We have observed a large number ofirregularities and flaws, including the fact that the press and the victimshave been prohibited from attending and reporting on the hearings, this inclear violation of the principle of publicity of hearings which is a fair trialrequirement under criminal procedure. This limitation also impacts theinterests of the public, which has a right to know the truth about thesecrimes, particularly as a guarantee of non-repetition,” said Wilfredo Mendez, CIPRODEHDirector.

Furthermore, we consider that theconclusions of experts should obligate the Prosecution to deepen theinvestigation into the links between the companies DESA, CONCASA, PEMSA,ECOSERVI and SEPSA, and between these companies and those currently facing charges,as well as the use of companies’ resources to influence statements and actionsby COPINH, the organisation led by Berta Cáceres. Without this, we cannot speakof a truly effective investigation.

“Throughout the hearings, thelack of analysis into the context of persecution and attack against COPINH andagainst Berta Cáceres Flores has been blatant. It is because of this that weask the Public Prosecutor to deepen this element of the investigation, whichwould facilitate an understanding of the criminal structures which planned,ordered and executed her murder; and in consequence, would allow to identifythe beneficiaries of the crime and to investigate, prosecute and punish themasterminds and high-level perpetrators,” noted Reinaldo Villalba Vargas,Coordinator of the penal branch of the Lawyers Collective CAJAR.

Similarly, themission observed the recurrent practice of beginning hearings with delays andto suspend them for excessive lengths of time.

Finally, we are particularlyconcerned about the climate of vulnerability in which human rights defendersoperate. Honduras has one of the highest rates in the world of murder of humanrights defenders particularly for environmental activists. This is why we askthe State to take necessary and efficient measures to guarantee a safe andconducive environment for the exercise of human rights work.

Signatories:

International Federationof Human Rights - FIDH, in the framework of the Observatory for the Protectionof Human Rights Defenders (International)

World Organisation AgainstTorture - OMCT, in the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of HumanRights Defenders (International)

Colectivo de Abogados “José Alvear Restrepo” -CAJAR (Colombia)

Centro de Acción Legal en Derechos Humanos - CALDH(Guatemala)

Centro de Investigación y Promoción de losDerechos Humanos - CIPRODEH (Honduras)

Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidosen Honduras - COFADEH (Honduras)