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The 2009 Honduran political crisis is an ongoing constitutional crisis, in which President Manuel Zelaya, who was insisting on holding a referendum which had been declared illegal by Congress and both the nation's highest courts, was arrested by the military acting on the orders by the Supreme Court of Honduras.
The Supreme Court's ruling was supported by Congress, the country's attorney general, top electoral body, and the country's human rights ombudsman, who all said that Zelaya violated law.
The armed forces of Honduras arrested President Manuel Zelaya, on June 28, 2009, at his home -- just hours before a controversial referendum -- after he violated rulings of the Supreme Court of Honduras. Zelaya was held in an airbase outside Tegucigalpa before being flown to Costa Rica. During the action, communications and electricity were interrupted for about 6 hours. Zelaya's exile took place approximately an hour before "polls" were scheduled to open in a public consultation to vote on a referendum to convoke a constituent assembly to modify the constitution. Later that day, the Honduran Supreme Court made public that it had ordered the removal of the president.
Roberto Micheletti, the head of Congress and a member of the same party as Zelaya, has since been unanimously sworn in as President by the National Congress on a show of hands on the afternoon of Sunday 28 June for a term that ends on 27 January 2010. The event was greeted with applause in Congress, which had denounced Zelaya's repeated violations of the constitution and the law and disregard of orders and judgments of the institutions.
The international reaction to the military's forced removal of Zelaya has been universally negative. Many governments and international media have described the events as a coup d'état.
Background
Manuel Zelaya was elected for a non-renewable four-year term in 2005.
On May 24, 2007, Zelaya ordered "all the country's TV and radio stations to carry government propaganda for two hours a day", according to the BBC. A journalist who criticized Zelaya's rule was murdered by unidentified gunmen. Zelaya began to lose the support of even his own party. Zelaya was said to have "a very strong appetite for power" and that he was trying to be the victim in the 2009 crisis.
President Manuel Zelaya's intended to hold a "nonbinding" public referendum, on June 28, on whether to call National Assembly to rewrite the constitution, to take place concurrently with this year's elections. It has been interpreted as a plan to allow his own re-election, something which is strictly forbidden by the current constitution. The intended referendum was rejected by Congress and ruled illegal by the Supreme Court, and provoked a serious political crisis in the country. The military is in charge of security and logistics in elections in Honduras. Zelaya asked them to perform their election role for the referendum, but the head of the military command, General Romeo Vásquez Velásquez, refused the order to pass out the election materials because the referendum had been deemed illegal and unconstitutional. Zelaya subsequently removed him from his position but the Honduran Supreme Court ordered the General reinstated. Zelaya staged a protest at an airforce base and led a citizen march to take possession of the referendum materials stored there, which were then guarded by the national police.
In addition to the Supreme Court, Zelaya's referendum was declared illegal by Congress, the attorney general, and the top electoral body. Congress had begun discussing how to impeach Zelaya but lacked a viable way to do so. Congress had voted Zelaya "mentally incapable", and Zelaya responded to the congressional leader Roberto Micheletti, a member of the same party who has since been sworn in as President in his stead, by saying "What's with you, Roberto?. I was elected by the people, not the congress. How would you make me ineligible, you're a piss-ant second-rate congressman who got your post because I gave you space in my party."
The Supreme Court, the Congress, and the military recommended that voters stay home because the referendum would be neither fair nor safe to voters. The National Human Rights Commissioner, Ramon Custodio, said "I would tell the people to stay calmly at home in order not to get involved in any incident or any violence by going to vote 'no,' because they might be assaulted by these mobs," referring to Zelaya's supporters.
Developments
The presidential residence was seized by military troops. A group of around 150 people that supported Zelaya gathered outside the building in protest, throwing stones at soldiers and shouting "traitors, traitors". According to the New York Times, "several thousand protesters supporting the (ousted) president faced off against soldiers outside the presidential palace, burning tires." The claim that thousands of supporters may be exagerated considering the former President's sharp decline in popularity in light of his recent illegal activity.
Within several hours of his removal, Zelaya spoke to media in San José, Costa Rica, calling the events "a coup" and "a kidnapping." He stated that soldiers pulled him from his bed and assaulted his guards. Zelaya stated that he would not recognize anyone named as his successor, and that he wants to finish his term in office. He also stated that he will now be meeting with diplomats.
According to Venezuela's ambassador to the OAS, the ambassadors of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua were kidnapped by the military and transported to the airport. Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez stated that the Venezuelan ambassador was assaulted by Honduran soldiers and left by the side of a road.
Later that day, the Supreme Court issued a statement that it had ordered the army to remove Zelaya from office. The Supreme Court stated "The armed forces, in charge of supporting the constitution, acted to defend the state of law and have been forced to apply legal dispositions against those who have expressed themselves publicly and acted against the dispositions of the basic law".
The National Congress has voted to accept what they claimed is Zelaya's letter of resignation, but Zelaya has said he did not write the letter. Later the Congress voted unanimously to remove Zelaya for "manifest irregular conduct" and "putting in present danger the state of law" and named the President of the National Congress as his successor.
Venezuela has reportedly sent a plane to pick up Zelaya and take him to an extraordinary meeting of the Central American Integration System in Managua, Nicaragua. A Venezuelan government-owned radio station claimed that a socialist congressman, Cesar Ham, was shot and killed by the army, but the Honduran newspaper El Heraldo reported he was alive and unharmed.
Hugo Chávez and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez have both seperately claimed that Honduran Foreign Minister Patricia Rodas has been detained by the Honduran military. Rodríguez said that the Cuban, Venezuelan and Nicaraguan ambassadors to Honduras had tried but were unable to protect Rodas from a group of masked soldiers who forcibly took her from their grasp.
Acting President Roberto Micheletti ordered a 48-hour curfew which began on Sunday night (June 28) and ends on Tuesday (June 30).
According to Reuters, hundreds of pro-Zelaya protesters, some masked and wielding sticks, set up barricades of chain link fences and downed billboards in the center of Tegucigalpa and blocked roads to the presidential palace. Reuters witnesses heard gunshots outside the presidential palace that apparently came after a truck arrived at the protest, and an ambulance also appeared. It was not clear who fired the shots. One witness said shots were fired only in the air and there were no initial reports of injuries.
International reaction
Every Latin American nation (besides Honduras) is socialist and publicly condemned the removal of the president despite the popular support of the decision among Honduras' own people. Yet, the United States, Spain, France, and others, have publicly condemned the forced removal of Zelaya as undemocratic and most have labelled it as a coup d'état. Amongst the many reactions, Hugo Chávez, President of Venezuela, has said that his nation would respond militarily if the Honduran military enters the Venezuelan embassy and that it would mean a "de-facto state of war". President of Paraguay Fernando Lugo said that the coup participants belong in prison. Americas-based international organizations such as the Organization of American States, Mercosur, and the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas have also condemned the events. No nation has publicly declared support for the Honduran military's actions or for the new acting President Roberto Micheletti, except for Honduras itself.
Reactions
: Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon "expresses his strong support for the country's democratic institutions and condemns the arrest today of the constitutional President of the Republic," a U.N. spokesman said in a statement. "He (Ban Ki-moon) urges the reinstatement of the democratically elected representatives of the country and full respect for human rights, including safeguards for the security of President Zelaya, members of his family and his government. He calls on all Hondurans to engage peacefully and in the spirit of reconciliation to resolve their differences. The Secretary-General welcomes the prompt diplomatic efforts of the Organization of American States, whose Permanent Council is holding a special meeting this morning. The United Nations stands ready to provide assistance in overcoming this crisis." The U.N. General Assembly meets in emergency session Monday afternoon to debate the political crisis.
- The Organization of American States has called for an emergency meeting. Secretary-General José Miguel Insulza called it a military coup.
- The nine members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas announced in a joint statement that they would not recognize any new government in Honduras.
- Mercosur and
: President of Paraguay and current president pro tempore of Mercosur Fernando Lugo condemned the coup and said that no member state of Mercosur will recognize a Honduran government that is not led by Manuel Zelaya. Lugo also called for those behind the coup to be punished by serving prison sentences.
: The European Union called on the Honduran military to release the president and restore constitutional order.
: Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner said: "I'm deeply worried about the situation in Honduras. It reminds us of the worst years in Latin America's history. We will demand that the OAS (Organization of American States) fully comply with the democratic charter that requires unconditional respect for democracy and, above all, the restoration of the Honduran president. I do not hesitate to call this a return to barbarity. All countries of the continent and the entire international community should demand the return of the democratically elected president.
: Evo Morales, President of Bolivia, condemned the military action. "To allow people to participate and decide the future of their country through their vote, it is not possible that some groups ignore this, including the military.".
: Celso Amorim, the Brazilian Minister of External Relations issued a press release "strongly condemning the military action that resulted in the ousting of the President of Honduras," urging for his "immediate and unconditional return to power," and expressing "solidarity with the Honduran people."
: Peter Kent, the Canadian Minister of State of Foreign Affairs (Americas), released the following statement: "Canada condemns the coup d'état that took place over the weekend in Honduras, and calls on all parties to show restraint and to seek a peaceful resolution to the present political crisis, which respects democratic norms and the rule of law, including the Honduran Constitution. Democratic governance is a central pillar of Canada's enhanced engagement in the Americas, and we are seriously concerned by what has transpired in Honduras."
: The Chilean government also condemned the coup and referred to Zelaya as "legitimately elected by the people".
: The Colombian government released a four point statement where they expressed profound concern by the break in constitutional order, rejected the removal by force of the democratically elected President Zelaya, called for the re-establishment of constitutional and legal order, and supported the actions of the OAS in its attempts to find democratic solutions for the crisis in Honduras.
: In a joint press conference with Manual Zelaya, Costa Rican President Óscar Arias condemned the coup and said that it "indicates that democracy in Latin America and its institutions are fragile and vulnerable". Arias also said that Zelaya was personally in "good condition" and that Costa Rica was offering Zelaya "all the courtesies that he deserves".
: The Cuban government condemned the coup d’état.
: "This coup d’état represents a step backwards because it violates the Democratic Charter of the Organization of American States (OAS)", says Leonel Fernández, President of Dominican Republic.
: Rafael Correa, the President of Ecuador, said he would not recognize any new government in Honduras.
: "(The Government of El Salvador) asks for the immediate restoration of the constitutional president of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya", said Salvadoran President Mauricio Funes in a press conference. Funes also said that he had a telephone conversation with Zelaya, in which he expressed "solidarity" with the deposed Honduran president. The Salvadoran Minister of the Defense, David Munguía, said that the Salvadoran military will reinforce three border crossings between El Salvador and Honduras.
: The French Foreign Ministry said in a statement: "France firmly condemns the coup that has just taken place in Honduras. The arrests and expulsions of diplomatic envoys are a grave breach of the Vienna convention. They are unacceptable. The constitutional order must be restored at the earliest opportunity. France calls on all parties to act with respect for the principles and values of democracy."
: Guatemalan President Álvaro Colom said in a press conference that Guatemala "recognizes President Zelaya as the democratically chosen president". Colom said that he will discuss with fellow Central American presidents in Managua about how to restore democracy in Honduras.
- Foreign Minister Dr Ken Baugh, who is also Jamaica's deputy prime minister, said the removal of President Zelaya was in breach of the principles of respect for the rule of law, human rights and constitutional order. "The government of Jamaica maintains its full support for and recognition of President Zelaya and therefore calls for his immediate reinstatement.
: The Mexican government condemned the arrest and forced exile of Zelaya to Costa Rica.
: President of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega invited Zelaya to come to Nicaragua and attend the Central American Integration System presidents' meeting. "Come here. We are not going to recognize any spurious, coup government that installs itself in Honduras. We will not recognize it," Ortega said.
: The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs have condemned the coup.
: The Panamanian government condemned the coup.
: José García Belaúnde, the Foreign Minister of Peru, said that his government "strongly condemns" the coup and will push for the re-establishment of democracy in Honduras.
: A spokesperson for Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero released the following statement: "The head of the government expressed his strongest condemnation for the illegal detention and expulsion of the constitutional president of the Republic of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya. The solution to any dispute must always be found through dialogue and respect for democratic rules. There is not, neither can there ever be, a solution to the Honduran crisis outside the country's constitutional framework."
: Chris Bryant, the British Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, said: "The UK condemns the expulsion of President Zelaya and calls for the restoration of democratic, constitutional government in Honduras. We support the Organisation of American States' call supporting the rule of law and are deeply concerned about the deployment of military personnel onto the streets of Tegucigalpa."
: United States recognizes ousted President Manuel Zelaya as the only constitutional president of Honduras President Barack Obama is said to be "deeply concerned" about the developments in Honduras. He called on all political and social actors in Honduras to respect democratic norms, the rule of law and the tenets of the Inter-American Democratic Charter. In a written statement, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "The action taken against Honduran President Mel Zelaya violates the precepts of the Inter-American Democratic Charter, and thus should be condemned by all."
: Vice President of Uruguay Rodolfo Nin Novoa condemned the coup and called for the re-establishment of democratic order in Honduras.
: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said that the coup called for Obama to speak out because the US "has a lot to do" with what happens in Honduras. A few hours later, Chavez put his military on alert and said he would do everything necessary to abort the coup in Honduras if anything were to happen to its embassy. He also warned that if a new government was sworn in he would "bring them down".
Legal arguments
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The rest of the world cannot tell Honduras how to run itself. (fact). Despite the negative reaction of other nations, Honduran citizens by and large support the decision to oust the former President. There is contention over whether or not the events constitute a coup d’état; the remaining Honduran government rejects this characterization, while most other nations which have made declarations have used the word. Article 239 of Honduran Constitution, which forbids any former chief executive from being re-elected President, states that any citizen (including the president) who proposes reforming this law, and any others who support such a person directly or indirectly, are to immediately "cease carrying out" any public charge. There is, however, no constitutional process for impeachment or removal of a president.
The military claims to have been acting under the instruction of the Supreme Court of Justice, and their actions were ratified afterwards by both the court and the Liberal-majority National Congress. Zelaya is a member of the Liberal party. The National Congress named and ratified Roberto Micheletti, the next person in line for the presidency, within hours. The 3 state powers (Legislative, Judicial and Executive) are meant to act as checks and balances of each other, with the constitution being the basic law.
Also, a document sent to Congress purports to be a resignation from President Manuel Zelaya. President Zelaya denies quitting and the authenticity of this document. The succession, however, is based on Congress having removed him from office, not simply on his own alleged resignation.
References
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- ^ Honduras Lurches Toward Crisis Over Election
- ^ ALBA bloc leaders' main obsession: indefinite rule
- "Troops oust Honduran president in feared coup". Sydney Morning Herald. 2009-06-29. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - ^ "Honduran leader forced into exile". BBC News. June 28, 2009. Retrieved June 28, 2009.
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{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - "Congress names new interim Honduran president". The Sidney Morning Heralde. 2009-06-29. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
- New Honduran leader sworn in
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- Honduras TV gets government order
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- ^ "Honduras Crisis Opens Regional Rift".
- "El Congreso hondureño inicia una investigación urgente al presidente" (in Spanish). La Vanguardia (España). 27/06/2009. Retrieved 28/06/2009.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|access-date=and|date=(help) "¿Qué te pasa Roberto?. A mí me eligió el pueblo y no el Congreso. ¿Por qué me vas a inhabilitar, eres un pinche diputado de segunda categoría que saliste en ese puesto porque te di espacio en mi corriente." - Honduran leader pushes ahead with divisive vote
- ^ Ordaz, Pablo (June 28, 2009). "El Ejército expulsa al presidente hondureño, Manuel Zelaya". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved June 28, 2009.
- Honduran Military Ousts President
- See "Honduran President is Ousted in Coup," New York Times, 28 June 2009
- "Honduran president calls arrest a 'kidnapping'". The Washington Post. Associated Press. June 28, 2009. Retrieved June 28, 2009.
- "Honduras' Congress Names Acting President". SKY News. 2009-06-28. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
- Honduras supreme court 'ordered army coup'
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{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - "Venezuela sends aircraft to pick up Honduran president Zelaya". Trend News. 2009-06-28. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=and|date=(help) - "Aseguran que el dirigente de izquierda y congresista hondureño César Ham está vivo y resguardado" (in Spanish). Gobierno Bolivariano de Venezuela - Ministerio de lo Poder Popular para la Comunicacion y la Informacion. 2009-06-28. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
{{cite web}}:|first=missing|last=(help) - "Honduran Congress names provisional president". CNN. 2009-06-29. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
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- http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124623220955866301.html
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- http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124623220955866301.html
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{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=and|date=(help) - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124623220955866301.html
- Article 239 of the Honduran constitution: "El ciudadano que haya desempeñado la titularidad del Poder Ejecutivo no podrá ser Presidente o Vicepresidente de la República... El que quebrante esta disposición o proponga su reforma, así como aquellos que lo apoyen directa o indirectamente, cesarán de inmediato en el desempeño de sus respectivos cargos y quedarán inhabilitados por diez (10) años para el ejercicio de toda función pública." Translation: Any citizen who has carried out the function of titular head of the Executive power may not be President or Vice-president of the nation. One who breaks this rule or proposes its reform, as with those who support such a person directly or indirectly, will immediately cease carrying out their positions and will be ineligible for any public charge for ten (10) years.
