President Zelaya planned to hold a non-binding vote at the end of June 2009 to gather public opinion on whether a change to the constitution would be well-received. Critics opined that Zelaya was intending to hold the referendum so that he could alter the one-term rule, which is the current stipulation for any President of the country. Zelaya could have then placed himself in the running for re-election as President for a second term. Both Congress and the Supreme Court ruled that the referendum would be illegal and the army refused to support Zelaya over it. Since the crisis has unfolded, President Zelaya has maintained that he always intended to retire to his ranch when his presidential term ended.
How was Zelaya Removed from Power?
On 28 June 2009, President Zelaya was effectively kidnapped after up to 300 troops came to his home and forced him into exile. According to Zelaya himself, he was told to either surrender or be shot. He was driven to the airport and put on a plane to Costa Rica, still wearing his pyjamas. Later that day, Roberto Micheletti, the speaker of Congress and second in line to the presidency according to the constitution, was sworn-in as interim leader of the country. Although Zelaya's ousting is not a coup in the usual sense of the word, because the military are not seeking to take control of the country themselves, the President's removal from power is being treated as a coup across the world.
How are Hondurans Reacting to Zelaya's Removal?
Within Honduras, there have been demonstrations on the streets both for and against the ousted President. Initially, the population appeared confused, particularly after some key media was shut down. Martial Law has also been imposed as a curfew is being enforced on Hondurans and electricity is reportedly being switched off across the country from 10pm. Pro-Micheletti and anti-”Communist Zelaya” demonstrators, largely middle-class Hondurans, have taken to the streets of Tegucigalpa, the capital city, dressed in white as a symbol of peace. Although some reports state that Zelaya's support has dropped to just 30%, angry pro-Zelaya protesters – mostly members of trade unions, peasant associations and university students, have also taken to the streets wearing masks and Che Guevara t-shirts.
How is the Honduran Crisis Being Received Internationally?
In general, the international community feel that President Zelaya is still the democratically elected President of Honduras and that he should be reinstated. President Obama has said as much, although his administration appear reluctant to help the President to return to power. With a long and complex history of US interventionism in Honduras, Obama's caution is not surprising. The United Nations General Assembly has also called for Zelaya's reinstatement. Following the UN's approval over the President's reinstatement, Zelaya once again pledged not to attempt to re-run for President once he returns to Honduras and would not accept a second term even if he is offered it.
Honduras faces isolation from countries and organizations across the world as a result of Zelaya's forced exile. The Organization of American States (OAS) also suspended Honduras in protest over Zelaya's ousting following an emergency meeting in Washington. The suspension was approved with 33 votes to zero. This is the first time the OAS has taken such a measure since 1962 when Cuba became an ally with the USSR. Micheletti is also being shunned by neighboring countries, who have imposed trade blockades with Honduras. The United States have ended joint military operations and European Ambassadors in Tegucigalpa have left the country. The World Bank has also frozen $200m and the Inter-American Development Bank $450m of financing to the country.
Will Zelaya Return?
Zelaya has vowed to return to Honduras on Sunday 5 July 20009, together with other leftist heads of state including President Cristina Kirchner of Argentina, Ecuador's President Rafael Correa and President Daniel Ortega from Nicaragua. However, Micheletti's new administration have said that Zelaya will be arrested for treason and corruption if he returns. So far, violence has been kept to a minimum in Honduras since the coup. However, Tegucigalpa's Roman Catholic archbishop, Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez, fears the worst and urged Zelaya not to return, saying on Honduran state television: "We think that a return to the country at the moment could provoke a bloodbath.”
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