How does a mother recover from losing her two children in an attack and fleeing to save her own life and that of her remaining children?
In Honduras, violence perpetrated by armed groups leads to forced displacement.
For Salomé*, it is very difficult to explain the reasons for her displacement without crying. She refers to the experience simply as “what happened to us”.
She is very shy. But despite everything she has been through, she is able to smile when she thinks of her young children’s future.
“What happened to us”
Salomé lived peacefully in the house where she was born, and she and her two eldest children ran a small business. They kept chickens, and would sell the eggs and chicks they produced. She also cooked traditional Honduran dishes to sell. Things were going well for them.
But sometimes, in Honduras, running a business can be dangerous. Armed groups threaten and attack families who do not pay the extortion they demand.
One day, while at home, her family was attacked by armed men. During that attack her eldest sons were killed.
“I lost everything, I lost my home, I lost my sons. They hurt my sons. I couldn’t live there anymore”
“I lost everything, I lost my home, I lost my sons. They hurt my sons. I couldn’t live there anymore,” insists Salomé.
She had barely finished burying her children when she was forced to flee with her other three children, with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Fear stopped her from reporting the crime or asking who the killers were. The most important thing was to save her own life and that of her children.
They took refuge in another city but, weeks later, became overwhelmed by constant fear. She couldn’t rid herself of the feeling of being hunted, and it kept her awake at night. She decided to leave Honduras.
The journey to the United States was hard for her and the children: hours of walking in the sun, being cooped up for hours in a vehicle, hunger, thirst and countless dangers.
When they finally reached US territory, the family was deported back to Honduras.
Starting from scratch. Surviving.
For Salomé, returning home is impossible. There, only danger and painful memories of what happened await her.
“I can’t go back there,” she repeats. “Right now I’m struggling again with the three children I have left. It hasn’t been easy. I keep going because I have someone to fight for,” she adds.
“I keep going because I have someone to fight for.”
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) assisted Salomé when the family returned to Honduras with emergency accommodation, educational support so that the children could return to school, guidance on improving her work opportunities, and money to settle in a town far from where she had fled.
“Sometimes fear creeps up on you; it’s like sadness, which also creeps up on you. Other times I feel calm—I mean, I forget about everything,” explains Salomé.
In her new home, she has already started a small business selling groceries, and on some days, Salomé prepares food and doughnuts that sell very well in the neighbourhood.
“People tell me my food tastes delicious, that I have a good hand with seasoning,” she says, a slight look of pride appearing on her face.
“My good days are when I take the children to school, when I’m getting them ready and they make a mess. I feel happy because, despite everything, God has given me the strength to keep fighting and coping with them. I also feel happy when the four of us go out to buy supplies for the business,” adds Salomé optimistically.
Her dream is for the business to grow so she can improve her family’s quality of life. She remembers her children she lost every day with a mixture of pain and pride:
“They were hard-working and good people,” she said, holding back her tears.
For the younger children, she simply hopes they can continue going to school and grow up safe and secure in their new home.
Honduras is one of the world's most neglected displacement crises due to a lack of media attention, insufficient funding and a lack of political will. Violence perpetrated by armed groups that impose invisible borders keeps the population in a state of fear and forces families like Salomé’s to flee their homes.
*Names have been changed to protect the people involved in the story.