May 2nd, 2016
[Declaración original en español]
Olivia, Berta, Laura and Salvador Zúniga
Cáceres (Berta Cáceres’s daughters and son), Austra Bertha Flores (her mother),
and the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras
(COPINH), each a victim of the assassination of Berta Cáceres under Honduran
law, were surprised this morning by the Attorney General and ATIC (Criminal
Investigation Agency) announcement in relation to the capture of persons
involved in this vile crime against our beloved Berta.
The family and COPINH, as well as all Honduran
society and the international community demand justice and truth regarding the
assassination of our Berta.
Because we have been denied our right under
Honduran law to participate in the investigative process from the beginning, we
have no way of knowing if these arrests are the product of an exhaustive and
diligent investigation, nor do we know if they include those who ordered the
assassination. The news
of the alleged participation of active and retired members of the military
linked to DESA in the assassination should be investigated further and
indicates involvement by state agents which is enough reason for the immediate
suspension of and a definitive end to the Agua Zarca hydroelectric project.
We regret that the
investigations conducted by the Attorney General have moved forward without our
participation and that our voices have not been heard.
Today, two months since the
assassination of our dear Berta, we continue being victimized, having to learn
of any news through the media rather than the official channels afforded to us
by law.
Our ongoing lack of
confidence in the Attorney General’s office has been fomented by its own actions,
which lack transparency and ignore the victims. If the State has truly conducted
an exhaustive, diligent investigation based on scientific proof that looks into
both the plotters and perpetrators of this crime, then today they should accept
the participation of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights so that a
group of independent experts can analyze the actions carried out thus far and
establish whether they are consistent with the highest international standards
of due diligence.
If the
Attorney General's office and its agency have carried out their work correctly,
there should be no fear of having the commission that the IACHR has already
made available begin its investigation immediately.
What we
seek is truth and justice in the case of our beloved Berta's
assassination. If we achieve that, everybody wins.
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