On August 16, 2025, thousands of Hondurans—including members of civil organizations, community leaders, and activists—participated in the March for Peace and Democracy. The march, convened in Tegucigalpa and replicated in several cities across the country, emerged as a response to institutional instability within the National Electoral Council just months before the general election in November.
Hondurans have demonstrated their awareness and preference for democratic rights. Moreover, this demonstration shows that Hondurans do not want to repeat the tragedy of countries that have succumbed to authoritarianism branded as 21st-century socialism. It is the duty of defenders of freedom and democracy to redouble efforts so that those who seek to impose this model on the country do not remain in power.
21st-Century Socialism Leads to Misery
For more than two decades, this ideology has weakened the institutions and economies of the region. Venezuela is the clearest example: uncontrolled inflation, more than 7 million emigrants, and the collapse of basic services. Nicaragua has followed the same path, with fraudulent elections and persecution of opponents.
In Bolivia, indefinite reelection and judicial manipulation consolidated an authoritarian regime over 20 years. It recently left citizens without fuel for more than a month. Mexico, though different in context, shows troubling symptoms: a concentration of power in the executive branch, militarization, and the weakening of institutional checks and balances.
Socialism does not generate well-being but rather poverty and dependence. Under the promise of “social justice,” socialism inevitably restricts civil liberties, punishes private investment, and paves the way for the state to excessively intervene in economic and political life.
The violation of individual freedoms—whether in the form of individual constraints, legal insecurity, or economic control—produces unemployment, informality, and mass emigration. Millions of Latin Americans have fled these failed systems in search of opportunity and respect for their fundamental rights.
The proof is in the pudding. Venezuela represents the largest migration crisis in the region; political exile is growing in Nicaragua; and in Mexico both insecurity and capital flight are on the rise.
The outlook is not so different in Honduras. Our exodus exceeds one million people. In 2024 alone, nearly 370,000 citizens left the country. Furthermore, the financial advisory platform HelloSafe recently published a Global Prosperity Index that ranked Honduras as the least prosperous country in Central America. The index evaluates each nation’s performance in GDP per capita, gross national income per capita, and the Human Development Index. The latter includes indicators such as access to health and education that determine citizens’ quality of life.
The Role of Freedom Advocates
The good news is that the region has prominent leaders who embody democratic resistance. In Venezuela, María Corina Machado has kept alive the struggle against Nicolás Maduro’s dictatorship. In Honduras, presidential candidate Salvador Nasralla has denounced the lack of electoral transparency, and he defends a competitive democracy.
Other figures include Miguel Uribe Turbay. A Colombian presidential candidate, he was the victim of a politically motivated attack on June 7 and passed away on August 11 after remaining in intensive care. He reminds us that defending freedom in Latin America comes at a high cost. Uribe, who had great potential to confront those who seek to perpetuate themselves in power, paid with his life.
What is clear is that this is precisely the moment when we cannot give up. Honduras faces critical elections, where irregularities and attempts at manipulation have already come to light. However, we have not lost the battle yet. By raising our voices against dictatorships, we have brought back the fight for freedom, a principle that is non-negotiable and cannot be substituted.
