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Clinton Calls Zelaya's Return 'Reckless', Rights Groups Respond
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has
called a move by ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya to cross the
border into his homeland "reckless."
Zelaya briefly crossed the Honduran border on Friday before quickly
returning to neighboring Nicaragua to avoid arrest. The incident
occurred almost a month after the country's military sent him into
exile.
The Honduran military is known to be trained by the US military
before Zelaya elected as president in the Latin American state and
ended his country's alliance with Washington, its traditional ally, and
teamed up with Venezuela, Ecuador and other anti-US leftist leaders in
the region.The military has a history of dictating governmental
policies and legislations.
Clinton called the act "reckless", adding that it would not help restore democratic and constitutional order in Honduras.
She also stressed the Obama administration's support for the
proposal put forth by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, which includes
an 11-point plan to reinstate Zelaya and offer amnesty to the leaders
of the coup.
Zelaya, however, said he was forced to act on his own after the
US-backed talks failed to reach an agreement with the coup-installed
government to reinstate him.
The interim government has vowed to arrest him if he tries to return.
Earlier in the day, security forces fired tear gas at dozens of
pro-Zelaya supporters trying to reach the border to greet the president
near the coffee town of El Paraiso.
Several people have reportedly been wounded in the clashes.
According to a Press TV report, the Honduran Army has also imposed
a curfew on the entire district near the Nicaraguan border crossing.
Meanwhile, Mark Weisbort of the Washington-based Center for
Economic and Policy Research told Press TV that Honduras-based human
rights groups are worried that the interim government is adopting a
repressive policy of selective assassination, similar to the one
incorporated in the 1980's.
Some regional leaders believe that the US -- despite its
condemnation of the incident -- was actually behind the June 28
military coup against Zelaya in a bid to undermine the new alliance
formed by socialist heads-of-state in Latin America.
100 Comments so far
Show AllThe "some regional leaders" comment reminds me of the Faux News use of "it is said". Honest journalism would attribute the comment to specific individuals and/or governments.
odoco
Clinton's folks are, at this moment, in Honduras telling the new coup leaders how to orchestrate their illegal activities. The US government still allows the Honduran military to come to the school of Americas to receive their terrorist training - not how to defeat it - but how to implement it. Clinton also, repeatedly, painted Hugo Chavez as a 'dictator' during the presidential debates of 2008. Her husband sold Americans out to Wall Street and the corporate interests when he cancelled the Glass-Stegall (sp?) Act. Sec. Clinton has also consistently supported the rightwing regimes in South and Central America - those governments aligned with the wealthy elite as opposed to the general populations of those countries (Columbia a prime example).
Wouldn't surprise me a bit if Hillary wasn't also part of the "C - Street" evangelical crowd who believe they were endowed by their God to rule over the rest of us - anybody want to research that one?
This is about empire, control, lying to both Honduras and to the American public in order that corporate interests can continue their looting of other countries. But don't tell anybody - it is supposed to be a secret . . . . .
There are enough connections between the Clintons and Obama's administration and the right wing Honduran coup and Chiquita (formerly United Fruit) which opposed Zelaya's raise of Honduras' minimum wage, to discredit most of the 'nice' words Hillary and Obama utter about the "regime change" in Honduras (they both refuse to say "coup" because that would force a cut off of all U.S. aid to Honduras). Meanwhile, Honduran military, among others, are still training at our government's infamous School of the Americas (a.k.a. School of the Assassins).
See:
US Lobbyists with Clinton Ties Hired to Defend Honduran Coup Regime http://www.democracynow.org/2009/7/15/honduras
Defying Coup Regime, Zelaya Attempts Return to Honduras
http://www.democracynow.org/2009/7/24/defying_coup_regime_zelaya_attempts_return
Chiquita in Latin America http://www.counterpunch.org/kozloff07172009.html
Obama AG Nominee Eric Holder Helped Chiquita Banana Beat Charges The Corp. Killed Labor Organizers In Colombia http://walled-in-pond.blogspot.com/2008/11/obama-ag-nominee-eric-holder-helped.html
odoco wrote:
"Wouldn't surprise me a bit if Hillary wasn't also part of the "C - Street" evangelical crowd who believe they were endowed by their God to rule over the rest of us - anybody want to research that one?"
i Googled "Hillary Clinton prayer breakfast", lots of stories come up. Apparently she has been a participant in one of Doug Coe's weekly "prayer breakfast" groups for more than 15 years. Coe heads up "The Family" of politically powerful right-wing evangelical christians who believe that Jesus puts Presidents in power for reasons, and they try to figure out what Jesus intends the purpose of each President to be. Reportedly The Family has other agendas as well, lots of stuff out there on their membership and activities. Coe is part of the "C Street" crowd.
When the story broke a couple years back, a Clinton spokesperson denied that she is actually a member of one of The Family's "cells" (their own term), and said that despite her long direct association with Coe she does not consider him her "spiritual advisor".
I read recently that the Clintons have connections to folks in league with the coup supporters.
I found this article on Democracy Now: http://www.democracynow.org/2009/7/15/honduras.
q
Perhaps Obama should start using the word STUPID to describe his own S.O.S.
The Clinton's are just another manifestation of the Swine flu.
'Reckless' to stand in the way of another overthrow of democracy?
Who's behind this banana republic? Bush, Cheney, Clinton or all of them?
Maybe Ms Clinton thought it was reckless because the guy could have been shot by a trigger happy soldier? That could have precipitated a civil war.
If Hillary Clinton really wants to talk about "reckless," I suggest she look into the mirror and see the reflection of herself and the Administration she represents in the U.S. military operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan---operations that have zero-chance of success (unless you measure success as the support of U.S. arms manufacturers) and a great, escalating and seemingly endless cost to our military men and women and all U.S. taxpayers, not to mention the people of these countries. Besides these really reckless operations, Zelaya's short walk across the Honduran border would be a laughable instance of "reckless" action.
I won't go so far as to endorse the view that the US might have "actually [been] behind the June 28 military coup against Zelaya in a bid to undermine the new alliance formed by socialist heads-of-state in Latin America". But, without the shadow of a doubt, Hillary is giving support to the delaying tactics of those who expect time to run out for any meaningful and peaceful return of Zelaya to Honduras. There are hardly a dozen weeks' time left for Zelaya to return before Presidential elections that are now due to take place, according to a schedule in principle agreed to by both sides that hase brought forward by a month its timing. By endorsing Micheletti's diabolical dance of contortions between appearing to be ready for negotiations in Nicaragua that he then torpedoes, and his using the threat of violent crackdown at home, Hillary is, in effect, hoping that time will defeat Zelaya's legitimate bid to return peacefully.
This has parallels with the 'blind-spot tactic' used to ignore Iranian and Afghan Northern Alliance warnings before 9/11 that the assassination of Shah Ahmad Masood was being planned and that something terrible was about to be happening. These warnings came days after the incredibly arrogant walk-out of Israel/US and most Western countries from the August 2001 World Conference Against Racism (WCAR) in Durban. A similar 'blind spot strategy' was used when, in 2003, Iran had offered a comprehensive deal to the US to put everything on the table for negotiations, including Iran's recognition of Israel and its readiness to discuss uranium enrichment. The planned ivasion of Iraq was in the works then, just as the invasion of Afghanistan was being contemplated even before the WCAR.
The same tactic is being used now about the arrest of Ratko Mladic, since the mandate of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia ends in 2010. I assume that the court proceedings already underway will continue, but, from what I have read, there are opinions floating around that the power of the Tribunal to issue warrants for further arrests relating to the Yugoslavia war crimes will run out in 2010.
All this is very deplorable. I am no believer in conspiracy theory, but, if the world community, of which the US boasts of taking the lead, wants to improve global governance, such methods should be avoided, and the US should take principled stands in matters of crucial importance for global peace.
Are US leaders and its Governmnet even AWARE of their blatant hyprocrisy on virtually every matter?
It is astounding to me that they could be imprisoning 12 year old boys based upon confessions extracted via torture while at the same time lecturing other countries on the need to respect human rights.
It mind boggling that they can be counseling an elected democratic leader to show "restraint" so as not to provoke violence, while at the same time they arm violent groups the world over to topple their own Governments.
They rearm the country of Georgia which just a few months ago provoked the Russians while at the same time condemning Venezuala for interference in the affairs of other countries.
Its not that they ARE hyprocrites I find most amazing. It is how open and blatant they are when the practice it wherein they still take for granted that they have ANY credibility with anyone.
I can not even stomach watching these folk speak anymore.
The behaviour they exhibit is cult like and psychopathic.
Clinton, if not Obama, is beginning to understand that it is "not" constitutional order that the exiled former President wants to restore.
Constitutional order calls for a fair and free election campaign and a fair and free election for President this November.
Constitutional order calls for the exiled former President to be replaced by a President elected by the people of Honduras.
Constitutional order calls for he, the exiled President, to leave office.
Clinton is beginning to see that the people of Honduras were rapidly facing a choice when they removed him from office.
That choice was to remove him now or be stuck with him as a dictator for decades to come.
Honduras has, so far chosen the path of democracy, over dictatorship. At least so far.
Venezuela, by comparison, did not act soon enough, and now they are stuck with their dictator until he dies.
Hmmm. A Honduran fascist troll.
Zelaya is the one who was fairly elected. The fact that he wanted a fair wage for Hondurans workers does not make him a dictator.
Except, of course, to the elitist sacks of shit for whom you work.
Also, the people of Honduras did not remove Zelaya from office; the military did. You're a liar.
q
I guess he gets off being called a liar, as I have been calling him one since he started posting here.
Which was after he responded to the internet ad for UNPAID anti-Chavez posters.
Some folks have no sense of what they are worth--and some, in the case of that troll, do: nothing.
Yup, the obligatory paid-troll...
Oligharchy, enforced by a rigged constitution that perpetuates conditions of grinding poverty and virtual slavery for the majority of the citizens, isn't democracy. The people have the right to replace their constitution at any time.
Venezuela will continue to have presidential elections every 6 years. Every one of their elections and referenda have been declared free and fair by independent observers, so their is no reason to believe future ones won't be too.
U.S. history shows evidence that you are correct. Until FDR was elected the forth time, there were no term limits in the USA, and there were regular elections every four years from its inception. Just because there are no term limits, doesn't mean there won't be elections. If there is a constitutional referendum and the term limits are dropped again, there might be an outcry(depending on which side is in office at the time), but past practice shows that there will be elections every four years.
Of course they still have electoions after removal of term limits, the two have nothing to do with each other. This "no term limits = dictatorship" nonsense is a straw man and red herring all rolled into one. There is nothing at all democracy-enhancing about term limits, quite the opposite. If the people like the job a chief executive is doing, they should be able to keep electing him or her indefinitely. In a parliamentary system, people can keep electing the same majority party led by the same prime minister indefinitely.
And it seems that all this wailing about removing term limits only applies if the president is a leftist. 4 years ago, Uribe (Colombia) successfully won a referendum for a special exception to run a second time, now he is calling for another referendum so he can run a third time. Not a peep from the US media about this.
Likewise, Arias is president again because of the removal of term limits, no fuss about that either
Wow. You must be getting your "information" from FAUX "News". What a crock....
"Clinton is beginning to see that the people of Honduras were rapidly facing a choice when they removed him from office."
Nope. Wrong. Soldiers with tanks and guns removed him.
"Venezuela, by comparison, did not act soon enough, and now they are stuck with their dictator until he dies."
Venezuela conducted a poll. The people made their choice.
Oh wait, let met guess, by "the people", you mean the rich. In your worldview, only the rich have a right to choose.
rc_phoenix: "Constitutional order calls for he, the exiled President, to leave office."
What the hell are you smoking?
viejolex1: actually, I think rc_phoenix is just suffering from having read too much of the Miami Herald. He might, for example, have gotten hold of this bad weed:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/americas/story/1118718.html
Constitutional order calls for he, the exiled President, to leave office.
( For those who claim to be ignorant of both the US and Honduras constitutions - George Bush was required to leave office not later than January 2009 by the US constitution and the exiled Honduran President was required to leave office not later than January 2010 by the Honduran constitution.)
Clinton is beginning to realize that the exiled President had no intention of leaving office in 2010.
Like the dictator in Venezuela he was going to find some way to claim he had changed the constitution to allow himself to stay as long as he wanted - no matter how many elections and constitutional assemblies he had to bring to Honduras run by the exiled President and for the exiled President. He prints the ballots, he runs the elections, he "counts" the ballots on his computers, and he prints out the election results from his computers. Damn he's good. Who needs those pesky election commissions and election rules setup by the constitution and laws of Honduras.
He did not really mean it when he swore to defend and protect the constitution and to faithfully execute the laws of Honduras. After all, he had his fingers crossed.
One of the unmistakable signs of a troll is the repetition of points that have already been disputed.
You have no basis whatsoever for claiming that Zelaya did not intend to honor the limits of his term. In fact, you have no basis for any of the things that you have claimed in your slanderous posts.
Chavez is not a dictator; he is the freely elected leader of Venezuela who doesn't give a tinker's damn about the blood-sucking propertied classes such as those for whom you work.
Here's looking forward to the day that we see the coup supporters in Honduras dragged into the streets and hanged. May you be among them.
q
Well, our resident unpaid jackoff troll is DONE.
No need to stick a fork in him, either.
Reckless isn't President Manual Zelaya returning to his homeland, it's U.S. involvement in the military coup d'etat, such that, he has no choice but to return. Why? Because he's a Honduran, not a puppet of Empire-USA, that's why.
Clinton, if not Obama, is beginning to understand that it is "not" constitutional order that the exiled former President wants to restore.
Constitutional order calls for a fair and free election campaign and a fair and free election for President this November.
Constitutional order calls for the exiled former President to be replaced by a President elected by the people of Honduras.
Constitutional order calls for he, the exiled President, to leave office. ( For those who claim to be ignorant of both the US and Honduran constitutions - George Bush was forced to leave office not later than January 2009 and exiled Honduran President was required to leave not later than January 2010 )
Clinton is beginning to see that the people of Honduras were rapidly facing a choice when they removed him from office.
That choice was to remove him now or be stuck with him as a dictator for decades to come.
Honduras has, so far chosen the path of democracy, over dictatorship. At least so far.
Venezuela, by comparison, did not act soon enough, and now they are stuck with their dictator until he dies.
The UNPAID TROLL is still blwoing it out his butthole.
I think "steel grey" did a better job, I almost thought he was valid.
It's amazing how people rant about His Honor Senor Chavez closing a USA funded T.V. station that was calling for his assassination; it took him months and I do not recall if anyone was even arrested.
In the USA everyone at the station including their pets would be in an Egyptian torture chamber.
Well, Fidel Castro called it right yesterday when he ironically suggested that Hillary the Harpy should receive a Nobel Prize.
He did not say which category--but obviously not for peacemaking.
Literature, maybe?
Nativetongue: I am not actually responding to you, just current threads.
Here I go again:
Forum Suggestion:
If you have been following commentary to this article to this point, you have no doubt noticed rc_phoenix posts. I have scrolled all through them and to CD regulars
Rc_phoenix post's are broken record regurgitation of some fascist troll talking points. As usual, I suggest, ignoring all his postings reading around them. Any direct response just stokes his 1/2 penny per word paycheck.
The bottom line here is this:
If the Honduran people get to elect a new President and the exiled President is out of office on or before January 2010 then the Honduran people win.
If the exiled President and his friend the dictator of Venezuela manages to return him to power and keep him there after January 2010 - then Honduras has a dictator and the Honduran people lose.
Those who claim they just want to see this guy go back for a couple of months and are willing to start a civil war and kill thousands of people to do it are either not telling the truth or live for death and increased poverty caused by economic destruction.
The bottom line?
There is no bottom line for YOU: you are not even getting PAID to make a fool of yourself in internet. You are doing it for free--just to get attention.
How pathetic!
Meanwhile the folks in Honduras are being slaughtered by the golpistas and their gang--already there is a stadium converted to a torture and extermination center--a la Pinochet.
The sole of my foot to you and all your fascist ilk.
Really ???
People are getting slaughtered in Honduras right now ???
When exactly ???
Where exactly ???
Who exactly ???
How many exactly ???
Making up stories on the internet to justify a civil war which will kill thousands is about as low as it gets.
On the other hand, knowing this is actually happening and not getting the details of who / when / where / why out, makes you an accomplice to murder after the fact.
Several international human rights groups are reporting considerable oppression, including some killings and disappearances. Please read Greg Grandins account from Tegucigalpa here:
www.democracynow.org/2009/7/24/defying_coup_regime_zelaya_attempts_return
The UNPAID demented troll is not going to read anything that even remotely smacks of reality.
He´s having too much fun jacking off to his fascist fantasies.
And which side has all the guns and reserves of death squads that would start this civil war? From the late reports of killings and disappearances, it appears they have already started it.
If that is true then Obama should be talking about the police and death squads in Honduras, not Harvard.
Any evidence ???
Even in the police state of Iran protesters were able to get pictures and eye witness reports out via the internet.
Any sites that have these up already in English or Espanol ???
Already posted above, lying sack of.
You want pics to jack off to now?
odoco
And dare say who is the Venezuelan dictator? Have you not heard of the elections - internationally monitored - and were found to be above reproach????
Why do you fascists have to lie so much? Is it because your ideologically abhorrent views are so hated by the majority of the people that you have to camouflage your true intent? I think we all know the answer to that question.
Let's see rc - I betcha also know where those damned weapons of mass destruction are hidden too!
odoco stated:
US Secretary of State "Clinton also, repeatedly, painted Hugo Chavez as a 'dictator' during the presidential debates of 2008."
Apparently "odoco's" point is that if the current Secretary of State of the United States painted Hugo Chavez as a dictator he must be just the opposite.
Logical arguments just do not get much better than that.
odoco
At this point I suspect that the "c" in "rc" must stand for "Clinton."
My point was that Chavez is obviously a leftist-leaning national leader who has had the audacity to not only reject US psuedo-governance, but has actually stood before the world and delineated many of the US's past crimes in the Southern Hemisphere. And just in case you have forgotten, Chavez has been legitimately elected by the people of his country, despite a US financed coup that failed to permanently dislodge him. Watch "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" if you care to broaden your perspectives. Question for you: why would Clinton have referred to Chavez as a dictator (which he obviously is not) during a presidential campaign? And why, when called on it, did she refuse any further comment?
But I do want to than you for your thoughts today. Every once in awhile I enjoy wallowing around the musings of nasty little fascists who rely on innuendo and outright skullduggery in their efforts to control people's minds and emotions. Don't let facts get in your way rc - you might get confused.
nativetongue.miami on July 25th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
stated:
"folks in Honduras are being slaughtered by the golpistas and their gang--already there is a stadium converted to a torture and extermination center"
Really ???
People are getting slaughtered in Honduras right now ???
When exactly ???
Where exactly ???
Who exactly ???
How many exactly ???
Making up stories on the internet to justify a civil war which will kill thousands is about as low as it gets.
On the other hand, knowing this is actually happening and not giving the details of who / when / where / why, makes you an accomplice to murder after the fact.
Right--I am an accomplice to murder after the fact. What a riot!
Charge me, pendejo!
http://www.aporrea.org/actualidad/n139338.html
http://www.aporrea.org/tiburon/n139323.html
http://www.aporrea.org/tiburon/n139314.html
http://www.aporrea.org/internacionales/n139329.html
Yep, you ARE about as low as it gets, compulsive UNPAID LIAR.
No answer to the
exactly when
exactly where
and
exactly who
questions
guess that means you just made it up....
I am not the news sites reporting from Honduras.
But I am the person who pulled your pants down.
Compulsive UNPAID liars are not even a dime a dozen.
Remember, it was
nativetongue.miami on July 25th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
stated:
"folks in Honduras are being slaughtered by the golpistas and their gang--already there is a stadium converted to a torture and extermination center"
You betcha I stated it.
And I backed it up with the news story, too.
Pull up your pants--ugly cracker guys with no balls are a real turn off.
Latest on aporrea.org news site:
http://www.aporrea.org/tiburon/n139343.html
Complete with color photos so that the resident UNPAID troll on this thread can jack himself off big time.
Nothing to stop him since I already pulled his pants down.
Zelaya accepted the terms of the agreement posed by Arias; the coup leaders rejected them. So, Zelaya is correct that the talks failed. Clinton is pretending that the talks are still ongoing.
Clinton's pretense, and her "reckless" comment, suggest she's pressuring just one side: the elected president of Honduras, rather than the coup regime.
The cat's out of the bag. It looks like the U.S. government is on the side of the coup regime, at minimum.
-TIA
Clinton caught with her pastel polyester pants down is ALMOST as unattractive as our resident UNPAID troll.
The US keeps sending your tax dollars to the Pinochet wannabe murderers.
And the US State department is just another rogue operation.