March 3 marks one year since the brutal murder of renowned Honduran environmentalist Berta Cáceres. Her life as an activist and her work on behalf of indigenous communities and the environment had a global impact, and we again extend our sincerest condolences to her family, friends, and colleagues on this sad anniversary. To date, eight people are in custody charged with planning or carrying out her murder and the Honduran investigation into her murder remains open with two suspects arrested in the last two months. United States Embassy personnel continue to provide technical assistance to those in the Public Ministry leading the investigation, as they have from the very beginning.
The United States is also focused more broadly on supporting Honduran efforts to address impunity, strengthen civil society, and create conditions that will bring about security and broad-based economic prosperity for Hondurans. For example, in January, the Embassy announced important support to assist in strengthening the mechanism to protect human rights defenders, journalists, and other at-risk persons.
The United States remains committed to helping Hondurans build a future in which the underlying causes of impunity are resolved, and in which the guilty are held to account for their actions. Along with her steadfast activism, there could be no more lasting and important legacy for Berta Cáceres than that.
