Yesterday The Christian Science Monitor posted an article by Octavio Sánchez, a lawyer and former presidential adviser (2002-05) and minister of culture (2005-06) of the Republic of Honduras, concerning the recent events in Honduras. Mr. Sanchez points out:
"Under our Constitution, what happened in Honduras this past Sunday? Soldiers arrested and sent out of the country a Honduran citizen who, the day before, through his own actions had stripped himself of the presidency.
These are the facts: On June 26, President Zelaya issued a decree ordering all government employees to take part in the "Public Opinion Poll to convene a National Constitutional Assembly." In doing so, Zelaya triggered a constitutional provision that automatically removed him from office."
Evidently the Constitution of Honduras takes term limits very seriously. As soon as President Zelaya began moving toward President-for-life status, he was forcibly removed--that was according to the Constitution of Honduras. This provision was placed in the Constitution to prevent the problem that Latin America has traditionally had with elected officials becoming dictators. It seems to be working in Honduras.
Our President and State Department are on the wrong side of this issue. The are siding with Hugo Chavez, the Castro bothers, and Daniel Ortega. I hope they will reevaluate the situation. We need to support the rule of law in all countries!!
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