Diplomats urge return of ousted Honduran president

In the October 8, 2009 article "Diplomats urge return of ousted Honduran president," Associated Press writer Ben Fox reports:

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Diplomats from across the hemisphere on Wednesday told Honduras' interim government to reinstate ousted President Manuel Zelaya during at-times confrontational talks aimed at ending a standoff that has paralyzed this impoverished Central American nation.

Delegations from about a dozen countries met with representatives of Zelaya and the coup-installed government behind closed doors in Honduras' capital, then later held talks with interim President Roberto Micheletti in a confrontation broadcast on local television.

Micheletti, his voice at-times bristling with rage, scolded the diplomats for refusing to recognize what he insisted was the lawful removal of Zelaya under the Honduran constitution and for isolating his country and suspending aid to one of the poorest countries in the hemisphere.

"You don't know the truth or you don't want to know it," Micheletti said, imploring the delegates from the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean to "reflect on the damage you are doing to a country that has done nothing to you."

The diplomats sat stone-faced, a few rubbing their eyes in apparent fatigue during his outburst. Canada's minister of state for the Americas, Peter Kent, then told Micheletti that the international community respects the Honduran Constitution, but it oppose the military's ouster of Zelaya.

"However it happened, a mistake was made on June 28," Kent told the interim president. "A democratically elected leader, whatever his behavior in recent years, was undemocratically removed."

The diplomats took turns urging Micheletti and his ministers to reconsider their position, but no breakthroughs were announced. The delegates, brought to Honduras by the Organization of American States, were scheduled to leave Thursday.

"Today we saw Hondurans sitting together, working on a Honduran solution," Ronald Robinson, a Jamaican representing the Caribbean Community, said during the meeting. "For me, I thought it was a good step in the right direction."

After the talks with Micheletti, the delegation met with Zelaya in the Brazilian Embassy, where the ousted president has been holed up with dozens of supporters since sneaking back into the country from his forced exile.

The diplomats returned to their hotel later without commenting on their meetings to waiting journalists. Organization of American States Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza would only say there would be a news conference Thursday to discuss the progress.

Tensions rose before Wednesday's meeting, with riot police firing tear gas to disperse about 200 Zelaya supporters protesting near the U.S. and Brazilian embassies.

Micheletti and his supporters say Zelaya's military-backed ouster was legal because it was sanctioned by Honduras' Supreme Court after he defied of a court order that he drop a referendum on changing the constitution. Most of the international community maintains the coup was illegal and must be reversed.

"We are not here to create a debate. We are here to find concrete solutions to a situation that cannot be prolonged," Insulza said before the round of meetings started.

Insulza presented a proposal to restore Zelaya as head of a unity government until his term ends in January and offer amnesty to both the coup leaders and the deposed president, who faces abuse of power and other charges in Honduras.

The proposal, which also would require Zelaya to abandon any ambitions to change the constitution, is very similar to one proposed months ago by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, known as the San Jose Accord, and rejected by the interim government.

Zelaya gave negotiators an ultimatum, calling for the postponement of upcoming presidential election if he is not restored to office before Oct. 15. The interim government wants to go ahead with the election — scheduled before Zelaya's overthrow — and move past the crisis.

The Canadian minister said it was imperative for an agreement to be reached before the Nov. 29 election, which many countries in the Americas have warned would not be recognized if Zelaya remains out of the power.

"I sense that everybody involved understands that we are nearly out of time and this crisis needs to be resolved now," Kent said.

Interim Vice President Marta Lorena Alvarado, however, said she did not expect an agreement Wednesday.

"It would be fantastic, but the problem is difficult and there are a lot of players. I don't think it will be today," she said.

She insisted the world was too quick to condemn Zelaya ouster. Still, she said, the two sides were "initiating conversations that had not occurred before and expectations are positive" for an eventual resolution.

Zelaya warned that the interim government would seek to persuade the delegates to pursue a new plan that would prevent his return to office.

"We warn the ministers that the de facto regime is planning to stay in power longer and to deepen the crisis by preventing the return of the elected president and continuing the repression of the people," Zelaya said in a statement.

Honduras restricts liberties to prevent rebellion

In the September 28, 2009 article "Honduras restricts liberties to prevent rebellion," Associated Press writer Mark Stevenson reports:

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Interim government leaders have suspended constitutionally guaranteed civil liberties in a pre-emptive strike against widespread rebellion Monday, three months to the day since they ousted President Manuel Zelaya in a military-backed coup.

Zelaya supporters said they would ignore the decree issued late Sunday and march in the streets as planned. Some already had arrived in the capital, Tegucigalpa, from outlying provinces.

The measures — announced just hours after Zelaya called on his backers to stage mass protest marches in what he called a "final offensive" against the government — are likely to draw harsh criticism from the international community, which has condemned the June 28 coup and urged that Zelaya be reinstated to the presidency and allowed to serve out his term, which ends in January.

Officials also issued an ultimatum to Brazil on Sunday, giving the South American country 10 days to decide whether to turn Zelaya over for arrest or grant him asylum and, presumably, take him out of Honduras. They did not specify what they would do after the 10 days were up.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva responded, saying that his government "doesn't accept ultimatums from coup-plotters."

Interim President Roberto Micheletti has pledged not to raid the Brazilian Embassy building where Zelaya has been holed up with more than 60 supporters since he sneaked back into the country a week ago. The building is surrounded by armed police and soldiers. On Tuesday, the day after Zelaya's return, baton-wielding troops used tear gas and water cannons to chase away thousands of his supporters.

Protesters say at least 10 people have been killed since the coup, while the government puts the toll at three.

Interim Foreign Minister Carlos Lopez has said that, because Brazil has broken off diplomatic relations with the interim government, it would have to remove the Brazilian flag and shield from the Embassy "and it (the building) becomes a private office."

The government's suspension of civil liberties violates rights guaranteed in the Honduran Constitution: The decree prohibits unauthorized gatherings and allows police to arrest without a warrant "any person who poses a danger to his own life or those of others."
The Honduran Constitution forbids arrests without warrants except when a criminal is caught in the act.

The government measures also permit authorities to temporarily close news media outlets that "attack peace and public order."

In a nationally broadcast announcement, the government explained it took the steps it did "to guarantee peace and public order in the country and due to the calls for insurrection that Mr. Zelaya has publicly made."

There was no immediate reaction from Zelaya, who is demanding to be reinstated and has said that Micheletti's government "has to fall."

Zelaya's supporters pledged to ignore the restrictions and forge ahead with their scheduled demonstrations.

"The protest is on," said pro-Zelaya leader Juan Barahona. "Tomorrow we will be in the streets."

The media restrictions appear aimed at pro-Zelaya radio and television stations that — while subject to brief raids immediately after the coup — had been allowed to operate freely, openly criticizing the interim government and broadcasting Zelaya's statements.

Under Sunday's order, authorities may now "prevent the transmission by any spoken, written or televised means, of statements that attack peace and the public order, or which offend the human dignity of public officials, or attack the law."

The decree states that the country's national telecommunications commission, known as Conatel, is authorized "through police and the armed forces ... to immediately suspend any radio station, cable or television network whose programming does not comply with these regulations."

Pro-Zelaya television station Channel 36 warned earlier Sunday that restrictions on the news media were coming and said they were part of a pattern by the interim government of quashing constitutional rights.

Micheletti's administration had previously bragged about the democratic atmosphere in the country, citing media outlets such as Channel 36 as proof. The station continued broadcasting without interruption Sunday night.

Talks between Zelaya and interim government officials aimed at resolving the political standoff have gotten nowhere. Prospects for success appeared even grimmer after the government expelled at least four members of an advance team from the Organization of American States who had arrived Sunday to re-establish negotiations.

Micheletti has previously said the OAS was welcome to come, but suggested that representatives begin arriving Monday. Foreign Minister Carlos Lopez said that the team's arrival didn't come "at the right time ... because we are in the middle of internal conversations."

In addition, while many nations have announced they would send diplomatic representatives back to Honduras to support negotiations, the interim government said Sunday that it would not automatically accept ambassadors back from some nations that withdrew their envoys.

Honduras spurns OAS, vows to close Brazil embassy

In the September 27, 2009 article "Honduras spurns OAS, vows to close Brazil embassy," Patrick Markey and Gustavo Palencia report:

TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) – The de facto government of Honduras denied entry on Sunday to an Organization of American States delegation and threatened to close Brazil's embassy, where ousted President Manuel Zelaya has taken refuge.

The group of OAS officials had hoped to help broker a solution to Honduras' political crisis but was turned back at Tegucigalpa's international airport, a move likely to further isolate the government headed by Roberto Micheletti.

Hours earlier, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he would ignore a 10-day deadline set by Micheletti to decide what to do with Zelaya, who is holed up with his family and some supporters in Brazil's embassy in the capital.

"Brazil will not comply with an ultimatum from a government of coup mongers," Lula told reporters at a summit of African and South American leaders in Venezuela.

Lula also demanded an apology from Micheletti, who issued a harsh statement late on Saturday warning that his government would be forced to take action if Brazil does not define Zelaya's status soon.

Zelaya was overthrown in a military coup on June 28, but on Monday he returned from exile, sparking a tense standoff with the de facto civilian government that has promised to arrest him on charges of treason.

Brazil has said Zelaya can stay as long as necessary, but Micheletti told the South American heavyweight to either grant the deposed leftist political asylum or hand him over to Honduran authorities to be prosecuted.

"We urge the Brazilian government to define the status of Mr. Zelaya in a period of no more than 10 days," the government said in a statement. "If not, we will be obliged to take additional measures."

Carlos Lopez, the de facto government's foreign minister, said Brazil would lose its right to have an embassy in Honduras if it ignores the deadline. But he stressed that the government would respect the sovereignty of the compound and has no plans to storm the building to arrest Zelaya.

"There has been no discussion of raiding Brazil's compound," Lopez said at a news conference in Tegucigalpa where he faulted Brazil for escalating the crisis by agreeing to house Zelaya in its embassy.

"The Lula government is to blame," he added.

Since Monday, hundreds of soldiers and riot police have surrounded the embassy where protesters have mounted almost daily marches to demand Zelaya be reinstated.

"If they enter by force, they will be committing an act that contravenes all international norms," Lula said of the security forces outside the building.

ZELAYA URGES "FINAL OFFENSIVE"

Zelaya, a logging magnate who is rarely without his trademark cowboy hat, urged his followers to descend on the capital to pressure for his return.

"I call on you to mobilize throughout Honduras, and that everyone who can come to Tegucigalpa to fight in the final offensive," he said in a statement on local Radio Globo.

The United Nations Security Council on Friday condemned harassment of the Brazilian embassy. Brazilian officials say food and supplies have only occasionally been allowed in and troops have blasted the building with high-frequency sounds.

Zelaya upset conservative elites by allying himself with Venezuela's socialist President Hugo Chavez. He demands to be restored to power, but the de facto government says presidential elections in November will resolve the crisis.

The showdown in Honduras is shaping up as U.S. President Barack Obama's first diplomatic test in Latin America, a region where Washington's influence has waned in recent years.

Obama has cut some U.S. aid to Honduras since the coup and pushed for Zelaya's return, but several Latin American leaders say he has not done enough to broker a solution.

Brazil, which has sought to assert itself as a regional leader under Lula, has backed Zelaya from the outset but was reluctant to take a leading role in a crisis outside its traditional sphere of influence in South America.

Soldiers toppled Zelaya at gunpoint and sent him into exile in his pajamas after the Supreme Court ordered his arrest. His critics say he broke the law by pushing for constitutional reforms they saw as a bid change presidential term limits and extend his rule. Zelaya denies wanting to stay in power.

His return stoked tensions in Honduras, a coffee and textile producing nation. One man was shot and killed in a clash between police and Zelaya supporters last week as pressure mounted to let him return to office.

The United States, European Union and Organization of American States have urged dialogue to bring Zelaya back to office. But the Micheletti government insists he must face justice at home.

Honduran businessmen at center of coup dispute

In the September 26, 2009 article "Honduran businessmen at center of coup dispute," Associated Press writer Mark Stevenson reports:

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Die-hard supporters of ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya are increasingly turning their anger toward the country's wealthy business elite, a small but powerful cadre believed to solidly back the interim government that removed him at gunpoint three months ago.

The capital is now covered with graffiti demanding "Turks out!" — apparently a reference to the Central American country's large number of business people of Middle Eastern descent — and on Saturday pro-Zelaya marchers lashed out at the elite's dominance over wealth in a country where millions are poor.

"They own almost the whole country," pro-Zelaya protester Arnoldo Pagoaga, a medical doctor who marched in his white uniform, said Saturday. "They're terrorists. ... They own the army, and sic it on us."

Fellow demonstrator Rafael Alegria complained that Honduras "has a large immigrant community that owns everything: commerce and industry."

"We don't really have our own economy," Alegria said. "We have to set that right."

Meanwhile, reports emerged that the business community's firm support of interim President Roberto Micheletti might be faltering somewhat amid intense international economic and diplomatic pressure — and the coup's substantially negative impact on the economy.

"There are people who say that it was a businessman" who helped Zelaya sneak back into Honduras, Micheletti told The Associated Press in an interview late Friday. He added, however, that "there are so many theories that nobody knows" if it is true.

Zelaya has said he made a 15-hour, cross-country overland journey using various vehicles to slip into the country undetected Monday. But the Spanish newspaper La Nacion reported Friday that the scion of a local media and banking family, attorney Yani Rosenthal, had lent him a helicopter to whisk him to Honduras.

Rosenthal emphatically denied the report Saturday.

"I don't even have a helicopter, much less one to lend to somebody," he said.

He did acknowledge, however, that there are divisions within Honduras' elite.

"There are differences in the upper class, just as there are in the middle class and the lower class," he said, though he added that he doesn't think they have led to a significant reduction in support for Micheletti.

While the rich haven't suffered as much as the country's impoverished majority from the near-daily curfews and cutoff of international aid, industrial and retail interests are starting to feel the pinch.

"There has been significant damage to the economy ... especially from the curfews," Rosenthal noted. Another curfew was reinstated Saturday at 6 p.m. until 6 a.m. Sunday.

Some members of the business community have had their U.S. visas revoked, several business people told the AP on Saturday. They spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of repercussions.

U.S. Ambassador Hugo Llorens told foreign journalists Friday that the visas of key supporters of the de facto regime had been revoked.

Nonetheless, Micheletti says he has received no pressure from the business community to show more flexibility in talks with Zelaya, who is holed up at the Brazilian Embassy along with supporters and demanding to be reinstated as president.

Also Saturday, about 2,000 Zelaya backers marched through downtown Tegucigalpa in a daily show of support for the ousted leader and to protest what they claim was the release of toxic gas inside the Brazilian Embassy compound. Zelaya said that the unidentified gas caused headaches, nosebleeds and nausea among about 65 of his supporters inside.

Francisco Catunda, the charge d'affaires of the Brazilian Embassy, confirmed Saturday that some sort of gas had affected those at the Embassy.

"Yes it was released," he said in a rare interview outside the Embassy. "One of our officials felt it, felt symptoms."

Catunda added that some people "had throat problems, but I don't want to get into details."

Negotiations to resolve the country's political standoff are at a standstill. Zelaya has said that an envoy of the interim government with whom he met Wednesday night took "an extremely hard" stand and he called the government's positions "totally outside of any possibility of agreement."

Hopes for international mediation also faded Friday when Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, who mediated previous talks, announced that Micheletti's government had rejected a visit by a commission of foreign ministers meant to help break the stalemate.

Government spokesman Rene Zepeda said interim leaders wanted Arias to visit Honduras first so they could explain the situation to him, and that the ministers would be welcome next week.

In Friday night's interview with the AP, however, Micheletti suggested the whole thing had been a misunderstanding. He said both the foreign ministers and Arias were now welcome to come to Honduras. None of them arrived Saturday.

Previous negotiations moderated by Arias broke down after Micheletti's government refused to accept a plan that would allow Zelaya to return to the presidency with limited powers and prohibit him from attempting to revise the constitution.

Zelaya was removed by the military at gunpoint on the morning of June 28 after the Supreme Court ordered his arrest on charges of treason and abuse of authority for repeatedly ignoring court orders to drop plans for a referendum on rewriting the constitution.

But the coup has drawn international condemnation, including from the United States, and world leaders have insisted that Micheletti restore Zelaya to the presidency and let him serve out his term, which ends in January.

Micheletti has refused, saying that presidential elections in November will bring an end to the crisis. He has pledged to arrest Zelaya if he leaves the Brazilian Embassy but his government has promised not to enter the compound to go after him.

Ousted leader returns to Honduras, defies arrest

Honduras' ousted President Manuel Zelaya waves to supporters from inside Brazil's embassy in Tegucigalpa, Monday, Sept. 21, 2009. Zelaya said he returned to Honduras Monday to reclaim his presidency, defying threats of arrest and summoning supporters. (AP)

In the September 22, 2009 article "Ousted leader returns to Honduras, defies arrest," Associated Press writer Freddy Cuevas reports that Manuel Zelaya has returned to Honduras to reclaim his presidency:

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – Deposed President Manuel Zelaya made a dramatic return to Honduras' capital Monday, taking shelter from arrest at Brazil's embassy and calling for negotiations with the leaders who forced him from the country at gunpoint.

The interim government initially ordered a 15-hour curfew, but then extended it to a 26-hour shutdown of the capital, but thousands of Zelaya supporters ignored the decree and remained outside the embassy, dancing and cheering.

Others in the capital rushed home, lining up at bus stands and frantically looking for taxis. Electricity was cut off for hours at a time on the block housing the embassy and in areas of Tegucigalpa where news media offices are located — something that happened the day of the coup that ousted the leftist leader.

Security Vice Minister Mario Perdomo said checkpoints were being set up on highways leading to the capital to keep out Zelaya's supporters from other regions, to "stop those people coming to start trouble." Later, Defense Minister Lionel Sevilla said all flights to Tegucigalpa had been suspended indefinitely.

Without giving any specifics, Zelaya said he snuck into the country by traveling for 15 hours overland in a series of vehicles — pulling off a homecoming that created a sharp new challenge for the interim government that had threatened repeatedly to throw him in jail if he returned.

Chants of "Yes we could! Yes we could!" bellowed from the crowd outside the Brazilian Embassy.

Zelaya told The Associated Press that he was trying to establish contact with the interim government to start negotiations on a solution to the standoff that started when soldiers flew him out of the country June 28.

"As of now, we are beginning to seek dialogue," he said by telephone, though he gave few details. Talks moderated by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias have been stalled for weeks over the interim government's refusal to accept Zelaya's reinstatement.

He also summoned his countrymen to come to the capital for peaceful protests and urged the army to avoid attacking his supporters.

"It is the moment of reconciliation," he said.

The government of interim President Roberto Micheletti, who took power after Zelaya's ouster and has promised to step aside following a presidential election scheduled for November, said the curfew would continue until 6 p.m. (0000 GMT) Tuesday. It first declared a curfew running from 4 p.m. Monday until 7 a.m. Tuesday.

The government said in a statement the army and police were ready to "guarantee the safety of people."

The shifting orders reflected the surprise of Zelaya's arrival, which caught the interim government off guard. Only minutes before he appeared publicly at the embassy, officials said reports of his return were a lie.

Zelaya's presence could revive the large demonstrations that disrupted the capital following the coup and threatens to overshadow the presidential election campaign.

Teachers union leader Eulogio Chavez announced that the country's 60,000 educators would go on strike indefinitely Tuesday to back Zelaya's demand to be reinstated.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton urged both sides to look for a peaceful solution to the crisis.

"It is imperative that dialogue begin, that there be a channel of communication between President Zelaya and the de facto regime in Honduras," Rodham Clinton told reporters on the sidelines of the annual U.N. General Assembly session in New York.

The U.S. State Department announced Sept. 4 that it would not recognize results of the presidential vote under current conditions. The coup has shaken up Washington's relations with Honduras, traditionally one of its strongest allies in Central America.

The secretary general of the Organization of American States, Jose Miguel Insulza, called for calm and warned Honduran officials to avoid any violation of the Brazilian diplomatic mission. "They should be responsible for the safety of president Zelaya and the Embassy of Brazil," he said.

Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorin said neither his country nor the OAS had any role in Zelaya's journey before taking him in.

"We hope this opens a new stage in negotiations," Amorin said. He also warned: "If something happens to Zelaya or our embassy it would be a violation of international law," which bars host countries from arresting people inside diplomatic missions.

Honduras' Foreign Relations Department criticized Brazil, saying it was violating international law by "allowing Zelaya, a fugitive of Honduran justice, to make public calls to insurrection and political mobilization from its headquarters."

Micheletti urged Brazil in a nationwide radio address to turn Zelaya over to Honduran authorities.

In the days following the coup, at least two of the thousands of demonstrators who took to the streets were killed during clashes with security forces. Thousands of other Hondurans demonstrated in favor of the coup.

The country's Congress and courts, alarmed by Zelaya's political shift into a close alliance with leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Cuba, backed Zelaya's removal.

He was arrested on orders of the Supreme Court on charges of treason and abuse of power for ignoring court orders against holding a popular referendum on reforming the constitution.

Micheletti said Zelaya sought to remove a ban on re-election — grounds for immediate removal from office under the Honduran constitution. Zelaya denies any such plan.

International leaders were almost unanimously against the armed removal of the president, alarmed that it could return Latin America to a bygone era of coups and instability. The United States, European Union and other agencies have cut aid to Honduras to press for his return.

Zelaya said he had "evaded a thousand obstacles" to return, traveling 15 hours by land in different vehicles. He declined to give specifics on who helped him cross the border, saying that he didn't want to jeopardize their safety.

His staunch supporter, Chavez, described the journey: "President Manuel Zelaya, along with four companions, traveled for two days overland, crossing mountains and rivers, risking their lives. They have made it to Honduras."

Sevilla, the defense minister, told reporters that Zelaya allegedly entered Honduras from Nicaragua in a car licensed in a South American nation that "is not Venezuela."

If the interim administration attempts to imprison Zelaya, protesters who have demonstrated against his ouster could turn violent, said Vicki Gass at the Washington Office on Latin America.

"There's a saying about Honduras that people can argue in the morning and have dinner in the evening, but I'm not sure this will happen in this case," said Gass. "It's been 86 days since the coup. Something had to break and this might be it."

Leadership Standoff Leaves Honduras In Limbo

Supporters of ousted and deposed Honduran President Manuel Zelaya march during Independence Day in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on Tuesday, September 15, 2009. Zelaya has vowed to return to the country and reclaim his office.

In the September 16, 2009 National Public Radio story "Leadership Standoff Leaves Honduras In Limbo," Jason Beaubien reports:

Honduras continues to rebuff international demands that it reinstate deposed President Manuel Zelaya, who was ousted in a coup in June.

Even before the coup, the global financial crisis and a significant drop in money being sent home by Hondurans working in the United States were squeezing the country's economy.

Now, the impoverished Central American nation is also losing hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance from the international community. Nicaragua and Guatemala temporarily closed their borders with Honduras. And the coup has been universally denounced throughout Latin America.

After the coup, the U.S. blocked millions of dollars in aid, much of it intended to build roads and develop the country's agricultural sector. The World Bank froze almost $300 million in loans.

It is being felt in poor neighborhoods like La Cuesta, tucked into a series of crevices in the steep, lush hills that ring Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital. In this tough barrio, cement shacks are strung along deeply rutted dirt roads, and many of the houses lack running water.

The Atlanta-based aid group CARE runs several programs in the area. They help fund a shelter for sexually abused children. And they work with the local school to try to improve the level of education and keep the poorest of the poor from dropping out.

On a recent afternoon, two CARE employees held a class on conflict resolution. Two dozen girls, ranging in age from 10 to 14, had a heated debate about who is to blame if a teacher gets one of his students pregnant.

Conditions Worsening

The public schools in Honduras lack many things, and international aid groups assist with everything from classroom supplies to teacher training.

Under international sanctions imposed on Honduras, the work CARE is doing at this school will continue, but the organization has been forced to shut down another program that would have worked with schools nationwide.

And CARE isn't the only group that's had to suspend some activities.

Juan Sheenan, who runs Catholic Relief Services' operations in Honduras, says the group has shut down two programs as a result of the new U.S. sanctions.

"Honduras is probably one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere," Sheenan says, with some of the lowest indicators in literacy and education, and access to health care and schools.

The coup has made conditions worse, Sheenan says.

Micheletti: Zelaya Violated Constitution

Honduras' de facto president, Roberto Micheletti, is a big, feisty, grandfather of a man with a crushing handshake.

"We found out it's very hard to rule a government alone," says Micheletti. "Nobody in the whole world believes us. But the Hondurans believe that the thing we did is correct."

On June 28, the Honduran military seized Zelaya, forced him onto a plane and deported him to Costa Rica in his pajamas. Micheletti says this was not a coup, because Zelaya had violated the constitution.

Micheletti, then the president of the National Congress, was next in line to the presidency; he was quickly sworn in to office.

He says Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez controlled Zelaya, who was plotting to impose a communist dictatorship in Honduras. It's a claim Zelaya — who has been trying unsuccessfully to return and reclaim power — denies.

Zelaya's ouster has exposed a deep fissure in Honduran society, with some people taking to the streets in support of the deposed president and others marching in favor of Micheletti.

Asked how Hondurans resolve this conflict, Micheletti says the important thing was that Zelaya and his supporters had to be stopped.

"The Zelaya people, they are our brothers, our sisters. We love them. But we are going to let them rule this country because they believe in communism, and we are not? We are democratic people, and we are going to sustain our democracy," Micheletti says.

Conflict Ruptured Social Fabric

But many Hondurans haven't seen results from this "democracy," says Jose Rolando Bu, head of Foprideh, a coalition of nonprofit development groups in Honduras.

Roughly two-thirds of the population still lives in poverty, Bu says. The country each year "expels" thousands of its young people, who head north to the U.S. in search of economic opportunities. Corruption and impunity are rampant, he says.

Bu says that since the coup, Honduras has been in limbo. It is unclear whether Zelaya is going to return. Public school teachers have been taking to the streets every Thursday and Friday in favor of Zelaya, thus shutting down their classrooms.

Some families are split between the Zelaya and the Micheletti camps — two groups that appear unable to reach common ground.

Bu says the social conflict in Honduras is very strong.

"When the fabric of a society is ruptured, it's very complicated," Bu says.

And he says fixing the deep political polarization in Honduras won't be easy. But he adds that in every social conflict, eventually the parties come to a point where they sit down and work out their differences.

But the military ouster of Zelaya only underscored that the parties aren't yet ready for that.

The transcript of the story as heard on All Things Considered

ROBERT SIEGEL, host: In Honduras, the political crisis is making that country even poorer than it was before. President Manuel Zelaya was ousted in a coup in June. The de-facto government is refusing international demands to reinstate him. Even before the coup, the country was squeezed by a significant drop in money sent home by Hondurans in the United States. And then it got hit hard by the global financial crisis.

Now, Honduras is losing hundreds of million of dollars in international assistance, as NPR's Jason Beaubien reports from Tegucigalpa.

JASON BEAUBIEN: The neighborhood of La Cuesta is tucked into a series of crevices in the steep, lush hills that ring the Honduran capital. It's a tough barrio, cement shacks, strung along deeply rutted dirt roads, many of the houses lack running water. As the Coca Cola delivery truck crawls through La Cuesta, a guard with a shotgun sits in the back, atop a stack of bottle crates.

The Atlanta-based aid group CARE runs several programs in the area. They help fund a shelter for sexually abused children. And they work with the local school to try to improve the level of education and keep the poorest of the poor from dropping out.

On this afternoon, two CARE employees are holding a class on conflict resolution. Two dozen girls, ranging in age from 10 to 14, are having a heated debate about who is to blame if a teacher gets one of his students pregnant.

The public schools in Honduras lack many things, and international aid groups assist with everything from classroom supplies to teacher training. Under the international sanctions tightening down on Honduras right now, the work CARE is doing at this school will continue, but the organization has been forced to shut down another program that was going to work with schools nationwide. And CARE isn't the only group that's had to suspend some activities. Juan Sheenan, runs Catholic Relief Services' operations in Honduras.

Mr. JUAN SHEENAN (Country Representative, Catholic Relief Services): Honduras is probably one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.

BEAUBIEN: CRS has shut down two programs as a result of the new U.S. sanctions.

Mr. SHEENAN: You know, some of the lowest indicators in literacy, education, health, access to health posts(ph), access to schools, these type of things.

BEAUBIEN: And the coup has just made conditions worse, Sheenan says. The U.S. has blocked millions of dollars in aid, much of which was going to build roads and develop the country agricultural sector. The World Bank froze almost $300 million in loans. Nicaragua and Guatemala temporarily closed their borders with Honduras. And the coup has been universally denounced throughout Latin America.

President ROBERTO MICHELETTI (Honduras): We find out it's very hard to rule a government alone, you know, alone.

BEAUBIEN: The De Facto president, Roberto Micheletti, is a big, feisty, grandfather of a man with a crushing handshake.

Pres. MICHELETTI: Nobody in the whole world believes us. But the Hondurans believe that the thing we did is correct.

BEAUBIEN: On June 28, the Honduran military seized President Manuel Zelaya, forced him onto a plane and deported him to Costa Rica in his pajamas. Micheletti insist that this was not a coup because Zelaya had violated the constitution. Micheletti was next in line to the presidency and he was quickly sworn into office. He says Zelaya was being controlled by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who was plotting to impose a communist dictatorship in Honduras. Zelaya denies this. Zelaya has been trying unsuccessfully to return and reclaim power.

The ouster of Zelaya has exposed a deep fissure in Honduran society, with some people taking to the streets in support of the deposed president and others marching in favor of Micheletti. Asked how Hondurans resolve this conflict, Micheletti says the important thing was that Zelaya and his supporters had to be stopped.

Pres. MICHELETTI: The Zelaya people, they are our brothers, our sisters, you know. We love them. But we're going to let them to rule this country because they believe in communist and we are not. We are democratic people and we're going to sustain our democracy.

BEAUBIEN: Jose Rolando Bu is the head of Foprideh, a coalition of nonprofit development groups in Honduras.

Mr. JOSE ROLANDO BU (Head, Foprideh): (Foreign language spoken)

BEAUBIEN: He says Hondurans haven't seen results from democracy. Roughly two-thirds of the population still live in poverty. And his words, the country expels thousands of its young each year, who head north to the U.S. in search of economic opportunities. Corruption and impunity are rampant. And Bu says since the coup, Honduras has been in limbo. It's been unclear whether Zelaya is or is not going to return. Some families are split between the Zelaya and the Micheletti camps. Two groups that appear unable to reach common ground.

Mr. BU: (Foreign language spoken)

BEAUBIEN: Bu says the social conflict in Honduras right now is very strong.

Mr. BU: (Foreign language spoken)

BEAUBIEN: When the fabric of a society is ruptured, it's very complicated, Bu says. And he says fixing the deep political polarization in Honduras won't be easy. But he adds that in every social conflict, eventually the parties come to a point where they sit down and work out their differences. The problem in Honduras, however - and the military ouster of President Zelaya only underscored this - that the parties aren't yet ready to do that.

Jason Beaubien, NPR News, Tegucigalpa.

Why Obama Won't Use the M-Word for Honduras' Coup

In the September 5, 2009 TIME article "Why Obama Won't Use the M-Word for Honduras' Coup," Tim Padgett explains the timid U.S. response to the coup in Honduras:

The Obama Administration tried again this week to take on the coupsters of Honduras. With more than two months passed since Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was exiled in a military ouster — and less than three months to go before his impoverished Central American nation holds new presidential elections — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton jabbed harder at the coup leaders to get them to let Zelaya back into Honduras and finish his democratically elected term. The U.S. cut all non-humanitarian aid to the de facto government, about $32 million; revoked the visas of all civilian and military officials who backed the June 28 coup, and threatened not to recognize the results of the Nov. 29 elections unless Zelaya is returned to office.

The measures could move de facto Honduran President Roberto Micheletti to sign on to the San Jose Accord, brokered by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, which stipulates Zelaya's restoration and immunity for the coup participants. They may also help restore President Obama's standing among Latin American leaders, who have unanimously condemned the coup, as Obama has, but who have questioned the U.S. President's commitment to matching his rhetoric with action. U.S. officials called the latest sanctions "a strong signal" that Obama has reversed Washington's historic tendency to abide if not back coups carried out against its foes (the leftist Zelaya is a critic of the U.S.) and that he's defending democratic process in the hemisphere.

But the Administration also sent a significant mixed signal. It didn't use the m-word: Military. Its lawyers have determined that while Zelaya's overthrow was a coup d'etat, it was not technically a military coup. The main reason: even though soldiers threw Zelaya out of the country at gunpoint, in his pajamas, he was not replaced with a military leader. Instead, Micheletti, a civilian who headed Honduras' Congress, was made President. Other "complicating factors," as the U.S. calls them, include lingering questions about which Honduran institution — Congress, the Supreme Court or the Army — actually ordered Zelaya's removal after he openly defied a high court edict not to hold a non-binding referendum on constitutional reform.

The legal semantics matter. If the State Department labels a coup "military" — the most brutal and anti-democratic kind of overthrow — it automatically triggers a suspension of all non-humanitarian and non-democracy-related U.S. aid. In the case of Honduras, State Department officials insist that those measures have already been taken without the military-coup tag. But critics, who fear Obama is keeping the Honduras coup designation downgraded to mollify conservative Republicans, argue that further steps, like freezing Honduran bank accounts in the U.S., are still available to the Administration.

Either way, foreign policy analysts say Obama is setting a precarious precedent by trying to have it both ways. In the future, restless militaries in other countries may look at the U.S.'s Honduras ruling and decide coups are worth chancing as long as they don't install a guy wearing epaulettes in the president's chair. In that scenario, a full-bore U.S. aid cut-off won't kick in by default — and there's always the possibility, they'll reason, that the White House won't adopt enough punitive steps to make them cry uncle in the end.

The U.S.'s non-military coup rating is especially dicey given that two of Honduras' neighbors, El Salvador and Guatemala, recently elected leftist presidents who could also find themselves in the crosshairs of their countries' overweening generals. "I think the armies and the business elites they back in those countries are watching the Obama Administration's moves on Honduras very closely," says Vicki Gass, a senior associate at the independent Washington Office on Latin America. While Gass applauds Clinton's threat to reject Honduras' November election results as a "very positive step that shows the U.S. is serious again about multilateral effort in Latin America," she fears the U.S. has "created risks in other countries" by not designating Honduras' putsch as military.

The Obama Administration has political reasons for eschewing the m-word. The most important is that calling an overthrow a military coup requires certification by Congress — where Obama and Clinton foresee a fight they'd rather avoid. Conservative Republicans are angry at Obama's support of Zelaya, who they insist was trying to remove presidential term limits in Honduras and usher in a socialist government like that of his oil-rich left-wing ally, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. As a result, they're blocking a number of the White House's State Department appointees, including Arturo Valenzuela, Obama's pick to oversee western hemisphere affairs.

But in a Los Angeles Times op-ed last week, Democratic Representative Howard Berman, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, argued that whatever Zelaya's alleged infractions, they should have been addressed legally, not militarily. "It's time to call this bird what it is," a military coup, and move on with whatever tougher sanctions that might mean in order to get the Micheletti regime to back down, Berman wrote. Obama and Clinton still feel a negotiated settlement in Honduras can be reached. But the Micheletti regime, which human rights groups say has cracked down violently on many Zelaya supporters (a charge it denies), has so far indicated it won't be swayed by the latest U.S. sanctions.

A negotiated settlement is indeed the preferred solution. But the problem is that the U.S. loses leverage in that process when, by not calling Zelaya's ouster a military coup, it gives coup leaders the impression that what they did was merely second- or third-degree coup-mongering instead of the first-degree military kind. When the military hauls away a democratically elected president, it's a military coup, period, regardless of who takes power afterward. It's a rule that needs to apply not just in Honduras, but whenever the U.S. has to take on coupsters.