MONDAY, JULY 06, 2009

Honduras Update and Action Alert! July 6, 2009

Zelaya's plane unable to land! Runway blockaded by military!

At least two young people are dead!
Demand complete cut-off of aid and relations by US!

Yesterday, Sunday, July 5, 2009, Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, who was violently overthrown and removed from the country by a military coup on June 28, flew back to Honduras accompanied by UN General Assembly President Miguel D'Escoto. His plane circled the airport, where 100,000 people had gathered to await him and return him to office, but was unable to land because the military blockaded the runway. He then flew to Managua for a brief stop and meeting with President Daniel Ortega before flying to San Salvador to meet with the Secretary General of the OAS and the presidents of Argentina, Ecuador, and El Salvador who had flown there direct from an OAS meeting in Washington, DC.

Here is a report from the scene in Tegucigalpa by Grahame Russell of Rights Action:

“At the airport at 3:00pm (local time Sunday), Honduran soldiers opened fire with M-16s machineguns on an unarmed crowd. At least two are dead, and four wounded. One week after the military coup overthrew the government of President Zelaya, the military-oligarchic regime has furthered hardened its position against the pro-democracy movement. As on Saturday, today, as many as 100,000 pro-democracy Hondurans marched to the airport to welcome home President Zelaya. Thousands of heavily armed soldiers and police who have militarized the airport were waiting. President Zelaya was not able to return. The Honduran army and de facto regime placed military trucks all over the runway. Protesters watched as the Zelaya's plane flew around the airport, trying to land; they watched as the Honduran air force sent a fighter jet to shadow the plane; they watched as Zelaya's plane flew away.”

The longer the coup government stays in place, the more people can be expected to die. It is urgent that the US take action before there are more deaths.

Send messages to President Barack Obama, your Senators and Representative with these demands!

1. The United States should recall our ambassador to Honduras as have all the countries of the European Union with embassies in the country;
2. The United States should follow US law and suspend all aid to Honduras, including military aid;
3. The United States government should impose financial sanctions against members of the coup government and the military high command.

Here is a sample message to President Obama that you can use or modify. To type in or upload a message directly to the President, click here.

I urge you to take strong action in rejection of the coup d'état in Honduras. Along with your correct demand for the immediate return of President Manuel Zelaya to office, please withdraw our ambassador to Honduras as have all the countries of the European Union with embassies in the country. Please cut all US assistance to the coup government, including military aid, as required by US law and put in place financial sanctions against members of the coup government and military high command.

Here is a sample message to your Senators and Representative

I urge you to demand that our government take strong action against the illegal coup government in Honduras. Please urge President Obama to withdraw our ambassador to Honduras as have all the countries of the European Union with embassies in the country. Please urge him to cut all US assistance to the coup government, including military aid, as required by US law and put in place financial sanctions against members of the coup government and military high command.

You can ask your Representative to write a letter similar to the one sent by Massachusetts Representative James McGovern to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton which you can find here.

To write your Representative, click here.

To write your Senators, click here.
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