Honduras

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The Republic of Honduras is located on the Atlantic coast of Central America; it is the region's second largest country. Honduras's 6.5 million people are 90 percent mestizo and largely Roman Catholic, and they inhabit a mountainous nation that has relied heavily on export agriculture. Principal exports are coffee, bananas, and beef. Although agriculture employs one-third of the work force, it accounts for only 12 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP); nearly 50 percent of the populace works in the service sector. The official literacy rate of 78.5 percent is comparable to that of neighboring Nicaragua and El Salvador. The effects of 28 percent unemployment are compounded by high rates of underemployment, which has left about half the population living below the poverty line. On the United Nations Human Development Index in 2004, Honduras ranked 115, near the bottom of the "medium development" category.

A pattern of traditional authoritarian rule in Honduras during the first half of the twentieth century gave way to more reform-minded military rule after 1954. Military governments of the 1960s and 1970s promoted land reform, permitted labor organizing, and presided over rapid economic growth and the development of the country's infrastructure. Honduras has been undergoing a transition to a civilian, democratic government since the 1981 elections and its

adoption of a new constitution in 1982. The end of military rule reflected the influence of the United States, which encouraged the transition to electoral democracy while building up its own military presence in Honduras as part of the Contra war against Nicaragua.

Since 1982 the country has experienced regular elections in which the Liberal and National Parties have vied for control of the presidency and congress. The president is head of state and is elected for a single four-year term. Honduras has a unicameral legislature composed of 128 deputies who are elected through a system of proportional representation. A National Elections Tribunal administers the elections, but it has been criticized for lacking independence because its office holders come from the country's political parties. The judiciary is technically independent, but has historically been controlled by the executive through appointments and patronage, and due to the short tenure of office. Substantial reform of the judicial system commenced toward the end of the 1990s.

Because Honduras's transition to democracy in the early 1980s took place within the context of the United States's "low-intensity war" with Nicaragua, efforts to establish democracy were attenuated by the country's national security situation. The armed forces functioned autonomously with regard to security matters. In that sense, security forces operated outside the control of law, and grave human rights abuses, including forced disappearances and assassinations, were committed against the civilian population. With the signing of the Esquipulas Peace Accords in 1987, Honduras was able to begin a process of demilitarization, which has allowed broader institutional reforms to go forward aimed at strengthening the rule of law. Honduras created a position in the government for a commissioner for human rights, which has investigated human rights violations committed during the war, promoted efforts to strengthen the rule of law, and publicized government corruption.

Although civil society is still relatively weak in Honduras, the mobilization that occurred in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch has strengthened this spirit of democracy. The hurricane, which struck Central America in November 1998, killed 17,000 Hondurans, caused over $3 billion in damage, and left hundreds of thousands homeless. Driven by necessity, human rights organizations, women's organizations, worker and peasant organizations, and other such activist groups exerted mounting pressure on the government for reform. The emergence of such factions reflects a growing popular participation in political life, which could deepen Honduran democracy in the future.

Belize; Caribbean Region; Inter-American Commission and Court of Human Rights.

Barry, Tom, and Kent Norsworthy. Honduras: The Essential Guide to Its Politics, Economy, Society and Environment. Albuquerque, NM: Resource Center Press, 1994.

Merrill, Tim L. Honduras: A Country Guide. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1995.

Schulz, Donald E. The United States, Honduras, and the Crisis in Central America. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1994.

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