During the last week of May, the worrying situation at the Historical Archive of the National Police (AHPN) came to the fore once more. In the month of July of 2018, Gustavo Meoño, director of the archive since 2005 was dismissed without notice or explanations. Since the beginning of 2019, staff have been gradually, but continually, dismissed. Today only 35 people are left working at the Archive, when at its peak the Archive had a team of 200 workers.

Eduardo Bin Poou, a Q’eqchi human rights defender and vice president of the Fishermen’s Association of El Estor, Izabal, was acquitted on Friday, May 3, 2019.

Eduardo was arrested on June 29, 2018 in El Estor, Izabal and charged on July 9 with the crime of trespassing on protected areas. Since then he has been deprived of his liberty in the prison of Puerto Barrios. His legal defense was led by two lawyers from the Human Rights Law Firm (BDH), Francisco Vivar and Santiago Choc, and PBI accompanied the case.

On Friday April 26, the Higher Risk Court A acquitted, Abelino Chub Caal, Q’eqchi human rights defender, on all charges following two years and two months which Abelino spent in preventive detention. The court concluded that there was no evidence pertaining to any of the accusations made against him by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. These same accusations were backed by the Inversiones Cobra S.A. company, who acted as co-complainants in the case.

In September, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders (henceforth, the Declaration), Peace Brigades International (PBI) invited 13 human rights defenders who are accompanied by the 7 PBI projects to Brussels. 4 full-on days of meetings that brought together advocates from America, Africa and Asia and PBI members encouraged the exchange of experiences and knowledge in terms of integral protection.

On November 9th, we accompanied the BDH to a hearing when the verdict in the Bernardo Caal Xol case was handed down in a court in Cobán. The judge restricted recordings and taking photographs in the courtroom before he handed down the verdict sentencing Bernardo Caal Xol to seven year and four months in prison for the crimes of illegal detention, switchable at a rate of Q5 per day and six years no payable for the crime of aggravated robbery. Bernardo was convicted despite evidence put forth by his defense attorneys which showed that he was not at the scene at the time of the events.

PBI Guatemala condemns the cruel murder of Evelyn Robles, a trans activist found dead on November 18 (1). Evelyn Robles was accompanied by PBI between 2006 and 2009, due to the threats she faced after having witnessed the extrajudicial execution of Paulina Marrot, another trans activist, in December 2005. Evelyn Robles had identified agents of the National Civil Police as being the authors of this crime, during which she herself was seriously injured. To this day, the murder of Paulina continues in impunity.

Justin Trudeau must implement reforms to ensure that Canadian mining companies comply with the highest international human rights standards.

The organizations forming the Network of Organizations of International Accompaniment and Observation condemn the assassination of human rights defender Berta Isabel Cáceres Flores- indigenous Lenca, general coordinator of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), and winner of the Goldman Prize for the environment (2015).

March 4, 2016. The signatory networks and organisations who support the defence of human rights in Honduras, condemn the murder of Lenca indigenous leader Berta Cáceres, coordinator of the Civic Council of Grassroots and Indigenous Organisations in Honduras (Consejo Cívico de Organizaciones Populares e Indígenas de Honduras – COPINH), which occurred earlier on Thursday at her home in La Esperanza, Intibucá, Honduras.