Missing journalist’s body found in Honduras

The dead body of Erick Martinez, a Honduran journalist and gay rights activist, has been found, two days after the 32-year-old reporter went missing.

Police told local media on Tuesday that Martinez, who worked for an association campaigning for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) rights, had been found strangled, with his body left on the side of a road around 5 kilometers outside the capital, Tegucigalpa, the Agence France Presse reports.

The motive behind his killing is unclear, but twenty-two journalists have been murdered in Honduras since 2009, and none of the perpetrators have been brought to justice, according to EFE.

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According to the BBC, Martinez had been selected to run for a seat at legislative elections due in November, representing a coalition of parties that emerged after President Manuel Zelaya was ousted almost three years ago.

In December the Central American country’s human rights commissioner warned that the dangers for journalists were growing amid an increase in drug trafficking and other organized crime. Honduras has the highest murder rate on the planet, according to UN figures, with 82 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants. 

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