To continue our work with the Honduran Attorney General (AG) selection process facilitated through the Supporting Supreme Court and Attorney General Selection in Honduras program, the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative’s (ABA ROLI) implemented the one-year rapid response program, Supporting Local Civil Society Advocacy in the Attorney General and High Court of Auditors Election Process in Honduras. Between 2023-2024, the program sought to strengthen judicial independence and anti-corruption efforts in Honduras during the upcoming indirect elections for the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, and members of the High Court of Auditors. Although like the previous AG program, this program is conducted through the CEPPS (Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening) mechanism and includes a new element to monitor the selection process for the Court of High Auditors. ABA ROLI will provide technical support to the Proposing Board and Congress on candidate selection to support transparency and consistency with international standards in this process. This program began in late August 2023 and ended in early 2024.
On November 1, 2023, the Permanent Commission of the National Congress appointed the Interim Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General during an extraordinary session. It should be noted that there are currently no statues within the Honduran Constitution to allow for the appointment of interim positions. ABA ROLI worked to support tools for the selection of the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General positions in this program as a continuation from the previous HRSM program. Additionally, in 2023, ABA ROLI implemented capacity building workshops with civil society and media outlets to support civil society organizations, national party members, and independent media efforts to hold institutions accountable and ensure transparent election processes in Honduras. We also held high-level meetings with the Vice President of the National Congress of Honduras and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Honduras to present the program and discuss potential areas of collaboration—furthering ABA ROLI’s ability to strengthen judicial independence and anti-corruption efforts in Honduras during the upcoming elections of the High Court of Auditors.