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In Honduras, Supporting Peaceful and Inclusive Elections

The November 2021 elections recorded the highest levels of voter participation ever witnessed in Honduras, around 68.5 percent. The elections resulted in the appointment of Ms. Xiomara Castro as the first female President of Honduras. Despite the risks surrounding the electoral process and the tumultuous recent history of elections in the country, there is a consensus among local observers that the elections helped strengthen democratic institutions and offered an opportunity to advance long-needed reforms.

© UN Honduras | The elections resulted in the appointment of Ms. Xiomara Castro as the first female President of Honduras.

Prior to the elections, local analysts had warned about the risk that political polarization and the influence of criminal groups could lead to an escalation of violence, as had been the case in previous electoral processes. For example, during the 2017 general elections, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) documented several cases of political violence and dozens of human rights violations in the context of political upheaval that lasted for several weeks after the election day.1

"There is still a lot of work needed to be done to eliminate political violence, end discrimination and to achieve greater representation of underrepresented groups in political spaces. The United Nations is committed to work alongside all the national actors who have, not only the will, but the responsibility around these issues," said Alice Shackelford, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Honduras.

National institutions, along with the United Nations team in Honduras worked on the prevention and mitigation of electoral violence in a project funded by the Peacebuilding Fund (PBF). Implemented jointly by OHCHR, UNDP and UN Women, the project also helped enhance the participation of the underrepresented populations including women, youth and the LGBTI community.

© Lucia Martinez/UN RCO Honduras | Political Women’s Forum led efforts to promote higher participation of women in politics.

The project boosted human rights monitoring in the electoral context by strengthening the capacities of the National Human Rights Institution and providing technical assistance to the Electoral Justice Tribunal and the Specialized unit against electoral crimes of the Office of the Attorney General. OHCHR deployed observers to 14 Departments and established partnerships with over 40 civil society organizations to monitor and identify trends for early warning purposes. This enabled the documentation of 69 cases of political violence, including 32 violent deaths, which led to the opening of formal investigations by the government authorities.

To increase public trust in electoral institutions and enhance citizen participation, UNDP worked with the electoral management bodies, including the newly established National Electoral Council (CNE) and the Electoral Justice Tribunal (TJE), to promote transparency and accountability. The project also supported the creation of “Rendición de Cuentas Honduras”, a digital platform that recorded reports of electoral income and expenses by political parties. Public servants and civil society organizations benefitted from the information and skill-building activities on electoral justice and conflict prevention.

UN Women worked with the Forum of Women Politicians to build a multiparty agenda to seek the commitment of all political parties to promote measures ensuring the equal participation of women in political spaces. The Forum also observed the elections and documented around 19 cases of political violence against women, which were included in advocacy efforts prior and after the elections.

© Lucia Martinez/UN RCO Honduras | The project promoted higher participation of women in politics.

The project created platforms to ensure greater dialogue linking the electoral institutions with civil society organizations and representatives of women and the youth, as well as indigenous populations, people of African descent, the LGTBI community and people with disabilities. This created opportunities for greater participation of the previously underrepresented groups in decision-making processes and enabled them to prepare proposals and recommendations for inclusion in the public agenda.

The National Council of Honduran Youth (CONJUVEH), a multi-stakeholder platform established with the project’s support, brought together 65 youth organizations, including members of unrepresented groups to ensure their voices are heard by the authorities.

© Lucia Martinez/UN RCO Honduras | Nestor Hernández, member of the association Honduras Diversa and President of the National Council of Honduran Youth (CONJUVEH) 

“The active participation of young people in the pre-election period, as well as on election day, was fundamental to achieving a positive outcome”, said Néstor Hernández, President of CONJUVEH.  

CONJUVEH drafted an Agenda for Youth, comprising 20 commitments aimed to ensure the participation and representation of young people in decision-making with an inclusive role in the country’s political transformation.

Mr. Hernández said that the project offered "an incredible opportunity to position the youth as part of the solution and not part of the problem. They have provided us with the tools that empower us to decide, influence, participate, have dialogues, form alliances, and unify our struggles."

© Lucia Martinez/UN RCO Honduras | Lionela Chinchilla, a member of CONJUVEH and the LGTBI community.

Lionela Chinchilla, a member of CONJUVEH and the LGTBI community, welcomed project interventions that helped with the "training, orienting, sensitizing and advocating for all underrepresented sectors in the electoral processes, including the LGTBI community and women.”

Several awareness-raising campaigns in national and digital media advocated for equality and inclusive political participation. One such campaign, “Me Importa Honduras”, reached out to more than 56,000 people on social media platforms including Facebook and Instagram. OHCHR launched a campaign on international human rights standards and elections, reaching out to more than 40,000 people and viewed more than 58,000 times on Instagram. To highlight the importance of women's participation in politics, the campaign "politics has no gender, it has ideas" focused on opening spaces for women’s equal and fair participation in politics and encouraged people to vote based on ideas, not gender. Another campaign focused on messages against political violence towards women. The project team estimates that these campaigns reached over 1.5 million people nationwide.

© Lucia Martinez/UN RCO Honduras | The “Me Importa Honduras” documentary shows the experience of several candidates accompanied by the project during the electoral process.

"We have gone through very helpful processes and activities. From training in advocacy, structured dialogue, promotion of participation of LGBTI people, women, indigenous groups, and even people with disabilities that we know have always been segregated and pitied, but who we must position as agents of change and as part of the solution of this country,” said Nestor Hernández.
“The fact that we have participated in this electoral process does not mean that the task is done, there is still a long way to go,” said Brady Flores, a youth leader.

During the pre-electoral and electoral process, the project accompanied people from underrepresented groups who took part in the elections. Their experiences were recorded in a documentary available here.

The United Nations contributed to national efforts on prevention and peacebuilding during a historic moment in Honduras, where the risk of conflict was high. The implementation of the PBF Participaz project allowed the UN System to effectively assist the efforts of national actors in their efforts towards a highly participatory and peaceful election process.

12017ReportElectionsHRViolations_Honduras_SP.pdf (ohchr.org)

Me Importa Honduras - Documental