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Honduras
14/05/2007 By Angélica Durán Martínez
The influence of drug trafficking, the main manifestation of organised crime in the political system in Honduras, can be understood in three different periods.
First, from 1977 to 1984 there was periodic, but low-level involvement. The second period, from 1984 to 1997, was marked by growing concerns that the military, weakened after the democratic transition, was involved in drug trafficking. From 1997 to date there are increasing fears that politicians and other state institutions are permeated by crime in a pervasive manner (Freedom House, 2006).
The stability of political parties and their organisation may have prevented a deeper influence of organised crime in the political system such as that which has emerged in Guatemala.
However, at the same time, political party stability has resulted in deeply politicised judiciary and oversight institutions – including the Controller General (Contraloría General), the Supreme Court of Audit (Tribunal Superior de Cuentas) and the National Electoral Court (Tribunal Nacional de Elecciones, TNE) - and systematic corruption networks.
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Keywords
Corruption Fragile state Honduras Latin America & CaribbeanRelated publications
Bio author: Angélica Durán Martínez
