Call to Action: SoA Watch on Honduras
Posted By Melissa Bartell on September 8, 2009
From a recent mailing from School of the Americas Watch:
Since June 28th, you have joined with our friends in Honduras to help return democracy to their country. As a result, your actions are now bearing fruit.
Earlier this week, the SOA graduate-backed Honduran military coup regime refused all diplomatic options to return democracy. The U.S. State Department responded by asserting that visas to Hondurans would no longer be granted under the coup. Late yesterday State Department officials made it clear that they are considering legally defining the situation as a “military coup.” This would create an automatic cut-off of all remaining aid to Honduras. The coup regime immediately responded by saying that they would allow the rightful President Zelaya to return with amnesty, but not as president. Clearly the coup leaders are caving to the pressure. We need you to act now to return democracy to Honduras. Please make two very important phone calls this morning!
1.) Call the State Department at 202-647-5171 or 1-800-877-8339 and ask for Secretary Clinton. Deliver the following message: “Legally define the de facto regime in Honduras as a military coup and cut off all aid to Honduras until President Zelaya is unconditionally reinstated.”
2.) Call the White House at 202-456-1111 and repeat the same message “Legally define the de facto regime in Honduras as a military coup and cut off all aid to Honduras until President Zelaya is unconditionally reinstated.”
Yes, by all means demonstrate against the “SOA graduate-backed Honduran military coup regime,” because President Zelaya is SUCH a prince. And SUCH an advocate for Human Rights and the democratic process.
Under Zelaya’s administration, Honduras became a MAJOR hub for cocaine trafficking and human slavery. Corruption was rampant. Surprise, surprise.
Zelaya tried to change to Constitution of the country through an illegal referendum that would eliminate the Constitutionally-mandated term limits FOR HIM. He was not ousted by the military alone: the Supreme Court and the Congress and millions of Hondurans joined in the farewell party.
I don’t advocate military coups. But I sure wouldn’t be out there demonstrating on behalf of Zelaya, either.
Remember, there are always AT LEAST two sides to every story. Even in Honduras.