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CENTRAL AMERICA |
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Mounting Pressure For Letting Zelaya Leave
Embassy in Honduras
TEGUCIGALPA - Honduran president elect
Porfirio Lobo said on Sunday he is committed
to enable ousted president Manuel Zelaya to
leave the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa,
where he remains under refuge following a
frustrated attempt last week.
Lobo said he had plans to meet this week
with Zelaya in the Dominican Republic, but
the planned exit of Zelaya to Mexico last
Wednesday was cancelled.
The Mexican government sent an aircraft to
Honduras to pick up Zelaya and his family
but he was impeded from leaving when the de
facto regime, under Roberto Micheletti, said
he could only depart with political asylum
status.
Zelaya who sneaked back into Honduras in
September, after having been ousted by a
coup June 28th was planning to travel to
Mexico as “distinguished visitor” but the de
facto regime demanded he officially resigns
to his reinstatement claims.
“I will help all that is possible to
facilitate the exit of former president Mel
Zelaya but I must insist that the
safe-conduct (to leave the country) and the
amnesty and its terms are a decision from
the authorities”, said Lobo on his return to
Honduras from Miami.
Meantime the Dominican Republic presidency
said in a release that the “talks between
Lobo and Zelaya will have to be postponed
until the de facto government creates the
conditions for president Zelaya to leave and
hold talks, as is his wish”.
Lobo thanked Dominica president Leonel
Fernandez but “for the moment, as you know,
there will be no meeting”.
Zelaya has a pending arrest warrant
allegedly for violation of the Honduran
Constitution for having tried to organize
the day he was ousted, a popular
consultation that would have opened the way
for a possible re-election, but which had
been specifically banned by a judge.
From Lima Peruvian President Alan Garcia and
his Brazilian peer Lula da Silva condemned
the de facto regime of Honduras for not
allowing Mr. Zelaya to fly to Mexico.
“The presidents condemn in the most emphatic
way the unacceptable negative by the de
facto authorities from Honduras to grant an
exit safe-conduct for Mexico to the
constitutional president Manuel Zelaya
Rosales” according to a joint statement.
Garcia and Lula da Silva said such an
attitude was completely contrary to
International Law. The frustrated trip to
Mexico was in the context of ongoing efforts
to reach a solution for dialogue, in
conformity with OAS resolutions”.
The Mexican government said on Sunday it was
prepared to grant ousted president Zelaya
any “migratory figure” that helps end the
crisis.
“We are willing to grant any of the figures
contemplated in our legislation, but we also
believe it is something to be defined when
transfer is effectively taking place” said
Chancellor Patricia Espinosa.
Meantime the Spanish government praised and
gave full support to talks between president
elect Lobo and ousted president Zelaya.
“We are hopeful of a national dialogue that
will help definitively overcome the Honduran
crisis” said the Spanish government adding
that in permanent coordination with “our
partners in Latinamerica, Europe and United
States, we will continue with all necessary
collaboration to make possible this great
national accord in Honduras which the
international community is demanding”.
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