Udviklingsfonde stopper støtte til dæmning i Honduras efter nyt mord på aktivist

copinh
Copinh i Honduras kæmper blandt andet for oprindelige folks rettigheder.
Foto: copinh.org
Thomas Jazrawi

Nelson Garcia blev tirsdag dræbt i Honduras. Han var medlem af COPINH, hvor også den myrdede Berta Caceres var tilknyttet.

COPINH har protesteret mod bygning af dæmningen Agua Zarca, og de to mord kædes sammen med dæmningsprojektet.

Nu har to udviklingsfonde valgt at stoppe pengetilførslen. 

Det gælder den hollandske udviklingsbank FMO og den finske udviklingsfond Finnfund.

Erklæringer fra de to udviklingsfonde fremgår nedenfor.

FMO: Afbryder alle aktiviteter i Honduras omgående

FMO is shocked by the news that Nelson García, another COPINH member, has been murdered in Honduras.

After the recent violent death of Berta Cáceres, we have called upon the Honduran government to do anything in their power to stop the ongoing violence and killings in their country.

The right of speech for those who speak up for their rights and the livelihoods of people are of very high value to FMO. Every individual should be safe when defending their position. FMO rejects and condemns any violence against those individuals or groups.

Given the current situation, with ongoing violence, FMO decided to suspend all activities in Honduras, effective immediately.

This means that we will not engage in new projects or commitments and that no disbursements will be made, including the Agua Zarca project. As already announced, a delegation, including our CEO and FMO’s director for the Energy Sector, will travel to Honduras and visit the communities around the Agua Zarca project to get a complete understanding of the current situation.

FMO has invited NGOs to support it in those efforts. This mission will be undertaken as soon as the safety situation allows for it. We will also do a thorough investigation on all the other projects in Honduras it is involved in. On the basis of each investigation, further decisions will be made on the continued involvement of FMO.

Det følgende er Finnfunds erklæring: 

Finnfund: No new disbursement to the project

The security situation in Honduras is still concerning, and new acts of violence have been reported in the media today.

Finnfund condemns all types of political violence and finds it of utmost importance that neighboring communities are heard.

Together with the Dutch Development Finance Institution FMO, Finnfund finances the Agua Zarca hydropower project in Honduras.

We know, that the affected communities want the project to continue, but in order to calm the situation down, we will take a time-out. FMO and Finnfund will not, for now, make disbursements to the project.

To our knowledge, there is no evidence indicating that the Agua Zarca project company would be behind these acts of violence.

Finnfund continues to monitor the situation and, as previously announced, will assess the situation in Honduras before any decisions are taken.