Zelaya Speaks

[pnorman]

In a significant development in hemispheric relations, the Obama admininstration yesterday condemned the June 28 Honduras coup d'état more strongly than ever, announced the cutoff of additional millions in economic aid and declared it would not accept the legitimacy of elections under the auspices of the coup government.

In an interview shortly after his meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Honduran president Manuel Zelaya pronounced the US decisions "a great step forward" for the Honduran popular resistance to the coup and a "positive message in favor of democracy."

Following the State Department meeting, a US spokesperson announced the termination of "a broad range of assistance" to Honduras as a spur to encourage the return of President Zelaya and democratic processes to the country, which has been under repression for two months.

Zelaya told The Nation that the US would terminate multi-year Millennium Challenge grants in the range of $200 million, involving funds for roads, ports and infrastructure. Clinton chairs the Millennium Challenge corporation, which meets next week.

Asked if Clinton intended a message to the coup regime in Honduras, Zelaya responded forcefully that it was a "direct blow in the face of Micheletti" because "the golpistas' plan was to negotiate with the candidates for an exit strategy so that they don't have to pay for their crimes, and get away with their crimes after an election. When you don't recognize the legitimacy of the elections, you are breaking up the plan of the golpistas."
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http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090921/hayden_zelaya

pnorman

[JoeThePlumber]

1. Zelaya

I never thought I'd see the day the U.S. would join with Chavez, Ortega, and Castro to pressure one of the few remaining democracies in Latin America to reinstall a despot.

That's just unbelievable to me.

TheOne is completely on the wrong side on this one.

[pnorman]

2. Er, is that Joe the UNLICENSED NON-UNION Plumber?

Please give my best regards to Sarah (The non-performing Governor)

pnorman

[Umbral]

3. The only non-democracy in Latin America is Cuba, and possibly Honduras

But I don't expect wingers to have even a tenuous grasp of political realities south of the border.

[The Animator]

4. Gee it's too bad the rest of the world did not do the same for us in 2000