No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeCrimeCorruptionThousands attend anti-corruption march against Honduras president

Thousands attend anti-corruption march against Honduras president

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Tens of thousands of Hondurans marched Friday in Tegucigalpa, many with torches in hand, as they demanded the resignation of President Juan Orlando Hernández over an ongoing corruption scandal.

Organizers estimated that a crowd of approximately 50,000 people gathered in the streets, sounding horns and carrying candle-lit torches, demanding the creation of an anti-corruption commission and rejecting dialogue with the president.

Many of the protesters carried banners and held anti-government signs with slogans such as “Honduras is ours” and “This is no president, he’s a criminal.”

The protesters crowded onto the city’s Suyapa Boulevard for more than a kilometer, marching to the presidential palace, which was guarded by police and soldiers.

The demonstration marked the fifth Friday in which protesters have hit the streets calling for Hernández to go.

See also: Anti-corruption protests spread to Honduras with demands that President Hernández resign

The opposition charges that the president received approximately $90 million out of more than $300 million they say was skimmed from poverty-wracked Honduras‘s public health system for his 2013 election campaign.

Hernández has denied wrongdoing and drastically played down the amount.

On Tuesday the president called for a dialogue on forming an organization to combat corruption and impunity, but protesters rejected the proposal.

Hernández was not in the country for the march, but was in Guatemala for a meeting of Central American leaders.

Recommended: Miguel Facussé is dead: What does that mean for the people of Honduras? 

Trending Now

La Fortuna Tops Travel + Leisure’s List as Costa Rica’s Prime Wellness Spot

For those who haven't been here before, La Fortuna sits in the northern part of the country, near Arenal Volcano. The area draws visitors...

Puma spotted near tourists in Costa Rica’s Corcovado

The short encounter was recorded on a cellphone by Keylor Monge, a local tour guide who was leading an excursion on Friday, Feb. 6....

Route 32 Reopens in Costa Rica with Traffic Controls at Key Slide Zone

Route 32 reopened Wednesday morning under regulated passage at kilometer 48, a spot hard hit by repeated slides from heavy rains. The Ministry of...

Costa Rica’s president-elect takes cabinet post to manage transition

Costa Rica’s president-elect, right-wing politician Laura Fernández, was sworn in on Wednesday as chief of staff to organize the transfer of power, an unprecedented...

Costa Rica’s Route 32 Closed After New Landslide as Cold Front Triggers Emergencies

Authorities closed Route 32 again on Friday afternoon after a fresh landslide hit the highway, disrupting travel between the Greater Metropolitan Area and the...

Study Finds Half of the World’s Coral Reefs Hit by Mass Bleaching

Half of the planet’s coral reefs suffered major damage from a heatwave that occurred almost a decade ago, according to research released Tuesday, which...
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica