Clinton, Arias: Zelaya return could help end Honduras crisis

Clinton, Arias: Zelaya return could help end Honduras crisis

(AFP) – 19 minutes ago

NEW YORK — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Costa Rican President Oscar Arias said Monday that ousted leader Manuel Zelaya's return to Honduras offers an opportunity to end the country's political crisis.
"Now that President Zelaya is back it would be opportune to restore him to his position under appropriate circumstances, get on with the election that is currently scheduled for November, have a peaceful transition of presidential authority and get Honduras back to constitutional and democratic order," Clinton told reporters as she met with Arias in New York.
Arias, who brokered failed peace talks between the Zelaya camp and the interim government, was also hopeful about a political resolution.
"I think this is the best opportunity, the best time, now that Zelaya is back in his country," he said.
Copyright © 2009 AFP.

Clinton urges dialogue, calm in Honduras

NEW YORK, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya and the de facto government must find a way to talk and to avoid violence following his return from exile to the Central American nation, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Monday.

"It's imperative that dialogue begin ... (that) there be a channel of communication between President Zelaya and the de facto regime in Honduras," Clinton said after she meet Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, who sought to broker a resolution to the crisis that followed Zelaya's June 28 ouster.

"It's also imperative that the return of President Zelaya does not lead to any conflict or violence but instead that everyone act in a peaceful way to try to find some common ground," she told reporters.

Zelaya sneaked back into Honduras on Monday almost three months after he was toppled in a coup, and took refuge in the Brazilian embassy to avoid arrest by the de facto government.

Arias has proposed that Zelaya return to office to serve out the remainder of his term, while coup participants would be given amnesty, but the de facto government has refused to consider any deal that would allow Zelaya back in power.

Arias described Zelaya's return as a moment of opportunity for the two sides to try to come to an agreement and said he was willing to go to Tegucigalpa if both sides wished.

"I would be willing to go ... if both sides, both parties asked me to," Arias told reporters. (Reporting by Arshad Mohammed, editing by Anthony Boadle)

Honduras curfew as Zelaya returns

Mr Zelaya addressed his supporters from the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa

Honduran authorities have imposed a curfew after the dramatic return of ousted President Manuel Zelaya.

Mr Zelaya has sought refuge inside the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa and hundreds of his supporters have gathered outside.
He said he had crossed mountains and rivers to return to the capital, where he said he was seeking dialogue.
In a televised address, interim leader Roberto Micheletti demanded that Brazil hand over Mr Zelaya to stand trial.
Mr Micheletti said Brazil would be held responsible for any violence.
Mr Zelaya's return took officials completely by surprise, with Mr Micheletti at first denying the deposed leader was in the country.

ANALYSIS Charles Scanlon, BBC Americas analyst It looks like the nightmare scenario for the coup leaders. They've done everything in their power to prevent Manuel Zelaya's return - sending soldiers to prevent his plane landing in the days after the coup, and later to the border to stop him crossing from Nicaragua. The confirmation that Mr Zelaya is back will have come as a humiliation for Roberto Micheletti and damaged his authority inside the country. The interim government has been condemned around the world for the coup, but has consolidated its control. Mr Zelaya's return now brings the crisis back to the boil. The interim government has been playing for time - hoping to cling to power until new elections set for November. It is no longer in control of events and looks more vulnerable than at any time since the coup.

As tension inside Honduras increased, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Mr Zelaya's return must not lead to violence.
She called for "a dialogue" between Mr Zelaya and the de facto government.
In images broadcast on national television, a smiling Mr Zelaya wearing his trademark white cowboy hat appeared on the balcony of the Brazilian embassy waving to crowds of his supporters.
Witnesses said a military helicopter flew overhead.
Shortly afterwards officials imposed the 15-hour curfew, starting at 1600 (2200 GMT) on Monday.
The left-leaning president has been living in exile in Nicaragua since being ousted at gunpoint on 28 June.
The crisis erupted after Mr Zelaya tried to hold a non-binding public consultation to ask people whether they supported moves to change the constitution.
The US has backed Mr Zelaya during his exile and criticised the de facto leaders for failing to restore "democratic, constitutional rule" and the Organization of American States (OAS) has demanded Mr Zelaya's reinstatement.
Dialogue
Speaking to the BBC from inside the Brazilian embassy, Mr Zelaya said he had received support from various quarters in order to return.

TIMELINE: ZELAYA OUSTED 28 June: Zelaya forced out of country at gunpoint 5 July: A dramatic bid by Zelaya to return home by plane fails after the runway at Tegucigalpa airport is blocked 25-26 July: Zelaya briefly crosses into the country at the land border with Nicaragua on two consecutive days, in a symbolic move to demand he be allowed to return 21 Sept: Zelaya appears in the Brazilian embassy in Tegulcigalpa Zelaya interview in full

"[We travelled] for more than 15 hours... through rivers and mountains until we reached the capital of Honduras," he said.
"We overtook military and police obstacles, all those on the highways here, because this country has been kidnapped by the military forces."
He said he was consulting with sectors of Honduran society and the international community in order "to start the dialogue for the reconstruction of the Honduran democracy".
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said neither his country nor the OAS had played any part in Mr Zelaya's return, the Associated Press news agency reported.
The interim government has repeatedly threatened to arrest Mr Zelaya should he return, and charge him with corruption.

Supporters of Mr Zelaya initially gathered outside the UN building

Mr Zelaya urged the armed forces not to use violence against demonstrators.
OAS chief Jose Miguel Insulza also called for calm, telling Honduran authorities they were responsible for the security of Mr Zelaya and the Brazilian embassy.
As reports that Mr Zelaya had surfaced in Tegucigalpa began to come through, Mr Micheletti appeared to be caught off-guard, insisting Mr Zelaya had not left neighbouring Nicaragua.
Mr Micheletti has vowed to step aside after presidential elections are held as scheduled on 29 November. But he has refused to allow Mr Zelaya to return to office in the interim.
In July, talks in Costa Rica on resolving the crisis hosted by the country's President Oscar Arias broke down without the parties reaching an agreement.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8268056.stm