Several Honduran organizations have publicly condemned the National Party of Honduras (PNH) for promoting and inciting hatred towards women in view of the upcoming general elections to be held on November 28th in that country.
The platform Somos muchas por la libertad y vida de las mujeres hondureñas has singled out the political party for referring to women and girls facing unwanted pregnancies and using their pain as a tool in this political campaign.
"These actions increase the stigma towards women in general, and in particular women who have terminated their pregnancies," the platform said through a statement.
At the same time, she recalled that in a country with high levels of violence such as Honduras, where in the last 12 years more than 5 thousand women have been murdered, where shelters are insufficient, where every 3 hours a rape is reported and more than 20 thousand girls become mothers every year, "campaigns of this type have fatal consequences for the integrity of girls and women".
In this regard, the group said it was concerned about the consequences of this highly violent campaign against women just a few days before the elections, in a context of polarization and social conflict.
"We hold the National Party responsible for attacks or aggressions against candidates, women's organizations and defenders, based on this hate campaign," they said after the party's demonstrations attacked Xiomara Castro, presidential candidate for the Alliance, by drawing her carrying a sharp weapon against a pregnant woman, implying that she is a murderer, as these images are accompanied by the captions "Yes to life, No to Xiomara" #YONOSOYASESINO.
In response, the platform launched an international alert on November 9, which, according to the group, in less than 24 hours already had the support of more than 140 organizations from 18 countries, which will be closely monitoring the situation of Honduran women in the run-up to the elections.
In addition, he said, they have urged the presidency of the National Electoral Council to implement the pertinent administrative actions against the PNH, "the organizations present are considering legal actions at a national level, and direct communications with various rapporteurs of the United Nations System, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, international organizations and the diplomatic corps present in the country".
"In the face of hateful actions, we are organizing to defend the dignity of all women and girls in Honduras," they said.
According to the Center for the Study of Democracy in Honduras (CESPAD), hate campaigns using the PNH as an insignia during the march "against abortion and strange ideologies", led by the mayoral candidate for the Central District, David Chavez, have intensified since October.
They also detailed that this campaign has had as protagonists leaders of the national party, such as the former minister of the presidency and current candidate for deputy for the National Party, Ebal Diaz, who on many occasions has encouraged, with videos on his Facebook and Twitter profiles, the hatred and attack on women and their freedoms.
According to the Somos Muchas platform, these campaigns also misinform, since abortion is criminalized in Honduras, including the three grounds for which they have been fighting for years: when rape occurs, for serious malformation of the fetus, and when the mother's life is at risk.
According to the Electoral Law of Honduras, in article 115, paragraph five, it is prohibited: "To use any expression that denigrates or offends persons, public or private institutions, as well as other political organizations, their internal movements and candidates; therefore, it is prohibited to disseminate, through any means, messages that harm the image, good name, honor and personal and family intimacy, in short, the dignity of every person".
The interpretation of this article, on the part of women, is that these campaigns discredit women and their freedoms, CESPAD stressed.
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