Blanca Sarahí Izaguirre Lozano, National Commissioner for Human Rights of Honduras
Lica. Karla Eugenia Cueva Aguilar, Secretary for Human Rights of Honduras
November 24, 2021
Dear Commissioner Izaguirre and Secretary Cueva:
We are deeply concerned about the police and military attack on two young adults in the community of Llano Largo in San José municipality, La Paz Department, on November 10. Ronald Alexander Gutiérrez Molina and Saúl Ramos were injured by the security agents.
Police from the San José post and military personnel from the Tenth Infantry Battalion arrived in the community at 10:30pm on November 10. They said they were responding to a call from a resident in Llano Largo that gang members were patrolling the area. The police and military approached Ronald Alexander Gutiérrez Molina and demanded that he hand over members of the alleged gang to the authorities. Ronald, age 24, explained that he did not know gang members in the area. He is a community leader who organizes a youth soccer team and participates in the dance team. He is also a member of a campesino organization affiliated with La Via Campesina.
Ronald Alexander Gutiérrez Molina told reporters what happened: "They grabbed me before putting me in the cell, they took my jacket off (that is not done because even from the cold one dies), they threatened to kill me….they shot me twice…and began to beat me, they fired me with a gas that still burns my face to sleep."
In addition to the gunshot wound, Ronald Alexander Gutiérrez Molina showed reporters marks on his chest and legs where he was beaten. Community resident Saúl Ramos had also been beaten by security agents on the street, but neighbors came to his rescue.
We urge that authorities in Honduras
- conduct a transparent investigation into the physical attacks on Ronald Alexander Gutiérrez Molina and Saúl Ramos, publish the results, and bring the perpetrators to justice
- instruct police and military to end their stigmatization and profiling of youth in rural communities like Llano Grande
Sincerely,
Brian J. Stefan Szittai and Christine Stonebraker-Martinez
Co-Coordinators
