Gladys Lanza

Gladys Lanza (1942 – 17 September 2016) was a feminist and human rights activist from Honduras.

Biography Lanza was born in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, in 1942.

Trade unionism Lanza's political activism began as part of the Honduran trade union movement. In the 1990s Lanza was president of the Workers Union of the National Electric Power Company (STENEE), during which time she led the union's resistance to privatisation.

She was held political prisoner by the government of Honduras in the 1980s based on bogus evidence. Her name was listed as a target for paramilitary dissidents and in 1991 her house was destroyed by a bomb.

Feminism Lanza joined the (Honduran Women's Committee for Peace "Visitación Padilla"), which is collective of women from Honduras who advocate for gender equality, work against gender violence and support women's participation in public life. Involved from its beginning in 1984, she later became its Secretary. She was active in the Platform for Women against Femicides, which was supported by the British government. In 2010 the Inter-American Court of Human Rights ordered the Honduran government to guarantee the protection of Lanza, due to the continuing persecution.

Sexual harassment case In 2009, Lanza and the Visitación Padilla took on the case of Lesbia Pacheco, who was sacked from her role in government after rejecting the sexual harassment of a senior official, Juan Carlos Reyes. Lanza took part in the protest, was charged with defamation and was found guilty. The sentencing meant she was no longer legally able to work for Visitación Padilla. After her prosecution feminist groups from within Honduras called for a pardon, using the campaign slogan "We Are All Gladys".

Death Lanza died in September 2016, after 10 days in hospital in Tegucigalpa; however, her health had badly deteriorated since her 2015 sentencing. This was coupled with calls for the pardoning of the charges that she had been imprisoned for by national and international organisations.

Pardon In May 2017 judicial proceedings against Lanza were indefinitely suspended by the Supreme Court of Justice in Honduras.

Recordings of Lanza's speeches "Gladys Lanza: Day is a Time to Remember Ongoing Fight", VOA, 2016-03-07 "Inside The Americas - The Case of Gladys Lanza", Daily Motion.