CNN en Español, viewed throughout Latin America, has been backing the coup against Honduran President Manuel Zelaya since day 1, Sunday, June 28th. They initially referred to the events as a military coup during the early hours, then slowly transformed their headlines to call the coup a "forced succession". By the end of the day, dictator Roberto Micheletti was considered, by CNN, the "constitutional president" of Honduras and Zelaya was the "deposed" president.
Since then, CNN has shown about 90% coverage favorable of the coup government in Honduras, conducting interviews with Micheletti as well as those in his "cabinet". The "analysts" and "experts" providing insight and commentary on the coup in Honduras have all been either conservative U.S. voices of those on the Latin America right, like Alvaro Vargas Llosa. CNN has done little or no reporting on the mass protests on the streets in Honduras against the coup government, nor has it covered or reported on the detention of several Telesur and Associated Press journalists by military forces in Honduras this past Tuesday. CNN is also not providing much coverage of the major media blackout still in place in Honduras or the repressive measures taken by the coup government to impose states of emergency, suspend civil and human rights and mandate a national curfew through the weekend. And CNN is obsessed with making this whole thing to be about Chávez, and not about the internal class struggles in Honduras.
The coup government in Honduras announced this evening that the congress has passed a decree suspending all constitutional rights in the country indefinitely. This means the coup forces can enter homes without warrants, detain anyone with no notice or justification, prohibit all public gatherings, such as marches, rallies, protests or meetings, and maintain censorship of independent media. Due process rights are also suspended as are all other civil and political rights. Hondurans are also denouncing the coup government is forcing men as young as 15 to join the military to "defend" the country against any potential foreign threats or forces that may invade the country to restore Manuel Zelaya to the presidency.
If, as the coup leaders say, all is calm and peaceful in the streets of Honduras and a majority of Hondurans support the coup government led by Micheletti, then why does martial law need to be imposed and individual rights suspended?
In April 2002, when the coup was executed against President Chávez, the dictator who took over briefly, businessman Pedro Carmona, told CNN in a live interview that all was calm and peaceful in the streets of Caracas and throughout Venezuela. Meanwhile, millions of people were pouring into the streets around the capital and the nation to demand their president be returned to power. In Venezuela, the people and loyal armed forces were able to rescue their democracy, constitution and president, and defeat a coup backed by Washington.
Thousands are protesting in the streets throughout Honduras, facing repression and risking detention, or even worse, assassination. The people of Honduras fighting this brutal repressive coup and dictatorship (that is refusing to step down, despite all the international pressure) need your solidarity and support! Especially if you are in the US, find ways to pressure the Obama administration and demand it suspend aid to Honduras until the coup government steps down. Both the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank have temporarily suspended loans to Honduras until constitutional order is restored. All member nations of the European Union have withdrawn their ambassadors in Honduras. The US is the only nation that has not followed suit. Washington appears to be buying time trying to figure out how to save face and save its strategic interests in Honduras. Latin America and Europe have stood firm against tyranny. Will the US be an ally to tyranny or an example of democracy?
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