Honduras 2009
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The United States supported a new election following the overthrow of democratically-elected president Manuel Zelaya in a coup d'état[1] led by School of the Americas alumnus General Romeo Vásquez Velásquez.[2]
Contents
Background
After raising the minimum wage by 60% and joining the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA),[3] Manuel Zelaya had made enough enemies that he found himself on a plane to Costa Rica in his pyjamas[4] during the 2009 Honduran coup d'état, which took place on June 28th. In mid-October, Time reported that the installed President, Roberto Micheletti, had begun tightening control on media and dissent in the previous three weeks, and that according to an anonymous State Department official the November elections were seen simply as a reality "the international community need[ed] to come to terms with."[5] Alvaro Valle, writing in the Harvard Political Review, cites Hillary Clinton's book Hard Choices: "we strategized on a plan to restore order in Honduras and ensure that free and fair elections could be held quickly and legitimately, which would render the question of Zelaya moot."[3] The election ultimately allowed backers of the 2009 Honduran coup d'état to solidify their hold on political power.[6][7]
Application of U.S. influence
Blockage of OAS resolution
The OAS had advanced a resolution that would have refused to recognize the election results.[2] The U.S. administration initially pushed for the return of Zelaya, then backed off a threat not to recognize the election.[8] The OAS resolution was ultimately blocked by the United States.[2]
Maintaining military aid
Dana Frank argues that the Obama Administration "split hairs" in calling the 2009 events a coup but not a military coup, which allowed the administration to avoid being forced to suspend US military assistance to the Micheletti government, based on Section 7008 of the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Act.[9]
Recognition of elections
The U.S. State Department rejected appeals by other Organization of American States (OAS) member nations to condemn what many perceived to be a fraudulent election and, instead, declared the contest "free, fair and transparent.”[6] The International Republican Institute, an organization linked to the United States Republican Party, also declared the elections had been "free of violence and overt acts of intimidation".[8] The victory of Porfirio Lobo Sosa was quickly recognized by the United States, which increased military and police aid to the government, despite much of Latin America continuing to view him as an illegal pretender to the Honduran presidency.[10]
See also
References
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