Dem lawmakers allege racial bias in DEA-backed drug raid in Honduras

By Julian Pecquet - 01/30/13 06:16 PM ET

House Democrats are demanding the State Department launch an investigation into allegations that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency participated in a drug raid that resulted in the deaths of four black Hondurans last year.

The letter, spearheaded by Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) and signed by 57 of his colleagues, accuses Honduran military forces of violating the rights of black Hondurans since a military coup in 2009. The letter says the community is a victim, not a perpetrator, of drug violence.

“We request a thorough and credible investigation on the tragic killings of May 11 in Ahuas to determine what exactly occurred and what role, if any, was played by U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents,” states the letter, which is addressed to Secretary of State John Kerry, who will be sworn in Friday. “We also call for an immediate investigation into alleged abuses perpetrated by Honduran police and military officials in the country.”

The request stems from a May 11, 2012, raid in which four people were killed, including a 14-year-old boy. Villagers say the four were innocent bystanders.

“We are troubled to hear of the threats and repression targeting Afro-Hondurans who have bravely voiced their alarm over the steady deterioration of democracy in their country,” the letter states. “We are also concerned regarding acts of violence and intimidation against Afro-Indigenous people defending their historic land rights. We are particularly disturbed to learn of the effects of a militarized counternarcotics policy on Afro-Honduran communities, and the participation of U.S. agents in operations that have led to the deaths of Afro-indigenous civilians.”