U.S. DELEGATION TO GATHER EVIDENCE HONDURAS

On Wednesday, a 12-person delegation from the United States will be traveling to Honduras. The purpose of the trip is to conduct a fact-finding investigation of the critical situation in the country.

The delegation must be permitted to enter Honduras . The continuing shut down of Honduras by the government that issued from the June 28 coup must be challenged.

The delegation calls on their elected officials, members of Congress and representatives of the media to take action to ensure the unrestricted entry and the success and safety of the U.S. delegation. With the long-term Soto Cano U.S. air base in Honduras (also called Palmerola base) and a history of training Honduran military officers, Washington plays a major role in any decision in that country.

Students, labor, clergy as well as peace activists are traveling to Honduras to learn about the critical situation in the country including a ban of constitutional rights. They aim to return and explain to the U.S. population all the facts about the current situation in Honduras , including the situation of those who have opposed the coup government.

The delegation will be in Honduras from October 7 through October 11, participating in a fact-finding delegation.

The delegation had planned to attend the “First International Conference Against the Coup D’Etat and for the Constituent National Assembly in Honduras ,” which was scheduled to take place Oct. 8-10. The conference is now postponed due to the political situation, which has grown tenser since President Manuel Zelaya returned to Tegucigalpa and found refuge in the Brazilian Embassy.

The U.S. Delegation is continuing its trip in order to meet with students, labor, women, youth, and representatives of the resistance to the coup and others to find the truth about the situation in Honduras .

On Saturday, Honduras will be the site of an important World Cup qualifying soccer match, expected to attract 50,000 people in San Pedro Sula . If the existing coup government of Honduras can not guarantee the safety of this small human rights delegation how can they claim to be able to guarantee the safety of such a large crowd, including many international visitors?

The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) led a delegation to Honduras in late August. Organizers of the delegation told the October 7 – 11 delegates that U.S. human rights presence is critical at this time and they support the efforts of the current fact-finding delegation.

The report of the NLG trip, which was written by members of the American Association of Jurists, the NLG and the International Association of Democratic Lawyers as well as the International Association Against Torture confirm that the June 28 events in Honduras constitute a genuine military coup. The report further states that the military overthrow “was a clear violation of Honduras ’ 1982 Political constitution.”(EOM)