Tomorrow, Honduras will hold an election that will attempt to legitimize a de facto government that rose to power through a coup, deposing a democratically elected leader. As these developments move forward, we wanted to take the opportunity to re-post an open letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that was recently signed by leaders of international women's human rights organizations. The letter reads in part:
Dear Secretary Clinton,
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We turn to you now in recognition of your extraordinary commitment and with great respect to urge you to address the abuses of women’s human rights occurring at present in Honduras. As numerous national and international human rights groups have documented, the de facto regime has engaged in a systematic campaign of intimidation, physical and sexual abuse, and torture. Increasingly, women have been the target of this campaign. We urge you to condemn the violence unleashed against the Honduran people, and in particular against Honduran women, and to take every peaceful measure possible to avoid further violence.
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The situation for Honduran women constitutes a human rights crisis. As Secretary of State, you have declared women’s rights to be a pillar of U.S. foreign policy. At the United Nations, you have worked to ensure that women’s rights and well-being are a matter of international and global concern, and have stated that allowing women’s rights to be violated with impunity in one place, jeopardizes women`s rights everywhere. Today, we urge you to confirm that in Honduras women’s rights are human rights and must be protected.
It was the rupture of democratic order in the country that gave rise to the current crisis in women’s human rights in Honduras. Therefore, only an immediate return to constitutional government can stop the rapid deterioration of women's rights. Hastily improvised elections-- without the full participation of Honduran society, international recognition, or the reinstatement of the elected president--cannot be free or fair and do not guarantee a return to rule of law. Only a return to rule of law can reestablish legal institutions for redress of human rights violations and end the current situation of impunity for crimes against women.
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