Honduras troops shoot dead teenage girl amid election crisis protests

[Judi Lynn]

- Government imposes 10-day curfew as protesters claim election fraud
- Kimberly Dayana Fonseca, 19, shot dead in Tegucigalpa early on Saturday

Saturday 2 December 2017 16.14 EST

A teenage girl was killed as troops opened fire on unarmed protesters in the Honduran capital on Saturday, after the government declared a 10-day curfew and suspended constitutional rights in an attempt to contain an escalating political crisis fuelled by evidence of electoral fraud.

According to witnesses, Kimberly Dayana Fonseca, 19, was shot dead in Tegucigalpa in the early hours of Saturday morning by military police – members of a huge force loyal to the rightwing government of Juan Orlando Hernández, who is accused of meddling in the vote count after last Sunday’s election in an attempt to cling to power.

There were reports of mass detentions and serious injuries overnight after the government deployed troops across the country in what many fear is a return to autocratic rule. At least four people were confirmed dead.

Six days after the election, the winner of the presidential race has still not been declared by the beleaguered electoral commission (TSE), which is controlled by Hernández’s National party.

More:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/02/honduras-troops-shoot-dead-teenage-girl-curfew-election-crisis-protests

LBN:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10141928620

[Judi Lynn]

1. Honduras: Teenage Girl Killed as Army Enforces Curfew

Published 2 December 2017 (7 hours 0 minutes ago)

Three people – including a teenaged girl – have so far been killed in violent clashes following the disputed Honduran elections, as the armed forces opened fire on unarmed opposition supporters while enforcing a 10-day curfew imposed by the government late Friday.

One man was killed in the port city of La Ceiba on Friday and 19-year-old Kimberly Dayana Fonseca was shot in the head early Saturday in Tegucigalpa as soldiers busted up protesters' blockades, a spokesman for the national police said, bringing the total death toll to three.

Human rights organizations have denounced the curfew, blaming "excessive force" by state troops. The U.S.-based Action Network has sent an open letter to the U.S: Congress and State Department, expressing "deep concern about reports of fraud and state violence" and calling for the immediate suspension of all U.S. police and military aid to Honduras.

The Honduran Ministry of Justice ordered the suspension of citizens' constitutional rights shortly before 11pm Friday. On Saturday, the Committee of the Relatives of the Disappeared in Honduras (Dodafeh) confirmed 11 people have been injured in Tegucigalpa since late Saturday and 41 arrested, six of whom are minors.

More:
https://telesurtv.net/english/news/Honduras-Elections-3-Confirmed-Dead-as-Army-Enforces-Curfew-20171202-0008.html

[Judi Lynn]

2. Honduras Election: One of the Worst Elections in Recent Memory

Honduras Election: One of the Worst Elections in Recent Memory

Evidence is mounting that the Honduran presidential election is being stolen so that the conservative incumbent, President Juan Orlando Hernandez, remains in office. According to CEPR's Mark Weisbrot, this is one of the worst charges of fraud in recent memory, but this is the outcome the Trump administration is hoping for.

Video at link:
http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=20618