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Violent Protests Hit Isolated Honduras
Zelaya supporters clashed with riot police, who used tear gas and batons to beat back those marching on the national parliament building in the capital Tegucigalpa.
Honduran riot police detain a Spanish photojournalist (L) covering a demonstration by supporters of ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya in Tegucigalpa. Honduran police fired tear gas to disperse thousands of angry demonstrators, as Zelaya called on the United States to do more to resolve the crisis. (AFP) Protesters threw stones and broke the windows of several nearby businesses, ignoring police warnings of a crackdown.
An angry mob attacked a lawmaker known to back the June 28 coup against Zelaya, before police mounted a successful rescue.
Around 50 demonstrators were detained during the clashes, which came a day after rioters torched the local branch of a fast food chain.
In a separate incident in the economic capital San Pedro Sula, stick-wielding protesters formed makeshift road blocks near the hotel of Costa Rica's visiting football squad.
Police responded by firing tear gas and rubber bullets.
As the violent repercussions of the coup was felt on the streets, the diplomatic fallout continued in Latin America's capitals.
Honduras's international isolation deepened as the small Central American country was told it could not attend an upcoming meeting of top regional military brass.
Argentine organizers said the Honduran military would no longer be welcome at the gathering because of its role in the coup that threw Zelaya out of office.
The exiled leader spent the day in Brazil, meeting President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as part of a near two-month bout of shuttle diplomacy aimed at garnering support for his return to power.
Zelaya called for greater backing from Washington for his plight and "a firmer (US) position to show that these attacks on democracy cannot be repeated."
But he was at pains to distance himself from the claims of leftist allies that the United States had a hand in his ousting, adding that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had invited him for another round of talks in Washington.
"I hope to go there in the coming weeks, but nothing has been confirmed for now," said Zelaya.
Latin American leftist leaders and some US lawmakers have criticized President Barack Obama's administration for failing to take a firmer stand against the interim Honduran regime, while some US Republican lawmakers have denied that a coup took place.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim told journalists that Lula had promised the ousted president he was ready to discuss the matter with Obama, who earlier this week reaffirmed that Zelaya was the rightful leader of Honduras, and assailed those who fault his approach.
"The same critics who say the US has not intervened in Honduras are the same people who say we are always intervening and Yankees need to get out of Latin America," Obama said in Mexico on Monday, accusing such opponents of "hypocrisy."
The Organization of American States (OAS) plans to send a delegation of Latin American foreign ministers to Honduras next week to press for a negotiated solution to the crisis.
7 Comments so far
Show AllNow that the people of Honduras are defending themselves against the coup gangsters who seized control of their government, shut down the independent media, attacked and did all they could to smash dissent and destroy democracy, we get this hot air about violent protests which those security and military types backing the coup made violent and were engaged acts of violence against the Honduran people that would make what happened in Iran look like nothing. Let's get real here.
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Looks like Obama is headed for one term presidency. Hey at least we'll get rid of the Klantons and the Blue Dawgs if that happens.
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Can someone PLEASE tell Mr.Obama and Ms.Clinton (and, er, uh, actually your average stupefied American couch potato) that a helpful CHANGE in policy (as in actually standing up for democratically-elected leaders who've been kidnapped in their pajamas and denouncing that as a COUP rather than tsk-tsking them for being 'reckless' in attempting to return to their own country!!??) from what became the norm in the previous administration (spectacular ignorance about environmental & empire-overshoot, hubris, thuggery, misuse of 'security' forces, impunity, ignoring the law as a minor inconvenience and acting as puppet for the corporatocracy)is going to require an actual
CHANGE
AWAY from (and not TOWARDS still MORE) consistently ENABLING the dominion-addicts' feeding frenzies and endangering the whole planet with their clearly out of control demands for more more more bailouts, resources, puppet regimes, wars, etc.???????????
Ok, ok, I don't mean to put it all on the prez....Lord knows he inherited one heckuva constellation of quagmires, but come ON!....that coup took place back in JUNE already... Does that Chicago School put a CHIP in a person or WHAT!!!???? Sheesh.
Better to get news of Honduras from Flashpoints. Listen to yesterday's (8/12) show about these 'massive violent protests'. http://www.flashpoints.net/?p=127
Honduras -- A democratic dictatorship
Equality in Honduras would maximize ambition, which would maximize productivity and create an economy second to none.
So President Zelaya, a rancher and raiser of beef who would like everyone to afford roast beef, decided to raise minimum wage by 60%, and to join the most equality minded trade group in the Americas called ALBA.
Problem is the majority in Honduras, the 60% who own most all the land and wealth, consider themselves to be upper class and desire above all things the privilege of class.
And so, the 4.5 million majority enriches itself upon the misery of society, the 3 million laboring class is now in rebellion, and anything could happen next.
Come next election -- Black president blamed for crises
Since 1776 the rich nobility have funded our elections. So why now when facing a time of crisis unequaled in history do they select a president neither rich nor noble white?
Well it all has to do with guilt and a smoke screen to hide guilt. Guilt for a war materials industry that has destroyed our economy and morals. Guilt for a finance industry that has cannibalized manufacturing and destroyed housing. Guilt for a processed food industry that fattens people like cattle being prepared for slaughter, and a medical industry that makes trillions on operating tables doing the slaughter.
And so, in three years after no-change Obama has changed nothing, and after the multinational rich have turned us into a bankrupt Third World nation, look for a rich and noble white reincarnation of FDR to save us from democracy, by a new kind of capitalist theocracy.
So much for the story going around that the military coup d'etat was favored by Hondurans.
And about the numbers from Alabama_John that 60% of the populace owns most of the land?