The Church in Honduras is in mourning after the murder of a Catholic environmental activist

The Honduran government has arrested two suspects in connection with the murder of Catholic priest and environmentalist Juan López, whose death last month was condemned by Pope Francis and the United Nations.

Authorities have reported the arrest of the main suspect and his deputy. “We wrote to the author about the death of the environmental activist Juan López. His companion was arrested,” wrote Defense Minister Gustavo Sánchez on social media platform X, without revealing their identity. He added: “Other attacks are being carried out in hold someone else.

López, a 46-year-old activist, was shot dead on September 14 after leaving Mass at a Catholic church in Tocoa, about 220 kilometers northeast of Tegucigalpa. In addition to his work as a councilor, López had been a vocal critic of pollution caused by an open-pit iron oxide mine located in a natural reserve in Honduras. Since López was the social education coordinator of the Diocese of Trujillo and a founding member of the Pastoral Care for Integral Ecology, he was deeply committed to protecting the environment.

Comfort and criticism

The murder of López has condemned many people including Pope Francis and the United Nations. “I learned with sadness that Juan Antonio López was killed in Honduras. Coordinator of pastoral social care in the Diocese of Trujillo, he was a founding member of the important pastoral care of the environment in Honduras,” Pope Francis said in his Sunday Angelus address on September 22. “I share in the grief of that church and I condemn everything. kind of violence. I am close to all those whose basic rights are violated and who work for the good of all in response to the cry of the poor and the world.”

Alice Shackelford, the UN Resident Coordinator in Honduras, praised López for his courage in standing up for powerful interests. “We condemn the brutal killing of Juan López, a human rights defender who was threatened for his work,” he said in a social media post.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Honduras also called for a thorough investigation. The bishops said: “We are very sad, and they ask the faithful to pray for López, “a true disciple and missionary.” They described him as “a man devoted to the truth, faithful and brave, who showed his faith through his actions.”

Crusader for social justice

López was known for his deep commitment to social justice, drawing strength from his Christian faith. As a member of the Ecclesial Ecological Network of Mesoamerica (REMAM), he dedicated his life to protecting natural resources for the vulnerable. This mission brought him into conflict with mining companies operating in Honduras. He had recently condemned the pollution of the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers, which were threatened by illegal mining and endangering the local water supply. Investigators believe this may have been the cause of his death.

Local media reported that his killing came hours after he and other community leaders accused members of Tocoa’s municipal government of ties to organized crime. López received many threats, which led the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to issue precautionary measures for his protection from 2023.

After López’s death, Bishop Jenry Ruiz of Trujillo wrote: “You told me that you are not an environmentalist because, for you, social, environmental and political commitment was not a theory, but a it was a sign of your faith in Christ and the church.” He added, “You knew very well that the extractivist and mining system is one that kills and destroys, along with the corruption of fake politicians and narco-governments.”

López, deeply devoted to Saint Oscar Romero, was inspired to fight for social justice and protect rural communities and natural resources, family members said.

“It’s not an isolated issue”

López’s killing highlights the growing pressure on human rights activists in Honduras. “This crime is not an isolated issue,” said REMAM and the Laudato Sì movement in a joint statement. “Statistics is not just another name; he was a child of God, a close and kind brother. We respect his testimony of faith and his work for a better common home,” added Archbishop Gustavo Rodríguez Vega of Yucatán, President of REMAM.

In January 2022, another environmentalist, Pablo Isabel Hernández, was killed on his way to a religious service in Lempira. Later that year, on March 2, Catholic priest Father José Enrique Vásquez was killed while on his way for Ash Wednesday services in the Diocese of San Pedro Sula.

López’s death coincides with the 2016 murder of prominent Honduran environmentalist Berta Cáceres, which Global Witness called one of the world’s most dangerous countries for activists. Cáceres, an indigenous leader and co-founder of the Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras, won the 2015 Goldman Prize for the Environment for his campaign that forced the world’s largest dam builder to abandon the project Agua Zarca Río Gualcarque Dam.