Legal Commentary

Brazil Takes Center Stage In Honduras

By Big Tent Democrat

Brazil has taken center stage in the situation in Honduras, deciding to host ousted Honduras President Zelaya in its embassy in Tegucigalpa:

After what he described as a 15-hour trek through the mountains, taking back roads to avoid checkpoints, Mr. Zelaya and his wife took refuge at the Brazilian Embassy in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital.

Obviously, Brazilian President Lula da Silva and the deposed Honduran President were unhappy that attention had fallen away from the Honduran situation. Here's the part that is interesting to me:

. . . Brazil’s president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva showed no sign of bending to Mr. Micheletti’s [the coup administration leader] administration, which it does not recognize as legitimate. At a dinner in New York on Monday night, Mr. da Silva criticized the removal of Mr. Zelaya once again and said Brazil and the United States should work together to guarantee that democratically elected leaders are respected.

“We cannot accept any more military coups,” Mr. da Silva said. “We don’t have the right to accept that anyone can think they have the right to throw out someone that is democratically elected and take their place.”

(Emphasis supplied.) Here's what's interesting - did Brazil consult with the United States before agreeing to house Zelaya at its embassy? My bet is no. The U.S. secretary of State's response was rather terse:

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Monday evening that the two sides must find a way to talk. “It’s imperative that dialogue begin,” she said. “It’s also imperative that the return of President Zelaya does not lead to any conflict or violence, but instead that everyone act in a peaceful way to try to find some common ground.”

In the end, what is this all about? Even if restored, Zelaya has 3 months left in office and Honduras is scheduled to have an election on November 29, approximately 2 months from now. Does Zelaya have a puppet candidate running? Will the election be a referendum on Zelaya? If so, to what end? Is all this commotion really about getting this deal?

Mr. Zelaya has accepted a proposal offered by Mr. Arias that would restore him to the presidency with limited powers and grant an amnesty on all sides. Mr. Micheletti has rejected it.

Do the coup leaders want Zelaya out of Honduras for the foreseeable future? And does Zelaya just wish to return to his home? This is all quite strange.

Especially Brazil's decision to move right into the middle of it. If the situation becomes violent, what will the world community think of Brazil's actions here? What will the U.S. think of it?

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on September 22, 2009 (boomark / email).