MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Honduran Army confident a “peaceful” solution to the crisis is near

Chief of Staff General Romeo Vazquez, the man who executed the “pyjama coup”

Honduras highest ranking officer General Romeo Vazquez said a solution to the political crisis triggered by the ousting on June 28th, of elected president Manuel Zelaya is in the making. Zelaya is currently holed in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa calling on his followers to come out to the streets.

“I’m certain that the Hondurans will find very soon a peaceful solution to the crisis we are facing”, said the Chief of Staff of Honduras Armed Forces. “We are quickly approaching a solution that is what we all are longing for” he underlined although no specifics were revealed and in spite of the apparent extreme position of both sides.

“We feel there’s a willingness to find a solution and the appropriate confidence building levels are on course”, said the man who according to ousted Zelaya had him detained and at gun point took him to the airport, with only his pyjamas on, from where he was flown to Costa Rica three months ago.

Statements by the general coincide with the unveiling of a plan presented by the leading businessmen of Honduras which would enable a solution to the crisis. Basically it proposed reinstating Zelaya as president with limited powers and a multinational military force in support to ensure a peaceful transition.

Zelaya however will have to face charges as demanded by the country’s Supreme Court and de facto president Roberto Micheletti, former head of congress, will return to his bench as one member more of the house, according to Adolfo Facussé, the spokesperson for the business community.

“We expect a patriotic attitude from Micheletti, who would return to his bench” and some kind of for-life condition could be granted, which if not contemplated in Honduran legislation but is not banned as an option, said Facussé.

To guarantee the agreement by all sides, a multinational force with 3.000 soldiers or policemen from Canada, Panama and Colombia would be displayed in the country. There’s no mention of United Nations tutelage for the operation.

“The plan is the result of long discussions among businessmen and Honduran citizens and the main idea is to keep as much as possible to the original plan from Costa Rican president Oscar Arias, with some modifications to comply with all sides”, added Facussé.

President Zelaya would have to delegate his powers as supreme commander of the Armed Forces which will rest in the cabinet, and will not be able to remove ministers.

Facussé said ministers would be named in accordance to votes obtained by the different political parties in the November 2005 elections, and could only be removed by a two thirds majority in Congress.

At the same time the business community would request support from the international community for the November 29 presidential election, and the OAS and other international organizations would be invited to certify the “transparency” of the electoral process and its legitimacy, said Facussé.

United States would be asked to lift the ban on aid and other trade and economic support to Honduras, plus a moratorium on Hondurans’ deportations from the US.

Facussé said copies of the proposal have been distributed to Micheletti, November presidential candidates, US ambassador Hugo Llorens and Bishop Juan Jose Pineda who is acting as a negotiations facilitator between the de facto government and Zelaya.

Meantime the Micheletti administration promised that the Brazilian embassy which has Zelaya as a “guest” will not be stormed and remain protected even if the diplomatic statute of the compound is lost because “there are not diplomatic relations with Brasilia”.

On Sunday the Honduran interim government said the responsibility of Zelaya and his followers inside the embassy were “responsibility of Brazil” and not of Honduras.

The veiled threat triggered an immediate reaction from Washington, United Nations and the OAS.