Central America

Honduras leader offers rebel deputy post to end congress crisis

AFP

Honduras’ president-elect Xiomara Castro made a last ditch attempt late Wednesday to solve a congressional crisis with hours left before her inauguration.

Last week two rival factions within her left wing Libre party elected their own duelling presidents of Congress.

Castro backs the claims of Luis Redondo of her coalition partner Savior Party of Honduras (PSH).

But Jorge Calix, a deputy within her own Libre party, has led a band of close to 20 rebels, with support from the right wing National and Liberal parties, to launch a rival claim.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Late on Wednesday, Castro tried to break the impasse by offering Calix a role in her cabinet.

“I proposed to Jorge Calix that he joins my government in the position of Cabinet Coordinator for the sake of uniting in the Reformation of Honduras,” Castro wrote on Twitter.

She did not, however, explain what the role entailed, although it appears to be something akin to a chief of staff.

“Thank you President @XiomaraCastroZ, it was a great pleasure speaking with you,” said Calix in a reply to her post on Twitter.

“For me and for anyone, it would be a great honor to form part of the government of resistence and national reconciliation. You will soon receive my answer,” he wrote.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

The offer came a day after the two rival factions held competing first sessions presided over by their respective presidents.

Redondo took office as president of the Congress in the building that houses the legislative body.

In parallel and via video link, Calix was also installed as head of Congress by his own loyalist faction.

Calix was joined by around 70 deputies while only around 40 were in the parliament building, although the Redondo faction achieved a quorum as substitute lawmakers stood in for those that were absent.

The crisis broke out last week when a group of Libre dissidents ignored an agreement with the PSH, whose support was key to Castro winning the November elections.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Rival lawmakers came to blows in the dispute.

PSH leader Salvador Nasralla had agreed to withdraw his presidential candidacy and support Castro, in return for the position of vice president and a member of his party being named president of Congress.

But the dissidents argued that Congress should be led by the party with the most members — Libre has 50 deputies compared to just 10 for the Savior party.

Control of parliament is key to Castro’s anti-corruption and political reform platform in a country battered by poverty, migration and drug trafficking.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Central America

Washington Imposes Visa Ban on La Modelo Director Amid Crackdown in Nicaragua

The United States government announced Wednesday that it has imposed visa restrictions on Roberto Clemente Guevara Gómez, director of Nicaragua’s largest prison, La Modelo, for his involvement in actions that violate human rights.

In a statement, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the measure is intended to promote accountability for abuses committed under what he described as the “Murillo-Ortega dictatorship” against political prisoners.

Rubio specified that Guevara Gómez was designated for participating in “a gross violation of the human rights of a political prisoner.” The sanction was issued under the 2024 Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, which bars the sanctioned individual — and potentially immediate family members — from entering the United States.

“United States demands the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners unjustly detained in Nicaragua,” the statement added.

Ongoing tensions between Washington and Managua

Washington rejected Nicaragua’s November 2021 elections, in which President Daniel Ortega and his wife, now co-president Rosario Murillo, were reelected while seven potential challengers were in prison.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Relations between the two countries remain tense amid expanding U.S. sanctions and increasing diplomatic pressure on the Nicaraguan government.

On January 10, marking Ortega’s 19 years in power, Nicaragua released “dozens of detainees,” including political prisoners. The move came one day after the U.S. Embassy in Managua stated that “more than 60 people” remain “unjustly detained or disappeared” in the Central American nation.

U.S. officials have continued to push for the “unconditional release” of political prisoners rather than selective or temporary releases.

Ortega, 80, governs alongside Murillo with consolidated authority, having strengthened executive power through constitutional reforms and security measures, while the opposition has been weakened by imprisonment, exile, and the revocation of citizenship and property rights.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Central America

Guatemala’s Attorney General Consuelo Porras Loses Bid for Constitutional Court Seat

Guatemala’s attorney general, Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States over corruption allegations, lost a key vote on Monday in which a public university selected two of the 10 magistrates for the country’s highest constitutional court. However, she could still seek a seat through another nominating body.

The election of five full magistrates and five alternates to the Corte de Constitucionalidad (CC) is taking place gradually over more than two months and is considered crucial in the ongoing struggle for control of Guatemala’s judiciary, which critics say has long been influenced by a political and economic elite accused of corruption.

According to results announced at a press conference, the governing council of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (USAC) rejected Porras, who had applied as either a full or alternate magistrate, and instead chose two candidates aligned with the university rector. The vote was held at a hotel in Antigua, about 35 kilometers from the capital.

Despite the setback, Porras — whose term as attorney general ends on May 16 — could still be nominated to the Constitutional Court by the Corte Suprema de Justicia, which appoints two magistrates. The remaining six are selected by the president, the bar association and Congress.

“It’s always a possibility,” the 72-year-old lawyer said days earlier when asked by reporters whether she would seek nomination through another institution if she lost the USAC vote.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Porras has been sanctioned by Washington and the European Union for allegedly attempting two years ago to block the inauguration of President Bernardo Arévalo and for pursuing legal actions against anti-corruption prosecutors, judges, journalists and social leaders since taking office in 2018.

The USAC vote was controversial because most members of the university’s governing council are serving beyond the expiration of their terms. Students, academics and social activists staged protests against Porras’ candidacy.

Central America

Teens visit ETESAL substation to learn about responsible energy use

Within the framework of World Energy Day, teenagers from the institutional care center Ciudad Niñez y Adolescencia (CNA), run by the Consejo Nacional de la Primera Infancia, Niñez y Adolescencia (Conapina), took part in an educational visit to a substation operated by Empresa Transmisora de El Salvador (ETESAL) in Santa Ana.

The aim of the activity was to give participants first-hand knowledge of how the country’s electricity transmission system works and to highlight the importance of responsible energy use.

During the tour, the group learned about the process that delivers electricity to homes, businesses, and industries. They were also introduced to specialized technical equipment and the safety measures required to ensure an efficient and reliable service.

Before the guided visit, the teenagers attended two informative talks and an environmental awareness session focused on the relevance of responsible energy consumption and its impact on the environment.

According to Nelson Menjívar, head of Conapina’s programs unit, the initiative serves a dual purpose. “It has two objectives: a recreational component and an educational one, so that adolescents can learn about the work carried out by ETESAL and how some of the resources they use at home are generated. This is in keeping with the guarantees established under the Crecer Juntos law; we ensure those rights for children,” he said.

20260212_constancia_pagos_mh_728x90

Menjívar stressed that these activities help young people better understand how essential services function in their daily lives while promoting efficient consumption habits and a culture of environmental respect and care.

The event is part of the principle of shared responsibility set out in the Crecer Juntos law, promoted by the administration of Nayib Bukele, which states that families, society, private companies, and the State must work together to safeguard the comprehensive well-being of children and adolescents.