Honduras’ Congress passed a law to disarm the residents of its eastern Colon province, which has been wracked by violence instigated by arms traffickers and organized crime gangs . . . the law cancels gun permits, requires locals to disarm, and prohibits the transportation of weapons . . . Colon province has also been the site of clashes between squatters and palm oil plantation owners in the region that has seen 64 deaths since 2009 . . . the government has deployed around 1,000 police and army units to the region in order to enforce the peace . . . Honduras has the world’s highest murder rate; 86.5 homicides per 100,000 residents . . . the law is likely to be ineffective in reducing violence because the drug cartels operating in the province are not likely to turn over their guns to authorities . . . however, it may reduce the conflicts over palm oil plantations if it becomes more difficult for the squatting angry farm workers to acquire weapons.