Honduras went to the streets to protest the coup in the dark anniversary

I remembered three days ago the sad anniversary of the coup in Honduras. Today I come to know that in the Central American republic hundreds of thousands went (again) to the streets to protest against it.



It did not happen only in Tegucigalpa but across the country.

Carlos Reyes, speaker of the National Front of People's Resistance (FNRP) the coup has been tried to be made invisible, both inside and outside the country. Not just the coup but the crimes of the military and the resistance of the people.

Today we are certain that we have been doing the right thing, said Reyes. We have to install a Constituent National Assembly. This was the pretext on which the military-oligarchic alliance removed President Zelaya.

Source: La Haine[es] (includes photos and videos). More photos here.

Honduras: dark anniversary

Today one year ago, the Honduran oligarchy and military took over the country deporting the elected and popular President Manuel 'Mel' Zelaya and establishing a more than dubious regime of terror.

Honduras 1 year later. In memory of Democracy
(by Allan McDonald)

Manola Romalo interviews President Zelaya at Rebelión (Spanish language, there's also a German version) with some interesting comments by the ousted leader that I translate here:

They have now more problems than before: they made not just the Honduran People but also the peoples of America aware of the threat that represents economical greed for democracies, with this aggression they managed to speed up the process of transformation, generating new opposition forces.

The influence of large multinationals reaches to the foreign policy of the USA, evidence is in the fact that, in the period of President Obama's administration, just as in the past, it fell in the terrible error of supporting state terrorism, with the return to military coups, well known practice of the far right, obstinate in sowing barbarism.

(...)

In three years we achieved growth indexes of 6.5 and 6.7, the best ones in Honduran history, and also the reduction of poverty in more than 10% for the first time in thirty years.

Inversely, since the coup to date, the country has entered economic recession, poverty has increased and also the number of poor, same as the meaningful reduction of private and state investment. The damage that the coup has caused to the process of economical development is going to take at least ten years to recover.

(...)

My return is linked to the return of the state of law to Honduras. Even [acting] President Lobo declares to feel threatened himself and right away he says he guarantees my safety.

Evidently they are using Honduras as lab rat, as an experimental laboratory of violence, returning the military castes to repress the People and induce wreckage to keep control on society.

(...) they refounded a regime of terror and persecution and the USA lost a great deal of its prestige in Latin America.

Honduras: the struggle continues

Thousands of people gathered yesterday at Tegucigalpa demonstrating in solidarity with the peasants of Aguán valley, demanding the retreat of the Army from this area, the liberation of the arrested citizens and the implementation of a radical agrarian reform in the country.



In Honduras 300,000 families have no land whatsoever while other 200,000 have just small plots of 1-3.5 hectares (an hectare is 2.47 acres or 100 x 100 meters). This is one of the main causes of poverty in the largely rural country of 7-8 million people (est.) Almost half of the population lives on less than half a dollar per day and 25% on less than 25 cents. Meanwhile the wealthiest 20% has almost 30 times the wealth of the poorest 20%, a very sharp divide.

After the usual IMF-imposed criminal reforms and the also usual dumping of subsidized crops by affluent countries like the USA, Honduras has gone from being the greatest grain producer of grain of Central America to not being able to feed its own people, being forced to import 1 million tons of maize, 20 thousand tons of legumes and 50 thousand tons of rice. Instead Honduras now is producing mostly oil palm for export, what does not benefit the people, suffering from genuine food instability, but only the landowner minority, which has appropriated the vast majority of the land, and multinational corporations.

Source: UITA (found via La Haine). For more photos see here.

Troops seize community in Honduras: fear of massacre

More than three thousand troops and policemen have taken over the peasant communities of Bajo Aguan in the department of Colón.

Civic organizations have issued an alert that a massacre may be imminent. In spite of the attempts by the organized peasants to negotiate with the fascist government, this has only replied with repression and murders.

The peasant communities achieved agreements (agrarian reform) with the democratic government of ousted president Manuel Zelaya that allowed them to labor the lands without paying feudal tributes to the landowners. The current fascist government, supported by the USA, is trying to revert this situation returning the lands to rich and seem to have no problem in going into a murder rampage if they deem necessary.

Source: Tercera Información[es].

Honduras: the Colombian way.

Five unionized teachers have been murdered in the last months in Honduras in what seems to be the Colombianization of the fascist regime in Honduras, sanctioned by the USA.

The last victim of the death squads has been José Manuel Flores Arguijo, who was shot on the back before his pupils while he taught at the High School San José del Pedregal, in Tegucigalpa.

(FNRP)He, like the rest of victims, was active member of the civic National People's Resistance Front and the teachers' union COPEMH.

A demonstration has been called in Tegucigalpa today to protest against the accoplice passivity of the undemocratic government.

Source: La Haine.

Massive abstention in Honduras illegitimate poll

The legitimate Honduran President, Manuel Zelaya, declared that the pseudo-elections, that the dictatorship has organized to perpetuate itself under a clout of legitimacy, managed to attract only 35% of voters.

The coupists are claiming that abstention was of only 30%, when actually reached 65%. We have 1400 of the total 5000 polling stations sampled and we also have the acts and voting numbers. That means: we have enough data to demonstrate that the dictatorship is falsifying the truth - declared the ousted President to the Bolivarian News Agency (ABN).

The USA and Panama have already declared they would acknowldege the result of these illegitimate elections. Colombia and Peru might do as well. Most other countries of America will surely keep their support for Zelaya, even if only nominally.

It is interesting to read imperialist media like the pseudo-prestigious BBC because they only mention the dictatorship's claims. It says a lot about the real "objectivity" of such media.

So we can say now that Honduras had fraud elections and that the dictators lost... though they claim otherwise.

With less than 35% of popular support (there were huge pressures on citizens to vote) the oligarchic tyranny has a problem to keep itself afloat. The conflict is likely to continue for some time until the coupists are ousted and a constitutional assembly can be elected with guarantees.

There were no neutral international observers in this election. Only far right US groups sent some but they are anything but neutral.

Amnesty International already denounced the "threatening atmosphere" in which this poll took place. There are reports that in some places armed troops in plain clothes rounded up the citizens forcing them to vote. The state of emergency in which the poll took place did not impede that demonstrators took to the streets again in San Pedro Sula, however the police repressed them violently. The repression against those who support the legitimate president is spreading up to the point that this jouney dressed of democracy has been dubbed the second coup in Honduras.

We'll see what happens but, unless a patriotic commander makes a counter-coup, the totalitarian situation can extend in time, bringing destabilization and potential increased conflict to all the region. But one thing I am sure about: the Honduran people will not submit.

Update: the National Front of Resistence Against the Coup in Honduras declared only 21.5% went to vote.
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Liberal International attempts coup in Nicaragua

The President of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega, has denounced that European MP and President of the Liberal International, Hans van Baalen, attempted to seduce Nicaraguan military officers into organizing a coup in the Central American country. However, according to Ortega, the reaction of the officers was patriotic and instead of joining such an anti-democratic plot, they reported the conspiration attempt.

Van Baalen, member of the Dutch VVD party, also managed to appoint recently Honduran coup leader, Roberto Micheletti, as one of the many vice-presidents of this global political bloc that sponsors Capitalism and supposedly also democracy and human rights, and that is mostly made up of small European parties.

Source: Tercera Información (found via Rebelión).

So, essentially, this "democrat" is trying to impose military regimes in Central America, surely acting as agent for other powers like the USA, and smash genuine democracy in the continent.

These maneouvers must be understood in the context of increased US-NATO intervention in Latin America, of which the occupation of Haití, the coup in Honduras and what has been called "the annexation of Colombia to the USA" (the new military treaty that gives full operative freedom to US troops and absolute impunity) are just the tip of the iceberg. There is increased tension in the continent and not just anymore between the USA and Venezuela: the interventionist attitude of the USA is also rising tensions with Brazil, which is naturally trying to counter the North American imperialism in its area of interests (for example supporting the legitimate Honduran President Manuel Zelaya).

Watch Latin America closely because I would not be surprised if the rumors of war could become true. However the Latin American peoples are pretty much tired of being treated as a colony and I doubt that these imperialist interventions will anymore have much effectivity.

And, on a side note, the brutal drought in Mexico can bring this crucial country one step further towards a revolution (it has been leaning to it for 15 years now) and shift the power balance in America still more against US hegemony.
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Interview with Manuel Zelaya

A whole month has passed since the return of the constitutional President Manuel Zelaya to Honduras, where he is still refuged in the Brazilian embassy. With this occasion, there is an interview with Mel, as the president is popularly known in his country, in Basque newspaper Gara that I am translating here:

Gara: After a month since your return to Honduras, which is the current situation?

Zelaya: Honduras is living an unprecedented struggle. It is the first time that in our country an action of this nature is being carried on to revert a coup d'êtat. Today we are fighting to ammend, to rectify, the error they comitted. All this constitutes a challenge to us and the International Community.

G: In what stage are the negotiations now?

Z: They are paralyzed, suspended. They have been obstructed by Micheletti and the de facto regime. With this boycott and this obstruction to dialog, they have become a totalitarian regime that is challenging all Humankind. They are a clone of the regime that Idi Amin established in Uganda or that of Mobutu in Congo. That same thing is what they are applying in Central America these days.

G: Do you believe that the fact of blocking the negotiations could be a strategy by the coupists to gain time until elections?

Z: What they are doing is insulting the intelligence of the whole World, because it is not possible that all countries of planet Earth are wrong and they are right.

G: If the coupists do not present any other proposal, what decision will you make?

Z: We will continue in our determination of fighting for justice. In this we are being supported by all societies, all the governments and the Honduran people. We know that reason and truth accompany us, so we are spiritually calm.

G: Have you thought of any alternative to revert this situation?

Z: The struggle that is happening in Honduras has several fronts: national, international, political, social, economical, technological, juridical... At this moment we are working in all those fronts to try to produce an exit to this situation.

G: Do you think that the International Community has done all they could?

Z: I think that they have done up to where they could. Now there is still another stretch to be transited and I do hope that they will keep the support for the government of this country.

G: The USA condemned the coup but later qualified of "irresponsible" your decision of returning to Honduras and did not even raise this issue in the 64th Assembly of the United Nations. What do you think of their position?

Z: Those are isolated incidents of some officers that do not correlate with their official position of reverting the coup. I am in agreement with the stand of President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton.

G: Do you believe that the coup in Honduras can set up a precedent and favor that a similar situation could happen elsewhere in Latin America?

Z: Yes. Just with the coup having resisted more than 100 days, it is already causing serious weaknesses in the American democratic system. This happens precisely because of the impotence of international organizations like the OAS or United Nations when faced with an act of force that violates the state of rights, the Democratic Charter of the OAS, the United Nations' Charter and the International Declaration of Human Rights.

Faced with the impotence of international organizations, this coup is actually weakening the image of Latin American democracy. If this coup would be legitimized by means of the electoral fraud that is being prepared, with repression and media suppression, we would be at the doors of the death of Latin American democracy.

G: One of your delegates at the negotiation table, Víctor Meza, alerted that the failure of negotiations could lead to a "social conflict". Do you share this idea?

Z: If you review the social and economical indicators, and those related to social conflict, you will notice that there is already a social conflict. There is in fact a major and widespread social conflict because of the coup. All that is being suffered already by Honduras and all Central America.

G: Do you believe that the level of confrontation will grow if no agreement is reached?

Z: If there is no solution to the problem, it is clear that the level of unhappiness among the people towards the military regime that now appoints the presidents will grow more and more.

G: How do you evaluate the struggle kept by the people in these 116 of resistence?

Z: Extraordinary. It has always been a utopy for Hondurans that the people gets organized, that the people manifests itself and acquires a consciousness of its rights. Now we are living all that in our flesh.

G: Nicaraguan President, Daniel Ortega, said that the Honduran people is acquiring weapons for their struggle. What do you tell him?

Z: The resistence of the Honduran people is a peaceful resistence, and that has been demonstrated in all these more than one hundred days: there is not a single casualty among the military nor the policemen, no resister has been captured having weapons. It rather happens the opposite: more than 89 soldiers with plain clothes have been captured among civilians making violent actions.

The Honduran resistence is peaceful. If there is any expression out of these parameters, it will be particular individuals or groups but they are outside of the terms in which we are defining the struggle, peacefully and democratically through active nonviolence: public demonstrations, strikes... but not armed movements. We oppose radically armed movements and that is why we have not asked for blue helmets nor any military intervention in Honduras.

Our triumph will be to defeat the troops that disrupted the democratic process in a pacific manner. If we could not achieve this, we would keep struggling until achieving some day our main victory: to know that ethical and peaceful struggles can defeat armies and violence.

G: How many people has died at the hands of the police and the army?

Z: More than 100 people have been murdered in these days. We have the names and we have the evidence. But, besides, there are more than 3000 arrested and more than 600 have required hospitalization: people who have been beaten, and even tortured and raped.

G: This last Sunday the High Commissioner of the UN arrived to Tegucigalpa to investigate the human rights' violations since the coup. Have they already contacted you?

Z: We have kept occasional contact but we have not met yet. But of course that we will meet.

G: Do you expect that the investigation ends up with a strong enough report?

Z: Yes. All their declarations have been coherent with reality and have been strong in the condemnation of the regime. Because here they went from a coup to a dictatorial regime that decrees measures against the human rights of the people, that suppresses liberties and media.

G: After a month living in the Brazilian embassy, how do you feel?

Z: In spite of all the tension that we are living through, I have a strong spirit and keep my consciousness standing. I am peaceful, spiritually optimistic and a democrat. But also I have much faith in my formation and that is why I am in politics: because I believe that it is a path that creates strength and hope. We have to stand up through all that path until the societies from the various parts of the World make their rights to be respected.
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Hoduras: the usurper decrees the state of siege

Not sure if such term exists in English but it does in Spanish: it is the most extreme case of emergency and, as it name suggests, it implies that the town (or in this case the whole country) is under siege and hence all normal liberties are severely limited.

The decree implies that for the next 45 days, freedom of speech and movement will be extremely restricted, public gatherings are totally forbidden as well. The decree also commands the forcible evacuation of any public building occupied by demonstrators, closure of media "that offend human dignity, public servants or breach the law" and the arbitrary arrest of "suspect" people.

The decree was approved on September 22nd, just after the legitimate President Manuel Zelaya returned from his forced exile, but has only been published today and publicly broadcast in all TV and radio networks.

Zelaya in turn has protested the measure as "a barbarity" and has appealed to Parliament to suspend it and reach out to his offer of dialogue. He has also made an appeal for a pacific demonstration lasting for the next 24 hours.

Source: Gara.
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Honduras: usurper desperate, attacks the people

The final and much awaited return of President Zelaya to Tegucigalpa has indeed caused an increase of the popular revolt, with thousands defying the curfew to support their legitimate President at the Brazilian embassy. The usurpers can probably feel by now the end of their illegal and widely delegitimized (inside and outside) regime coming to an end and are going even more violent.

The armed forces bloodily quelled the popular demonstration at the Brailian embassy, with at least 20 injured and strong rumors of several killed and have also gone wild in the poor neighbourhoods of the capital, throwing tear gas inside homes with newborns inside and who knows what (the information is not yet too precise).

According to journalist Tim Russo, this doesn't look good; repression will only make people even angrier with Micheletti and the National Police.

The coupist regime has cut water and electricity to the Brazilian embassy, where at least some 20 supporters of Zelaya have entered, and seems to be preparing a long siege. What is not clear is if they will themselves withstand the siege that the Honduran people has estabilished on them.

I foresee a coup against the coup very soon.

Sources: Gara, BBC.
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Zelaya returns to Tegucigalpa.

The legitimate President of Honduras, Manuel 'Mel' Zelaya, has finally managed to return to the country's capital, Tegucigalpa, and is refuged in the Brazilian embassy.

This new step promises to heat up the protests in the Central American country, where the situation has been very tense, with continuous clashes between the people and the coupist authorities in what some have described as a revolutionary situation.

The news are still confuse but it seems that masses are gathering around the Brazilian embassy to welcome and support the President. I can only imagine that soon the coupists will have to flee the country or at least negotiate a return to legality, but guess that violence can ensue and the outcome is not fully clear yet.

Source: BBC, Rebelión.
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Honduras coup turning into revolution

Honduran President, Manuel "Mel" Zelaya returned to Honduras via Nicaragua yesterday where he was welcomed by thousands of Hondurean citizens but also by a very strong military display, that attacked the people and eventually caused Zelaya's return to Nicaragua, as he declared he did not want to be "cause of violence".

The situation is still confuse and it is possible that the army has murdered citizens again, as the troops used live fire, injuring several.

Class war takes over Honduras

Meanwhile the situation in Honduras is turning into a popular revolution, as reported by local journalist Oswaldo Martínez to Gara:

After 24 days resistence is permanent. This is something unpredent in the history of the country. I am a block away from a barricade placed at the very center of San Pedro Sula, the industrial capital of the country. Resistence is very strong and organized. We have reports that the people has breached several military checkpoints. Road blockades begin at 9:00 and do not end till the night. There is a determined class war. This can't be stopped.

Yesterday was the second day of general strike in support for the President, that has been ranked as "a success" by the president of the Unitary Workers' Confederation of Honduras, Juan Barahona. The main harbours were completely blocked and the roads leading to Tegucigalpa were blocked for hours as well. Several emblematic buildings have been occupied by demonstrators as well.

For Oswaldo Martínez, the coupists never expected such a reaction from the people. They got their calcualtions totally wrong.

Clinton barks

I just watched at BBC International to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton barking at Zelaya's attempt to restore legality and democracy in the Central American country. She said that he was being "reckless" and that he should abide by the already defunct plan of mediation by Costarrican President Oscar Arias, a loyal ally of the United States, according to Fidel Castro, who believes this mediation is nothing but a delaying tactic.

Obviously the USA is stepping out of their calculated ambiguity and becoming more expressly supportive of the coupists.

Sources: Gara, BBC, Al Jazeera and Voltairenet (for Castro's interesting opinions on recent Central American history).


Update Jul 26: Pedro Magdiel Martínez, 23, supporter of the President, was found death with signs of torture near the border with Nicragua. According to neighbours he was arrested the day before accused of "smoking marihuana". Police denies that the arrested and the victim are the same person.

Zelaya remains at the border looking for another opportunity to cross into Honduras but it's not clear if tiredness may catch the supporters. Some apparently regretted bitterly that he did not continue into the heart of the country when he had the chance

Source: Gara.
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Honduras: Zelaya could not land, coup turns bloody

A huge multitude was waiting for the return of Honduran President Gabriel Zelaya at the international airport of Tegucigalpa. The military nevertheless made impossible for his plane to land in spite that he ordered them the opposite as supreme commander of the armed forces.

A large multitude awaited in vain to their President

While the military-backed de facto government was still yesterday claiming that not a single person has died in the coup, it seems it is not actually the case and informations are already arriving of deaths at the hands of the soldiers and disappeared people.

Al Jazeera reports of a 10 years old boy killed by the troops in the protests that surrounded the failed attempt of Zelaya to return. Gara mentions, quoting human rights groups, hundreds arrested, scores missing and at least five deaths.

The military is using violence against the protesters

Zelaya, who flew from Washington D.C., seems to have finally landed in neighbouring Nicaragua and has vowed to try to return again on Monday or Thursday.

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Zelaya will return with continental support

The Organization of American States (OEA-OAS) has suspended Honduras' membership.

Ousted President Manuel "Mel" Zelaya has already announced his return for tomorrow Sunday. The presidents of Argentina, Cristina Fernández, and Ecuador, Rafael Correa, will accompany him. He has called to the Honduran people to support his return in a nonviolent manner.

The military-backed government and the Catholic primate have threatened with a bloodshed.

Source and more info at Al Jazeera.
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