Honduras ends extradition treaty with the United States

The United States’ intention to direct Honduran politics is “unacceptable,” said Xiomara Castro 

By Daniel Fonseca and Dunia Orellana

Translated by Dashiell Allen

Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The president of Honduras, Xiomara Castro, has taken a decisive —and questioned— step in the country’s foreign policy by ordering her foreign minister, Eduardo Enrique Reina, to denounce the country’s active extradition treaty with the United States.

Castro based her decision on what she considers an intolerable interference of the United States in the internal affairs of Honduras, expressing that it is “unacceptable” for the U.S. to intend to direct Honduran politics.

In a statement published on the social network X, the President emphasized: “Based on our Constitution and international treaties, I have ordered Foreign Minister Enrique Reina to denounce the extradition treaty with the United States.”

Castro’s decision has generated a strong debate both nationally and internationally, given the importance of the treaty in the fight against drug trafficking in Honduras.

La injerencia y el intervencionismo de los Estados Unidos, así como su intención de dirigir la política de Honduras a través de su Embajada y otros representantes, es intolerable. Agreden, desconocen y violan impunemente los principios y prácticas del derecho internacional, que…

— Xiomara Castro de Zelaya (@XiomaraCastroZ) August 28, 2024

Reina, the foreign minister, responded to Castro’s order with an announcement that the State of Honduras has terminated the extradition treaty between the two countries.

The termination follows the latest clash between the U.S. Ambassador Laura Dogu and Castro’s administration.

Dogu has commented on multiple past occasions on the policies and decisions of the Castro government, provoking reactions from the Foreign Ministry.

The ambassador had earlier expressed her “surprise and disappointment” to see José Manuel Zelaya — Minister of Defense and nephew of Xiomara Castro — and Major General Roosevelt Leonel Hernández Aguilar, head of the military joint chiefs of staff, meeting with Vladimir Padrino López, Venezuela’s Minister of Defense.

Padrino has been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department since 2018, accused of drug trafficking and crimes against humanity. 

Dogu called the meeting surprising and disappointing, given that, according to her, it occurs in a context in which President Castro has shown herself to be a committed figure in the fight against drug traffickers.

In response, Castro criticized what she considered an aggression and disregard for the principles of international law on the part of the United States.

The Honduran president affirmed that “the interference and interventionism of the United States, as well as its intention to direct Honduran politics through its embassy and other representatives, is intolerable.” 

Both President Castro and US Ambassador Dogu have received personal, and at times misogynist, attacks on social media since Castro’s announcement on Wednesday. 

The attacks against President Castro add to the misogynistic messages that have appeared in the last hours on social networks against Ambassador Laura Dogu.

Among the misogynistic posts are those of presidential advisor Milton Benitez, nicknamed the Yellow Dog. In one of his messages on X, Benitez called the ambassador “Mrs. Dogui”, making a play on words with her last name.

The phrase “Mrs. Dogui” used by Benitez has a strong misogynistic connotation, as it refers to a well-known brand of dog food in Honduras.

La señora Dogui y la @USAmbHonduras deberá entender que su perjudicial activismo político» es un abominable discurso que alimenta el odio y que no es aceptable por carecer de toda ética y seriedad https://t.co/4PpHdRv2zM

— Milton Benítez (@MiltonBeniteztv) August 28, 2024

In addition, Benitez accused the U.S. official of fueling hatred and of having a discourse that lacks “all ethics and seriousness.”

In January 2024, Reportar Sin Miedo asked Ambassador Dogu about the criticism from Castro government officials.

“I am not going to spend energy on things that I cannot control like this noise in social networks, this noise is not so important to me,” Dogu pointed out at the time.

The official added on that occasion that she works from her profile representing the interests of her country’s government and to help Hondurans.

An end to extraditions from Honduras? 

In the past ten years, the Honduran Supreme Court has received 63 extradition processes of Honduran citizens, mostly to the United States, mainly for charges related to drug trafficking. The most emblematic case was that of former president Juan Orlando Hernández, extradited in April 2022 on corruption and drug charges. 

With the decision of President Castro, there has been speculation about a possible request against officials close to her government. However, the Foreign Ministry denied having received new extradition requests.

🗣️ El Canciller @EnriqueReinaHN, rechazó las publicaciones donde aseguran que @CancilleriaHN recibió nuevas solicitudes de extradición, y recalcó qué, en las que se han requerido a hondureños, en su mayoría vinculados con el Partido Nacional se realizó el trámite correspondiente. pic.twitter.com/DDZiEbj07I

— Cancillería Honduras (@CancilleriaHN) August 29, 2024

This comes after the secretary of the National Congress, Carlos Zelaya -Xiomara Castro’s brother-in-law- was mentioned in the drug trafficking trial against former president Hernández for having received bribes from drug trafficker Devis Rivera.

Political figures react to the decision

The order to denounce the extradition treaty has been met with rejection by various sectors of Honduran society and the international community.

Congressman Jorge Cálix, of the Liberal Party, accused the Castro government of protecting drug traffickers with this decision, pointing out that “they pulled out their fingernails” and that “the extradition has only served to judge the drug traffickers who enjoy impunity here.”

Cálix suggested that the government has information about possible extraditions involving high-ranking officials. 

Sacaron las uñas. El gobierno de @XiomaraCastroZ ha decidido mandar al carajo la extradición que solo ha servido para que juzguen a los narcos que aquí gozan de impunidad. CON ESTA DECISIÓN ESTÁN DEFENDIENDO A LOS NARCOS.

No se excusen en la “soberanía” para proteger sus… https://t.co/m5lL48tTan

— Jorge Cálix (@JorgeCalixHN) August 28, 2024

In the same vein, Juan Jiménez Mayor, former head of the Support Mission Against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (MACCIH), questioned the decision, stating that the refusal to extradite nationals could encourage crime and impunity, calling the measure a major setback for the country. 

¿Cuál puede ser una razón objetiva para impedir la extradición de nacionales? Estamos frente a personas que han cometido delitos y que requieren ser juzgadas por jurisdicciones de otros países por sus crímenes. Se alienta el crimen y la impunidad. Gran retroceso para Honduras. https://t.co/aeQnpMQ9Jy

— Juan F. Jiménez Mayor (@JuaJimenezMayor) August 28, 2024

Meanwhile, one of the main critics of Xiomara Castro’s government, Rashid Mejía, published an image calling for the extradition of the “familión.” In the background is the entrance to the US embassy in Tegucigalpa. 

Exigimos la extradición del familión!
Hoy tienen miedo a la ley que un dia pedían para JOH, pero Ni JOH se atrevió a semejante cosa.
El miedo que sienten es por culpa, saben que están “embarrados” y se van!
No nos robaran el país narco socialistas! pic.twitter.com/kUlSbePHZE

— Rashid Mejía (@RashidMG3) August 29, 2024

Civil society organizations, such as the Association for a More Just Society (ASJ), have also spoken out against President Castro’s decision. The ASJ recalled that the extradition treaty has been key to reveal the penetration of drug trafficking in various structures of the country and urged the president to reconsider her position in favor of national security.

In support of President Castro, presidential appointee Doris Gutiérrez said, in relation to Ambassador Dogu’s comment, that “those who were drug traffickers are a bunch of people who were here for twelve years and who had the blessing of the United States.”

#AméricaNoticias #Honduras

“Con los que estuvieron sentados en Venezuela ninguno ha sido mencionado por narcotraficante, los que si fueron narcotraficantes son un montón que estuvieron 12 años aquí y que tuvieron la bendición de los Estados Unidos” expresó la designada… pic.twitter.com/f0TMTnabmi

— Radio América HN (@radioamericahn) August 28, 2024

For her part, the presidential candidate of the ruling Libre party, Rixi Moncada, insinuated in a tweet that the U.S. ambassador’s intentions were to “interrupt the elections and execute a new military coup d’état,” with her comments.  

La patriótica orden de @XiomaraCastroZ desmantela el plan de nuestros adversarios para interrumpir las elecciones y ejecutar un nuevo golpe de Edo militar, utilizando acusaciones temerarias contra el Ministro de Defensa y el Jefe del Estado Mayor Conjunto. Habrán elecciones!🌺

— Rixi Moncada (@riximga) August 29, 2024

In the international context, Mexico recently “put relations with the United States on hold” after President Manuel Lopez Obrador denounced the comments of the US Ambassador to Mexico on judicial reforms as “disrespectful” to the sovereignty of this country.

President Xiomara Castro’s decision to denounce the extradition treaty with the United States marks a new chapter in the strained relations between the two countries, and its impact on Honduras’ domestic and foreign policy remains to be seen.

 

 

 

 

 

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Una publicación compartida por Reportar Sin Miedo (@reportarsinmiedo)