"The OAS is pressuring the interim government to accept the San Jose accord, a plan proposed by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias that would return Zelaya to power until elections are held by the end of November and would grant amnesty both to Zelaya for any alleged crimes and to those involved in the coup."
OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza 
Honduras' government initially stated that it would not accept a delegation led by Jose Miguel Insulza, because of his "lack of objectivity, impartiality and professionalism in carrying out his functions, which has resulted in serious damage to democracy,'' but later agreed to his visit only in the role of "observer".
The Delegation’s agenda will not be limited to the public sphere. It will include meetings with representatives of the Catholic Church, Evangelical Churches, business people, workers, presidential candidates and different civil society organizations.That sounds good, but I understand the commission's closing press conference will be given tomorrow at 12:30 p.m.! Barely 24 hours after their arrival, they will already have their decision written, edited, and agreed to by the foreign ministers. That reminds me of the OAS meeting in July, after Insulza made a similar 24-hour trip here, talked to numerous people including ex-presidents and judges who said it was not a coup, but he declared it to be a coup anyway. My guess is that the press release is already written.
"Secretary General Insulza stated: "We are motivated by a spirit of dialogue and the disposition to listen to all relevant actors in a situation that has gone on for too long. We are convinced that all players are inspired by a true desire for institutional restoration that would allow the elections of November 29 to produce authorities that are effectively democratic, legitimate and recognized by the international community."
"We hope to find a positive reception to the San Jose Accord, as the only road to reach, at the same time, the return to full democracy and reconciliation among Honduran people. It is a satisfactory document that would allow a return to the state of affairs before the morning of June 28, reinstate the constitutional President and appease the main fears and meet the legitimate demands that gave rise to the crisis. This will allow Honduras to come out of this difficult test strengthened and offer an example of democratic conviction to the entire hemisphere."
How different would the Honduran situation be right now if Insulza had taken this slightly more reasonable attitude (given that he DID know about what was happening in Honduras prior to June 28 − that Zelaya had violated the constitution and defied the Supreme Court)? Instead, in the weeks after June 28, he made comments like this: On June 28, he erroneously said the coup had been carried out by a "group within the military", called them rebels, and called for the Honduran people among others to "join forces".
He insisted that the only path open is that of "international isolation.”
In another insulzing statement, Insulta stated, "It will not be Honduras that we will be suspending, but the usurpers of a democratic government, who have embarrassed the public service that they swore to take on with honor."
Probably Insulza's most famous insult was on July 16, “If you want to have democratic rule in the region, if you want people to believe in your democratic institutions, if you want to improve the quality of democracy, and correct all its defects, don’t try to justify the rape of democracy!”
And we are supposed to believe that this guy is impartial? Insulza's previous stand and refusal to talk to "the actors", along with false and biased media coverage, are in great part responsible for the internal rifts and violence in Honduras today. For all the talk of 'dialogue', 'negotiation', and 'mediation', both Insulza and Oscar Arias have made it clear from the beginning by using terms like golpistas, de facto government, illegal acts, and golpe de estado, that the San Jose Accord was in no way negotiable, that Honduras had been judged, convicted, and sentenced long before they were ever allowed to present the facts in Costa Rica. I am betting that this simple Honduras communique is the nail in the Insulza reelection coffin. A few countries must shiver at the idea that one day he might be the mediator of any conflict they might be involved in. Lists are probably drawn for his successor as I type.Daniel also touches upon the inflammatory and biased prose of the main stream media in this article.
The 10 questions for the OAS asked by UCD, Honduras' united group of civic groups, and, among many others, this articled entitled What's wrong with Insulza and the OAS? published by the Center for Security Policy make it very clear that José Miguel Insulza's motives need to be questioned.
In Honduras, we respect the constitution
On the one month anniversary of the ousting of Mel Zelaya, July 28, the following question was asked: After a month of the political crisis, how do you think the result of the destitution of Mel is?
On July 29, when there was talk of increasing sanctions against Honduras, Do you believe that pressure from the USA against Honduras is fair?
Tres urnas, not cuatro
Hugo Chávez, the teacher
Meanwhile, the Federation of Teacher Organizations of Honduras (FOMH) informed that the teachers returned to classes Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and the other days of the week, they will return to incorporate in the manifestations in the streets.
Union leader Jaime Rodríguez affirmed that the teachers and professors in the schools also move forward a campaign to explain to students and parents of the families the necessity to recuperate the constitutional order.
ALBA celebration, August 2008Latin leftists fear a Honduras coup domino effectI don't care for the repeated references to "the elite" because that just is not true. The majority of the population from all economic groups are glad that Mel Zelaya was stopped. Central Americans are, in general, much more knowledgeable about the real threat of socialism/communism (the terms are often used interchangeably here) than the average north American because they have faced those threats in recent history.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Manuel Zelaya's chances of getting restored to the Honduran presidency become more distant with each passing week. Across Latin America, his allies and foes alike see a precedent being set....(more)
And for any Latin American leader who feels confident of their hold on power, Honduras offers a sobering lesson in how quickly a president can lose control.
Luis Vicente Leon, an analyst with Venezuela's Datanalisis polling firm, said all of Latin America's leftist leaders "have a lot of enemies."
"No one," he said, "is immune."
"Simply, Honduras says no to socialism disguised as democracy."Therefore, if you love liberty, you will do whatever you can do help Honduras resist Chavez and his allies, which include the United Nations and Organization of American States.
There are many ways to do that. Buy Honduran goods. Write your representatives in Washington to back the present, law-based Honduran government. And, yes, even visit this friendly beleaguered place. When the world's governments isolate a country, with few exceptions, that's all you need to know about who the good guys are.
− Dennis Prager radio show blog
Congresswoman Silvia Ayala, UD (FARC) party
Ayala accused the media of "inciting hate against the principal actors." Whoa there! You can't have it both ways. Either media outlets that promote hate − of which we have at least two in Honduras, both generously funded by Mel Zelaya's government − should be controlled, or we should have freedom of the media.
Evo Morales, Bolivia; Mel Zelaya, citizen of the world; Daniel Ortega, Nicaragua;2. We energetically condemn repeated violations of the human rights of the heroic Honduran people by the golpista military regime, and we reiterate our support for their right to resistance and insurrection, consecrated in the Honduran National Constitution, against the oppression of an illegitimate regime. We reiterate that we will accompany the resistance process to its final victory.
3. We reiterate our commitment to maintain all cooperation programs underway with Honduras, a full member of ALBA, to be carried out through President Zelaya, and as well to include funding of some priority activities of the legitimate government of Honduras, and the funding of activities of the respective Embassy of Honduras in each of our countries.
In the first meeting, Patricia Rodas spoke for one hour and 25 minutes and in her dissertation she reminded Llorens that "all the coups have occurred in this house [referring to the US Embassy]." Micheletti said that Llorens said nothing because he was the mediator. Zelaya and his Ministers were trying to convince Llorens to agree to the "survey" while the others, along with a "ton" of other people, were trying to get Zelaya to not perform this illegal act which would be effectively be a golpe de estado [coup d'etat].
On Saturday, June 27, Micheletti called Llorens to tell him to talk to Mel to get him to stop. He said "You [Llorens] have heard all the discussions and negotiations. Talk to him [Zelaya] so that he doesn't insist on the constitutional assembly which is illegal, unconstitutional, and will cause problems in the future." Llorens promised that he would. Micheletti doesn't know if Llorens ever talked to Zelaya or not.
Welcome to my Blogicito — spanglish for 'little blog'. I am a US expatriate who has been living here in La Ceiba, Honduras, with my Catracho husband since 2001 and blogging about Honduras and my expatriate life since 2006.
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