Justice for Juan López in Honduras

Grassroots International expresses its heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and fellow organizers of Honduran land and environmental defender Juan López, violently murdered by armed assailants on 14 September 2024. As we mourn this loss, we are reminded of the 2016 murder of our beloved Berta Cáceres, the 2020 kidnapping and disappearance of youth leaders Alberth Sneider Centeno, Milton Joel Martínez Álvarez, Suami Aparicio Mejía García, Gerardo Misael Trochez Calix, and Junior Rafael Juárez Mejía from Garifuna territory in Triunfo de la Cruz, and so many others killed on the frontlines of territorial defense. Every day of injustice and impunity is one too many.

For Juan López and the Honduran people, the struggle for justice is now! 

Justice for Juan López! Justice for Berta! Justice for the youth of Triunfo de la Cruz!

Justice for all!

“It is with great pain that I receive the horrible news of the murder of my comrade Juan López. How many memories come to mind of the struggles we have endured. I’ve fought for justice for my mother because I wanted this never to happen again, but that dream is increasingly distant. Honduras hurts!”

— Bertha Cáceres, Consejo Cívico de Organizaciones Populares e Indígenas de Honduras/Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH)

“One of the last texts that Juan wrote to me was about disarmament and insecurity. He was not only defending the forests but also defending the right to express oneself in this country where almost no one reads. The murderers silenced the voice of Juan López, sending a message to the national government and each and every one of us who fights daily”. 

— Miriam Miranda, Organización Fraternal Negra Hondureña/Black Fraternal Organization of Honduras (OFRANEH)

Just last week Global Witness issued findings that at least 196 land and environmental defenders were murdered for their organizing efforts worldwide, a majority in Latin America.