HONDURAN COUP: POLITICAL WRAP-UP 07/27/09

id: 218358

date: 7/28/2009 0:41

refid: 09TEGUCIGALPA662

origin: Embassy Tegucigalpa

classification: CONFIDENTIAL

destination: 09TEGUCIGALPA658

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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEGUCIGALPA 000662

 

SIPDIS

 

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/27/2019

TAGS: PGOV, PINR, KDEM, TFH01, HO

SUBJECT: TFH01: HONDURAN COUP: POLITICAL WRAP-UP 07/27/09

 

REF: TEGUCIGALPA 658 AND PREVIOUS

 

1. (U) Summary: This is another in a series of daily

round-ups of political news in the aftermath of the June 28

forcible removal and exile of President Manuel Zelaya from

Honduras. End Summary.

 

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Zelaya Spends the Weekend at the Border

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2. (U) Zelaya spent July 24 - 27 on the border of Nicaragua

and Honduras, where he called upon his supporters to

"maintain the resistance." Arias stated publicly that

Zelaya's presence at the border was not helping Honduras

reach a peaceful resolution.

 

3. (U) The border crossing at Las Manos across from where

Zelaya has been encamped July 23-27 is the key commercial

entry point along the route that connects Panama, Costa Rica

and Nicaragua to the northern ports of Honduras. An

estimated 500 trucks headed for Puerto Cortes in Honduras

were trapped at the Nicaraguan border over the weekend.

Military presence and curfews along the Honduras/Nicaragua

border have hurt commercial activity. De facto Defense

Minister Adolfo Leonel Sevilla said that they are working

with the Department of El Paraiso and the border towns to

restore normalcy to the commercial and daily life of the

department.

 

4. (U) The Armed Forces (HOAF) leadership publicly stated

over the weekend that they support the San Jose agreement.

Chief of Defense MG Romeo Vasquez Velasquez affirmed that the

HOAF is under instructions not to fire upon the people and

that the only weapons they carry are clubs, shields, and

teargas.

 

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Reactions to CODEL

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5. (U) Pro-Micheletti "El Heraldo" reported July 26 that

Congressman Connie Mack had clearly stated before arriving in

Honduras that Zelaya's removal was not a coup and that the

judicial bodies and the National Congress abided by the

constitution when they acted. Local press reported that de

facto Minister of Foreign Affairs Carlos Lopez Contreras said

that the U.S. Congressmen who visited Honduras July 25 - 26

saw the reality of the situation in Honduras and that the

U.S. media has not accurately portrayed the political

situation. He stated that Zelaya has to choose between

staying at the border and re-entering into dialogue.

 

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Zelaya Supporters Vow to Continue Strikes

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6. (U) The labor and teachers unions who support Zelaya

announced July 27 that they will continue with roadblocks and

strikes by all public employees. The Federation of Honduran

Teachers (FOMH) announced that July 27 they will begin a

general and indefinite strike. This time the strike will

reportedly include both public and private schools.

 

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Press Highlights Corruption in Zelaya Administration

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7. (U) "El Heraldo" reported that, according to the Public

Ministry, USD 6.7 million of public money was spent to fund

the fourth urn and that an addition USD 2.6 million was

illegally taken from the Central Bank. (Note: It is

difficult to gauge the veracity of these allegations. There

are indications that Zelaya was using public funds for his

Fourth Urn campaign. However, in the wake of the coup, the

Micheletti regime has aggressively sought to prosecute Zelaya

officials and seems bent on applying "the law for my

enemies," which undermines the credibility of these legal

procedures. End Note.)

 

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TSE Advocates for November 29 Elections

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8. (U) Local press reports that the Supreme Electoral

Tribunal (TSE) will propose that elections take place

 

TEGUCIGALP 00000662 002 OF 002

 

 

November 29 as planned, saying it would be logistically

difficult to change the election date (Comment: Post's own

assessment is that moving the date earlier would indeed

require a significant increase in funding to the TSE, but is

feasible. End Comment.). The TSE espects to have the

economic support of the international community for elections

and believes that the legitimate and transparent electoral

process will normalize the political situation in Honduras.

 

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Ambassador Holds Off-the-record Meeting with Honduran Press

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9. (C) Ambasssador Llorens held an off-the-record meeting

with members of the Honduran press to reiterate the U.S.

position and reinforce the idea that despite our

non-recognition of the de facto government, the Ambassador

has remained in country with a low profile to continue

working towards reestablishing the democratic and

constitutional order and in support of President Arias'

mediation. The Ambassador took questions on our policy

regarding foreign assistance to Honduras, possible revocation

of de facto regime member's visas and our USG position on

allegations of human rights violations. In attendance were

reporters from La Tribuna, Tiempo, El Heraldo, El Patriota

and Hondudiario for print; Radio HRN, Radio America, Radio

Globo and Radio Cadena Voces for radio; and channels 11, 30,

42, 36, 13 and Telenoticias for local television.

LLORENS

 

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