Revolution in Honduras

The first read on what happened in Honudras was to describe it as a coup, which certainly holds an element of truth, but if one delves further into the story I believe Revolution might be a more appropriate term. Zelaya clearly attempted a power grab to make him dictator for life just like his patron Chavez. The people of Honduras toppled a tyrant in its infancy, no loss. The important thing now is to restore the democratic process and prevent retributions and recriminations from damaging the Nations future.

The arrest of Mr. Zelaya was the culmination of a battle that had been simmering for weeks over a referendum, which was to have taken place Sunday, that he hoped would lead to a revision of the Constitution. Critics said it was part of an illegal attempt by Mr. Zelaya to defy the Constitution’s limit of a single four-year term for the president.

Early this month, the Supreme Court agreed, declaring the referendum unconstitutional, and Congress followed suit last week. In the last few weeks, supporters and opponents of the president have held competing demonstrations. On Thursday, Mr. Zelaya led a group of protesters to an Air Force base and seized the ballots, which the prosecutor’s office and the electoral tribunal had ordered confiscated.

When the army refused to help organize the vote, he fired the armed forces commander, Gen. Romeo Vásquez. The Supreme Court ruled the firing illegal and reinstated General Vásquez.

As the crisis escalated, American officials began in the last few days to talk with Honduran government and military officials in an effort to head off a possible coup. A senior administration official, who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity, said the military broke off those discussions on Sunday.

Why the President decided to meddle in Honduras but not Iran is questionable. As of now there is a push to isolate the governmengt by the OAS and the US position has been critical. Of course Chavez has blustered about war but that was to be expected. As for the world reaction, of course the depose of an authoritarian leftists has many upset:

Micheletti (The New President) was sworn in as provisional president to the applause of members of Congress, who chanted, "Honduras! Honduras!" Outside the building, supporters of Zelaya protested, but their numbers were limited, and the streets remained mostly peaceful. Micheletti told CNN en Español Sunday evening that he had imposed an "indefinite" curfew.

Micheletti, the head of Congress, became president after lawmakers voted by a show of hands to strip Zelaya of his powers, with a resolution stating that Zelaya "provoked confrontations and divisions" within the country. A letter of resignation purported to be from Zelaya was read to members before the vote.

The coup was widely criticized in the region, in strongest terms by Zelaya's leftist allies, including Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. A statement from Venezuela's foreign ministry said Zelaya was "violently expelled from his country by a group of unpatriotic, coup-mongering soldiers."

The Bolivian government also condemned the coup, accusing Honduran troops of kidnapping Zelaya and violently expelling him from his country.Elsewhere, Jose Miguel Insulza, the secretary-general of the Organization of American States, strongly condemned the coup in a statement. And in Washington, U.S. President Barack Obama said in a statement that he was "deeply concerned" by the news.

"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," Obama said. "Any existing tensions and disputes must be resolved peacefully through dialogue free from any outside interference."

But in Honduras, the Supreme Court said in an official statement that the military was acting in accordance with a court order to put an end to Sunday's scheduled vote, which the court's justices had found illegal.