Honduras–The U.S.’s Sad Legacy
The following Guest Commentary was submitted to the Denver Post prior to the Honduran elections on November 29, 2009. It was not accepted for publication but is being made available to DJPC supporters. Honduras – The U.S.’s Sad Legacy On June 28th, Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was ousted from office in a coup. The military forcibly took Zelaya from his bed at gunpoint and exiled him to Costa Rica. Honduras’ Supreme Court ordered the military to apprehend Zelaya. The Congress followed by removing Zelaya from the presidency and naming congressional leader Roberto Micheletti as his successor until the end of Zelaya’s term in January. Micheletti and his supporters said that their role was to defend, not oppose, democratic rule. What ensued since is a blight on true democracy and, unfortunately, a blight enabled in large part by the U.S. What were President Zelaya’s transgressions to merit such treatment? Zelaya is a member of the elite but as president responded to the needs of poor Hondurans by increasing the minimum wage. Seventy percent of the population lives in poverty while 10% controls more than 40% of the wealth. In addition to addressing social and economic inequalities, Zelaya promoted Honduras’ connections with Petrocaribe, a Caribbean oil alliance with Venezuela which makes oil purchase available on preferential terms and the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas which promotes social, political, and economic integration between Latin American and Caribbean countries. Both provide alternatives to U.S. and European dominated free trade agreements. These associations confirmed for the elite that Zelaya was a pawn of President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela. The tipping point was reached in the spring when President Zelaya proposed a referendum asking if a National Constituent Assembly should be convened to review the Constitution. A favorable vote could have led to the formation of an Assembly and possibly to the reversal of inequalities guaranteed by the 1982 constitution and to an increase in the number of terms a president could serve. Little has been made of the former threat and much of the latter. Overlooked is the fact that this was a non-binding resolution—which if approved and the terms of office ultimately increased—from which Zelaya would have no personal gain. The coup and installation of Micheletti as “interim president” have resulted in political intolerance and violence toward members of the social movements including detentions, disappearances, torture and rape. Most of the independent media has been shut down or intimidated. Militarization has increased throughout the country. The U.S.’s role can only be summarized as disingenuous. Initially, President Obama condemned the coup and called for President Zelaya’s reinstatement. Secretary of State Clinton equivocated, in hindsight revealing the true position. On July 1st, the U.S. signed a resolution by the Organization of American States calling for “the immediate and unconditional return” of President Zelaya and his government. In the ensuing months, the U.S. appeared to do nothing. In early October, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO) and others visited Honduras. Subsequently, DeMint said that if the Honduran elections scheduled for November 29th went forward and were recognized, he would release a hold on the appointment of Undersecretary of State Tom Shannon as Ambassador to Brazil. DeMint’s assertion begged a conflict of interest on the part of Shannon who was sent to negotiate an accord. Shannon indicated that Zelaya’s return was “central” to U.S. concerns but not an “essential” part of an agreement. On October 30th, both parties signed the Tegucigalpa-San José Accord. Zelaya signed on the understanding that the U.S. would guarantee his reinstatement by November 5th. While State had previously presented the administration’s position as one which would find it difficult to recognize the elections under “existing conditions,” implying that if Zelaya was not reinstated, the U.S. would not recognize them, this waffling language may have been used to get Micheletti to sign the accords without specific commitment. Whatever the outcome on November 29th and beyond, the sad legacy of U.S. involvement in Latin America has once again been confirmed. It is time for this government to uphold democratic principles, stand for human rights, oppose tyranny and mean it.
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Harriet Mullaney is a member of the Denver Justice & Peace Committee’s Advocacy Committee. She is a three-time election observer in El Salvador and has traveled throughout Central America and Mexico studying human rights and economic justice issues.
the post’s loss is our gain, harriet, it is an excellent article. the post didn’t publish my “anti-coup” letter to the editor either, just “pro coup” stuff.