A gang confrontation has caused one of the worst prison tragedies in Honduras. At least 41 women have died this Tuesday at the Women’s Center for Social Adaptation (Cefas), confirmed the spokesman for the Public Ministry, Yuri Mora, who has warned that the number of victims may increase. President Xiomara Castro has lamented the massacre and has assured that she “will take drastic measures” at a time when she has designed a policy similar to that of her neighbor Nayib Bukele to deal with gang violence. “Shocked by the monstrous murder of women in Cefas, planned by gangs in full view and patience of security authorities. My solidarity with family. I summon the Minister of Security and the president of the Intervention Commission to render accounts. I will take drastic measures!” The president wrote on Twitter.
Shocked by the monstrous murder of women in CEFAS, planned by gangs in full view and patience of security authorities. My solidarity with family. I summon the Minister of Security and the president of the Intervention Commission to render accounts. I will take drastic measures!
— Xiomara Castro de Zelaya (@XiomaraCastroZ) June 20, 2023
The women’s prison is located 25 kilometers from the capital, Tegucigalpa. Images from local media show scenes of chaos in the prison, where authorities have declared a state of emergency following the massacre. “We are not going to tolerate acts of vandalism or irregularities in that prison. Immediate intervention is authorized with the accompaniment of firefighters, police and military, an emergency is declared”, reported the Vice Minister of Security, Julissa Villanueva. The authorities have ordered a security plan that includes the 26 prisons in the country, in which at least 20,000 people are locked up. Honduran prisons have high crime rates and within them criminal groups that are in control organize extortion, order kidnapping and drug sales.
Local media have reported that the massacre was caused by a confrontation between inmates who belong to the gangs Mara Salvatucha MS-13 and the Gang 18. The newspaper The Tribune reports videos that show a group of burned women. “The charred bodies are in the bathroom area and are part of the evidence collected with this unfortunate fact,” reports the newspaper. Vice Minister Villanueva has said that “this is a direct attack against the Government of a woman who has the political will to move forward, we will be here responding head-on, with courage with our clean hands moving forward.”
The resident coordinator of the United Nations in Honduras, Alice Shackelford, has expressed a “strong rejection of violence” after learning of the Cefas tragedy. “My heart cries and I share the mourning with their families,” said the diplomat. “My solidarity with the women in the Penitentiary Center and my strong rejection of violence,” Shackelford said in a message on Twitter.
This tragedy occurs at a time when President Castro has decided to take measures similar to those of her Salvadoran counterpart Nayib Bukele to deal with gang violence. Castro announced in November a controversial policy that includes partial states of exception to combat crime in the most insecure areas of Honduran cities, such as San Pedro Sula, considered one of the most violent in the world. The measures have been implemented in 120 communities, where constitutional guarantees have also been suspended and the military have been mobilized to establish order.
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