NEWS RELEASE Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Nov. 30, 1997

EMBASSY VIGIL FOR FATHER CARNEY

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FATHER JOSEPH MULLIGAN, S.J., HOSPITALIZED ON 33rd DAY OF FAST: IN OBSERVATION

DR. RAMON CUSTODIO, PRESIDENT OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE DEFENSE OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN HONDURAS (CODEH) STATES THAT FATHER JAMES CARNEY WAS CAPTURED AND KILLED BY HONDURAN MILITARY

FASTERS SUPPORT AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL DEMAND THAT THE PRESIDENT WHO IS ELECTED TODAY CONTINUE THE INVESTIGATION OF THE CASE OF FATHER CARNEY AND THE OTHER DISAPPEARED PERSONS

For more information, contact EPICA in Washington, DC, at: (202) 332-0292 or COFADEH in Tegucigalpa--country code 504, then 379800.

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At 1 p.m. today Father Joseph Mulligan, S.J., was hospitalized and placed under observation. He and Matthew Eisen are now in the 33rd day of their fast, along with others in various countries, including John Patrick Carney (brother of Father Carney). Mulligan stated: "Some reporters have been asking us whether we will hold the U.S. government responsible if our fast causes serious damage to our health. While we are fasting in hopes of receiving a serious response from the Clinton administration to our demands for clarification of the disappearance of Father Carney, we cannot hold our government directly responsible for the consequences of our fast. However, we do hold the U.S. government responsible for complicity in the torture, murder, and disappearance of thousands of people in Central America during the decade of the 1980s, perhaps including Father Carney. Why is our government censoring so many of the documents requested by the Honduran government?"

Mulligan will be examined by Dr. Oscar Mejia, M.D. A medical report is expected tomorrow.

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Dr. Ramon Custodio, president of the Committee for the Defense of Human Rights in Honduras (CODEH), has stated that Father Carney was captured and killed by the Honduran military in a joint operation with U.S. military forces.

In an article in El Heraldo (Nov. 17), Dr. Custodio stated: "When in August 1983 the Honduran guerrilla column in Olancho was physically weakened, some deserted and one by one were taken prisoner. Therefore Honduran and U.S. military officials, together constituting the Joint Task Force Patuca, knew that the remaining guerrilla troops were not in any condition to fight; this proved to be true since all were taken prisoner with resisting."

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On this election day, Eisen and Mulligan expressed their desire to present to the candidate about to be elected the following Nov. 21 statement by Amnesty International:

"On Nov. 30 Hondurans will elect a new President, members of the National Congress, and mayors throughout the country. The purpose of this Open Letter is to urge the presidential candidates to commit themselves to protecting and promoting human rights in Honduras.

"The prevalence of impunity in Honduras is a matter of great concern This phenomenon is possibly the most important cause of the continuation of human rights violations."

MASSIVE DEMONSTRATION TO BE HELD MONDAY, DEC. 1, 9 A.M. TO 11 A.M., IN FRONT OF U.S. EMBASSY

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