Inter‑American Commission on Human Rights hearings highlight abuses in Venezuela and Honduras

Human‑rights organisations and indigenous representatives appeared before the Inter‑American Commission on Human Rights (CIDH) to denounce the expansion of illegal gold mining in Venezuela’s Orinoco mining belt, citing environmental damage, armed‑group control and ongoing violence against communities. They also reported continued repression of political prisoners, describing inhumane detention conditions, torture and limited medical care, and urged the CIDH to monitor the country’s political dialogue and the situation in prisons.

In Honduras, the executive branch announced the official position it would take at a CIDH thematic hearing on judicial independence, a stance that diverged from preparations by the Congress and the Public Ministry. The former ex‑procurador Manuel Díaz warned that the government was backsliding on human‑rights commitments, while civil‑society leaders such as Carlos Hernández of the Asociación para una Sociedad más Justa criticised aspects of the political‑trial process. Honduras formally objected to the CIDH’s use of the hearing, arguing it exceeded the commission’s procedural mandate.