November 12, 2021
The view in Copán, western Honduras.
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September 15, 2021 marked the 200th anniversary of Honduras' independence from Spain. As ASJ-Honduras researcher Edgar Aguilar reflected on what the day meant to him, he wrote this open letter to his home on his
personal blog, which he has adapted to share here.
Dear Honduras,
Today we celebrate 200 years of your independence. It’s a tradition. Do you remember? I’ve spent at least 15 years celebrating this day every September 15: participating in parades, attending events, imagining from a young age a future here; a future of prosperity, opportunities, and development.
That’s what I was taught in school, that in a free country as the nation develops, one does too. That in a free country there are rights and opportunities for all. That in a free country everyone is protected and can enjoy a dignified life.
However, much has happened in these 15 years of celebrations and parades; I have realized that you are not completely free, yet, and that
there is much to do so that your citizens enjoy the promise I grew up believing in.
I have realized that you are not completely free, yet, and that there is much to do so that your citizens enjoy the promise I grew up believing in.
Many have lost their roots, hope, and love for you. I don’t blame them:
- Today, 1 of every 3 children between 3 and 17 years of age is excluded from the educational system. An unfulfilled promise. On top of that, ¼ of teenagers and young adults are neither studying nor working. Another unfulfilled promise.
- Currently, for every 1000 births, 18 children under the age of 5 die. And in every 100,000 births, 129 mothers die.
- It is estimated that about 12.5% of GDP is lost to corruption (around $2.5 billion), stealing Hondurans’ work and their lives.
- Impunity in the country was 87% in 2018. Too many wrongdoers go unpunished. A homicide rate persists that greatly affects the young, women, the LGBT community, and defenders of the environment and human rights. You have even been called a ‘narco-state’, for the latent collaboration between organized crime and the elite.
- A large part of the population does not have a job in the formal sector and earns 3,635 Lempiras ($150) a month.
- About 35% of the country’s energy is stolen, and this provokes a great financial impact on the country while leaving us with low quality service.
An overlook of Honduras' capital city, Tegucigalpa.
It seems that you have failed us, but in reality we have only been lied to. You are not completely free, yet. You are trapped by some people with interests against the promises you once made to us. People who are keen to compete for the power to control you, only to pursue their own self-interest and reckless greed.
Your potential is immense, your beauty is great, and your promises are good ones. Although in the last 15 years I have realized that parades and celebrations, like other things, can become only an illusion of a yet unknown reality; I still believe in a future in which your promises—the things I was taught you were and could be—become a reality.
I accept my part and understand the challenge.
We must not sit with just pom-poms or hopelessness. We must not lose our trust and love for you. We must contribute—all of us— in creating the future we grew up hoping for. It’s all of our responsibility to work so that you fulfill your promise; it’s not a done deed from the past like I was taught. It’s a process, in which we contribute to your continued liberation.
“I still believe in a future in which your promises—the things I was taught you were and could be—become a reality.
The depressing statistics that I mentioned earlier must change and they will. We should support and be people committed to ensuring that you provide security and rights to all Hondurans. We should support and be people who are aligned with the common good and not with unconscionable corrupt interests.
Right now, we have upcoming elections to establish new leaders. I hope that these competing candidates truly work to guarantee a future with life, educational opportunities for all, and individual and collective prosperity.
It’s not so simple. I have realized that much of what I grew up hearing is not as easy as it seemed, but it’s good for me to learn that reality is complex and that we are all called to create a more just and prosperous Honduras. I still believe that you can fulfill your promises and that you can continue freeing yourself, with the difference that now I do not take your promises for granted, I take responsibility, and I realize I’m a part of this too.
With affection, Edgar
Edgar Aguilar
ASJ-Honduras Researcher
Edgar Aguilar hails from Tomalá, Honduras, and enjoys adventuring to new places, reading about Honduran politics, and having good conversations with friends. Find his original reflection in Spanish at
https://bit.ly/3aZva5t.
