Berta Cceres assassination: ex-head of dam company found guilty

[Judi Lynn]

3. Honduras: Conviction of David Castillo is a step towards justice, but full truth must be uncovered

5 July 2021, 11:28 UTC

David Castillo, former manager of the company Desarrollos Energéticos, and the person in charge of the Agua Zarca hydroelectric project, was found guilty of participating as co-author in the 2016 murder of Honduran human rights defender Berta Cáceres.

“The long-awaited prosecution of David Castillo, convicted as co-author of the murder of Berta Cáceres, is an important step towards justice and the result of her family and COPINH’s tireless efforts to secure truth, justice and reparation. However, justice for Berta will never be truly complete until everyone who took part in the crime, including those who planned it, is brought to justice,” said Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas director at Amnesty International.

“We urge the prosecutors to keep uncovering the truth. Until all those responsible are held accountable, other human rights defenders in Honduras will continue to lose their lives, for raising their voices and defending the most vulnerable. The Honduran authorities must put an end to impunity.”

The Sentencing Court has yet to decide on David Castillo’s sentence, pending the resolution of previous appeals filed by his lawyers. According to COPINH, the defence has adopted delay tactics on multiple occasions, slowing the judicial process to date. It took the justice system nearly a year to sentence the seven individuals found guilty of Berta’s murder on 28 November 2018.

More:
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/07/honduras-conviction-of-david-castillo-is-a-step-towards-justice-but-full-truth-must-be-uncovered/