Honduras

A couple of things on Honduras today.

1) LaGringa was in Pajamas Media the other day. I somehow had missed it, but Fausta had this link. Good for you LaGringa! Your writing is excellent and the information passed is always accurate.

2) Both the BBC and AlJazeera note that Zelaya is calling the deal “over” as far as the accord is concerned. Why? Because as of this morning he’s still not the President.
BOTH the BBC and Al Jazeera note that there was no guarantee that he ever BE the president again.
BBC:

But Mr Zelaya had warned on Thursday that he would withdraw from the deal unless Congress held a vote on his restoration to power.
He has said elections planned for 29 November will not be valid unless he is restored to power first, though the agreement did not guarantee the ousted leader’s restitution.

Al Jazeera:

The pact did not require Zelaya’s return to the presidency. It left the decision up to congress.

Zelaya interpreted that to mean that congress had to vote on the issue by Thursday.

Zelaya’s supporters have warned if he is not reinstated, violence will escalate [AFP]
Supporters of Micheletti, who was named interim president by congress after Zelaya was ousted on June 28, disputed that, saying the pact required that members of the unity cabinet be in place by Thursday but that there was no deadline for congress to meet.

In the wording of both of these stories I’m getting the feeling that the international community is seeing that Zelaya is not sane.

What does he hope to accomplish in 2 months of power that he couldn’t have accomplished if he had sent his own list of names to Micheletti to create the unity government? Based on his asinine behavior the Honduras Congress clearly sees that allowing him to step foot in the presidency is not a good idea.

And how on earth does holding a “non-binding referendum” on the constitution and how long a president can stay in power, with fake votes found on his computer help the poor of Honduras?

Zelaya was forced from power on June 28, the same day that he planned to hold a non-binding referendum on changes to the constitution that had faced opposition in the country’s congress and supreme court.

Opponents of Zelaya say that the public vote was intended to measure support for an extension to presidential term limits, in Zelaya’s favour.

Zelaya has dismissed those claims, saying that the vote was aimed at improving the lives of the poor in the nation of 7.6 million people.

If Zelaya cared a lick about the poor people of Honduras he would do whatever it takes to get them international aid again and to hell with the interim govt. Which means backing the heck off.

Honduras and that Human Spirit

I get a little picked on about my obsession with Honduras, but LaGringa nailed it today

If what has been happening in Honduras doesn’t make sense to you, it is because you do not understand that people are strong and determined when they know they are right! Honduras is united standing up for truth, democracy, and their sovereignty − maybe an unusual concept, but maybe everyone should try it.

(yes LaGringa, the AP is idiotic)

I don’t have the slightest doubt in my mind that our country’s first instinct to back Zelaya was absolutely the wrong one. How on earth is it possible that the LATimes doesn’t see that?? Except that they seem MORE concerned with how other countries “view” us than actual right vs wrong.

If the Obama administration chooses to recognize the election without Zelaya first being reinstated, it will find itself at odds with the rest of Latin America. That would be a setback for democracy and for the United States.

Who is that writer? I don’t personally know anyone like that. Someone who care more about what some stranger thinks of them, than actual right and wrong.

Honduras is contending with not only what is right and wrong (ousting the President, right….kicking him out of the country in hindsight maybe not the best plan, but no, not “wrong”) and are working to do the right thing and improve their reputation.

Honduras has that spirit that says – screw you…we’re right and we know it. It’s why the Taliban fight harder than al-Qaeda. And it’s why people are working so hard to fight against MORE government power in their lives here.

[ps, the link is to House of Eratoshtenes who's point is that this whole healthcare thing is not about health, its about power and the relationship between the governed and the governors. It probably doesn't belong in this post, but it's a good post in itself, go read it.]

I agree that Honduras is right and I will stand up for them.
The Taliban are wrong and I won’t stand up for them.
And no – I do not want the government having say so over my healthcare options yet I’m perfectly fine letting my insurance company have it.

(by the by, yes, the first two are easy, easy choices. The 2nd one has more nuance since the govt is of course involved in the insurance industry through regulation already. I just wanted to put it out there.)

This is about Honduras and President Micheletti who has apparently decided to step aside and let Congress go ahead and do it’s thing. He is such an honorable man. He has decided that now, after the accord and after hearing the insistance by Zelaya that Zelaya be returned to the Presidency that if he steps aside the country can get a fresh slate from the rest of the world. He continues to follow the letter of the law here and I hope, his future is everything he wants it to be.

UPDATE: US and Israel:

Daniel Levy, a veteran Israeli peace negotiator now at the Century Foundation in Washington, summed up the administration’s efforts in recent days as “amateur night at the Apollo Theater.” He said the administration did not game out the consequences of its demands on the parties — and then flinched. “They just dug deeper and deeper their own grave,” he said. “All of this talk of negotiations doesn’t cut the mustard in the region.”

Sound familiar??

UPDATE: How on earth can Ed Morrissey not GET THIS!!!!
I would comment over there but you have to have signed up to make comments.
Ed – don’t be fooled!!

After successfully imposing American will on Honduras to return Manuel Zelaya to the presidency, the Obama administration apparently reversed course and told the Hondurans that we would recognize their elections this month whether Zelaya was back in office or not.

The accord all along has said that the HONDURAN Congress will determine IF Zelaya gets to return. Just because Zelaya is a half wit and signed the thing because Shannon suggested that of course Congress would vote for his return does NOT mean the Honduran Congress is a freaking puppet of the US administration. From day 1 Shannon said that the Honduran Congress was in charge and from day 2 Zelaya realized what a dumbass rookie mistake he had made.
They haven’t been and they continue to refuse this position. The document signed by both parties is valid and Zelaya is just stupid.

The US media are the ones who stated that Zelaya IS to be returned to office. How many times to they have to be wrong? Ed, I thought you knew better!!! My heart breaks.

Longmont

Congratulations to the city of Longmont Colorado and our new city council and mayor!!!
Congratulations to the winners of the election last night (Baum/Santos/Witt/Sammoury)!!!

Best of luck to Mary Blue as she moves on to other interests!

Here’s the new mayor along with former mayor Al Sweeney.

Honduras

After the accord was worked out exPresident Zelaya and OAS Secretary General Insulza started talking about how the accord made it clear that Zelaya was to be reinstated.

The accord ACTUALLY just says that Congress will vote to determine if Zelaya will be reinstated.

That’s different. Waaaaay different. Yesterday I was beginning to feel that the pressure the Honduran Congress was under may be too much to handle. This is one tiny and poor country folks and the longer Zelaya is in the news, the more “hope” his measly bunch of followers have and hence they gain strength in the “support” from such statements as Insulza’s.

Honduran Congress cares about Honduras. What is BEST for their country. They have to looking at

will the international community validate their elections coming up?
will Zelaya shut up and go away?
will the rule of law count for something even after this backstep?
will international aid return?
will tourists return?
what IS best here?

Today LaGringa brings us the interpretation of a letter written by Vilma Morales, former President of the Supreme Court in Honduras to OAS Secretary General Insulza;

In the missive, the attorney Morales criticizes the comments emited by Sr. Insulza during an interview with a radio station in Chile, which was reported by various news media. During the interview, Insulza said that “the only peaceful exit (in Honduras) is to restore President Zelaya for the short time that is left in his presidency.”

Morales indicated that “We worry that these declarations could be considered an interference in a yet fragile process of resolution of crisis that is developing in our country. We consider furthermore that your comments are contrary to the letter and the spirit of the Accord Tegucigalpa-San José, which indicates textually that the National Congress has the last word to make a decision about the possible restitution of Sr. Zelaya to the presidency.”

Click on through for the interpretation but LaGringa has it right.

You go girl (Morales)!!!
May the Honduran Congress make the best decision possible for their country based on the items they need to consider and without threats from outsiders!

Israeli Settlements and Clinton

This quote made me laugh yesterday but the story has gotten hidden amongst all the election news.

You remember the other day when Clinton went rogue and suggested that some settlement expansion would be ok for peace talks between the Palestinians and Israelis, right?

From the Arab News came this sentence:

During a photo-taking session with her Moroccan counterpart, Clinton was asked about the Arab reaction, and she responded by reading a written statement designed to counter skepticism about the Obama administration’s views on settlements.

“Successive American administrations of both parties have opposed Israel’s settlement policy,” she said. “That is absolutely a fact, and the Obama administration’s position on settlements is clear, unequivocal and it has not changed. As the president has said on many occasions, the United States does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements.”

4 Big Races today

Sure you know of NY, NJ, and Virginia, but Longmont…..is the true harbinger of things to come.

So vote Baum, Witt, Santos and Sammoury and show the hard left which way the winds have turned!

UPDATE OMG!!!! 8:13 Witt 62.66%
Baum 54.87%
Santos 37.04 % next highest % is Sammoury at 27%, it’s an at large race with 5 running for 2 slots

!!!!!!!!

10:20 and it looks like a solid win for “taking Longmont back” from the gang of Four. Congratulations to the new four
Baum
Witt
Santos
Sammoury

And congratulations to Chris Rodriguez of Wrongmont.blogspot.com who has probably been dealt the most direct amount of grief from said gang! I can’t believe how happy I am to know this town is really the town I love!

A Big Week

We have elections here and it looks like the Honduran Congress will come out of recess to vote on whether to return Zelaya to the presidency there.

Without any agreement on immunity, I’m curious if Zelaya is voted back in, and yet his crimes are still valid, does this whole process start up again? Arrest, ouster, putting someone else in power, but putting Zelaya in jail vs sending him away.

Certainly the US Assist Sec of State Shannon doesn’t want to see that.

The U.S. government also wants to see Zelaya freely abandon the Brazilian embassy, where he has been holed up since returning secretly from exile last month, Shannon said.

“It is our view that President Zelaya’s status should be normalized in some fashion and the de facto regime should end its harassment of the Brazilian embassy,” he said.

Isn’t that nice that we have such a strong opinion about something that clearly we want to deny we know anything of depth about at all!!?

Mary Anastasia O’Grady of the WSJ seems to think this latest agreement is a face saving thing for the US. I’m with LaGringa and believe that while yes, this is designed to “save face” here, that we have probably threatened and cajoled those in the Honduran Congress in order to get Zelaya back into office for however short of time.

With any luck the legal wrangling about re-arrest etc will last until January 26 at 11pm. (the new president takes office on January 27)

How can the Honduran Congress trust anyone? This “coup” was so not a coup, yet look at what’s happened in the media based on our administration and other international bodies determination. According to the accord, Congress gets to determine if Zelaya should be reinstated. Yet Congress is who ousted him and the international community has made it it’s business to criticize the decision. If I were a congress person there and reliant on assistance from overseas….I’d be tempted to make a decision based on both situations. If it’s true that Shannon threatened the current leader of the upcoming presidential election with further non recognition unless Zelaya is stated, then it may be best for the country if they recognize him.

I am hoping that in the strong stance that Honduras has taken these last months that they (including the very poor) have come to appreciate the value of true independence from all other states. Certainly without a government stealing from the people to line their pockets, less assistance will be needed and long term Honduras will be far better off as it becomes more immune to threats from this apparently power hungry country that I live in.

La Gringa has a great quote.

The US believes that Pepe Lobo is going to win the election and are putting all their eggs in one basket. Personally, I do not think that the US has a good grasp of ANYTHING about Honduras. The US treatment of Honduras and Hondurans has been demeaning and it won’t be forgotten soon. Neither will congressmen who vote for the restoration of Zelaya be forgotten on election day.

Yes, that’s what the US does. They pick their horse and back it right or wrong.

She also found the quote from Obama I looked for yesterday.

“While the United States has done much to promote peace and prosperity in the hemisphere, we have at times been disengaged, and at times we sought to dictate our terms. But I pledge to you that we seek an equal partnership. (Applause.) There is no senior partner and junior partner in our relations; there is simply engagement based on mutual respect and common interests and shared values.”

Mr. Obama? Can we get re-write? or better yet re-act? Do this whole thing over and quit thinking about your “face”.

The “Accord” in Honduras

The deal is Zelaya gets to be president again if and only if Congress approves.

According to Zelaya, Congress BETTER approve else there will be trouble. Yeah – he was a REAL party to a peaceful resolution Mrs. Clinton.
Zelaya:

Speaking to Al Jazeera in an interview broadcast on Sunday, Zelaya called for congress to “reverse the coup” that forced him from power.

“If the national congress decides to maintain the coup the crisis will continue. If the congress reverses the coup, the crisis will be over,” he said by telephone from the Honduran capital.

……
Hillary:

I cannot think of another example of a country in Latin America that, having suffered a rupture of its democratic and constitutional order, overcame such a crisis through negotiation and dialogue,” Mrs. Clinton said Friday in Islamabad, where she has been meeting with Pakistani officials.

LaGringa has more.

So, is it obvious that Zelaya is not looking forward to a “government of unity and reconciliation”, but rather is still plotting revenge against those he considers the perpetrators? It seems very clear to me that he will protest the Accord unless the congress rules in his favor.

She notes that the accord included no mention of immunity for anyone. So if Zelay is in, he’ll prosecute ….who? If Micheletti, then Zelaya needs to be certain to stay inside the walls of that embassy.