Honduras is moving ever-closer to a potential political crisis, both the Wall Street Journal and an AP report in New York Times write this morning. President Manuel Zelaya has pushed a non-binding vote forward which seeks public opinion on his desire to rewrite the Honduran constitution but the country’s military, along with the Supreme Court, have come out in strong opposition to the vote. And one day after President Zelaya fired the military’s top general, the Honduran armed forces deployed around the Congress, presidential palace, and airport in Tegucigalpa. Opponents of the president say he wants to rewrite the constitution in order to end term limits, as his close ally Hugo Chávez did in February. As the WSJ writes, the crisis came to a head on Wednesday when the military refused to participate in distributing voting ballots for the Sunday vote, following the lead of the Supreme Court which ruled the vote illegal. Michael Shifter of the Inter-American Dialogue says in the paper that “Zelaya has provoked an institutional crisis” and “won’t get a lot of sympathy by defying the country’s institutions.” The AP adds that Zelaya supporters believe a military coup d’etat is underway. An investigation into the President’s actions is currently being undertaken by a 5-member commission in Honduras’s parliament, and one opposition lawmaker told the AP that, after the investigation concludes, “maybe we will take more drastic measures but they will be to save the republic.” The OAS has declared an emergency meeting to discuss the situation today while at the UN, General Assembly president Miguel D’Escoto said he “clearly and strongly condemns the attempted coup d'etat that is currently unfolding against the democratically elected government of President Manuel Zelaya of Honduras.” Regional divisions on the issue, it would seem, have now been drawn.
The LA Times adds more to a story that has not gotten much attention yet, confirming that the U.S. and Venezuela will indeed be restoring diplomats in the coming days. The two countries exchanged diplomatic notes that formalized pledges made by the President Obama and President Chávez at the April Summit of the Americas. The restoration of full diplomatic ties came a day after the State Department also said it would restore its ambassador to Syria, a position which was cut after the car bombing of Lebanese politician Rafik Hariri in 2005. Analysts say the U.S.-Venezuela rapprochement came because of strong commercial ties linking the two countries, a U.S. desire to improve Latin American relations generally, and Mr. Chávez’s aspiration to improve his image. U.S.-Venezuelan trade totaled $5 billion last year, most of it Venezuelan oil exports.
And the Miami Herald writes that Latin American and Caribbean nations seem unified in their support of new U.S. Southern Command top leader, Air Force Gen. Douglas Fraser. Interestingly, Nicaragua, currently in a dispute with the U.S. over a cut in economic aid, even flew its top military leader, Gen. Moises Omar Halleslevens Acevedo, to Miami to honor the friendship he had forged with outgoing Adm. James Stavridis. The MH writes “Acevedo's presence at the change-of-command ceremony is indicative of the new role that the U.S. military increasingly has played in the region since the end of the Cold War. Stavridis has worked hard over almost three years to forge military friendships that -- in most cases -- survive political disagreements between Washington and the region.” AFP adds to the reporting on Gen. Fraser, saying the he believes growing Iranian influence in Latin America is a “potential risk” for the region. “The real concern is not a nation-to-nation interaction, it is the connection that Iran has with extremist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah and the potential risk that that could bring to this region.” Fraser also said he was concerned with a large military build-up in Venezuela.
In other news, the AP reports that Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez again made statements against media outlets in the country that might be plotting against him. Without mentioning opposition outlet Globovision by name, he warned Venezuelans on Thursday to be on the lookout for a conspiracy that “has to do with a media outlet,” adding “it is possible the concession they have will come to an end.” To condemn the government's actions action against the media, dozens of demonstrators wearing red gags over their mouths protested outside a government building in the capital on Thursday.
And, finally, a story in the WSJ about a young Argentine boxer who is now trying her hand at politics in the country. The reigning women's junior featherweight boxing champion, Marcela Acuna, better known as La Tigresa, is running on the governing party’s Peronist list in Sunday’s legislative elections for a seat on the city council in the 3 de Febrero working-class municipality outside Buenos Aires. Inspired by Eva Peron herself, Acuna says she intends to assume the seat on the city council if elected, rejecting speculation by opponents that she is on the ballot to simply lure voters but would likely cede the office if really elected.
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