Committee on Enforced Disappearances

Additional information submitted by Honduras under article 29 (4) of the Convention *

[Date received: 3 July 2025]

I.Introduction

1.The Government of Honduras hereby submits its third periodic report, containing updated information on the implementation of the recommendations made by the Committee in its concluding observations on the additional information submitted by Honduras under article 29 (4) of the Convention (CED/C/HND/OAI/1), which were issued on 27 March 2024.

2.At the Committee’s 483rd and 484th meetings, held on 26 and 27 February 2024, the delegation of Honduras participated in a dialogue on the measures taken to fulfil the obligations arising from the Convention in relation to legislative harmonization and the institutional framework, investigations and searches and disappearances in the context of migration. At its 490th meeting, held on 1 March 2024, the Committee adopted the concluding observations and requested Honduras to submit updated information.

3.In compliance with its international commitments and in response to the recommendation contained in paragraph 61 of the concluding observations, the Government prepared the present follow-up report. This was done by the Ministry of Human Rights as the entity responsible for coordinating the preparation of human rights reports, with information provided by the competent State institutions that make up the Honduran Recommendations Monitoring System. The present report covers the period 2024–2025.

4.The Government reaffirms its commitment to the effective implementation of the Convention, in cooperation with the Committee, with transparency and accountability.

II.Follow-up given by Honduras to the recommendations contained in the concluding observations

A.General information

Applicability of the Convention

Follow-up information on paragraph 7

5.The Ministry of Human Rights has conducted training on cases of enforced disappearance from the 1980s and on the application of the Convention. It is aimed at groups such as the Armed Forces of Honduras, the National Police, the Public Order Military Police and the Presidential Honour Guard. During 2024, 11,722 people received such training, of whom 7,047 were law enforcement officials (police and military), 2,152 were public servants and 2,523 were members of the general public.

Militarization of public security

Follow-up information on paragraph 11

6.As part of its responsibility for public safety, the Ministry of Security directs an anti‑crime plan with support provided by the Ministry of Defence through the Public Order Military Police. The following changes have been made in the security structure: (a) the National Inter-Agency Security Force and the National Urban Transportation Security Force have ceased to operate; (b) the National Anti-Mara and Anti-Gang Force was replaced by the Police Directorate for Combating Gangs and Organized Crime, now under the responsibility of the Ministry of Security; and (c) the Armed Forces of Honduras no longer participate in the work of the National Directorate of Investigation and Intelligence.

7.Articles 90 and 91 of the Constitution establish the applicable judicial mechanisms to ensure the accountability of members of the Armed Forces of Honduras in cases of ordinary and minor offences. This legal framework ensures that members of the armed forces who become parties to criminal proceedings are held accountable for their actions before the courts in the same way as other citizens. This contributes to the strengthening of the rule of law.

Prevention of acts that may hinder the progress of investigations

Follow-up information on paragraph 13

8.The National Congress adopted the Special Act on the Organization and Activities of the Committee for the Nomination of Candidates for Election to the Supreme Court, whose purpose is to regulate this committee’s organization and functioning with a view to the selection and appointment of judicial candidates in accordance with standards of suitability based on technical evaluation, gender parity and compatibility with international treaties. The National Congress also established a special commission to draft a bill on the Council of the Judiciary and the judicial service.

9.In 2024, the Supreme Court took steps to strengthen judicial independence and transparency. Monitoring and inspection of courts and administrative bodies have been undertaken with a rigorous approach aimed at guaranteeing the performance, suitability and quality of the judicial service. These activities are consistent with the need to establish strict regulatory frameworks.

10.The Supreme Court uses technological tools such as an electronic complaint file that facilitates access to justice and promotes citizen participation and transparency, in line with international standards that recommend the inclusion of civil society in the oversight of the judicial system.

B.Legislative harmonization and institutional framework

Follow-up information on paragraph 15

11.The Criminal Code provides for the offence of enforced disappearance under articles 116 and 140–142, in accordance with article 2 of the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons. The Code is currently being revised by the National Congress, through a special commission established for that purpose. The revision process will be carried out in accordance with the relevant analyses and consultations with a view to making the necessary amendments to the subject matter of the Code.

Continuous nature of the offence of enforced disappearance

Follow-up information on paragraph 17

12.Article 116 of the Criminal Code, entitled “Imprescriptible offences and penalties” includes the offence of enforced disappearance in that category. It also includes crimes against humanity, terrorism when it has caused the death of one or more persons, torture, trafficking in persons and the sexual exploitation of minors (persons under 18 years of age).

13.The aim of the Act on the National DNA Database System, adopted by the National Congress, is to establish the National DNA Database System to organize and store genetic information obtained or generated in the cases stipulated by law or others, in order to shed light on events subject to a criminal, civil or humanitarian investigation for the identification of missing persons and human remains.

14.The National Congress is working towards the adoption of the bill on searches and legal protection for disappeared persons and their families, with a view to protecting the rights of disappeared persons and their families and preventing disappearances.

15.The Public Prosecution Service adopted the Missing Persons Search Protocol, the purpose of which is to search for, locate, identify and return missing persons. The Protocol helps to facilitate inter-institutional and multidisciplinary actions for the immediate search for living missing persons and, if they are found deceased, to ensure that their remains are safeguarded or returned to their families in dignified conditions.

Right to prompt, fair and appropriate reparation and compensation

Follow-up information on paragraph 21

16.The Social Support Programme for the Families of the Martyrs of the Resistance is aimed at victims of the killings that occurred during the 2009 coup d’état and the 2017 post‑election crisis. Coordinated by the Ministry of Human Rights and implemented by the Ministry of Social Development, it proposes financial compensation and benefits in the areas of housing, employment, justice, psychological care and health, among others. The Ministry of Human Rights certified and delivered identification cards to 58 relatives of 37 victims. In 2024, the Ministry of Social Development established a social support unit tasked with carrying out the above actions. In October 2024, the Government granted reparations in the amount of 7,772,000 lempiras to 47 relatives of 34 victims identified at the time.

Memory

Follow-up information on paragraph 23

17.The Government has followed up and provided technical and economic advice on the bill on compliance with international human rights obligations in respect of victims of the national security doctrine (1980–1993), which was officially submitted by the Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos de Honduras (Committee of Relatives of Disappeared Detainees in Honduras) to the National Congress.

18.In 2024, the Government established the National Institute for Historical Memory to research, disseminate and raise awareness of events in national history related to social and political struggles, as well as serious human rights violations and breakdowns in the democratic order. The Institute’s advisory council was established in November 2024.

19.In November 2024, the Museum of Memory inaugurated a permanent exhibition on the victims of enforced disappearance of the 1980s. The exhibition was promoted and coordinated by the Comité de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos de Honduras in cooperation with the Ministry of Human Rights, the National Institute for Historical Memory, the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

20.On 11 June 2024, commemorative signs were unveiled at the police stations of metropolitan prevention units (UMEP) 1 and 2, in the neighbourhoods of Los Dolores and El Manchén in the Central District, which have been identified by victims and human rights organizations as places where serious human rights violations were committed between 1980 and 1993.

21.The Ministry of Human Rights produces the monthly television programme Memoria, Verdad, Justicia y Reparación (Memory, Truth, Justice and Reparation) with the aim of raising awareness of events during which human rights violations occurred. In one segment of the programme, the names of people who were disappeared and murdered in the context of the national security doctrine 1980–1993 are listed. As of January 2025, 21 programmes have been broadcast on the State-owned Canal 8 network.

22.The Ministry of Human Rights has produced short films about Fidel Martínez,who was disappeared at the same time as Professor Tomás Nativí Gálvez, and José Eduardo Becerra Lanza, a university student who was detained and disappeared. These documentaries address the era of enforced disappearances due to the application of the national security doctrine of 1980–1993.

Protection mechanisms

Follow-up information on paragraph 25

23.The Directorate General of the Protection System of the Ministry of Human Rights takes steps to ensure the effective implementation of protection measures. Within this framework, Executive Decision No. SEDH-004-2024 allows for streamlined procurement processes by means of direct purchases, affording greater flexibility in the allocation of resources and optimizing responses to beneficiaries. In addition, efforts have been made with government entities and international organizations to ensure the protection of the target population of the Act on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Journalists, Social Communicators and Justice Officials.

24.Article 54 of the general regulations of this Act provides for prevention and protection measures for beneficiaries, allowing the adoption of additional measures when the circumstances of the case so require. Resources are allocated through a technical committee.

25.The Directorate General of the Protection System of the Ministry of Human Rights maintains a protection approach that is differentiated, intersectional and human rights-based, which allows for appropriate measures to be taken according to the risk and the characteristics of the beneficiary population. Furthermore, it is implementing a programme to strengthen the capacity of staff in the area of risk analysis and protection, in coordination with the ProDerechos programme, the OHCHR country office in Honduras, Protection International and the Pan American Development Foundation.

26.In February 2025, the National Congress adopted amendments to the Act on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Journalists, Social Communicators and Justice Officials whereby “Environmental Defenders” was added to the title of the Act, thus including environmental defenders in the scope of prevention and protection measures. In addition, 24 January was declared “Day of Defenders of the Natural and Common Goods of Honduras”.

Registers of persons deprived of liberty

Follow-up information on paragraph 31

27.The Public Order Military Police is working on a temporary basis to strengthen the prison system. This process comprises a number of stages, beginning with a control phase to ensure order and security; a second phase whose aim is to gradually delegate management of the prison system to the staff of the National Prison Institute; and, finally, the complete transfer of prison administration and management to prison officials, in order to ensure the independence and efficiency of the Honduran prison system.

28.In 2023 and 2024, training to strengthen prison management was prioritized, and 2,760 prison officers and 58 specialized prison officials completed their training.

Cohort of graduating prison officers	Description
2023	Men	Women	Total
Basic training course for prison officers No. 20-2023	114	42	156
Basic training course for prison officers No. 21-2023	813	213	1 026
2024	Men	Women	Total
Basic training course for prison officers No. 22-2024	933	87	1 020
Basic training course for prison officers No. 23-2024	524	34	558
Total			2 760

Cohort of graduating prison officials	Description
2023	Men	Women	Total
Basic training course for prison officials No. 001-2023	13	15	28
2024	Men	Women	Total
Basic training course for prison officials No. 002-2024	14	16	30
Total			58

29.The Public Order Military Police established the Detainee Reception Unit, which carries out measures and checks and keeps records to ensure due process, respect for human rights and transparency. Logbooks are maintained on the custody of detainees, evidence, visits, personal belongings, daily events, legal representation, prison officers’ duties, human rights incidents and medical records.

30.The National Prison Institute is currently developing a prisons policy. When individuals are admitted to prison, legal officers confirm the reasons for which the courts have sent them to prison. Prisoners are guaranteed communication with five persons on a contact list; family and conjugal visits; and visits of lawyers, judges and human rights personnel. The Institute disseminates information through its pages on Facebook, Instagram and X and the telephone lines of the Human Rights Protection Unit [9993-3531 and 2234‑6444 ext. 38]. Virtual hearings are held in 23 prisons.

31.The Office of the National Commissioner for Human Rights disseminates information on the following activities of the Office of the Ombudsman for Persons Deprived of Their Liberty:

(a)Advising persons deprived of their liberty, relatives, lawyers, authorities and civil society organizations, among others, on complaints;

(b)Preparing special reports on inspections conducted and/or landmark cases related to events in prisons, detention centres and educational detention centres;

(c)Inspecting the country’s prisons, detention centres and educational detention centres for minors in conflict with the law in order to prevent acts of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or other human rights violations that may occur in that context;

(d)Holding advocacy meetings and participating in working groups and inter‑institutional forums with key stakeholders;

(e)Raising awareness among authorities working in the national prison system, persons deprived of their liberty, relatives, authorities and civil society organizations;

(f)Strengthening institutions and building the capacity of public officials by holding training sessions for the staff of the Office of the National Commissioner for Human Rights on topics related to the work of the Office of the Ombudsman for Persons Deprived of Their Liberty and by delivering training and awareness programmes with greater emphasis on the human rights-based approach for members of the Public Order Military Police and the National Police, prison officers, interdisciplinary technical councils and persons deprived of their liberty and their families;

(g)Based on its findings, making recommendations, observations and suggestions for the authorities to improve the situation of persons deprived of their liberty, which are transmitted by the Office of the National Commissioner for Human Rights.

C.Investigations and searches

National register of disappeared persons

Follow-up information on paragraph 33

32.Since the adoption of the migration amnesty, the Government has recorded the movements of migrants entering, exiting and transiting through the territory. Biometric registration capacity has been strengthened and the capacity of the Francisco Paz centre for irregular migrants in Danlí, El Paraíso, has been expanded. Biometric registration allows for more accurate and up-to-date monitoring that contributes to the collection of disaggregated data and to the strengthening of record-keeping systems.

Investigation and prosecution of cases of enforced disappearance

Follow-up information on paragraph 35

33.The offence of enforced disappearance is tried by ordinary courts and not by military courts. This arrangement is designed to prevent interference by members of the armed forces in investigations and prosecutions conducted by the competent civilian authorities, ensuring the independence of these processes.

34.In cases where members of the Armed Forces of Honduras are suspected of the offence of enforced disappearance and are summoned by the competent authority, they will be immediately brought before said authority in accordance with the established legal procedure. The Armed Forces of Honduras are willing to cooperate with investigations by providing such evidence as may be in their possession and facilitating access to military facilities, in order to assist in clarifying the facts.

Search for disappeared persons

Follow-up information on paragraph 37

35.The Armed Forces of Honduras have a Humanitarian and Rescue Unit that specializes in operations to tackle natural disasters and emergencies, with the goal of mitigating their effects and saving lives. The Unit is composed of highly trained military personnel. At the request of competent authorities and within the framework of article 274 of the Constitution, the Unit provides support in searching for and locating victims of enforced disappearance when so required.

Human identification and dignified return of remains

Follow-up information on paragraph 39

36.The State, through inter-institutional efforts, is improving mechanisms related to the identification of human remains and migrants who have died in Honduras. In this regard, the Human Rights and Migration Services Office of the National Institute of Migration has a health unit that keeps a register of migrants who have gone missing in the territory.

Past disappearances

Follow-up information on paragraph 41

37.The State acknowledged its responsibility for the events reported in the case of Herminio Deras, whose killing was linked to Intelligence Battalion 3-16, in a statement presented during a public hearing before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. On 12 June 2023, the State conducted a public act of recognition of international responsibility in the municipality of El Progreso, Yoro.

38.On 25 June 2024 in El Paraíso, El Paraíso, the State conducted a public act of recognition of international responsibility regarding the case of Pedro Magdiel Muñoz Salvador (who was killed during the 2009 coup d’état). The ceremony was attended by the President and Head of State, Xiomara Castro, and the President of the National Congress, Luis Redondo.

39.On 5 January 2025, the Public Prosecution Service, through the Office of the Special Prosecutor for Human Rights, filed an application to prosecute three retired generals allegedly responsible for the crimes of homicide and grievous bodily harm perpetrated against Isy Obed Murillo Mencías and Alex Roberto Zavala Licona, respectively, on 5 July 2009 in the context of the coup d’état. The Armed Forces of Honduras issued a communiqué in which they condemned the coup d’état and rejected any present-day action that might involve the violation of human rights or constitutional guarantees.

D.Disappearances in the context of migration

Prevention of disappearances in the context of migration

Follow-up information on paragraph 43

40.The State is implementing a new humane migration policy that prioritizes the protection of migrants’ human rights and includes protection strategies to address massive migratory flows. In addition, the Government is working on an amendment to the Migration and Aliens Act that will strengthen the section on international protection and provide for specific measures to ensure the safety and well-being of migrants.

41.The Government adopted by decree the national emergency strategy for the protection of Honduran migrants with a view to the immediate promotion and protection of migrants in an irregular situation in the United States of America or travelling thereto, mainly through the provision of legal and social assistance. The Migration Governance Council, as the lead agency for coordination, consultation, advice and analysis in relation to migration governance, follows up on the strategy’s implementation.

Statistical information on disappearances in the context of migration

Follow-up information on paragraph 45

42.The Government is strengthening measures to search for and identify disappeared migrants. In 2024, it adopted the first search protocol for missing migrants so as to coordinate the efforts of public and private institutions and non-governmental organizations and to provide answers to the families of missing persons.

Searches and investigations related to disappearances in the context of migration

Follow-up information on paragraph 47

43.The internal legal unit of the National Institute of Migration provides support for migrants in the process of filing reports and complaints. This support is extended to the Public Prosecution Service in the investigation of cases of disappearances of migrants. These measures strengthen the State’s capacity to effectively handle complaints in order to guarantee the protection of migrants’ rights.

Deprivation of liberty on migration-related grounds

Follow-up information on paragraph 49

44.The State implements an accommodation system for irregular migrants, which is widely used to record data on the accommodation of migrants in centres for irregular migrants. The system has control, review and monitoring mechanisms that ensure the transparency and reliability of records.

45.Admission to prison is done in accordance with court orders, which confer official recognition of the detention. The National Prison Institute, based on its register of foreign nationals, provides requested information through correspondence with families, lawyers and embassies. Toiletries and medical care are provided, basic needs are met and visits are authorized.

Rights of victims of disappearances in the context of migration

Follow-up information on paragraph 51

46.The National Institute of Migration created a specific reporting channel, namely the email address denuncia@inm.gob.hn, which facilitates migrants’ access to mechanisms for reporting. In addition, specific controls have been established for reporting, and human rights officials maintain a permanent presence at the points of greatest impact along the migratory route.

Migration policy

Follow-up information on paragraph 53

47.In cases where there is a danger of enforced disappearance or other situations of risk, the State regards migrants as being in need of international protection. In compliance with the principle of non-refoulement, these persons are not returned under any circumstances, in order to ensure their safety and protection.

48.The Armed Forces of Honduras have military detachments in border areas whose purpose is to maintain the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. They also prevent and combat the offence of trafficking in persons and the smuggling of cattle, timber and all other contraband, in coordination with the National Police.

49.During the period 2022–2024, the National Congress adopted Legislative Decrees No. 79-2022, No. 137-2022, No. 39-2023 and No. 06-2024, which grant an amnesty under which migrants are exempted from paying the administrative penalty laid down under article 104 of the Migration and Aliens Act for the offence of entering or leaving the country without going through immigration control or via an unauthorized port.

50.The National Congress adopted the Act for the Prevention of Internal Displacement and the Protection and Care of Internally Displaced Persons, whose purpose is to care for, protect and provide humanitarian assistance to persons or groups of persons who have been forcibly displaced. The Inter-Agency Commission for the Protection of Forcibly Displaced Persons continues the process of drafting the Act’s implementing regulations.

E.Measures to protect children against enforced disappearance

Recruitment and trafficking of children

Follow-up information on paragraph 55

51.In 2024, the National Coordinating Commission of the AMBER Alerts System adopted the implementing regulations of the Act on AMBER Alerts to Locate and Protect Missing or Abducted Children and Adolescents, which lay down guidelines for establishing the whereabouts of children and adolescents reported missing and provide for efforts by government institutions, non-governmental organizations and the media to mobilize and involve the community in searching for, locating and protecting such children.

52.The Inter-Agency Commission to Combat Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Human Trafficking conducts awareness training in different parts of the country on mechanisms for identifying possible cases of trafficking in persons and preventing the forms of recruitment and deceit that are used by traffickers and exploiters. Training has been provided for children and adolescents in schools and in the community, and for representatives of institutions and civil society organizations.

53.The Inter-Agency Commission has activated the 145 toll-free hotline for the reporting of trafficking in persons or any form of exploitation; opened five offices at the national level; set up local committees, with action plans, in the municipalities; worked with municipal councils, under an agreement with the Ministry for Children, Adolescents and the Family, on the development and application of measures; and developed standard operating procedures for identification and referral in cases of exploitation and trafficking in persons.

54.In 2024, the Government adopted the National Policy for Early Childhood, Childhood and Adolescence 2024–2033, whose strategic goals include ensuring that every child in Honduras is protected from violence, exploitation, abuse, neglect, harmful practices and forced migration and displacement and ensuring redress and the restitution of rights should these occur.

55.The Government presented the National Protocol for the Comprehensive Care and Protection of Children in Migration Situations to ensure the protection of the rights of migrant children and adolescents through a comprehensive and differentiated approach. At the regional level, Honduras and Guatemala concluded the Binational Protocol for the Protection and Care of Unaccompanied Migrant Children and Adolescents, which establishes cooperation mechanisms for the protection, assistance and family reunification of migrant children.

56.In 2024, the Government presented a case management protocol for the reintegration of returned migrant children and adolescents and their families, which sets out principles, procedures, functions and responsibilities for the process of assisting individuals in their reintegration, so as to ensure that returning children and adolescents receive comprehensive and high-quality protection services delivered in an organized, efficient and effective manner, in accordance with their needs.

Illegal intercountry adoptions

Follow-up information on paragraph 57

57.In 2024, the Ministry for Children, Adolescents and the Family submitted draft amendments to the Special Adoption Act with the aim of strengthening and guaranteeing the fundamental right of children and adolescents to a family. The proposed reform will encompass initiatives to strengthen post-adoption monitoring; an enhanced legal framework for anti-corruption measures; and an amendment underscoring the priority accorded to domestic adoption.

III.Implementation of the rights and obligations under the Convention, dissemination and follow-up

Follow-up information on paragraphs 58, 59 and 60

58.The Ministry of Human Rights conducted the following legal analyses in the field of human rights:

(a)A legal analysis of the international treaty compliance of the bill on purple alerts for the search for missing women;

(b)A legal analysis of the international treaty compliance of the human rights training programme for riot police and other police officers;

(c)A legal analysis of the international treaty compliance of the bill on compliance with international human rights obligations in respect of victims of the national security doctrine [bill mentioned in para. 15];

(d)A legal analysis of the international treaty compliance of the bill to amend by addition articles 208, 209, 211–213, 219, 246, 249, 253, 256–258, 289, 294 and 295 of the Criminal Code, contained in Legislative Decree No. 130-2017;

(e)A legal analysis of the international treaty compliance of the requirements for asylum procedures and recognition of refugee status contained in the Migration and Aliens Act;

(f)A legal analysis of the international treaty compliance of the proposed Ljubljana-The Hague Convention on International Cooperation in the Investigation and Prosecution of the Crime of Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, War Crimes and Other International Crimes.

59.The Ministry of Women’s Affairs is working under the National Policy for Women and the third Gender Equality and Justice Plan 2023–2033 on the following measures:

(a)Promoting amendments to the Criminal Code and the Trafficking in Persons Act to harmonize with international standards the definitions of femicide, enforced disappearance, disappeared persons, trafficking in persons, labour and sexual exploitation, sex tourism, organ trafficking, pornography, digital gender violence and other extreme forms of violence against women and girls, and to revise the penalties so that they are commensurate with the gravity of the offence;

(b)Criminalizing marital rape, domestic servitude and forced recruitment by non‑State armed groups such as organized criminal groups, maras and gangs.

60.The Inter-Agency Commission for Monitoring Investigations of Violent Deaths of Women and Femicides submitted the bill on purple alerts for the search for missing women to the Gender Equity Committee of the National Congress. The bill is designed to ensure that the legal, institutional and budgetary framework contains elements that help to prevent the disappearance of girls, adolescents and women, and that the alarm is immediately raised in order search for, locate and protect those who go missing under various circumstances. The bill is currently before the Advisory Committee of the National Congress.

61.The Ministry of Human Rights shared the recommendations of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances with representatives of State institutions and liaison persons of the Honduran Recommendations Monitoring System on 29 August 2024. A self-assignment process was carried out for the due implementation of the recommendations by the relevant lead agencies, based on their institutional competences.