Honduras Politics News

Honduras formally responded to a diplomatic note from El Salvador demanding that Honduras cease sovereign acts on Conejo Island in the Pacific, reaffirming Honduran sovereignty over the disputed territory.

The Property Institute (IP) began a land-regularization project in San Esteban to issue formal property titles to over 2,000 families, officials say, aimed at strengthening land tenure security and economic development in the municipality.

Garífuna communities in Honduras launched sustained protests on July 15, demanding the government annul trials against five territorial defenders and repeal Decree 107-2026, which authorized the first eviction from ancestral lands in San Juan, Tela on July 5.

The National Congress reconvenes on July 21 with a final debate on proposed reforms to Honduras's electricity law, which President Asfura says are necessary to stabilize the state power company (ENEE), though opposition parties continue to reject the changes.

Former anti-corruption unit chief Luis Javier Santos says the Superior Court of Accounts issued clearance documents that accused officials used to avoid criminal prosecution, calling the institution a politically controlled body that served to shield the corrupt rather than hold them accountable.

Foreign Minister Mireya Agüero said she will meet El Salvador's foreign minister in coming days to discuss Isla Conejo, a long-disputed islet in the Gulf of Fonseca, while affirming bilateral ties remain constructive.

Vice President María Antonieta Mejía has called on lawmakers to hold a technical debate on proposed reforms to the state-run electricity company ENEE, which faces losses of about 16 billion lempiras (roughly $640 million) and is hampering public investment in education and infrastructure.

Marta María Saire, twice sexually assaulted while under state care as a child, remains inadequately supported despite a 2003 IACHR friendly-settlement agreement requiring Honduras to provide her comprehensive rehabilitation.

Venezuelans living in Honduras and Honduran citizens have begun collecting non-perishable food, hygiene products, and emergency supplies to send to families affected by earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24.

Former president Juan Orlando Hernández, who was pardoned by President Trump in 2025 after extradition to the US on drug-trafficking charges, will return to Honduras on July 26 to face trial on fraud and money-laundering charges related to the Pandora II case, with a court hearing scheduled for August 3.

The Tegucigalpa municipal administration hired 42 new advisers between February and May 2026, bringing its adviser roster to 110 and adding 2.2 million lempiras (about $88,000) monthly to the payroll, despite Mayor Juan Diego Zelaya's campaign promise to reduce staff.

Honduras's information institute (IAIP) has launched three emergency portals designed to increase transparency and accountability in government agencies' use of public resources.

OFRANEH set up an indefinite roadside camp on the CA-13 highway in Tela to demand the release of five San Juan community members facing charges under the 2026 Agro-Industrial Strengthening Law, which they say criminalizes land-rights defenders.

Honduras's Technical Liquidation Commission reported that more than 1,700 state employees have been laid off as part of a government restructuring aimed at reducing costs and redirecting savings to health, education, and security, with the government spending over 700 million lempiras (about $28 million) on severance payments.

Vehicle registration fees in the capital will increase 4.2% to match accumulated inflation, raising the tax from 1,600 lempiras to 1,668 lempiras, with Mayor Juan Diego Zelaya saying the municipal council did not approve a discretionary hike.

Honduras has enacted a law creating a centralized registry of beneficial owners of companies and legal entities, managed by the National Banking Commission, to combat money laundering, terrorism financing, and organized crime in compliance with international standards.

President Nasry Asfura led a symbolic visit to Conejo Island in the Pacific with top civilian and military officials to reaffirm Honduras's sovereignty after El Salvador sent a diplomatic note demanding Honduras cease exercising jurisdiction over the territory, citing a 1992 International Court of Justice ruling.

Police carried out the first enforcement of Honduras's new agroindustrial protection law to evict Garífuna residents from ancestral land in San Juan, Tela, resulting in five usurpation charges and accusations that the law violates an Inter-American Court ruling protecting the community's territory.

The Amhon Honor Court is analyzing possible disciplinary action against Yuscarán Mayor Johny Alejandro Carrasco following a July 11 video showing him drinking alcohol inside a municipal building; Amhon's secretary said the case is under review to determine "what comes next."

A congressional commission is developing an inter-agency coordination mechanism involving state institutions, international partners, and civil society to strengthen prevention, victim care, and justice access under Honduras's child sexual-abuse law.

Tegucigalpa's mayor announced a 68-lempira (about $2.70) increase in the municipal vehicle tax, attributed to a 4.2% rise in operating costs.

The Liberal Party introduced a counterproposal for electricity-sector reform that would restructure ENEE using state-controlled public companies instead of private commercial entities, aiming to strengthen operational efficiency while maintaining state control.

Former Agriculture Minister Laura Elena Suazo rejected her successor's allegations of irregularities in the Productive Technology Bonus program, saying all financial records were handed over during the January 2026 transition and that she welcomes any audit.

More than a month after Honduras's government unveiled a national anti-corruption strategy to replace a planned international commission, President Nasry Asfura has not yet named the Presidential Commissioner for Transparency who would lead it, raising doubts about the plan's independence and real authority.

President Nasry Asfura unveiled Bien, a mobile application that allows Hondurans to store and present digital versions of official documents—national ID, driver's license, and firearm permits—with legal validity, aiming to streamline public services and reduce bureaucratic delays.

President Asfura and his government are supporting the Satuyé Technology & Data Center, a Prospera-backed project in La Ceiba combining data infrastructure and AI services developed jointly with MAG Technologies Group, though experts warn of data-security and environmental concerns.

Honduras's municipal mayors' association issued a statement reminding elected officials to act with responsibility and preserve the dignity of public office after a video circulated showing a mayor allegedly drinking alcohol inside a municipal building.

Honduras reports that 6.1 million citizens now possess national identity documents (DNI), while annual death registrations have risen from 24,000 to 34,000.

Lawyer Reyna Rivera warns that Honduras's special economic zones (ZEDEs) are expanding their territorial control despite a 2024 Supreme Court ruling declaring them unconstitutional and Congressional repeal of their enabling law, with 4% of Roatán now under their jurisdiction.

Economist Ismael Zepeda questions the performance of Honduras's Superior Court of Accounts, which received a budget exceeding 1 billion lempiras (about $40 million) but referred only five cases of alleged illicit enrichment by officials to prosecutors in four years.