HONDURAS
The Right to Honor
In corruption-plagued Honduras, the trial of opposition lawmaker Maria Luisa Borjas on charges of defamation began Monday, highlighting concerns that a constitutional guarantee of “the right to honor” is being used to silence criticism of the abuse of power.
The charges relate to a 2017 news conference where Borjas, formerly a high-ranking officer in the country’s national police force, named the “intellectual authors” of a high-profile murder while reading from government investigative reports about three such killings, the Associated Press reported.
If convicted, she could face a possible fine and the loss of her seat in Congress.
“It’s a political persecution and they want to set a precedent so that nobody dares to denounce absolutely anything here,” Borjas said.
Camilo Atala, president of Ficohsa bank, accused her of defamation for disclosing him as one of 16 people suspected of plotting the killing of environmental activist Berta Caceres in 2016, saying the accusation hurt his business relationships as well as his “honor, prestige and dignity.”
However, since 2003, the Honduras-based Committee for Freedom of Expression has counted 41 criminal cases related to crimes against honor, including 13 targeting journalists, AP noted.
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