While international media is almost unanimously condemning the alleged coup in Honduras, supporters of ousted President Manuel Zelaya can not freely express their opposition.
Since Sunday early hours, June 28, when Zelaya was forcibly taken out of the country, most media were removed from the air, and cut the electricity supply throughout the country. The power came back minutes before noon, and the main source of news at the time was CNN, which was broadcasting large amounts of misinformation about Honduras from the start.
Channels of Televicentro Corporation and Channel 10, owned by Wong Rodrigo Arevalo, were soon on the air. Other channels took more time to start broadcasting.
Channel 11, owned by Jaime Rosenthal started broadcasting yesterday.
Even today there are stations that are not normally broadcasting.
Today I was listening to Radio Globo, a station that has been characterized by his defense of Zelaya’s government and his project for reforming the constitution. At one o’clock were (un) informing the journalists David Romero Ellner and Ariela Caceres, calling to disregard the new authorities and raise popular insurrection, when they were removed quickly from the air. It is said that the journalist Eduardo Maldonado, strong supporter of Zelaya, who participated in past internal elections , has taken refuge at the American Embassy. Also fleeing is the journalist Esdras Amado Lopez, also in favor of Zelaya.
The law prohibits calls to make an insurrection against the government. This should not be interpreted necessarily as a repressive action of the new government. The law has always prohibited open insurrection. However, some people have opined in favor of Zelaya discreetly in the media, but media can not have an editorial line openly in favor of former authorities.
However, many people have heard the broadcasting of CNN en Espanol on the crisis in Honduras, which is considered highly uninformed and misinformator. It’s particularly unfortunate the emphasis that what happened here was a military coup, when never the military have held power in Honduras, not even for a moment. What we have in Honduras is a civilian government.
CNN has exaggerated the sympathy Zelaya may have in Honduras. It was said that thousands of people had rushed to the streets to support Zelaya, which is not true. The opposite is true: Thousands of people attended yesterday downtown Tegucigalpa to support the new administration.
The media blackout of the early hours of the abrupt change of government has faded, and today the flow of information is almost normal. Today we have heard several people in local media defending Zelaya.
I have been reading on numerous sources that there have been some recent blows to the Honduran constitution by those that claim to have taken action against Zelaya for threatening the same. I'm curious about your perspective. I have to say my support for the administration will suffer if they have made sweeping changes to the constitution without and regard for process. Here are the articles that Huffington Post has pointed out as being erased:
And so today, Honduras said goodbye to the following articles of its Constitution. It seems as though they could be easily abused by those currently in power and their flexibility could set a bad precedent for govenrments to follow. Thank you.
Article 69: "A persons liberty is inviolable and can only be restricted or suspended temporarily through process of law."
Article 71: "No person can be arrested nor kept incommunicado for more than 24 hours without being placed before a competent authority to be judged. Judicial detention during an investigation must not exceed six consecutive days from the moment that the same is ordered."
Article 78: "Freedoms of association and meeting are always guaranteed when they are not contrary to public order and good customs.
Article 79: "All persons have the right to meet with others, peacefully and without weapons, in public demonstration or transitory assembly, in relation to their common interests of any type, without necessity of notice or special permission."
Article 81: "All persons have the right to circulate freely, leave, enter, and remain in national territory. No one can be obligated to change home or residence except in special cases and with those requirements that the Law establishes."
Thank you.
It's easy from the comfort of a first world country to be self-righteous about alleged abuses. But, if there is no order, all rights go to the heap. There is no lawfulness when a revolution is in full swing.
Decrees of "toque de queda" are nothing new in Honduras. These are necessary emergency measures. These guarantees are not being "erased". Nor are beeing erased those articles from the constitution.
Most people here understand these measures as necessary.
I really like your writing, especially now! I pass on your blog to others and just added you to my blog's blogroll. Please add my blog to yours as well, although I talk about our travels around Central America, we live and Volunteer in La Ceiba and talk about Honduras the most. http://www.henderbalz.wordpress.com
"self-righteous" — that's the word I was looking for! Yes, seeing armed soldiers on the streets with rifles looks scary to Americans. But we see uniformed men with rifles every place we go, restaurants, stores, malls, businesses, hotels, etc., don't we? It's part of life in Honduras. It took awhile for me to get used to also.
I agree about the curfew. Since CNN has chosen not to show pro-Zelaya supporters throwing rocks at the soldiers and police, beating at them with bats, chasing other citizens and the media down the streets, people don't understand. Besides, Honduras is has so much crime, it is rare that we are out much past 10 anyway. I just don't care.
I wish that you would clarify that the media outages you are referring to were in Tegucigalpa. In La Ceiba, the Honduran stations returned about 11 am, CNN has never been interrupted. I started watching at 7:30 a.m. Also, I'm not sure what the situation is with Channel 11 because we have been getting it all week.
I'd also like to point out that our cable company "loses" CNN and many other stations all the time. It goes out for a few days and then comes back (I'm referring to long before 6/28). I know that they did stop broadcasts the HN stations for a few hours. I'm not disputing that.
Have you heard the new song, "Mel se fue"?