[Marxism] coup in Honduras

[Michael Friedman <lycophidion@xxxxxxxxx>]

Soldiers arrest Honduran president for convoking a referendum on the
constitution, sacking general...

Immediate Action Required... The only contact information in Honduras
I could find that might be relevant is the public relations office of
the Honduran Armed Forces:
<drepffaa@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>

We can also send messages to the White House and Congressional Representatives.

Demand that Zelaya be released unharmed, immediately!

...........................................................


Secretary: Soldiers arrest Honduran president
By WILL WEISSERT and FREDDY CUEVAS, Associated Press Writers Will
Weissert And Freddy Cuevas, Associated Press Writers 50 mins ago

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras – More than a dozen soldiers arrested President
Manuel Zelaya and disarmed his security guards after surrounding his
residence before dawn Sunday, his private secretary said. Protesters
called it a coup and flocked to the presidential palace as local news
media reported that Zelaya was sent into exile.

The chief executive was detained shortly before voting was to begin on
a constitutional referendum the president had insisted on holding even
though the Supreme Court ruled it illegal and everyone from the
military to Congress and members of his own party opposed it.

Zelaya was taken into military custody at his house outside the
capital, Tegucigalpa, and whisked away to an air force base on the
outskirts of the city, his private secretary, Carlos Enrique Reina
told The Associated Press.

Tanks rolled through the streets and Army trucks carrying hundreds of
soldiers equipped with metal riot shields surrounded the presidential
palace in the capital's center. About 100 Zelaya supporters, many
wearing "Yes," T-shirts for the referendum, blocked the main street
outside the gates to the palace, throwing rocks and insults at
soldiers and shouting "Traitors! Traitors!"

It was not immediately clear who was running the government. Soldiers
appeared to be in control, but the constitution mandates that the head
of Congress is next in line to the presidency, followed by the chief
justice of the Supreme Court.

Neither military nor presidential officials have said who's in charge.

Honduras has a history of military coups: Soldiers overthrew elected
presidents in 1963 and again in 1972. The military did not turn the
government over to civilians until 1981, under U.S. pressure.

"We're talking about a coup d'etat," labor leader and Zelaya ally
Rafael Alegria told Honduran radio Cadena de Noticias. "This is
regrettable."

Alegria said that shots were fired during the president's arrest "but
we really don't know much about what happened."

Outside Zelaya's residence, a police officer who would not identify
himself by name told the AP that soldiers had disarmed Zelaya's
security guards but there was no violence or injuries.

Honduran radio station HRN reported that Zelaya had been sent into
exile, citing unidentified "trustworthy sources."

The radio announcer said it was not known to what country he had been
taken but "apparently he flew on the presidential plane to Venezuela."

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and former Cuban leader Fidel Castro
have both expressed support for Zelaya.

Zelaya's constitutional successor, Congressional President Roberto
Micheletti, has been one of the president's main opponents in the
dispute over whether to hold the referendum. The head of the Supreme
Court was also opposed to Sunday's election. The nonbinding referendum
was to ask voters if they want to hold a vote during the November
presidential election on whether to convoke an assembly to rewrite the
constitution.

It appeared pretty certain that the vote would no longer take place.

Zelaya supporters who would have cast their ballots in favor of the
referendum instead stood outside the gates to the presidential palace
to protest his arrest.

"They kidnapped him like cowards," screamed Melissa Gaitan, 21, an
employee of the official government television station, as tears
streamed down her face. "We have to rally the people to defend our
president."

Alegria added, "We demand respect for the president's life. And we
will go out into the streets to defend what this has cost us: living
in peace and tranquility."

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