Honduras Coup, Act V, Day 4

What you can do: E-mail Frank LaRue of the UN to protest press intimidation.

Mr. Frank La Rue
Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
Palais des Nations
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Fax: +41 22 917 9006
Email: freedex@ohchr.org
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Update2: (in progress)

Major, potentially game changing news from a poll (via Honduran embassy):

Nearly four months after Honduran President Mel Zelaya was forced from office, he retains considerable public support, according to a new survey by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner.

* By a large 22-point margin (60 to 38 percent), the Honduran public disapproves of the removal on June 28 of Zelaya as president.
* Two-thirds approve of Zelaya’s performance as president. Nineteen percent rated his performance as “excellent” and another 48 percent as “good.”

The national survey, which involved face-to-face interviews with 621 randomly selected Hondurans from October 9-13, found that Zelaya is considerably more popular than Roberto Micheletti, who has been serving as de facto president. By a 2-1 margin (57 to 28 percent), Hondurans have a negative personal opinion of Micheletti. And a slight majority gives Micheletti’s tenure as president negative marks.

The COIMER&OP poll was very effectively censored. It was never published in English by any major news outlet (per Google search, which is not comprehensive). But GQR can’t so easily be ignored, not that the media won’t try.

The poll has a lot more detail that’s worth looking at. Over 80% say things are going the wrong direction. About 80% do not approve of Hugo Chavez. Micheletti and the US aren’t much more popular, with a majority disapproving. 55% think that the Constitution should be amended to permit re-election. 54% think that there should be a Constitutional Convention. 42% will consider elections held under Micheletti to be illegitimate. There’s more, not all of it good for Melistas, but generally showing that the US is not siding with the people of Honduras.
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Update:

Via Marisol, a post by Reed Kurtz:

Even more evidence has come to light regarding the desperation and disregard for human rights of the Honduran coup regime and its elite backers. On Friday, October 9 a United Nations human rights panel issued a warning concerning the presence of contracted foreign paramilitary forces operating inside the troubled country. According to the UN Working Group on the use of mercenaries, an estimated 40 members of the infamous United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) have been hired by wealthy Honduran landowners to defend themselves “from further violence between supporters of the de facto government and those of the deposed President Manuel Zelaya.” …

The AUC, essentially an umbrella organization of various right-wing death squads, many of which also collaborate with Colombian drug traffickers, is one of the region’s most notorious paramilitary organizations and is classified as a terrorist group by the U.S. State Department. Supposedly “demobilized” in 2006, the AUC has largely continued to carry out its drug-dealing activities and campaign of violence and intimidation against campesinos, indigenous peoples, stigmatized social groups such as homosexuals and prostitutes, labor organizers, critical journalists, and human rights advocates.

Brother John writes:

His recent interview for an article by Catholic News Service, “Cardinal says this might be last chance for Honduras to make changes,” is quite revealing, though it seems to repeat much of what he said in the interviews in July. But what bothers me is the fear that I read beneath his comments. It was also intriguing to read his comments about Bishop Luis Alfonso Santos who has, since the beginning of August, repudiated the coup. The cardinal sees unity in the episcopate but mentions that “Sometimes there is a voice singing out of tune with the choir … but you’re united.” I am not sure that the cardinal is correct about the unity, but I am privileged to be able to work in the diocese that is “out of tune” – or, maybe put better, “marches to the beat of a different drummer.”

Referring to two hand grenades found in mall washrooms, Nell says in comments :

“The planted grenades are being used for exactly the purpose I suspected, and the U.S. Embassy is playing along.

An even uglier chapter is opening.”

The State Department issued a Warden Alert, an advisory to Americans in or traveling to Honduras. It’s certainly likely that the regime planted the grenades to justify clamping down on civil rights. I’m not sure I know what State should have done other than issue an advisory (I mean, besides kicking Micheletti in the a– and putting an end to his foolishness). Americans clearly could be in danger, both from the regime and from all the criminals that the police aren’t arresting because they’re watching the resistance. But until I see this used in the US to attack the resistance, I will hesitate to say that State is playing along. I know, I know: my comeuppance will probably arrive on the next Hannity show. But until then….

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Dialogue has ceased. I’m not sure why they have carried it on this long. Micheletti says that he doesn’t have the power to restore Zelaya, that only the Supreme Court does. So Micheletti should be acting as the agent for the Supreme Court, but he’s not even doing that.

There’s chaos in visa issuance. Zelaya was forced to dismiss the consular official in charge of the consular section, because that official was acting as though the election were approved. [Read it in English at Adrienne's, as translated by RAJ] The cops were called.

A huge fire in Santa Barbara, which began at 3AM, took out the central market and the penal center. The 361 prisoners were transferred to the central park. In the melee, 70 escaped, of which 67 were captured and 11 were wounded. Three murderers remain at large. The Jose Maria Leiva Cultural Center, which housed the library, was damaged.

Police spokesman Daniel Molina has resurfaced, hale and hearty. Why the police failed to answer queries about his whereabouts until he was declared missing is a mystery left for the ages.

Radio Globo: I just missed the press conference with Zelaya. People from the Carter Center are being passed through security at the embassy.