The new new deadline
Throughout the Honduran crisis, Mel Zelaya has periodically issued ultimatums, then ignored them. Nonetheless, it is worth noting the latest ultimatum, which is October 15 (Thursday).
Despite news of "progress" in the talks, there seem to be two key sticking points. The biggie is Zelaya's reinstatement, which for the moment remains a deal breaker in opposite directions for both sides. Nothing new or surprising there.
"If after all of this, they say that there is not going to be reinstatement (of Zelaya), what difference does it make if we made progress on anything else?" Barahona asked.The second is amnesty, which Zelaya's side does not want."Tuesday, we are going to get at that key point in detail. If on October 15 we do not have a deal, the talks will have failed."
The Zelaya camp, Barahona added, opposed amnesty because such a move would mean "amnesia, forgetfulness and forgiveness, and we cannot condone the coup."
What that means for a potential trial for Zelaya is not clear.
For now, we are back into the routine of delay and waiting. The constant protests, however, make it much more difficult for the coup government simply to sit and drag it out.
Days since the coup: 106
Days until the scheduled presidential election: 48
2 comments:
The constant protests, however, make it much more difficult for the coup government simply to sit and drag it out.
Harder, but far from impossible.
The open repression against peaceful demonstrators, in public places and actually reported by the international press this week, appears to make no difference to our own government. The Nobel peace prize-winning president and his State Department have remained completely silent as Micheletti's promised "repeal" of the illegal decree suspending constitutional rights fails to materialize. [What a surprise.]
Radio Globo has been completely shut down, even in its internet-only version. Channel 36 is dark.
Bodies are turning up in the streets. Here are just some of those killed since the regime responded with a state of siege to Zelaya's return:
4 October - Olga Osiris Uclés, 35, died from effects of the tear gas police used against demonstrators at Radio Globo on September 30. She lived in Colonia La Joya and leaves four children.
3 October - Mario Contreras, teacher, shot twice in head by man on bicycle in San Angel neighborhood of Tegucigalpa. Taught at Instituto Abelardo R. Fortín.
3 October - Antonio Leiva, Lenca campesino and resistance leader, who had disappeared some days ago (in the capital?), and had been detained previously by security forces, was found dead in Canculuncus, a villaage in Santa Barbara, with signs of torture.
26 Sept - Marco Antonio Canales Villatoro, 40, was shot by two men on a motorcycle as he was leaving an evangelical church in Tegucigalpa. He was a PINU candidate for suplente (alternate legislator) for Francisco
Morazan department, and the nephew of Radio Globo owner, Alejandro Villatoro.
26 Sept - Wendy Elizabeth Avila, 24, law student. Resistance activist non-stop since the coup, died of effects of tear gas used against people in the street in front of the Brazilian embassy on the 22nd of September.
24 Sept - Elvis Euciado, teenager on bike, yelled 'golpistas' at police patrol 200 feet away; they stopped the car, got out, and shot him dead on the spot. [Reported a day or two later that the policeman's been charged w/murder.]
22 Sept - Francisco Alvarado, shot with M-16 while going out for food evening of 22 Sept in Flor del Campo neighborhood.
22 Sept - Oscar Adán Palacios was shot to death by the military in the Colonia Victor F. Ardon of Tegucigalpa in the afternoon.
The day before Zelaya reappeared in the capital, 20 Sept, Felix Murillo was found dead with signs of torture in Talanga, Francisco Morazan dept., near Tegucigalpa. His body entered the morgue at the Escuela hospital as an unknown. He was a witness in the case of the death of Roger Vallejo, the teacher shot to death while taking part in a demo July 30.
Nobodies, really. The kind of nobodies who make up the more than half the Honduran citizenry who support Zelaya's return (though so far none of the English-language media have seen fit to report the poll showing that).
Nice framing of what is happening, Nell.
What is the most instructive for me, toward understanding US intellectual and political culture, is to simply check out progrssive/liberal blogs and websites--Huff, Kos, Firedog, etc.--the Honduras repression is virtually erased. They'd rather prattle and pontificate ad nauseum about Iran--anything so as to take eyes off the Americas.
And these dishonest people whine when dire domestic problems fester, and Iraq urns into permanent occupation, or Afghanistan becomes a quaigmire?
Jezz, this lack of honesty and backbone will return governent back to the far right, as opposed to the center-right Democrats and the frightened Obama.
Sad.
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