Medellin, Colombia – Four senior members of Honduras’ left-wing opposition party were impeached by the Honduran Congress on Thursday, April 16.
Officials who were members of the Partido Libertad y Refundación, or Libertarian and Reconstruction Party (Libre), were stripped of their positions after being accused of trying to undermine the integrity of the November 30 election in favor of their party.
The impeachment is the latest in a wave of retaliation against political opponents by the newly elected right-wing government led by President Nasri Aspura.
Eighty-eight lawmakers supported the expulsions, strengthening the alliance between the right-wing Nacional Party (PN) and the Liberal Party (PL), which has ruled the country since Aspura took power in January.
Other politicians include Marlon Ochoa, Mario Morazán, Lourdes Mejia and Gabriel Gutierrez of Libre, who ruled Honduras from 2022 to 2026.
Morazan, a former magistrate at the Electoral Tribunal, was the only member to attend the nearly six-hour trial in person.
“I am not appealing to you. I am appealing to history. I am appealing to the origins and essence of constitutionalism, constitutional powers, hard-won fundamental rights… I am absolutely innocent. I only acted in accordance with law and justice,” Morazán said in a speech to lawmakers.
Meanwhile, Ochoa did not attend the congressional hearing where the vote was held because he had already left the country due to death threats, said fellow Libre lawmaker Marco Ramiro Lobo.
“I will continue to fight wherever I am. No matter what difficulties there are, I will return to Honduras. The struggle is not over,” he said via X on Friday.
The expulsion is the latest in a series of impeachment trials in the Central American country led by White House ally Asfura. Justice Minister Johel Zelaya was dismissed by parliament in March and immediately replaced by government ally Pablo Emilio Reyes.
In parallel with today’s expulsion, Zelaya was accused of abusing his position to support the former liberal government, and was dismissed two days after the proceedings began.
While in office, he filed a criminal case against Aspura and sought to arrest former PN President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was pardoned by Donald Trump for drug trafficking offenses last December.
Chief Justice Rebecca Ovando faced a similar trial, but decided to resign before the impeachment began.
Manuel Zelaya, now a liberal leader and former president, accused Congress of enacting a “gag law” following his impeachment.
He said, “Members of the National Assembly must represent the people and protect the people,” and “When the Constitution is violated through retaliation through political trials and power is concentrated, absolutism arises, corruption, property theft, and plunder go unpunished.”
Featured image: Tegucigalpa, capital of Honduras.
Image Credit: Iliana Ochoa. image license.
