Honduras moving on?

When soldiers entered the Presidential Palace on June 28^th, 2009 and removed President Zelaya at gunpoint, the act was seen by many at home and abroad as a coup d’état and international condemnation swiftly followed with few countries acknowledging the legitimacy of the interim government. It was widely reported as the first coup in Central America for twenty years, a heady and perhaps shameful accolade for the country to hold.

The coup was not universally condemned at home though. Within Honduras public opinion was divided, a Gallop pole circulated by Honduras news media suggested 41% agreed with the removal of Zelaya as it occurred and 46% disagreed, this represented only 1200 households in a country of over 8 million, however, and widespread riots and protests flamed fears of civil unrest in the wake of the coup.

The United States dismissed the interim government in the strongest terms as illegitimate and called for democratic elections, along with many other countries, there were fears the interim government would become a permanently temporary, unelected body, as is so often the case in coup’s the world over. But Honduras has proven its democratic institutions to be strong and resilient in the face of such pressure.

In January of 2010, Porfirio Lobo became president after democratic elections were held, elections that international observers declared to be free and fair and legitimate. The government is back on track then, but there is still division and anger among the people. To bring a sense of closure to this period in Honduran history, the government has pressed ahead with plans to hold a Truth Commission, which will reportedly look to find reconciliation and not blame.

President Lobo, referring to the decision to launch the commission, said it “exemplifies our resolve to heal wounds, learn from our mistakes and build together the future of this country.” His statement echoed calls from the US Ambassador, Hugo Llorens, who said it “should be a tool for national reconciliation, not to lay blame.”

Supporters of former President Zelaya have dismissed the commission as a tool to consolidate the coup, but it has international support from the world community and the Organization of American States, from which Honduras was removed following the coup, the organization has now intimated to Honduras news media that the country may soon be accepted back in.

There is still a great deal of difference of opinion on the coup among Hondurans though and, more sinisterly, much hurt due to the authoritarian measures enacted by the interim government. According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, a branch of the OAS, told Honduras news media that since the coup there had been at least 50 cases of illegal detention, two rapes of Zelaya supporters, two kidnappings and eight cases of torture by police and other security forces. This has created much hurt and suspicion in the population, which the commission must try to redress.

According to conflicting reports, these human rights abuses are ongoing, which Matthew Lackey, a researcher for the Washington-based Council on Hemispheric Affairs, says in a report “raises questions about the country's dubious potential for peace and reconciliation”.

What matters most now should be the future of the country. Around half of Hondurans live below the poverty line, over 20% of people are unemployed and the world is trying to recover from a global market meltdown, now is the time for reconciliation and rebuilding of the nation’s unity.