HONDURAS: U.S. envoy Craig Kelly holds news conference after Honduran Congress says it will vote on ousted President Manuel Zelaya's fate after Presidential poll

Record ID: 790541

  • Title: HONDURAS: U.S. envoy Craig Kelly holds news conference after Honduran Congress says it will vote on ousted President Manuel Zelaya's fate after Presidential poll
  • Date: 19th November 2009
  • Summary: TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS (NOVEMBER 18, 2009) (REUTERS) (CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY) EXTERIOR OF PRESIDENTIAL HOUSE HONDURAN FLAG VARIOUS OF MILITARY EXERCISE EXTERIOR OF MARRIOTT HOTEL U.S. ENVOY CRAIG KELLY WALKING INTO NEWS CONFERENCE CAMERAMEN (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) U.S. ENVOY CRAIG KELLY, SAYING: "The United States has to follow important foundations in order to implement the agreement, which are: The principle of the restoration of the constitutional democratic order and to monitor the June 28's coup d'etat. We've always seen the elections as part of the solution." KELLY DURING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) U.S. ENVOY CRAIG KELLY, SAYING: "It's important that all actors avoid provocations and calls to violence because what the country needs is peace, an atmosphere of peace in order to advance towards such an important date for the country." KELLY DURING NEWS CONFERENCE TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS (NOVEMBER 18, 2009) (REUTERS) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, ELVIN SANTOS, OF THE LIBERAL PARTY TALKING TO REUTERS SANTOS' HANDS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, ELVIN SANTOS, OF THE LIBERAL PARTY, SAYING: "The situation in Honduras is easy to resolve and done with one measure. The international community should act responsively and respect Honduran laws. It's important to note that we are not asking for our democratic electoral process to be recognised. We are demanding our laws and country be respected." VARIOUS OF HONDURAN CONGRESS
  • Embargoed: 4th December 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Honduras
  • Country: Honduras
  • Topics: International Relations,Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA4KZTC4WY1UG02YZ7DIQ0X7ZI2
  • Story Text: U.S. envoy Craig Kelly holds news conference in Tegucigalpa after congress says it will convene on Dec. 2, following the presidential elections, to decide whether to reinstate ousted leader Manuel Zelaya.
    Honduran lawmakers will wait until after a Nov. 29 election to decide whether to reinstate ousted President Manuel Zelaya, delaying a vote central to a U.S.-led deal to end months of political turmoil.
    Zelaya, who irked the poor nation's elite by forming close ties with leftist Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, was sent into exile in his pajamas by soldiers on June 28 and a de facto government led by Roberto Micheletti took charge.
    The U.S.-brokered pact to end the crisis stipulates a congressional vote on reinstating Zelaya, but it never set a date and the October accord crumbled within days as the rival sides failed to form a unity government.
    The delay could leave a door open to negotiators to continue looking for a way to break the deadlock. A "No" vote before the election might increase international rejection of the result of the presidential ballot.
    South American leaders have called for Zelaya's immediate reinstatement but Washington seemed to weaken his position by saying it would recognize the presidential election simply on the basis of the signing of the accord.
    In a bid to salvage the shattered deal, U.S. envoy Craig Kelly visited Honduras for the second time in a week.
    "The United States has to follow important foundations in order to implement the agreement, which are: The principle of the restoration of the constitutional democratic order and to monitor the June 28's coup d'etat. We've always seen the elections as part of the solution," Kelly, the second-ranking U.S. diplomat responsible for Latin America, told reporters.
    Kelly added it was important to avoid violence in the coming days.
    "It's important that all actors avoid provocations and calls to violence because what the country needs is peace, an atmosphere of peace in order to advance towards such an important date for the country."
    Zelaya, who has been holed up at the Brazilian embassy since sneaking back into the coffee- and textile-producing country in September, initially welcomed the pact, which he said was meant to reinstate him.
    But he has since vowed to refuse to return to the presidency as part of any negotiated deal, saying to do so would legitimize the coup and the presidential election, which he is urging his supporters to boycott.
    Presidential candidate, Elvin Santos of the incumbent Liberal Party, said the political crisis could be resolved if the international community respected Honduran laws.
    "The situation in Honduras is easy to resolve and done with one measure. The international community should act responsively and respect Honduran laws. It's important to note that we are not asking for our democratic electoral process to be recognised. We are demanding our laws and country be respected."
    Congress sessions will be convened on Dec. 2 and lawmakers expect the Supreme Court to give an opinion next week on whether Zelaya should be returned to power until a new president is sworn in January after the Nov. 29 election.
    With less than two weeks left before the vote, Congress has been dragging its feet on debating Zelaya's return. Many lawmakers are running for re-election and analysts say they are reluctant to tackle an issue that has split the nation.
    "Obviously congress has to make a decision, congress can't postpone this subject. I understand that when the president (Congress head Jose Saavedra) says December 2, part of the assumption will be that the opinions will already be in Congress, because although we have the wish to resolve it, it won't be resolved without the opinions," said congress vice-president, Ramon Velazquez Nasar.
    De facto leader Micheletti praised the decision by Congress to debate Zelaya's fate and urged the ousted president to maintain "prudent silence" about the national election.
    Zelaya, a logging magnate who hiked the minimum wage and cut school fees, was accused by critics of trying to illegally change the constitution to allow for presidential re-election, something he denies.
    After the coup, Honduras was cut off diplomatically and the United States, the European Union and lenders suspended hundreds of millions of dollars in aid.
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