This time we are having luck, when the electricity fades away the last sun rays still light up the hills of Tegucigalpa, and the houses are not indulged in complete darkness yet. However when realizing that these are the ‘last’ ones of the day, and that the power won’t be switched on soon, this black-out calls for a back-up plan and quick. In the remaining daylight we collect all candles, and spread them out in the house, but the shadows and the darkness are not the most enjoyable environment. The patio outside however lightens up under the white moonlight that dispels the darkness.

The electricity system in Honduras is not trustworthy at all, black outs are one of the few common problems of the country. A day without an electricity interruption is more rare than one with a continuous flow of light, depending on the neighborhood you are living of course. Not only families, but several companies suffered so far, such as the one processing frozen foods. Their economic losses due to electricity losses are considerably high: electricity as the Achilles’ heel of the entrepreneurs.

Lights out, black out, time out; what’s in a name?

Sitting on the ground and watching a muskrat passing by, we consider the events of the day. It is a dark night for Honduras, not only because of the black out. Right before all media, especially social media, were cut off, Kevin Solórzano was declared guilty. The general public considered him  innocent, however the 21 years old student was condemned to 30 years of prison; despite the video proving his presence at the university at the moment of the murder where he was accused of.

An isolated case of injustice or a symptom of the general failure of the system? The latter one according to the Hondurans as they took the streets the next days to denounce the injustice in their country. While innocent people lose their life in prison, guilty ones are set free, like the ones who misappropriated money of the social security system and replaced official drugs by pastilles filled with flour. Yet they are not held responsible for the death toll they caused.

It is a dark night for Honduras, not only because of the black out.