Association for a More Just Society (AJS) - Land Rights Murders and the World Bank

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Breaking News: World Bank Meets with AJS-Supported Justice Workers, Community Leaders

Previous Update: Government Pledges to Address Murders, Land Rights Issues

“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” —Proverbs 31:8-9

Land Rights Murders and the World Bank

Three community leaders from the greater San Pedro Sula area who collaborated with the AJS-supported Land Rights Project, including those pictured below, have been murdered in a period of just two weeks. At least four more community leaders from the area with whom the Land Rights Project has worked closely in advocating for the correct implementation of the Property Law fear for their lives.

The Property Institute is the Honduran government institution in charge of implementing the Property Law. We believe that negligence and undue delays by the Property Institute have greatly contributed to the atmosphere of impunity that emboldens illegitimate landowners to carry out these violent acts.

The World Bank has dedicated over 25 million dollars to fund Honduras' land-titling efforts. The negligence and slowness that have carried the Property Institute's land-titling efforts in the greater San Pedro Sula area, and that have contributed to the murders of three community leaders just in October, indicate to us that the World Bank is not providing adequate oversight of land titling in Honduras.

Please contact the World Bank about the need to prevent further killings and solve Honduras' land-rights issues in a just and timely manner. You can use the contact information and sample letter below!

Mailing Addresses
The World Bank
1818 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20433 USA

Geoffrey Bergen, Representative for Honduras
World Bank / Banco Mundial
edificio Citibank, frente a Ruby Tuesdays, subida a Las Lomas
Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Central America
Fax: 011 504 239-4555

Email
investigations_hotline@worldbank.org

Phone (Anti-Corruption Hotline)
1 (800) 831-0463

Fax (Anti-Corruption Hotline)
1 (202) 522-7140

Sample Letter
Respected Officials of the World Bank:

I am writing you to register my extreme concern regarding the recent murders of three community leaders in northern Honduras. This past October 14, Ubense Aguilar, president of the neighborhood association of the “Ideal” neighborhood in the town of Villnueva, department of Cortés, was shot to death in front of a small cement-block factory he owned. On October 9, Elías Murcia, president of the neighborhood Brisas de Occidente 2 in the town of Cofradía, was shot to death in front of his home. On October 2, Fredis Osorto Reyes, president of the neighborhood Vida Nueva in the town of Cofradía, was shot to death in front of his house.

The evidence available to date indicates that the people behind these vile crimes may be illegitimate “landowners” whose dirty business of illegal land sales have been put in jeopardy by the expropriation, regularization, and titling processes pushed forward by the Government through the Property Institute, funded by the World Bank, and supported by many community leaders, among them those recently murdered.

I am concerned that the negligence and slowness of the Property Institute in regularizing and titling lands in these communities has allowed false landowners to continue committing illegal acts with impunity. I am concerned that to date Justice Officials have not brought any of the people responsible for these murders to justice. I am concerned by the fact that more community leaders are being threatened, among them Danilo del Arca, president of the Federation of Neighborhood Associations of Cofradía; Carminda Pérez, president of the neighborhood Altos de Cofradía; Gabriel Zambrano, president of the neighborhood Brisas de Occidente 3, Cofradía; and Carlos Murillo, president of the neighborhood Lisandro Paz, Cofradía.

I understand that in recent months the World Bank has worked closely with AJS-supported Land Rights staff to analyze the titling process and seek a solution to land ownership processes in Cofradía—I applaud these efforts and urge the World Bank to use all its influence to help achieve the following:

1. That protection be immediately provided for the leaders who are being threatened and for the staff of la Asociación para una Sociedad más Justa (ASJ) who work on land rights issues in the region.

2. That the murders of the leaders mentioned be investigated and the material and intellectual authors of these murders brought to justice.

3. That the land regularization process be implemented efficiently so that the impoverished inhabitants of these communities can have titles to their land and so illegitimate “landowners” cannot find a way to manipulate or exploit the process.

Thank you for willingness to receive and consider this communication.