Honduras: Juan Lopez, an anti-mining activist, was fatally shot

Juan Lopez is the fourth member of an environmental activism group based in in Tocoa to be killed since 2023. President Xiomara Castro condemned the murder and has ordered an investigation.Juan Lopez had spent years denouncing mining in Honduras.

Image: Orlando Sierra/AFP

Over the weekend, a Honduran environmental activist against mining who staged protests to save rivers and tropical forests was killed, despite warnings to better ensure his safety.

Juan Lopez, 46, was shot and killed on Saturday while leaving church in the northeastern town of Tocoa, according to police on Sunday.

President Xiomara Castro of Honduras condemned Lopez’s apparent murder in remarks that were posted online. Lopez was a Libre party supporter.

“We condemn the horrific murder of our friend and environmental activist Juan Lopez in Tocoa, Colon,” she uttered. “I have ordered the use of all available law enforcement tools to bring this tragic incident to light and identify those responsible.”

Lopez belonged to the Municipal Committee for the Defense of Common and Public Goods, also known as Tocoa, which is the country’s environmental group focused on the Atlantic coast.

Three more group members were killed in what the group believed to be retaliation last year. 

The group had been subjected to years of intimidation and threats as mining and hydroelectric companies proliferated, all while working to save the Carlos Escaleras nature reserve, the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers. 

The group had been subjected to years of intimidation and threats as mining and hydroelectric companies proliferated, all while working to save the Carlos Escaleras nature reserve, the Guapinol and San Pedro rivers.