ONE YEAR SINCE THE COUP

EMERGENCY COMMITTEE AGAINST THE COUP IN HONDURAS (ECACH)

ONE YEAR SINCE THE COUP

MANIFESTO ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL RESISTANCE FRONT AGAINST THE COUP IN HONDURAS (FNRP) (FULL TEXT IN SPANISH)-JUNE 28, 2010. Statement’s key points: · Honduran people have not stopped fighting ever since the coup of June 28, 2009 · Two diametrically opposed views on society confront each other in Honduras: that of the oligarchy and that of the people · Manuel Zelaya was overthrown because he took steps towards building a new Honduras for the majority · Honduras is bankrupt, it faces acute fiscal and financial crisis; corruption is rampant · The FNRP continues to grow stronger, it organises the country’s huge social, ethnic, and gender diversity and is fighting to establish a National Constituent Assembly aimed at the re-founding of Honduras · The FNPR seeks to repeal all concessions made to voracious private (national and foreign companies) in the areas of water, energy, forests, and in any other area of our economy due to the application of neo-liberal policies. We pay homage to the many comrades who lost their life at the hands of the repressive forces of Honduras.

HUMAN RIGHTS: THE RECORD

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: “Honduras failing to tackle coup rights abuses” – 28 June 2010 In a statement issued on June 28 to coincide with the anniversary of the coup that overthrew democratically elected President Manuel Zelaya, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL “has accused the Honduran authorities of failing to address serious human rights violations that followed the coup d’etat of 28 June 2009, when ex-President Manuel Zelaya was forced from power.” Read more…

MORE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES · Ninth media worker this year is shot to death in Honduras – June 15 · Luis Arturo Mondragón, 9th Journalist killed in Honduras in 2010 – June 15 · Roland Valenzuela, former Minister of the National Program for Sustainable Development under Manual Zelaya, assassinated – June 16 · ITUC: Honduras: Violence and Human Rights Violations Escalate – June 17 · Honduran activist Maria Luisa Regalado tells group at El Barrio of President Lobo's brutality – June 26 Remembering the Honduran Coup – 26 June (nice pictures of the people’s struggle)

SINCE LOBO CAME TO POWER · 21 persons of the resistance movement have been murdered · 7 journalists have been assassinated (click here) · 127 resistance activists have been accused and processed for political offenses by the regime · 310 cases of human rights violations have been identified; 53 unlawful arrests have been made, and more than 23 homes of people affiliated with the resistance have been searched by security forces. · Committee of Relatives of the Detained and Disappeared in Honduras: more than 700 politically motivated attacks countrywide since January 30 2010 (click here) · 34 people have been murdered for political reasons · More than 60 people have died violently for "strange" reasons. · One of the most impacted sectors is that of lesbian, gay, transvestite, transsexual and Bisexual (LGTTB) community, with 26 of the most recognized activists murdered after receiving tortures · 12 women have been violated by one, or more, elements of the police while they were captured and detained. · Media censorship is regularly applied; world corporate media keep silent · The economy has grown more dependent on the U.S.; instability has intensified · State coffers have been plundered: Honduras has no national reserves · Legitimacy of state institutions has evaporated · Honduras is heavily isolated in the world · Unemployment and poverty have increased; Honduran elite has grown richer · Roberto Micheletti has been named MP for life · There is no democracy in Honduras; human rights are systematically violated Most information above, from: Honduras Resists - Current Situation One Year After the Coup d'état

THE ROLE OF THE UNITED STATES

· The Role of the International Republican Institute (IRI) in the Honduran Coup · Oliver Stone: coup in Honduras is a disgrace – 5 June · US Military Aid to Honduras Continues. Rights Violations Do Also – June 9 · Clinton Urges OAS to Forget Coup, Readmit Honduras – 9 June · Washington Resumes Military Aid to Honduras – June 19 · Will the US ever get Latin America? – 26 June · Honduras: Disappearing truth and justice; Washington covers up repression (The Real News video report – 13 April, 2010)

HONDURAS: A PARIAH STATE

· Venezuela in OAS: No Honduran Re-Entry until Democracy Restored - June 9 · Salvadorian president slams visit of Honduras' former post-coup leader 25 June · 27 Members of Congress Send Letter to Sec. Clinton – June 25, 2010 “On June 24, 2010, 27 members of Congress sent a letter asking Secretary of State Clinton to send Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Michael Posner to Honduras to assess the political and human rights situation. The letter points to continuing human rights abuses, the assassination of nine journalists this year alone, and political corruption as reasons for an early and accurate report. Without such a report, the members of Congress "would be reluctant to see U.S. support for Honduras continue without significant restrictions."

· Honduras has Two Truth Commissions – June 22 · Press Release: Quixote Center Delegation to Honduras -Thu, 06/24/2010 - 14:35 · The Honduran Business Elite One Year After the Coup – 23 June “… Zelaya’s biggest reforms, […] include[d] raising the minimum wage, joining the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, and opening up a process of constituent assembly, have already been rolled back by the coup regime. That said, in other areas only baby steps towards increasing foreign direct investment have been made. The Lobo government, however, has granted an additional 500 non-metallic mining concessions, some of which went to a subsidiary of transnational mining company Goldcorp Inc.”

Truth in Honduras - One year after the coup, the battle over who gets to expose—or avoid—recent history begins – 11 June – “To counter the official commission, the Honduran opposition movement is establishing its own investigative body. Six human-rights organizations will launch “Comisión de la Verdad” (known in English as “Commission of the Truth”) on June 28, the coup’s anniversary. It will be “responsible for making known the human rights violations committed against thousands of Hondurans,” according to a May 6 commission press release. The commission—which will include a Nobel laureate, a writer and a priest—will last one year.”

No U.S. military aid to Honduras! · Stop human rights abuses in Honduras! · For a free and democratic Honduras! · For the full restoration of democracy in Honduras

The Emergency Committee Against the Coup in Honduras. The Committee involves Venezuela Solidarity Campaign, Cuba Solidarity Campaign, Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign, Labour Friends of Venezuela, UNITE the Union, UNITE London & Eastern Regions, South East Region TUC, and other bodies of the British Labour movement and Latin American communities. Visit the blog at http://committeeagainsthondurascoup.blogspot.com. For more information email: notohondurascoup@googlemail.com