Honduras: Opposition urges runoff election December 5 /update 17

Event

On Tuesday, December 5, opposition candidate Salvador Nasralla urged the Tribunal Supremo Electoral (TSE) to review all voting cards, or to permit a runoff election between Nasralla and President Juan Orlando Hernández. Honduran law does not currently permit such elections, so special legislation would need to be drafted. The TSE has extended the deadline for all election-related legal challenges to Friday, December 8.

Election-related political violence has resulted in the arrests of several hundred people, and at least three deaths, since November 29; some local media sources have reported as many as 12 related deaths.

Additional protests, political violence, and associated transportation disruptions are expected in the coming days throughout Honduras, and particularly in Tegucigalpa.

Context

Protests have been ongoing throughout Honduras since Wednesday, November 29. Reports of vandalism and looting are widespread, particularly in urban areas. On December 1 military officials announced that the government had suspended several constitutional guarantees, granting security forces greater power to address election-related protests and violence. Additionally, the military instituted an overnight curfew from 20:00 to 05:00 through the evening of December 11. Violent clashes were reported on December 2 in Tegucigalpa between the Honduran police and protesters. On Sunday, December 3, tens of thousands took to the streets of Tegucigalpa in protests that occurred largely without incident.

The TSE has been criticized by international observers for a lack of transparency during the vote counting process. Nasralla has claimed that the TSE has manipulated the election tally in incumbent President Hernández's favor in recent days, and that "there will be civil war" if Hernández is declared the winner. The TSE announced on December 4 that it had completed a review of all alleged voting irregularities and finished counting all of the votes, but have yet to release the final result.

Advice

Individuals in Honduras are advised to adhere to any instructions issued by local authorities, monitor developments in the situation, and strictly avoid all demonstrations.

Visitors to the country should note that political activism by foreign nationals is prohibited under Honduran law. Foreigners who take part in demonstrations or other political activities risk detention and or/deportation.