Forgotten World (146): Honduras
It’s been almost two months since I’ve run a week of postings in my long-running series called Forgotten World – a look at parts of the world that hardly feature in our media or thoughts. You can check the previous 145 entries here.
Honduras is one of the least developed and least secure countries in Central America. Military rule, corruption, a huge wealth gap, crime and natural disasters have devastated the nation of 7.5 million.
Endemic poverty, chronic unemployment and the prospects offered by drug trafficking have contributed to a virulent crime wave conducted mainly by youth gangs known as “maras”. The “maras” are said to have tens of thousands of members and use threats and violence to control poorer districts in towns and cities. Meanwhile, police officers have been implicated in high-profile crimes, and the police are thought to have been involved in the murders by death squads of youths and street children.
Until the mid-1980s Honduras was dominated by the military, which enthusiastically supported US efforts to stem revolutionary movements in the region. Since then, civilian leaders have sought to curb the power of the military – with varying degrees of success. Some army officers have been charged with human rights abuses, but many have still to be prosecuted for violations committed in the 1980s.