Honduras coup leaders shut main airport

Move aimed at preventing ousted leader Manuel Zelaya from returning following previous military blockade on runway
By Rory Carroll, guardian.co.uk, July 6, 2009

Coup leaders in Honduras shut the country's main airport today to block President Manuel Zelaya making another attempted return a day after military vehicles prevented his jet from landing.

The interim government, increasingly isolated and beleaguered, banned all flights for 24 hours to try to keep the exiled leader out and to dampen fresh protests by his supporters.

Zelaya promised yesterday to make another attempted return from neighbouring El Salvador today or tomorrow but US officials suggested he may instead fly to Washington for talks with the Obama administration and Latin American diplomats.

The Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa, remained tense. Zelaya's supporters promised to mobilise fresh demonstrations despite bloody clashes with security forces yesterday. Soldiers opened fire on a crowd marching towards the airport, killing at least two, the first fatalities in the eight-day-old crisis.

Hospitals admitted many more people with gunshot wounds and staff told reporters there was an increasing number of victims shot by the military during the nightly curfew.

Zelaya, speaking at a news conference in El Salvador, appealed to the army to avoid further casualties. "I call on the armed forces of Honduras to lower their rifles."

The leftist leader was flanked by the presidents of El Salvador, Argentina, Paraguay and Ecuador and the secretary-general of the Organisation of American States (OAS), Jose Miguel Insulza. "I am risking myself personally to resolve the problems without violence."

He urged the United Nations, the OAS and European Union to "do something with this repressive regime".

The interim government, which took power on 28 June after soldiers seized Zelaya in his pyjamas and bundled him into exile, slightly softened its position and said it wanted to negotiate with the OAS. But it ruled out Zelaya's return to power. "We will be here until the country calms down," said the interim president, Roberto Micheletti. "We are the authentic representatives of the people."

The coup was supported by those Hondurans who feared Zelaya's leftist agenda and alliance with Venezuela's president Hugo Chávez. But the new government has been denounced internationally. The OAS suspended Honduras, the World Bank froze lending, the EU recalled its ambassadors and the US cut diplomatic and military contacts.

The impoverished coffee-exporter of 7 million people has become dangerously polarised between the poor and working class, who tend to support Zelaya for his social programmes, and the middle class and institutions such as congress, the Catholic church and the military who consider him a dangerous radical who wanted to perpetuate himself in power.

From a clandestine location, Rodolfo Pastor Fasquel, who was culture minister in the ousted government, told the BBC that Honduras risked sliding into civil war.

"It is a terrible situation, a dangerous impasse. In the 1970s we had groups of guerrillas but they were always isolated, the country never felt in danger of civil war. Today there is the risk because both sides have a wide social base, they are completely polarised and they have weapons and resources."

The interim government said if Zelaya did manage to return he would be arrested for 18 alleged criminal acts including treason and corruption.

The OAS suspension will complicate Honduras' access to multilateral loans but so far its economy, heavily dependent on coffee exports, aid and remittances, has not suffered trade sanctions.

The interim government said it was prepared to hunker down until November when a presidential election would select a new leader - under the constitution Zelaya cannot run for a second term - and supposedly end the crisis.

Zelaya Confirms Meeting Today In Washington With Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton

Day 8: Update 10PM: Zelaya Arrives To El Salvador; Confirms Meeting Tomorrow In Washington With Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton
By Eva Golinger, Postcards from the Revolution, July 5, 2009

President Zelaya has arrived safely to San Salvador, reuniting with the heads of state from Argentina, Ecuador and Paraguay, and OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza. They are expected to meet tonight and discuss alternatives to President Zelaya's return to Honduras, after his first attempt was thwarted by the coup forces that impeded his landing in the Tegucigalpa airport by placing army vehicles and personnel on the runway.

A confirmed meeting is taking place tomorrow in Washington, D.C., between President Zelaya and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Zelaya is expected to fly early tomorrow to the US capital. Clinton will most likely seek to negotiate some kind of agreement between the coup forces and President Zelaya in order to ensure his safe return and reinstate constitutional order.

Nevertheless, there are many concerns that Washington is looking to support its allies in Honduras, primarily those in the business and military sector who have been heavily involved in this coup, while trying to "save face" and project a "positive" non-interventionist image of Obama in Latin America. However, many question the late response by the Obama administration to the military coup, now a week in the making, and the outright lack of condemnation by Obama and Clinton regarding human rights violations committed by the coup government and repression of press freedoms. No comment has been made by Washington regarding the forced national curfew imposed by the coup government, which is now from 6pm through 6am, the suspension of constitutional rights, the censoring of media outlets not favorable to the coup, the detaining and persecution of journalists and members of Zelaya's cabinet and family, and the dead and wounded at the hands of the coup military forces. There are also questions regarding Washington's ambiguity to the coup, refusing to initially classify the events as a coup d'etat under US law, which would require immediate suspension of economic and military aid to Honduras.

No deal should be cut with the coup forces in Honduras, and by no means should Zelaya or the people of Honduras permit "early elections", which is one of the "ways out" that Clinton may push for tomorrow.

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From SOA Watch:

It remains vital that people in the U.S. keep maximum pressure on Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and on President Barack Obama urge them to take action for the unconditional reinstatement of Honduran President Zelaya.

Call Hillary Clinton's office at 202-647-5548.
Call the White House at 202-456-1111

Click here to send a message to the State Department and to President Obama.

And click here to send message to media, UN, etc.

Near Convergence Point: Marchers, President, Armed Forces Move toward Airport

By Laura Carlsen, Americas MexicoBlog, July 5, 2009

Three lines of force move to converge at the Toncontin International Airport in Tegucigalpa, Honduras.

One force--police and military units at the service of the coup--is charged with preventing the other two--a President and the people who support him--from connecting in a powerful circuit to reinstate the President. The march is now blocked by police contingents in a face-off at the entrance to the airport. Neither side will disperse.

As these two forces converge on land, the third is airborn and approaching the Caribbean. Telesur reports that at 3:00 p.m. a plane carrying President Zelaya, UN president Miguel D'Escoto, Honduran OAS Ambassador Carlos Sosa, the Foreign Minister, security personnel and members of the international press. In a Telesur interview from the airplane, Zelaya said he expected an atmosphere of joy on being reunited with his people. As Commander in Chief, he called on the armed forces to obey orders and stated his intention to begin a process of national reconciliation.

Meanwhile, at the airport, military and police forces have taken position to prevent demonstators' access to the airport. Various media report that helicopters overfly the zone, a barricade has been formed of soldiers and police, and snipers are positioned on the rooftops.

Commercial flights have been canceled as the drama unfolds. The coup leader dubbed foreign minister, Enrique Ortez, has announced that the plane will not be permitted to land. The coup has issued an arrest order against President Zelaya on 18 charges.

Coup leaders held a press conference at 4:15 eastern time denouncing troop movements on the Nicaragua side of the border and saying that Venezuela is attacking them in the media. The coup stated that it is willing to appoint a delegation for dialogue with the OAS and reasserted that Micheletti is the only president. Members called for Nicaragua and Venezuela "to stop distorting the peace in this region". It has not offered specific evidence of intervention or made concrete accusations. When asked if Nicaragua was preparing an invasion, Micheletti replied that "It is a psychological invasion."

Members of the coup directive also criticized the OAS decision to suspend Honduras and reiterated that the de facto government is legitimate despite the lack of recognition of the OAS.

Outside, the march of tens of thousands of people shouting "We Want Mel!" has up to now been peaceful and non-violent, following the instructions of President Zelaya. They are demonstrating a high level of organization and self-discipline, and have decided to move forward one step at a time. It appears that the police are backing up. Radio Globo interviewed representatives of the Taxi Drivers Association prepared to back up the march and receive the president and reports that the marchers have appointed people to watch for provocateurs and defuse any actions to provoke violence.

Nicaragua warned yesterday that it had news that the coup would attempt to provoke a violent response to discredit the marchers, as well as launching a media campaign to blame Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela for the confrontation.

For now, a tense calm prevails as marchers gain ground from a police seemingly unwilling to relaunch all-out repression of the crowd. In the morning, Radio Globo reporter Gustavo Ramos reported murmurs from within the ranks of both the police and the military that given the size of the crowd some units will not confront the marchers.

The atmosphere is heating up notably, despite the over three hours left until the president´s scheduled arrival. Diplomatic efforts failed to avoid this moment, and yet diplomacy continues to play a major role in pushing for a peaceful outcome. The presence of D'Escoto and other international figures on the plane raise the international political cost for the coup of violently intervening to stop the plane. The eyes of the world continue on the small nation.

President Rafael Correa of Ecuador, Cristina Kirchner of Argentina and Fernando Lugo of Paraguay and the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) José Insulza--originally thought to accompany the Honduran president--are flying on a separate flight to El Salvador to back up Zelaya's return.

The OAS unanimously resolved to suspend Honduras from the organization yesterday.

It's always possible that the point of convergence could shift at the last minute. When asked about alternative landing plans, Zelaya responded elusively, "We have many options for ariving in our country and we have many mechanisms for doing it and for communicating with the people on the ground to receive us."

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Statement of Pres. Zelaya on his Return Tomorrow, Calls for Non-Violent Demonstrations
Here is the translation to English of the Statement of President Manuel Zelaya, issued July 4:

Compañeros and compañeras, fellow Hondurans, your president, Manuel Zelaya Rosales, speaks to you. I want to tell you that my destiny is tied to the destiny of the Honduran people. On the morning of June 28, while I was preparing to exercise my vote in a nationwide survey, I was the victim of assaults, abuses, violations and kidnapping, I was taken captive and expelled from my country by Honduran military forces. By these military forces that today have put themselves in the service of and in complicity with the voracious elite that squeezes and asphyxiates our people, obeying their orders and not defending our nation or our democracy. This is a blow to the Honduran nation and has made clear to the world that in Honduras there is still a kind of barbarity, and people who are unaware of the harm they cause to our country and to future generations.

Through these means of communication, I call for you to continue the participation of the people. The people are the principle actors of our democracy and of the solutions that must be found to the grave problems of poverty and inequality in our country.

As Hondurans, we have faced major problems and we have always know how to come together to move forward, and this is a huge opportunity to show the world that Hondurans are capable of confronting these problems in spite of the attacks by a criminal sector that today seeks to appropriate the fate of our nation and of our children.

I speak to the coup leaders, traitors, Judases that kissed me on the cheek to then carry out this major strike against our country and democracy: You must rectify your actions as soon as possible. You are surrounded, the world has isolated you, all the nations of the world have condemned you, without exception. There is general repudiation of your actions, your actions will not be ignored because international tribunals will hold you accountable for the genocide you are carrying out in our country by repressing basic freedoms and by repressing our people.

I am organizing my return to Honduras and I ask all campesinos, housewives, city-dwellers, indigenous peoples, youth and all the groups of workers, businesspeople and politicians that I have throughout the nation--mayors, legislators--that you accompany me on my return to Honduras. This is the return of the elected president, elected by the sovereign will of the people, which is the only form of electing presidents in Honduras. Let us not lose our rights and not permit that certain individuals begin to make decisions that should be made by the Honduran people, through their legitimacy and their popular will.

I am willing to make any effort and sacrifice to obtain the freedom that our country needs. We will either be free or we will be permanent slaves unless we have the courage to defend ourselves. Do not take arms, practice what I have always taught-- non-violence. Let them be the ones who bring violence, arms and repression. Make the coup responsible for every life of every person, for the physical integrity and dignity of the Honduran people.

We are going to arrive in the International Airport of Honduras in Tegucigalpa with several presidents and members of the international community. On Sunday we will be in Tegucigalpa, we will be accompanying you and embracing you to defend what we have always defended, which is the will of God through the will of the people.

Greetings fellow countrymen and women, may God protect you and bless you all.

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High Noon in Honduras
By Laura Carlsen, Americas MexicoBlog, July 4, 2009

Both sides are preparing for high noon in Honduras this weekend, as President Manuel Zelaya plans to return to his country and coup leaders vow to arrest him immediately if he does.

Zelaya was abducted by hooded members of the armed forces on June 28 and flown to Costa Rica. The coup established itself in power, anointed by a National Congress at odds with the president.

Since then, the drama moved from this small, impoverished country to the international stage. Zelaya traveled to Managua to attend a meeting of the Central American Integration System, where he picked up formal statements of support from Central American nations, the Bolivarian Alliance (ALBA), the Group of Rio, and the whole alphabet soup of integration groups in the region.

From there, the newly famous president flew to New York for an appearance before the General Assembly of the United Nations, which also called for his immediate reinstatement. Zelaya met again with the Organization of American States (OAS) on July 1, which issued an ultimatum to the coup leaders to restore him to power in 72 hours or face suspension from the 34-nation bloc.

Zelaya had planned a return to his country for July 2, but postponed his return to allow the period to pass as international diplomacy went into overdrive. "The OAS has called for 72 hours and we agree with this decision," Zelaya stated. That places his return date for this weekend. Zelaya has refused to give details on the exact date or how he will return, saying he does not want to tip off armed forces leading the coup.

Meanwhile, self-styled "president" Roberto Micheletti has stated to the press that Zelaya "will never return" and refused to negotiate reinstatement. The coup issued arrest orders against Zelaya on 18 charges that include betrayal of the country and failure to fulfill his duties.

The Honduran crisis came to a head over a nationwide non-binding referendum called by President Zelaya to determine if citizens should vote in November elections on calling a Constitutional Assembly to remake the country's magna carta. The courts and the Congress ruled the poll illegal and when the president proceeded to carry out the vote, the armed forces moved in to take control.

All Sides Dig In

Supporters of the coup, opposition forces and the international community have all been busily working to consolidate their ranks over the past few days. On July 2, social organizations of workers, farmers, and citizens held a massive march through Tegucigalpa, where they delivered a message of gratitude for support for democracy at the offices of the United Nations.

Henry Alegria, interviewed by phone amid shouting demonstrators, affirmed that despite arrest orders, movement leaders are still safe and the ranks of the opposition are growing. Although the army has blocked pro-Zelaya groups from traveling to the capital in some places, so far there has been little bloodshed. Alegria noted, "They are using other kinds of tactics, like the curfew and accusing anti-coup leaders of crimes."

The coup declared a "state of exception," the equivalent to a state of siege, on July 1, suspending basic civil liberties including freedom of assembly, freedom of transit, due process, and justifying search and seizure without a warrant. The press has been placed under tight controls, with some media—including international media—shut down completely at times.

Honduran human rights leader, Bertha Oliva, stated, "With the suspension of these articles, they officially make us all vulnerable and justify their actions against basic human rights." Oliva called for urgent support from the international community.

Coup supporters have also rallied forces to protest the return of Zelaya and press for recognition of the coup government. They have held parallel rallies in Tegucigalpa, claiming that Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez is the force behind Zelaya, and asserting that the international community's position is due to ignorance of the situation.

Video images of the dueling demonstrations show the sharp split in the country. Honduras is the 16th most unequal nation in the world, with the top 10% of the population receiving 42% of income and the bottom 10% controlling only 1.2%. This situation feeds a steady stream of migrants to the United States, and many families now live off money sent home from relatives working there.

Zelaya draws his support among the poor primarily. Elected as a center-right politician from a wealthy ranching family, Zelaya moved to the left over the course of his four-year term. He especially galled business leaders by raising the minimum wage last December from $157 to $289 dollars a month, except in free trade zones. The UN notes that 44% of the population lives on less than two dollars a day. Unions and campesino organizations belonging to Via Campesina stand strongly behind the president.

On the other side are business leaders, media owners, and politicians. These forces claim that the return of Zelaya with the help of the international community would constitute an unacceptable "foreign invasion," and that the president was aiming to extend the term limit through the poll planned for the 28th.

The armed forces have played a powerful but discreet role since overthrowing the government. As in any military coup, their actions will largely define how events play out. So far, the top officers have formed a tight command with the civilian coup leaders. When Michelletti appeared before a pro-coup crowd, uniformed military officers stood firmly but silently in the background.

Via Campesina leader in Honduras, Rafael Alegria, said in an interview with the Americas Program that the army has blocked protesters from traveling to Tegucigalpa and other points. He added that the military could be preparing for war. "They are recruiting young people, ages 12-30, for military service. We don't know what the purpose is, but they are inciting people saying there could be a war. They are also calling out reservists and persons retired from the armed forces."

Intense Diplomatic Activity

The military coup in Honduras has all the sinister markings of the Cold War overthrows by dictators that characterized Latin America in the past. The president was kidnapped in the wee hours of the morning, wearing only his pajamas, and army forces occupied the streets of the small, impoverished nation.

But the world has changed since those times. The international community united across ideological lines in its condemnation, with the United States government joining the call for reinstatement of the left-leaning president.

President Obama called it a "terrible precedent" and the State Department has worked within the OAS to pressure the coup to back down and restore the rule of law.

The postponement of Zelaya's return offers yet another possible diplomatic solution to what could turn into a violent confrontation. The OAS text condemned the coup, recognized Zelaya as the president, and called for the Secretary General to seek diplomatic solutions. Its resolution states, "Should these prove unsuccessful within 72 hours, the Special General Assembly shall forthwith invoke Article 21 of the Inter-American Democratic Charter to suspend Honduras' membership."

The UN resolution deplores the interruption of "the democratic and constitutional order and the legitimate exercise of power in Honduras." The text demands "the immediate and unconditional restoration of the legitimate and Constitutional Government of the President of the Republic, Mr. José Manuel Zelaya Rosales, and of the legally established authority in Honduras."

International response has also included diplomatic and economic sanctions. The European Union and virtually all Latin American countries are withdrawing their ambassadors immediately.

Central American countries closed their borders to land trade with Honduras for 48 hours and the Central American Bank has suspended loans. Robert Zoellick, head of the World Bank, announced that the Bank will "pause" lending to Honduras under the coup. The Bank had a reported $270 million in the pipeline to Honduras and is a major source of lending for the country.

U.S. Response

The Obama administration has firmly supported OAS efforts to condemn the coup and reinstate Zelaya. The coup is the first real diplomatic crisis to confront the new administration, and although Honduras is a small (7.3 million pop.) and economically weak country that plays a very minor role in U.S. geopolitical strategy, the issues at stake make it a test case for a new foreign policy.

The response from Obama, and a generally on-message State Department, has already shown some major shifts from the foreign policy of his predecessor.

First, the administration broke with the ideologically defined criteria of democracy established by the Bush government. Zelaya's ties with Venezuela—its membership in the nine-nation ALBA—made it suspect to the Bush administration and many members still part of the U.S. diplomatic corps. By condemning the coup against Zelaya, the administration placed democratic principles above the ideological split created by the Bush administration between Latin American nations bound to alliances.

Second, the United States government has committed to working within multilateral organizations, especially the OAS, to resolve the crisis. Since before the abduction of the president, when rumors of a coup circulated and Honduran armed forces were deployed, the United States joined with other countries of the hemisphere to prevent the coup and later condemn it. Since then, it has allowed the OAS under Sec. General Jose Insulza to take the lead.

As the OAS deadline approaches, the U.S. government could do more. Among the following measures some are subject to delicate considerations of timing, since Honduras faces a very volatile situation in the next few days and avoiding massive violence and even war must be a top priority in arranging Zelaya's return.

The United States government should withdraw its ambassador from Tegucigalpa immediately. In Honduras today, there is no valid counterpart with which to engage in diplomatic dialogue. Latin American and European nations have already withdrawn their ambassadors. The continued presence of the U.S. ambassador could create a doubt about whether the United States is truly committed to isolating the Honduran coup diplomatically. With all eyes on the United States, that doubt could be interpreted as a crack in the door at a time when it is important to leave the coup no room to believe it can consolidate its illegitimate power.

The message must be crystal clear: There is no possibility of diplomatic engagement with a military coup.

The United States must support immediate suspension of Honduras from the OAS at the end of the 72-hour period if the coup is still in power. There have been some reports that a debate exists in the OAS over whether the suspension is automatic at the end of the deadline or requires a new meeting. The U.S. representatives in the OAS should support immediate suspension of Honduras if this period runs out with the coup still in power. Any waffling on a key diplomatic ultimatum would be a sign of weakness that could be interpreted as a lack of commitment to the rule of law in Honduras. It would also indicate a fracture in the OAS, which to date has acted swiftly and in a remarkably unified manner.

The United States must apply economic sanctions. Under Section 7008 of the Foreign Operations Bill, all U.S. assistance must be cut off in the case of a military coup. While Sec. of State Clinton has called the Honduran coup a coup, the State Department says it is reviewing the legal definition before sending word to Congress to cut aid. At stake is up to $42 million in aid planned for the Central American country.

This is one that seems to be a question of timing. Some argue that the sanctions should be announced before the deadline runs out to pressure the coup to allow the safe return of President Zelaya to office. Others argue that by holding the sanctions card until later, the international community has more to bargain with in the case on non-compliance with the deadline.

In any case, the law is clear that sanctions must be applied.

The United States should do all in its power to assure the safe and peaceful return of the democratically elected president, Manuel Zelaya. Presumably, this is being done. There is no room for negotiation that does not include restoring Zelaya to power unconditionally. The logistics of safely getting him home will be complicated and require the creativity and commitment of all nations, especially the United States.

The United States must speak up for the protection of human rights and civil liberties. The State Department has been relatively silent on the state of siege, army repression of demonstrators, and threats against grassroots movement leaders in the country. It must speak out more strongly to protect these people and warn the coup against the further criminalization and repression of the opposition.


For More Information:

Honduran Rural Leader Rafael Alegria: "Some Battalions Are Refusing to Repress the Population"

Text of UN Resolution and Call for International Support from Popular Resistance Front of Honduras

Zelaya Postpones Return, Mass Mobilization in the Country

Day 8: Coup Government Shuts Down All Airports In Honduras To Impede President

By Eva Golinger, Postcards from the Revolution, July 5, 2009

The de facto coup government in place in Honduras since last Sunday's coup d'etat has militarized the international airport outside the capital city of Tegucigalpa and shut down all other airports in the country. Letters were received by the Embassies of Argentina, Paraguay and Ecuador from the coup government, denying authorization for airplanes to land in Honduran airspace carrying the heads of state from those nations.

Protesters against the coup government and in favor of President Zelaya's return are gathered around the airport in Tegucigalpa, awaiting their constitutional president's arrival. They have reported snipers are stationed all around the airport, apparently ready to fire at any airplane that enters the area.

President Zelaya is announcing right now from Washington, where he arrived last night to attend the extraordinary Organization of American States (OAS) meeting that resulted in the suspension of Honduras from the multilateral group until constitutional order is reestablished, that he will return today to his country, accompanied by two different delegations. The first delegation will be compromised of President Zelaya and the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) Miguel D'Escoto. They will arrive directly in Tegucigalpa. The second delegation will be the Secretary General of the OAS, Jose Miguel Insulza, together with President Cristina Fernandez of Argentina, President Fernando Lugo of Paraguay and President Rafael Correa of Ecuador. The second delegation will land first in neighboring El Salvador.

It is unclear still how President Zelaya's airplane will enter Honduran airspace considering the coup government has militarized the nation and placed an order prohibiting the arrival of his airplane. The flight from Washington is four hours, so he should be entering Honduras around 4pm EDT, approximately. Either the plane will be shot down or President Zelaya will be taken prisoner by the military coup forces upon arrival.

Honduran military told to turn back Zelaya's jet

By WILL WEISSERT and NESTOR IKEDA, AP, Yahoo! News, July 5, 2009

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Honduras' exiled president took off for home in a Venezuelan jet in a high-stakes attempt to return to power, even as the interim government told its military to turn away the plane.

Zelaya won wide international support after his ouster a week ago by the military, but the only prominent escort aboard his plane was the U.N. General Assembly president after Latin American leaders backed out, citing security concerns. Honduras' civil aviation director said Zelaya's plane was being redirected to El Salvador.

Several other planes carrying Latin American presidents, the secretary-general of the Organization of American States and journalists were leaving Washington separately, trailing Zelaya to see what happens in the skies over Honduras before deciding where to land.

Thousands of protesters descended on the airport in the Honduran capital in anticipation of the showdown. Police helicopters hovered overhead. Commercial flights were canceled, and outside the airport about 200 soldiers with riot shields formed a line in front of the protesters.

"The government of President (Roberto) Micheletti has ordered the armed forces and the police not to allow the entrance of any plane bringing the former leader," the foreign minister of the interim government, Enrique Ortez, told The Associated Press on Sunday.

Flying with Zelaya were close advisers and staff, two journalists from the Venezuela-based network Telesur, and U.N. General Assembly President Miguel D'Escoto Brockmann, a leftist Nicaraguan priest and former foreign minister who personally condemned Zelaya's ouster as a coup d'etat.

Speaking live from the plane through Telesur, Zelaya called on the Honduran military to leave the airport free for him to land.

"No one can obligate me to turn around. The constitution prohibits expelling Hondurans from the country. I am returning with all of my constitutional guarantees," Zelaya declared.

But with their safety in the air not guaranteed, Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa pleaded with the Honduran military forces to avoid bloodshed. "If there is violence the whole world must clearly know who is responsible," he said.

If Zelaya's plane is allowed to land, the others will land as well, Correa said. If not, Correa, the presidents of Paraguay and Argentina and Jose Miguel Insulza, the secretary-general of the Organization of American States, planned to land in El Salvador.

Honduras' new government has vowed to arrest Zelaya for 18 alleged criminal acts including treason and failing to implement more than 80 laws approved by Congress since taking office in 2006.

Despite a Supreme Court ruling, Zelaya had also pressed ahead with a referendum on whether to hold an assembly to consider changing the constitution, and critics feared he would press to extend his rule.

But by sending soldiers to shoot up the presidential residence and fly Zelaya into exile a week ago, the Micheletti government has brought itself universal condemnations from the United Nations and OAS.

No nation has recognized the new government; President Barack Obama has united with conservative Alvaro Uribe of Colombia and leftist Hugo Chavez of Venezuela in criticism.

The OAS had given the Honduran government until Saturday to reinstate Zelaya, and sent two emergency missions to Honduras in hopes of heading off an escalation. But Micheletti pointedly rejected the group's demands.

The poor Central American country's Roman Catholic archbishop and its human right commissioner urged Zelaya to stay away, warning that his return could spark bloodshed. The interim government said it would arrest Zelaya and put him on trial despite near-universal international condemnation of the coup that removed him as he campaigned to revise the constitution.

The OAS suspended Honduras as a member late Saturday. Micheletti preemptively pulled out of the organization hours earlier rather than comply with an ultimatum that Zelaya be restored.

Zelaya has urged loyalists to support his arrival in Honduras in a peaceful show of force.

"We are going to show up at the Honduras International Airport in Tegucigalpa ... and on Sunday we will be in Tegucigalpa," Zelaya said Saturday in the taped statement carried on the Web sites of the Telesur and Cubadebate media outlets. "Practice what I have always preached, which is nonviolence."

Zelaya supporters said they got the message as they converged on the airport.

"We have no pistols or arms, just our principles," organizer Rafael Alegria said. "We have the legitimate right to fight for the defense of democracy and to restore President Zelaya."

Large crowds of Zelaya's critics have staged their own daily demonstrations to back Micheletti, the congressional president who was named by lawmakers to finish out the final six months of the Zelaya's term.

Most of the ousted leader's supporters come from the working and middle classes of this impoverished nation, while his opponents are based in the ranks of the well-to-do — although the increasingly leftist approach of the wealthy rancher had eroded his popular support.
___

Will Weissert reported from Tegucigalpa and Nestor Ikeda from Washington. Associated Press writers Freddy Cuevas and Marcos Aleman in Tegucigalpa, and Jorge Barrera and Michael Bodenhurst in Washington contributed to this report.

Ex-bishop wins Paraguayan election; 6-decade rulers dumped

BILL CORMIER, AP, April 21, 2008

ASUNCION, Paraguay - The world's longest-ruling political party is about to lose its six-decade grasp on power in Paraguay after a former Roman Catholic bishop won the country's presidential election.

The Colorado Party's reign — which began in 1947 and was marked by the right-wing dictatorship of the late Gen. Alfredo Stroessner until his ouster in 1989 — was halted by Fernando Lugo, a charismatic 56-year-old who advocated for the end of political corruption and economic disarray.

He beat Colorado Party rival Blanca Ovelar, a 50-year-old protege of President Nicanor Duarte who had sought to become Paraguay's first woman president in Sunday's election.

The triumph of Lugo's eclectic opposition coalition — the Patriotic Alliance for Change — is the latest in a series of electoral wins by leftist, or center-left, leaders in South America.

Mark Weisbrot, at the Washington think tank Center for Economic and Policy Research, said Lugo's election is a sign of "deep and irreversible ... changes sweeping Latin America."

But Lugo faces many challenges: 43 percent of the country's 6.5 million people live in poverty, illiteracy is high, 300,000 landless peasant farmers are clamoring for help and Paraguay's corruption is notorious. Lugo himself is a political newcomer, forging his anti-Colorado coalition just eight months ago.

For now, the opposition is basking in its victory, holding gleeful celebrations in the Paraguayan capital and outlying cities.

"You have decided what has to be done in Paraguay. You have decided to be a free Paraguay," Lugo told cheering thousands.

Those who cheered him will be looking to him to keep his promises. Rodney Bernal, a hotel security guard who watched horn-honking opposition celebrations peter out early Monday, said promises by politicians — even Lugo — have made him weary.

"Lugo made a lot of promises and we're tired of promises. We'll have to wait at least a year to see if he does anything, especially if he can give work to young people," he said.

Riordan Roett, head of western hemisphere studies at SAIS-Johns Hopkins University, echoed that sentiment, saying there is scarce wiggle room ahead.

"The economic realities give the new teams very little room to maneuver," he said.

Maria Ines Gonzalez, waving a flag of the opposition Liberals — the biggest force in the left-of-center coalition — said she hopes Lugo succeeds.

"My dad is a construction worker but he's out of work because people don't have money to build anything," she said. "Lugo is a priest who understands the needs of the poor and I believe he is going to solve many social problems."

The Colorado Party emerged from a 1947 civil war to begin its long rule in Paraguay. When Stroessner seized power in 1954, he recruited the party as an acquiescent "twin pillar" alongside his repressive military.

After Stroessner's ouster, free elections led to a succession of Colorado presidents despite sporadic political unrest and party infighting. But countless corruption scandals blamed on party elites beginning in the late 1990s engendered new dissatisfaction with a party that still controlled a vast bureaucracy, jobs and, some say, Paraguay's judiciary

Lugo became a bishop in 1994 but resigned the post in December 2006 to sidestep Paraguay's constitutional ban on clergy seeking office. He says he is neither on the left nor the right and has distanced himself from the region's more radical leaders, such as Venezuela's Hugo Chavez.

Eight months ago, Lugo melded leftist unions, Indians and poor farmers into a coalition with Paraguay's main opposition party, the conservative Authentic Radical Party. He now vows to use his five-year term, which begins Aug. 15, to right economic problems dating back decades.

With about 13,000 of 14,000 balloting stations counted, election officials said Lugo had 41 percent of the vote, Ovelar had 31 percent and former army chief Lino Oviedo had 22 percent.
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Associated Press reporter Pedro Servin contributed to this report in Asuncion.