Honduras coup - condemnation must be followed with action

By Simon Fletcher

Barack Obama has repeatedly made it clear that he wishes to see better US relations with central and Latin America. This Sunday’s military coup in Honduras is the first coup in Latin America since President Obama was elected - the first test of US policy towards central and Latin America on his watch.

President Manuel Zelaya Rosales, was kidnapped by the military, removed from his home by force, prevented from communicating with the outside world for several hours and then violently expelled from Honduras. Soldiers also seized Honduran Foreign Minister Patricia Rodas and the ambassadors of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. President Zelaya was apparently deported to Costa Rica where he appeared on Costa Rican television with the country’s President to denounce the coup.  The military-backed coup organisers are trying to prevent demonstrations of support for the legitimate government and suppress news through means of heavy military presence, curfews and intimidation of journalists.

Following the coup a meeting of the Organisation of American States received strong condemnations of the forced removal of President Zelaya by Nicaragua, Bolivia, Paraguay, Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, the OAS General Secretary and Honduras's ambassador to the OAS, who also condemned the coup. The President of the United Nations, Miguel D'Escoto, has unequivocally condemned the coup.

In a statement Foreign Office minister Chris Bryant said that the British government “condemns the expulsion of President Zelaya and calls for the restoration of democratic, constitutional government in Honduras.” The European Union condemned what it called a "coup d'etat" against Zelaya. "This is an unacceptable violation of constitutional order in Honduras," Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kohout, from the EU presidency, told reporters. He described what had happened as "a coup d'etat", saying: "The EU calls for the urgent release of President Zelaya and a swift return to the constitutional normality.”

Initially President Obama’s response fell short of urging the reinstatement of the elected President of Honduras. “I am deeply concerned by reports coming out of Honduras regarding the detention and expulsion of President Mel Zelaya,” he said. “As the Organization of American States did on Friday, I call 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.”

But the situation is very fluid. The criticism of the coup around the world must have played its part in Hilary Clinton’s stronger language later. "The action taken against Honduran President Mel Zelaya violates the precepts of the Inter-American Democratic Charter,” she said, “and thus should be condemned by all. We call on all parties in Honduras to respect the constitutional order and the rule of law, to reaffirm their democratic vocation, and to commit themselves to resolve political disputes peacefully and through dialogue.” 

By yesterday Obama had further toughened the US line. "We believe that the coup was not legal and that President Zelaya remains the president of Honduras, the democratically elected president there," Obama told reporters after a meeting with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe. "It would be a terrible precedent if we start moving backwards into the era in which we are seeing military coups as a means of political transition, rather than democratic elections,” he added.

Obama’s firm statement, underlining Zelaya’s continued legitimacy against the illegal coup, is very welcome, and would have been unthinkable under his predecessor. He is right to point to the consequences if the coup succeeds. The decisive question now therefore is what action is taken. It is within the power of the international community generally, and the USA in particular, to prevent the coup leadership from succeeding. The US has had a long relationship with Honduras. An illegal coup against a democratically elected President in Honduras would almost certainly be stillborn if its leaders believed the US, which such forces would normally look to for support and legitimacy, was instead going to take decisive measures against them.

What is now required is the complete isolation – both diplomatically and in terms of trade for example – of the coup leadership. Cross-border trade was halted by neighbouring states in the aftermath of the coup, indicating the kind of measures that could be taken. The US ambassador should be withdrawn, as should those of other states.

Should the coup in Honduras succeed it will embolden undemocratic forces across central and Latin America. As Obama has implied it would send a signal that it is possible to return the region to its bloody past of military coups that brutally blocked the will of the people of those countries. The British and other European governments can take a lead by refusing to recognise the illegal government of Honduras put in power by this coup and moving swiftly to isolate it.