[NOTE: comments on this post from October asked us to try to find a way to keep it at the top of the blog. We found a somewhat odd way to achieve that goal. Let us know if this is too weird-- welcome to the future-- RAJ]
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Protesters: State Department Not Interested
Assistant Secretary Phillip Crowley made it abundantly clear in today's daily press briefing that no one in the State Department wants to hear from, or cares about, the protesters out front today protesting US policy on Honduras. Only the press took them seriously. Here's part of a transcript of the exchange between reporters and Crowley from today's daily press briefing found here:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/131774.htm
QUESTION: And I’m sure you’re aware of the protesters out front who are saying that this is a sham election.
MR. CROWLEY: Yes, I heard them myself. (Laughs.)
QUESTION: Has anyone from the State Department met with the representatives of the protestors or taken a letter from them, or what is your --
MR. CROWLEY: Not to my knowledge.
QUESTION: Or any response to the protestors saying it’s a sham election?
MR. CROWLEY: Well, first of all, on that point, we have been earnestly pushing to get a resolution of this issue so that you could have, in fact, a free and fair election on November 29 that both the United States, Honduras, the region could stand behind, support, and lead to the installation of a new government that the people of Honduras can support and can heal this divide that has --
QUESTION: Why is --
MR. CROWLEY: -- that Honduras has suffered through over several months. We understand that this is a very emotional issue and – which is why we’ve been so integrally involved; not only Craig Kelly, but Tom Shannon, others, our support for the OAS process going back a number of months, because we recognize that the only path out of this is through an electoral process that – where we’re – the people of Honduras get to speak and you have a new government that can go about the work of serving the needs of its people.
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/131774.htm
QUESTION: And I’m sure you’re aware of the protesters out front who are saying that this is a sham election.
MR. CROWLEY: Yes, I heard them myself. (Laughs.)
QUESTION: Has anyone from the State Department met with the representatives of the protestors or taken a letter from them, or what is your --
MR. CROWLEY: Not to my knowledge.
QUESTION: Or any response to the protestors saying it’s a sham election?
MR. CROWLEY: Well, first of all, on that point, we have been earnestly pushing to get a resolution of this issue so that you could have, in fact, a free and fair election on November 29 that both the United States, Honduras, the region could stand behind, support, and lead to the installation of a new government that the people of Honduras can support and can heal this divide that has --
QUESTION: Why is --
MR. CROWLEY: -- that Honduras has suffered through over several months. We understand that this is a very emotional issue and – which is why we’ve been so integrally involved; not only Craig Kelly, but Tom Shannon, others, our support for the OAS process going back a number of months, because we recognize that the only path out of this is through an electoral process that – where we’re – the people of Honduras get to speak and you have a new government that can go about the work of serving the needs of its people.
US Pushes OAS to Recognize Elections
The Bush holdover and, in my opinion, idiot, Lew Anselem, today urged the OAS to recognize the results of the November 29 elections. "The Hondurans have a right to choose their leaders with the guarantees of the Election Tribunal for "just, free, and transparent" elections and with observers from the OAS," Anselem is quoted as saying in a mexican press report.
He then went on to blame both sides in Honduras and urge them to avoid unilateral naming of goverments, slowdowns in the process, or calls to violence. Odd, since no one is calling for violence, that this continues to be a US talking point.
On the elections he said we have the responsibility to avoid the sabotage or veto of the Honduran elections before they can occur; that we should not yield to the hostile conduct of the few politicians that seek to undermine the accord. Seeking to undermine the accord?! What planet does he live on? Carlos H. Reyes and the Frente have waited patiently, peacefully protesting, and urging both sides to comply with the Tegucigalapa-San Jose Accord. They've never tried to undermine it. Its the de facto government that delays and undermines the accord, and urges us to recognize the elections. Clearly Anselem, and apparently the State Department, lives in backwards world.
The United States position was immediately rejected by the representatives of Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina, Guatemala, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and others who indicated they would not recognize the results of the elections. Brazil called the events in Honduras "a badly written soap opera"; the Mexican and Dominican delegations called for compliance by both sides with the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord.
The United States is on a collision course with the rest of the governments of this hemisphere with regards to the recognition of the election results in November. It sure looks like it only takes $600,000 to buy the US foreign policy in Hillary Clinton's State Department.
He then went on to blame both sides in Honduras and urge them to avoid unilateral naming of goverments, slowdowns in the process, or calls to violence. Odd, since no one is calling for violence, that this continues to be a US talking point.
On the elections he said we have the responsibility to avoid the sabotage or veto of the Honduran elections before they can occur; that we should not yield to the hostile conduct of the few politicians that seek to undermine the accord. Seeking to undermine the accord?! What planet does he live on? Carlos H. Reyes and the Frente have waited patiently, peacefully protesting, and urging both sides to comply with the Tegucigalapa-San Jose Accord. They've never tried to undermine it. Its the de facto government that delays and undermines the accord, and urges us to recognize the elections. Clearly Anselem, and apparently the State Department, lives in backwards world.
The United States position was immediately rejected by the representatives of Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina, Guatemala, Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and others who indicated they would not recognize the results of the elections. Brazil called the events in Honduras "a badly written soap opera"; the Mexican and Dominican delegations called for compliance by both sides with the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord.
The United States is on a collision course with the rest of the governments of this hemisphere with regards to the recognition of the election results in November. It sure looks like it only takes $600,000 to buy the US foreign policy in Hillary Clinton's State Department.
"Craig Kelly Will Resolve All"
The US State Department has sent Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemispheric Affairs, Craig Kelly, "who will settle the problems that have presented themselves in the conversations which seek to bring peace to the country," informs René Zepeda, press spokesperson for the de facto government. He will be in the country two days (today and Wednesday) to talk with Zelaya and Micheletti. Nothing about the visit on the State Department website so far.
Public Prosecutor Threatens Congress
Luis Rubi, public prosecutor for the de facto government of Honduras, warned Congress today that they might face legal responsibilities if they vote to restore Manuel Zelaya to his Presidency. "Our legal opinion will go beyond pronouncing, if its necessary, to see if taking determined actions puts the Congress people in legal jeopardy," Rubi said.
OAS: No Election Observers
While the Honduran press is full of Micheletti's calls for Zelaya to return to the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord that Micheletti willfully burlesqued, the Secretary General of the OAS, José Miguel Insulza, sees little or no hope that there will be a return to dialog, and has said the OAS will not send election observers unless there is a radical change in the situation.
"It is difficult for the Congress to rule on the restitution of Zelaya...any solution will have to come from decisions of the Honduran nation and the Congress to rule on the issue of the restitution of Zelaya."
While Lanny Davis fiddles for his fascist masters in a Wall Street Journal editorial, Miguel Insulza correctly notes that the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord was broken when Micheletti tried to form a government of national unity without the participation of Zelaya. This past Sunday, after Zelaya declared the accord dead, Micheletti offered to let Zelaya participate in the unity government, but remained adamant that he, Micheletti, would lead it.
Micheletti's response was to issue an 8 point communique Sunday that demanded that the international community send election observers (they aren't going to), remove all sanctions and restore foreign aid (which will continue frozen until there is full compliance with the accord) and stop interfering in the internal affairs of Honduras.
Other than the recognition which Thomas Shannon has guaranteed the de facto government, no government in the Hemisphere is likely to recognize the results of the November 29 elections if held under the current conditions. Honduras will remain diplomatically, and economically isolated.
El Heraldo, in its Minute by Minute column is busy trumpeting all the individual observers from other countries that will come and observe the election. The Election Tribunal has issued a statement that they had been expecting 3000 international observers, but now they expect only 300-400. This they are making into a virtue because that's all the observers they have the budget to support, which is because the international teams have pulled not only their observers, but their funding as well. Most of these observers will be Central American businessmen.
"It is difficult for the Congress to rule on the restitution of Zelaya...any solution will have to come from decisions of the Honduran nation and the Congress to rule on the issue of the restitution of Zelaya."
While Lanny Davis fiddles for his fascist masters in a Wall Street Journal editorial, Miguel Insulza correctly notes that the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord was broken when Micheletti tried to form a government of national unity without the participation of Zelaya. This past Sunday, after Zelaya declared the accord dead, Micheletti offered to let Zelaya participate in the unity government, but remained adamant that he, Micheletti, would lead it.
Micheletti's response was to issue an 8 point communique Sunday that demanded that the international community send election observers (they aren't going to), remove all sanctions and restore foreign aid (which will continue frozen until there is full compliance with the accord) and stop interfering in the internal affairs of Honduras.
Other than the recognition which Thomas Shannon has guaranteed the de facto government, no government in the Hemisphere is likely to recognize the results of the November 29 elections if held under the current conditions. Honduras will remain diplomatically, and economically isolated.
El Heraldo, in its Minute by Minute column is busy trumpeting all the individual observers from other countries that will come and observe the election. The Election Tribunal has issued a statement that they had been expecting 3000 international observers, but now they expect only 300-400. This they are making into a virtue because that's all the observers they have the budget to support, which is because the international teams have pulled not only their observers, but their funding as well. Most of these observers will be Central American businessmen.
Honduras needs a Constitutional Assembly: Edmundo Orellana
On September 26, the normally pro-coup newspaper La Tribuna of Honduras published a profile of Edmundo Orellana, who readers of this blog know had resigned his post as Secretary of Defense in the Zelaya cabinet shortly before the coup, then, from his restored position as a member of Congress, immediately denounced the coup and has since been the author of extremely important legal commentary on the claims of the de facto regime.
In the interview that forms the bulk of the published profile, which is far too long to translate and present here in full, Orellana argues that the situation in Honduras dramatically illustrates the need for constitutional reform, and reiterates his previously expressed view that only a Constitutional Assembly can address the damage done by the coup. In fact, in the interview he notes that
After some fascinating exchanges about his experience the week before the coup, and a clear rejection of the claims of the flawed report of the Law Library of the Library of Congress, the interviewer turns to the question, what legal outcome is there to the crisis?
In the interview that forms the bulk of the published profile, which is far too long to translate and present here in full, Orellana argues that the situation in Honduras dramatically illustrates the need for constitutional reform, and reiterates his previously expressed view that only a Constitutional Assembly can address the damage done by the coup. In fact, in the interview he notes that
My speech in the electoral campaign [for Congress] always was that we needed a Constituyente to change the Constitution, because now it doesn't respond to the political and economic reality that the country is experiencing. My thesis is that in a new millennium with a Constitution that was badly copied from that of 1957 and that of 1965, it doesn't answer to the questions that the globalized world poses. Thus it is necessary to revise the Constitution, I have always maintained this as candidate for deputy and columnist of La Tribuna.He was then asked why it should be changed-- beyond his basic statement that the Constitution, based on those of earlier decades, simply doesn't work in the 21st century. His reply-- as a distinguished law scholar and member of multiple Honduran administrations, one we should give special weight-- is that the Constitution makes it impossible to respond to unforeseen circumstances of the future:
It is the Constitution that has bound the country with the set-in-stone articles. It makes the entire Constitution petrified: you cannot change the system of politics and government. Not even to accommodate what is the actual territory of Honduras, which was changed by Hurricane Mitch, when it diverted the course of the river that is the dividing line with Nicaragua. Our territory is in the hands of other countries and we have not fought it because of the Constitution.When asked about specific reforms, Orellana did begin with the office of the presidency-- but not with term limits:
There is an article that is the most reformed [in the Constitution]: it refers to who cannot be candidates for the Presidency. From there have been removed designates, they inserted the vice presidents, that the president of Congress and of the Supreme Court cannot be candidates. They modified it to be able to insert the Attorney General, the adjutant Attorney General to the General Commission on Human Rights, the Attorney of the Environment and all the new organizations after 1982...The interviewer follows up the implication: the coup of June 28 violated Article 374?
Today they call for the necessity that the conduct of a president is reviewed, but according to the set-in-stone article 374, it is established that one of the set-in-stone matters is the presidential term, so that you should not reduce the presidential term.
Exactly. If you reduce it it is admitting that you have violated a set-in-stone article, then it is equitable that we revise our Constitution and we can adjust it to our reality.Orellana is here arguing that while he doesn't want to encourage monopolization of the presidential office, he thinks there should be some mechanism for a former president to return to campaign for the office again. He is illustrating why there needs to be a debate about the constitution and the form of government: debate about proposals like his would help define a form of democratic government that might work better for Honduras.
I am not in agreement with re-election, because in this country the people get excited in power and could use it to assure themselves triumph in the re-election.
Perhaps there should pass four terms until they can launch themselves again, if they are still alive and not repeat the history of Somoza who put in puppets.
After some fascinating exchanges about his experience the week before the coup, and a clear rejection of the claims of the flawed report of the Law Library of the Library of Congress, the interviewer turns to the question, what legal outcome is there to the crisis?
As a lawyer I would say that the only thing that fits is that they restore the situation to that before June 28.Orellana points out that support for a Constitutional assembly is not limited to the government of Zelaya, citing not only his own campaign history, but that of Pepe Lobo, candidate for President from the National Party, because
this is giving some hope. This is capturing the call of society.Orellana was not optimistic about elections even in September, saying that if the hatred between people persisted
these elections have no future. How could you offer elections, when the police and the Armed Forces are in the streets repressing some and guarding others? How could we accept that there was an environment propitious for the elections if you have curfews, that aren't even advertised?So what can Hondurans hope for? in a word: Constituyente:
here the problems that the Coup d'Etat has made emerge are so deep and profound. Today the poor hate the rich. The people that are out in the streets, demanding the restitution of Mel, because they see the injustice that was committed, that what they are doing now is inhumane and also that they are exposing us before the world that is coming to see a barbarity. Here the people are thinking of a Constitutional Assembly and no one can avoid that, because it is the only thing that can staunch the wounds.
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