Team:Edinburgh/mapxmlhonduras



Honduras <![CDATA[Despite the closure of its mine action program, Honduras is still affected by residual contamination from mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO). Its mine contamination was the result of mine-laying along its borders with Nicaragua and El Salvador by warring parties in the armed conflicts in those two countries during the 1980s.

Formal mine clearance operations in Honduras ended in 2004. On 29 October 2004, the United States Department of State reported that Honduras was “mine-free,” noting that Honduran deminers had cleared 2,191 landmines, 214 items of UXO, and 60,521 other explosive remnants of war (ERW) on the borders with El Salvador and Nicaragua. In 2007, however, the Organization of American States (OAS) reported that a mine killed a Honduran man on 25 November 2005 in San Francisco de la Lodosa close to the Nicaraguan border while he was on a hunting trip.

On 16 April 2007, the OAS announced it “will continue supporting that country’s efforts to respond to reports about the presence of landmines, documented through preventive education efforts in the area bordering Nicaragua,” while at the same time stating that it considered Honduras safe from landmines. It repeated this statement in July 2007. In 2006–2007, the OAS provided mine/ERW risk education to 1,439 people in 18 communities in Olancho and El Paraiso departments, demonstrating a fear of further incidents.

A Canadian government travel advisory accessed in August 2008 warned: “Unmarked landmine fields are located on both sides of the Honduras-Nicaragua border, especially in the Rio Coco region, the Choluteca and El Paraiso provinces, and in the area near the Atlantic Coast. Although significant progress was made in clearing these areas, landslides and floods have scattered many of the remaining mines, making the border area unsafe. Extreme caution is advised if travelling in this area.”

In 2007, there were eight casualties from three incidents involving grenades; three were killed (all children) and five were injured (three children and two men). One of the grenades was found in a goat pen in San Lorenzo (Valle department); another grenade was found in an abandoned house near Tegucigalpa (the capital). The third incident, in San Marcos de Colon (Choluteca department), occurred when two builders attempted to defuse the grenade to use as a tool. No mine/ERW casualties were reported in 2006; the last reported mine casualty occurred in November 2005. ]]> <![CDATA[]]>