ABSTRACT

This chapter provides a brief historical background and a description of major events in Honduras. It also provides basic political, economic, and social data arranged in the following categories: polity, economy, population, purchasing power parities, life expectancy, ethnic groups, capital, political rights, civil liberties, and status. The chapter discusses the progress and decline of political rights and civil liberties in Honduras. The Republic of Honduras was established in 1839, eighteen years after independence from Spain. It has endured decades of military rule and intermittent elected governments. Indian communities in Honduras's Atlantic coast region continue to fight against destructive, government-approved activities that threaten their lands and environment. Honduras is a source country for trafficked children, especially young girls, who are trafficked by criminal groups to other Central American countries for purposes of sexual exploitation. Transparency International has called Honduras one of the most corrupt countries in the world.