Live from Honduras: A country under siege
See a slideshow of on-the-ground repression and resistance
Watch Hondurans defiantly sing their national anthem to the U.S. Embassy
July 16, 2009
Greetings from a country under siege. I'm here in Tegucigalpa, Honduras as part of an emergency commission of observers from across the hemisphere. What we're observing is history in the making--as I write this, tens of thousands of Hondurans are shutting down highways, halting work, and taking over universities in effort to take back their country. They do so at the risk of arrest, abuse, and outright attack from Honduran security forces. Since the illegal June 28 coup, the violation of basic human rights has grown increasingly flagrant: over 1000 arbitrary arrests of civilians, censure and expulsion of nearly all independent media outlets, dozens of physical attacks, and four murders.
Soon after arriving here, I spoke with a teenager who pulled off his cap to reveal a gash on his head where a military bullet nearly took his life last week--soldiers had fired 160 live rounds into a nonviolent crowd. Yesterday I met an independent journalist who now faces an arrest warrant for the crime of publishing an article covering anti-coup demonstrations. Theirs are not isolated cases. During my visit, a respected national Honduran human rights organization named COFADEH published a report documenting 1,161 human rights violations occurring during the coup's first 17 days in power. Human rights defenders fear that the longer the coup regime retains its illegitmate hold on power, the more its attacks on Hondurans' rights will escalate.
In this dire moment, it is critical that we demonstrate our solidarity with the Honduran people. As so many Hondurans have told me this week, one of the most important ways we can do so is to push our government to unequivocally revoke all support for the coup regime. While the Obama Administration has made welcome statements of respect for the democratic will of the Honduran people, such statements ring hollow unless the U.S. actually works to hasten the return to democracy by freezing all non-humanitarian aid to Honduras. A resolution currently circulating in Congress calls for just that: House resolution 630. Call your representative today to ask that she/he cosponsor this resolution condemning the coup and urging the Obama Administration to stand on the right side of history. See below for details.
Another way to show solidarity is to actually go to Honduras. As you may recall, Witness for Peace is organizing a delegation to Honduras in early fall. This unique delegation will:
- Show the Honduran social movements that they are not alone. The delegation will likely meet with some of the unionists, farmers, and students who have been tirelessly mobilizing for President Zelaya's return to ask how we, as U.S. citizens, can best act in solidarity in that moment.
- Bear witness to the alarming human rights situation. After probable meetings with human rights defenders, journalists who've withstood repression, and activists who've survived attacks, we will expose and denounce such violations to our governmental officials.
- Push the U.S. government to transform nice words into meaningful actions. We plan to meet with the U.S. embassy (and maybe U.S. military personnel) to report our findings and lobby for aid cutoff, military base closure, and other actions to demonstrate the sincerity of the U.S.'s stated support for democracy in Honduras.
- Provide insight on the broader economic and political context for the coup. By hearing from historians and economists, the delegation will glean a new understanding of how the U.S.-funded Central American wars of the '80s, the approval of two conflicting trade agreements, and the hemisphere's shifting political alignment tell a more complete story of the current coup.
If you haven't already indicated interest in this urgent delegation, please do so today by clicking here. We will soon provide further delegation details to those interested.
Thanks again for your ongoing demonstration of solidarity with all of those struggling in Honduras for the right to exercise their democratic will. May victory come quickly.
Adelante,
Ben
Slideshow: Repression and Resistance
To show captions, click play, click the expand button, and then click "Show Info."
Photo credits: Ben Beachy
House Resolution 630
Allies in Congress recently unveiled a new resolution condemning the lethal coup in Honduras. The resolution, introduced by Representatives Bill Delahunt, Jim McGovern, and Jose Serrano, echoes the resounding demands of thousands of Hondurans, the international community, and organizations like Witness for Peace: that President Zelaya be immediately reinstated as the legitimate leader and that the Obama Administration cut off all non-humanitarian assistance to Honduras until that time. If this resolution gains enough cosponsors, it will place unprecedented pressure on the Obama Administration to make clear its unequivocal support for the Honduran people's right to exercise their democratic will.
Please call your representative today to ask that she/he cosponsor House resolution 630. Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected to your House representative (give your zip code if you're not sure who your rep is). Here's a brief suggestion of what to say:
"As a constituent, I'm calling to urge the representative to join in co-sponsoring House resolution 630 condemning the coup in Honduras and calling for the suspension of non-humanitarian U.S. assistance until democracy is restored. Representatives Delahunt, McGovern, and Serrano recently introduced the resolution. I and many other constituents believe that it's critical for Congress to join the international community in taking a clear stand against the coup and for the right of Hondurans to exercise their democratic will. Since usurping power, the coup regime has overseen more than 1000 documented human rights violations. Given the urgent nature of the situation in Honduras, please encourage the representative to co-sponsor House resolution 630 today. To do so, contact Cliff Stammerman or Ben Dailey in Congressman Delahunt's office at (202) 226-6434, or by emailing cliff.stammerman@mail.house.gov or ben.dailey@mail.house.gov."
You can also send a letter to encourage your representative to sign on: click here.
