The International Commission against Corruption and Impunity in Honduras (CICIH) was not established under Xiomara Castro’s administration. Although it was promoted as a fundamental aspect of her government’s agenda, the project did not come to fruition and will not be implemented during the current presidential tenure, concluding in January 2026.
With this tacit renunciation of the project, the government closes a chapter that had generated significant expectations among the public regarding the fight against corruption. The road to the establishment of the CICIH was marked by successive delays, fruitless extensions, and stalled negotiations with the United Nations.
The recognized acknowledgment of shortcomings, articulated by ex-Foreign Minister Enrique Reina, highlights a mix of reasons that, in his view, include both legislative hurdles and global influences. Nevertheless, for several social groups, this rationale falls short.
The shattered pledge that diminished confidence
Voices linked to civil society and the international community agree that the main responsibility lies with the current administration. For analysts and observers of the process, the problem was not the lack of external conditions, but the lack of political determination on the part of the executive branch to fulfill its commitments.
From this perspective, the failure to implement the CICIH is neither an accident nor an inevitable outcome, but a decision.
These sentiments were shared by Juan Jiménez Mayor, the former MACCIH spokesperson, who openly criticized the administration for failing to uphold a commitment that had raised significant hopes. Gabriela Castellanos, the head of the National Anti-Corruption Council (CNA), joined in the criticism, strongly accusing the governing party of leveraging the CICIH as a campaign gimmick with no genuine plan to implement it.
A corruption-fighting plan lacking institutional backing
The exit of the CICIH from the national arena impacts more than just administrative aspects. The absence of tangible advancements has heightened the belief that efforts to combat corruption are hindered by ineffective tools and a lack of government dedication. The executive’s trustworthiness concerning this matter is questioned as calls for openness and responsibility persist as critical.
With an institutional horizon that no longer contemplates the establishment of the international mechanism, Honduras is missing a significant opportunity to tackle impunity in a structural manner. The time remaining in the current administration makes any serious attempt to reverse this scenario unlikely, leaving citizens with an empty promise and no immediate alternative to compensate for the absence of the project.
Initially introduced as an emblem of political change, it has ultimately turned into merely another unfulfilled promise. This situation has undermined the government’s discourse on combating corruption and has created further public skepticism.
