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THREAD: spoke w/Garífuna leader Miriam Miranda of @ofraneh this AM about the disappearance 1 week ago of 5 Garífuna land defenders in Triunfo de la Cruz, Honduras & I still have chills. I'm writing an article but they urgently want me to share information #CentralAmericanTwitter
1st Miriam Miranda emphasized that this has been a decades-long struggle. She says, 'What's important to understand is that this is a reflection of systemic persecution, repression & a well-elaborated plan by the State to exterminate the Garífuna community" #GarifunaLivesMatter
Miriam Miranda: "The repression we've been facing is because we are a community in a constant fight for our ancestral rights. The State is determined to push us out."
#GarifunaLivesMatter
#GarifunaLivesMatter
Miriam Miranda: "What we fear is that what happened to Berta Cáceres will repeat itself, where [the State] is going to say, 'this is the person that committed the crime,' but the intellectual authors will remain with impunity."
She says they are certain the local police & Honduran military are involved in the disappearances, partly because they're the only ones w/access to free mobility during the coronavirus quarantine enforced in the country. But also, "We are living under a military dictatorship."
Miriam Miranda: "The beast is on the loose." The beast is the police & military under the government of Juan Orlando Hernández. "They have the authorization & legality to do whatever they want in this country."
She says the community has received almost no information about the 5 leaders' whereabouts. Except Friday, Honduran police reportedly found a bag in San Pedro Sula w/alleged personal belongings of some of the disappeared men.
Miriam says the Honduran gov will likely try to paint this as an 'ordinary' crime related to drug trafficking & not as part of the ongoing repression against the Garífuna community as they fight to protect their territory from foreign destructive industries like tourism projects.
Miriam says Triunfo community members once again saw suspicious vehicles drive through the town yesterday. She says this is a State campaign to terrorize them. #GarifunaLivesMatter
Lastly, Miriam Miranda says today more than ever she really fears for her life & for the life of other land & water defenders in Honduras. "We are not going to stop. We are fighting for our lives."
#GarifunaLivesMatter
#GarifunaLivesMatter
It's crucial that you follow @ofraneh & @hondurassol
