Wait a minute! I changed my mind.
According to the Foreign Relations Minister of Honduras, no request has been received from President Leonel Fernández for Mel Zelaya to travel to the Dominican Republic for a meeting with Honduran President-elect Pepe Lobo, even though Fernández announced the meeting. It really makes no sense for them to meet there when they are both in Honduras. Maybe Fernández is going for next year's Nobel Peace Prize.
Proceso Digital quotes Fernández as saying, "According to the criteria of the international community, Zelaya will cease to be president in January 2010, when he transfers the mandate to the president elect." − with no mention of the signed Tegucigalpa Accord, the congressional vote, or the 'Honduran solution'.
President Fernández arrogantly adds, "What was needed to complete the outcome of that electoral process was just a political dialogue. Here we have the second element of that equation and we believe that it finally could be the solution to the drama that Honduras has been suffering." Again, with no mention of the months of dialogue and negotiation that Honduras has been through, or the final Accord which was reached.
Just a few days ago, we heard that the "international community" wanted the Tegucigalpa Accord implemented as soon as possible. Obviously, there is no united international community.
Lobo is quoted as saying the plan was to dialogue and sign a new agreement! What? Lobo does not have the authority to negotiate anything for Honduras. There is already a signed Accord. This is going back to the OAS viewpoint where the only people who matter are the presidents. And finally, I would hope that Lobo realizes that Zelaya is not going abide by any agreement. Is Honduras going to be subject to every country in the world taking turns deciding what is best for Honduras, while Zelaya breaks agreement after agreement? How many do-overs does he get?
Zelaya's embassy sidekick Rasel Tomé spoke with Channel 6 this evening, and mentioned Fernández's willingness to help Honduras find an "exit" to this crisis, but he would not confirm either that Zelaya would visit the DR or that he had asked for asylum there. He said he would have more information in the next hours.
Does this proposed offshore meeting have to do with a suitcase full of cash and that's why it can't be done in the embassy? If so, where did the cash come from and who gets it?
But it is interesting to note that 'the closer' Craig Kelly of the US State Department met with Fernández yesterday. Something is up.
Update 12/12: An unnamed source within the government said: "Unless he leaves on a flying saucer, Zelaya is not going anywhere," the source said. "The only legal way for him to leave the country is under the condition of political asylum."
Proceso Digital quotes Fernández as saying, "According to the criteria of the international community, Zelaya will cease to be president in January 2010, when he transfers the mandate to the president elect." − with no mention of the signed Tegucigalpa Accord, the congressional vote, or the 'Honduran solution'.
President Fernández arrogantly adds, "What was needed to complete the outcome of that electoral process was just a political dialogue. Here we have the second element of that equation and we believe that it finally could be the solution to the drama that Honduras has been suffering." Again, with no mention of the months of dialogue and negotiation that Honduras has been through, or the final Accord which was reached.
Just a few days ago, we heard that the "international community" wanted the Tegucigalpa Accord implemented as soon as possible. Obviously, there is no united international community.
Lobo is quoted as saying the plan was to dialogue and sign a new agreement! What? Lobo does not have the authority to negotiate anything for Honduras. There is already a signed Accord. This is going back to the OAS viewpoint where the only people who matter are the presidents. And finally, I would hope that Lobo realizes that Zelaya is not going abide by any agreement. Is Honduras going to be subject to every country in the world taking turns deciding what is best for Honduras, while Zelaya breaks agreement after agreement? How many do-overs does he get?
Zelaya's embassy sidekick Rasel Tomé spoke with Channel 6 this evening, and mentioned Fernández's willingness to help Honduras find an "exit" to this crisis, but he would not confirm either that Zelaya would visit the DR or that he had asked for asylum there. He said he would have more information in the next hours.
Does this proposed offshore meeting have to do with a suitcase full of cash and that's why it can't be done in the embassy? If so, where did the cash come from and who gets it?
But it is interesting to note that 'the closer' Craig Kelly of the US State Department met with Fernández yesterday. Something is up.
Update 12/12: An unnamed source within the government said: "Unless he leaves on a flying saucer, Zelaya is not going anywhere," the source said. "The only legal way for him to leave the country is under the condition of political asylum."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
After lots of confusion Wednesday night, we learned that former president Manuel Zelaya would not accept political asylum because of the legal restrictions that would put on his intentions to continue his campaign to drum up political support to return to office, as well as to attend the upcoming ALBA meeting in Cuba.
Mexico's original request for safe conduct included Zelaya's family members and Rasel Tomé, former head of Conatel. Mexico was informed that the family members were free to leave the embassy and country whenever they liked. They were also informed that Rasel Tomé was a wanted criminal with an outstanding arrest warrant. When charges were filed against Tomé a few months ago, at the initial court hearing, he requested and was granted substitute measures instead of being held in jail awaiting trial. He was ordered to report to the court once a week. Once Tomé entered the Brazilian Embassy and stopped reporting to the court, he violated the terms of the substitute measures, and Brazil was harboring two criminals.
Mexico resubmitted their request to include only Manuel Zelaya, but according to Honduras' Foreign Minister, the request was 'confused' and did not meet international standards for asylum as presented in the Caracas Convention. The Mexican documents can be found at El Heraldo. Mexico has since announced cryptically that "conditions are not right" to receive Zelaya in Mexico − whatever that means. Hopefully it means that they finally realize that Zelaya cannot be trusted.
La Prensa accuses the governments of Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic of being involved in a plot to deceive the Honduran government into believing that Zelaya was asking for political asylum when they were planning to help him start a new media offensive against the Micheletti government.
Danilo Orellana, police commissioner, gave more information on a television show last night. Speaking frankly, he stated that Mel Zelaya called a Micheletti official on Saturday, December 5, to say that he was desperate, he couldn't stand it any longer, and he wanted to seek political asylum. Zelaya admitted that he had begun talks with Mexico. This was discussed with President Micheletti who agreed to let Zelaya go.
Orellana was called into the meeting with the Foreign Relations folks. He warned them that Zelaya would retract his request, that he wouldn't leave because he has mental problems, he is a "megalomaniac" − and that is what happened. "He made a mockery of the good faith of the Honduran authorities."
Commissioner Orellana said that Zelaya was even willing to sign a statement committing to abide by the Tegucigalpa Accord, recognize the elections, and not refer anymore to the Honduran crisis because he accepted that he was an ex-president. But at the last minute Zelaya changed his mind, just as Orellana predicted. "He is a case for a psychologist." said Orellana. (They should have realized this after Zelaya denied signing his resignation, reneged on every aspect of the Tegucigalpa Accord, and all the other lies he has told in the past months.) Then of course, Zelaya twisted the story for the media and the media bought it.
Proceso Digital gives more details.
Why now?
What really happened
La Prensa accuses the governments of Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic of being involved in a plot to deceive the Honduran government into believing that Zelaya was asking for political asylum when they were planning to help him start a new media offensive against the Micheletti government.
Orellana was called into the meeting with the Foreign Relations folks. He warned them that Zelaya would retract his request, that he wouldn't leave because he has mental problems, he is a "megalomaniac" − and that is what happened. "He made a mockery of the good faith of the Honduran authorities."
Commissioner Orellana said that Zelaya was even willing to sign a statement committing to abide by the Tegucigalpa Accord, recognize the elections, and not refer anymore to the Honduran crisis because he accepted that he was an ex-president. But at the last minute Zelaya changed his mind, just as Orellana predicted. "He is a case for a psychologist." said Orellana. (They should have realized this after Zelaya denied signing his resignation, reneged on every aspect of the Tegucigalpa Accord, and all the other lies he has told in the past months.) Then of course, Zelaya twisted the story for the media and the media bought it.
Proceso Digital gives more details.
In what must have been dozens of telephone interviews going late into the night Wednesday, Zelaya proposed renegotiating an entirely new agreement. He said, over and over again, that he is looking for peace for his country, for a negotiated exit, that the country cannot be reconciled without him. Nice words, but his actions have shown his intentions to be something entirely different.
Though Zelaya said that he was willing to stay in the embassy for 10 years, Brazil announced yesterday that Zelaya must leave the embassy by January 27, 2010, the day that his term expires. Then today, they may have changed that to extend his welcome.
Information Minister Rene Zepeda said Thursday, "If these countries want to get Zelaya out of Honduras, they will have to do it according to the law: by giving him asylum in their territories, but without a title. If that happens, our government will accept that and they can take him immediately without any problem."
Zelaya was quoted, "The whole purpose of leaving was to find a neutral place where we could establish a dialogue with Porfirio Lobo,'' Zelaya said. Lobo has previously asked to talk with Zelaya and Zelaya refused! In that same article, Zelaya also says that the US agreed to his plan to go to Mexico, which US Embassy officials in Honduras refute. This article quotes Zelaya as saying he was on the telephone with US Ambassador Hugo Llorens at the same time he achieved agreement with Mexico.
Why now?
What do you suppose brought on this new effort from Zelaya? I think he was emboldened by Arias' demand that that Micheletti resign and by the Chávez-led countries who claim they will never recognize Pepe Lobo as president. He probably thought, "Here's my chance! I can convince the world to put me back!"
Zelaya is just delusional. His country, with the exception of a small group who mostly have been manipulated and mislead with bad information, does not want him. Not for seven weeks, not for seven days, not for seven minutes.
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