Honduras criminal justice reforms risk civil liberties
By Katerin Galo
October 23, 2026
The reforms to the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure, promoted under the argument of combating crime, include changes to arrest procedures, searches, and detention periods which, according to the jurist, could facilitate abuses of authority and restrict fundamental rights.
Joaquín Mejía, a constitutional lawyer, warned that these criminal justice reforms resemble the anti-maras policies implemented in 2003, which, in his assessment, led to the detention of innocent people, warning of the risks of repeating these precedents in Honduras.
Tegucigalpa, Honduras. – The reforms to the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure promoted by the National Congress under the argument of combating crime could become mechanisms of social control over the Honduran population by expanding the powers of security forces and putting judicial guarantees, civil liberties, and fundamental rights at risk, lawyers warn.
The package of amendments includes changes to arrest procedures, such as searches of private homes without a prior judicial warrant, extending the time limit for filing a prosecutorial request following an arrest from 24 to 48 hours, and provisions concerning the use of tattoos as a means of identifying individuals allegedly linked to maras, gangs, or criminal organizations.
Constitutional lawyer and human rights expert Joaquín Mejía Rivera argues that these initiatives should not be analyzed solely from the perspective of public security, but also in terms of the powers they would grant to the National Police and the Armed Forces, as well as the risks of those powers being used against innocent people, critical voices, and opposition sectors.
In the jurist's view, these amendments to criminal legislation represent an attempt by the co-governing administration, composed of the National and Liberal parties, to strengthen social and institutional control, as both parties share control over different sectors of the state apparatus.
During an interview with Radio Progreso, the lawyer recalled that the proposed measures resemble policies adopted in Honduras in 2003, under Ricardo Maduro's administration, when criminal law reforms aimed at combating maras and gangs were introduced but, according to his assessment, ultimately affected people who had no ties to these organizations.
Joaquín Mejía recalled that the Honduran State has previously been brought before and found liable by the Inter-American Human Rights System for measures similar to those currently being considered for approval by the National Congress. Photo: Guillermo Burgos/Criterio.hn
The lawyer also linked these initiatives to the Honduran political context and expressed concern over the concentration of institutional power and the possibility that the new powers could be used to intimidate sectors critical of the government.
In this regard, he stated that the criminal reforms could be part of a strategy to strengthen social and institutional control and questioned the fact that these measures are being promoted in a context of political confrontation and questioning of decisions made by public authorities.
He mentioned the case of Nicaragua, where, as he explained, provisions introduced under the argument of combating terrorism have been used to persecute political opponents, people who speak out against the government, and religious leaders.
He warned that Honduras should examine these precedents before approving changes that expand state powers to arrest individuals, intervene their homes, or subject them to investigations based on personal characteristics.
The background of the anti-maras law
Mejía recalled that the reform of Article 332 of the Criminal Code, known as the Anti-maras Law, allowed authorities to make arrests based on physical appearance and the presence of tattoos that they associated with maras and gangs.
According to the lawyer, during the first nine months of the implementation of these provisions, 1,072 innocent people who had tattoos but were not linked to maras or gangs were arrested.
In this regard, he noted that this precedent should serve as a warning about the possibility that the new reforms could allow physical characteristics or bodily markings to be justify arrests while authorities investigate alleged links to criminal organizations.
Mejía also recalled that the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR), in its judgment in the case of Pacheco Teruel et al. v. Honduras, ordered the Honduran State to amend Article 332 of the Criminal Code, after finding violations of fundamental principles related to that provision.
On April 27, 2012, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) found the State of Honduras internationally responsible for the deaths of 107 persons deprived of their liberty in the fire that occurred on May 17, 2004, in cell number 19 of the San Pedro Sula Penitentiary.
The judgment states that 22 of the inmates who died were being held in pretrial detention on charges of unlawful association and were sharing the same cell with convicted prisoners.
The lawyer explained that democratic criminal law requires an individual's liability to be established on the basis of conduct that can be legally punished, rather than physical characteristics or personal expressions that do not, in themselves, constitute a criminal offence.
“A tattoo is not an act that causes harm,” Mejía argued, questioning the use of this characteristic as grounds for attributing criminal liability to citizens.
In his view, if the reforms allow police or military officers to detain a person based on the assumption that their tattoos could be linked to a criminal organization and keep them in custody for 48 hours while conducting inquiries, this would create room for discretion that could lead to abuses.
Joaquín Mejía pointed out that the problem is not limited to people who may have tattoos associated with gangs, but also extends to any individual whose appearance is considered suspicious by security forces. Photo: Jorge Burgos/Criterio.hn
“We are at the mercy of the discretion of two institutions we do not trust,” he stated, referring to the National Police and the Armed Forces.
Home searches and arrests under scrutiny
Another aspect of concern for Mejía is the possibility that security forces could enter private homes without a prior judicial warrant, a measure that, according to his analysis, would expand the powers of state intervention in citizens' private lives.
The lawyer considers that, when combined with longer detention periods and criteria that could lead to arrests based on physical appearance, these provisions would increase the population's exposure to arbitrary actions by police authorities.
As he explained, these concerns are linked to the Honduran institutional context and longstanding questions surrounding the conduct of security agencies. As examples, he mentioned the police vetting process and the legal proceedings in New York involving members of the Hernández Alvarado family and other individuals accused of drug trafficking.
Mejía argued that, before granting additional powers to security institutions, the State should consider the precedents that have raised questions about their conduct and the need to establish effective oversight mechanisms.
In this regard, he warned that the reforms could affect not only individuals suspected of having links to criminal organizations, but also citizens who exercise their right to question government decisions.
