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Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009 | Posted by Editor

President Obama’s foreign policy on Honduras: Waging War on Democracy


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Ousted President Manuel Zelaya sneaked back into Honduras on Monday almost three months after he was toppled in a coup, and took refuge in the Brazilian embassy to avoid arrest by the de facto government.
Zelaya’s ouster on June 28 in a dispute over presidential term limits plunged Honduras into its worst political conflict in decades, and was condemned by U.S. President Barack Obama, the European Union and Latin American governments.
Zelaya had been in exile mostly in Nicaragua while a de facto government that backed the coup against him became more entrenched in office, defying international calls to allow the leftist president to return.
But his sudden appearance in Honduras on Monday increased pressure on the country’s ruler Roberto Micheletti to cede power and increased the chance of violent protests or a standoff at the embassy.
“I am the legitimate president chosen by the people and that is why I came here,” Zelaya told Reuters by telephone from inside the Brazilian embassy.
Several thousand Zelaya supporters gathered outside while a military helicopter clattered overhead and a small group of police stood some 100 yards (meters) away.
The United States called for restraint in Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and a staunch U.S. ally during Cold War conflicts in Central America.
Micheletti, a conservative, wants Zelaya arrested on charges of corruption and trying to change the constitution, but the president was defiant.
“I still haven’t known fear in my 57 years,” he said.
Soldiers toppled Zelaya and sent him into exile after he upset Congress, the military and conservative opponents, who accused him of wanting to change the constitution to allow presidents to seek reelection. Honduran business leaders also distrusted his alliance with Venezuela’s socialist president, Hugo Chavez
Zelaya was due to leave office in January after elections in November but denied he was seeking to extend his rule.
U.S. URGES RESTRAINT
Obama has cut aid to Honduras since the coup and pushed for Zelaya’s return but refused Zelaya’s demands for tougher sanctions against the coup leaders. His administration called on all sides to remain calm following Zelaya’s return.
“At this point, all I can say is reiterate our almost daily call on both sides to exercise restraint and refrain from … any activities that could provoke violence,” said State Department spokesman Ian Kelly.
Latin American leftist governments have accused the U.S. administration of not doing enough to force Zelaya’s return to power.
Micheletti, whose government is not recognized internationally, earlier on Monday vowed to have Zelaya detained.
“The moment that we know he has entered the country we are going to go ahead with his arrest. We have search and capture teams to carry out his arrest,” Micheletti told Reuters before news broke that Zelaya had taken refuge in the embassy.
His government later imposed a night-time curfew across the country “to conserve calm”.
Honduras is a major coffee producer but exports so far have not been affected by the crisis.
In New York, Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said he was hopeful Zelaya’s return could start a new stage in negotiations to end the Honduran crisis.
The head of the Organization of American States, Jose Miguel Insulza, said Honduras’ de facto rulers “should be responsible for the safety of President Zelaya and the Brazilian embassy.”
It was not clear if Brazil’s government knew of Zelaya’s plan to take refuge at the embassy before he arrived.

zelaya speech

Update 2: The interim Honduran government imposed a nationwide curfew on Sept. 21 after ousted President Manuel Zelaya returned to the country and took refuge in the Brazilian Embassy, Reuters reported, citing a spokesman for the interim government. “The government has declared the curfew for the entire country from 4 in the afternoon until 6 a.m. to conserve calm in the country,” the spokesman said. Thousands of Zelaya’s supporters surrounded the Brazilian Embassy in Tegucigalpa, with 100 police wearing riot gear deployed nearby.

Update 1: According to Reuters, Honduran President Robert Micheletti has asked the Brazilian Embassy in Honduras to hand over to authorities ousted President Manuel Zelaya, Honduran daily El Heraldo reported Sept. 21.

After three controversial months, ousted President Manuel Zelaya sneaked back into Honduras today after he was toppled in a coup, and took refuge in the Brazilian embassy to avoid arrest by the de facto government.

Zelaya’s ouster on June 28 in a dispute over presidential term limits plunged Honduras into its worst political conflict in decades, and was condemned by U.S. President Barack Obama, the European Union and Latin American governments.

Zelaya had been in exile mostly in Nicaragua while a de facto government that backed the coup against him became more entrenched in office, defying international calls to allow the leftist president to return.

But his sudden appearance in Honduras on Monday increased pressure on the country’s ruler Roberto Micheletti to cede power and increased the chance of violent protests or a standoff at the embassy.

“I am the legitimate president chosen by the people and that is why I came here,” Zelaya told Reuters by telephone from inside the Brazilian embassy.

Several thousand Zelaya supporters gathered outside while a military helicopter clattered overhead and a small group of police stood some 100 yards (meters) away.

The United States called for restraint in Honduras, one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and a staunch U.S. ally during Cold War conflicts in Central America.

Micheletti, a conservative, wants Zelaya arrested on charges of corruption and trying to change the constitution, but the president was defiant.

“I still haven’t known fear in my 57 years,” he said.

Soldiers toppled Zelaya and sent him into exile after he upset Congress, the military and conservative opponents, who accused him of wanting to change the constitution to allow presidents to seek reelection. Honduran business leaders also distrusted his alliance with Venezuela’s socialist president, Hugo Chavez.

Zelaya was due to leave office in January after elections in November but denied he was seeking to extend his rule.

It was not clear if Brazil’s government knew of Zelaya’s plan to take refuge at the embassy before he arrived.

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The Americano/Reuters

Related posts:

  1. Update: Micheletti Willing to Speak with Zelaya For the first time, Honduras’ interim president, Roberto Micheletti, has...
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  3. Most Latin American Leaders Are Wrong on Honduras Latin American leaders pressed for the return to office of...
  4. Negotiations on Honduras Continue Negotiators for rival camps in Honduras’ standoff are reporting progress...
  5. The Political Saga Involving Honduras Continues August 23, 2009 Honduran Supreme Court warned in Tegucigalpa on...

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4 Responses for “President Obama’s foreign policy on Honduras: Waging War on Democracy”

  1. Chadwick says:
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    Frank Gaffney of the Center for Security Policy nailed Obama’s foreign policy on the head when he wrote this week, “Undermine our allies. Embolden our enemies. Diminish our country. Those nine words define the Obama Doctrine with respect to American security policy.”

    Reply
  2. Roamin53 says:
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    How can they answer he has the right to return unless its to answer the charges against him. To return and foment disorder and riots is criminal in any country. And for the government of Brazil to be a part is a violation of most diplomatic protocals. If it wasn’t for the fact that Brazil is a major power and so many of the other major powers are ganging up on the Honduran government, I would suggest it would be time to ask Brazil to close its embassy and leave. Obviously with the extreme left in charge of our government, Honduras has few options. It is perhaps time for countries like Australia and Taiwan etc to assist the Hondurans. We aren’t just abandoning them but are participating in their enslavement.

    Reply
  3. Real American says:
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    The Reuters story doesn’t have its facts straight. There was no “coup.” Zelaya was lawfully removed from office. Why Reuters automatically takes the ousted Marxist’s view of the story is incomprehensible.

    What is even more incomprehensible is that the Obama administration is doing the same thing. Why does Obama reflexively take the side of Communist dictators like Chavez and wannabe dictators like Zelaya? Perhaps it’s because Obama wants to be a dictator himself. The American people should be very skeptical of whether Obama will peacefully leave office when his time as president is finished, especially, if he is a one-termer. Of course, liberals will probably see that election as a “coup” as well.

    Reply
  4. Indoctrination, Taxation, Representation And Annihilation : 101 Dead Armadillos says:
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    [...] I think that’s better than President Obama and his administration’s attempts to stifle democracy in Honduras. I’m not going to go into it all in this post, but a simple search on Google will give you [...]

    Reply

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