Although it seems unlikely, Honduras is now emerging as the bright spot in a Central American region with an all too well-deserved reputation for corruption and authoritarianism. The 62-year-old Castro, the first ever woman president and a democratic socialist to boot, swept to power in the November 2021 Honduran elections with over 51 per cent of the vote. The socialist Libre party candidate outpaced her National Party rival by nearly 15 per cent. It was a stunning victory in the face of a political culture poisoned by ballot rigging, voter restrictions and a generalized manipulation that traditionally keeps wealthy conservatives in power.
Honduras is the second poorest country in the Americas, trailing only Haiti. It is plagued with Mara gang violence, and dubious mining and hydro-electric developers have been given a free hand. The country suffers from a politics poisoned by conservative officials helping themselves to public wealth while the poor majority are subjected to round after round of repression and impoverishment. Honduras has one of the highest murder rates in the world, with political assassination a risk for any activist. The murder of anti-dam environmentalist Berta Caceres in 2016 is a case in point. Tens of thousands of Hondurans have fled the country over the past decade in the perilous trip to El Norte (the USA) and some semblance of a better life.
