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Xiomara Zelaya Will Run for President of Honduras

Honduras Weekly
In a letter to his supporters, former President Manuel Zelaya has confirmed that his wife, Xiomara, will be the candidate of the Liberty and Refoundation Party ((Libre) in the next presidential election in Honduras scheduled for November 2013. "By consensus, all the currents [of the Libre] have decided that it will be Mrs. Xiomara Castro de Zelaya," said Mr. Zelaya. Libre is made up of five factions or "currents" -- each with their own unique ideology or governing philosophy. The largest most militant of these is the socialist Popular Resistance Force (FRP), which is led by Juan Barahona, Rafael Alegría, Gloria Oquelí, Wilfredo Paz, and Óscar Rivera. The other smaller currents include the July 5, the June 28, the Progressive Resistance Movement (MRP), and the Organized Nation in Resistance (POR).

INE Study Finds 66% of Hondurans Live in Poverty

Honduras Weekly
According to the results of a survey conducted by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), 5.5 million of the estimated 8.2 million people in Honduras live in poverty. Of that number, some 1.7 million live in a state of relative poverty and more than 3.8 million in extreme poverty. Income for households within this segment of the population falls below an index known as the canasta básica (basic basket). Of Honduras' population, an estimated 4.7 million have serious nutritional problems, and an additional 1.7 million can pay for enough to eat but cannot afford basic healthcare, education, or housing. The Honduran National Business Council (Cohep) defines the canasta básica as 30 food products, including fruits, meats, cereals, milk, and soft drinks for a family of six individuals. Unlike labor organizations in Honduras, Cohep does not take into account the cost of public services.

Violent Deaths in Tegucigalpa Drop 66%

Honduras Weekly
President Porfirio Lobo yesterday said that the number of violent deaths in Tegucigalpa have declined by 66 percent since the start of "Operation Lightning" in Honduras two weeks ago. On November 1, the Lobo administration mobilized thousands of Honduran soldiers to accompany police officers in patrolling the streets of Tegucigalpa, San Pedro Sula, and six other regions in the country where the incidence of murders, narco-trafficking, and other crimes have become a particularly serious problem. "With considerable effort, the National Police, the Armed Forces, the Public Ministry, and the Supreme Court of Justice have undertaken a front attack against crime," said President Lobo. Although he did not give specific numbers, Mr. Lobo stated that the results are significant, and that important areas of the capital city that had previously been a haven for criminal activities have experienced few incidents recently.

Lobo May Grant Policing Powers to Military

Honduras Weekly
A special legislative committee of the Honduran Congress has recommended to President Porfirio Lobo that he declare a state of emergency in Honduras due to the current wave of crime and violence in the country and that he interpret Article 274 of the Constitution in a way that authorizes the Armed Forces to serve in a policing capacity. The recommendations were submitted to the Public Ministry. Up to now, Honduran troops have been allowed to work jointly with police officers, providing support. A broader interpretation of the Article 274 would give soldiers the right to issue and carry out arrest orders, undertake search and seizure activities, and direct street operations. According to Congressman German Leitzelar, if the President decides to emit an emergency decree to give full policing powers to the military, the Congress would need to meet in an emergency session to ratify the decree.

Castellanos Calls for International Intervention in Honduras

Honduras Weekly
It is unclear what exactly the Rector of the National University of Honduras (UNAH), Julietta Castellanos, meant yesterday when she called on the international community to intervene in Honduras in order to prevent what occurred in Haiti and Libya. “The international community must arrive when there is still time to build a State of Law," said Mrs. Castellanos, whose son, Rafael Alejandro, was murdered by police officers on October 22. The implication is that Honduras is on the verge of becoming of failed state due to the crime and violence that is plaguing the country -- making it nearly ungovernable, unless the world moves to act quickly. She noted that “when the international community arrived in Haiti and Libya, it was too late."

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"The Revolution is Inevitable in Honduras"

Honduras Weekly
Former President Manuel Zelaya on Sunday registered the Liberty and Refoundation Party, or "Libre", as a new political party in Honduras, representing the National Front for Popular Resistance social movement. Mr. Zelaya and other representatives of Libre submitted the required documentation and more than 80,000 signatures to the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) in Tegucigalpa. As he presented the materials, Mr. Zelaya said that he was doing so under the motto, "The Revolution is inevitable in Honduras". He stressed that "things should not be done halfway... Honduras needs a profound restructurization, a true refoundation". The TSE is scheduled to respond to the Libre registration by February 2012. Libre, which is expected to nominate Mr. Zelaya's wife, Xiomara, as its candidate for the Presidency of Honduras next year, currently consists of five internal political "currents", including the Popular Refoundation Force (FRP), the July 5 Movement, the June 28 Movement, the Progressive Resistance Movement (MRP), and the Organized Nation in Resistance (POR). (11/4/11)

Honduras Deploys Army in Cities, Traffickers Take the Coasts

As Honduras sends the army on the streets in an effort to combat crime, it is doubtful that this can turn things around in a country which is fast becoming the principal cocaine handover point for Colombian and Mexican traffickers.

By Hannah Stone
President Porfirio Lobo has deployed troops onto the streets of two of Honduras' main cities in an effort to clamp down on the soaring rates of violence. The army will support police operations, starting in capital Tegucigalpa and the city of San Pedro Sula. The stated intention of the operation to cut the soaring rates of violence and crime, with the government identifying street drug dealing, or “narco-menudeo,” and gangs, or “maras” as targets. A key factor behind both these phenomena, however, is Honduras' increased importance in the international drug trade.

Proceso Digital and Honduras Weekly Partner

Honduras Weekly
Intended as a first step toward developing a news and marketing partnership, the Honduran online newspaper Proceso Digital and Honduras Weekly have agreed to exchange linked banner ads featuring their respective mastheads. "Our publications have similar styles of reporting the news of Honduras, and so exploring ways for us to collaborate makes sense," said Marco Cáceres, the editor of Honduras Weekly. "I think Proceso Digital is well-written and does an excellent job of trying to report the news in as unbiased a manner as possible. It is certainly the most current of all the major Spanish-language Honduran newspapers... I usually find the breaking stories there long before anyone else picks them up." Proceso Digital is strictly an online newspaper; it has never been published in paper format.

Human Rights Center Created for Aguán Valley

... the center's functions will include stationing observers at demonstrations, land occupations and highway blockades to avert excessive use of force by police agents; protecting people whose lives are threatened; assisting victims of violence or repression; taking preventive measures; reporting human rights violations; and collecting information for legal action against rights violators.

Weekly News Update on the Americas
Honduran and international human rights and grassroots organizations announced on October 21 that they were forming a center to monitor and prevent rights violations in northern Honduras' Lower Aguán Valley, where dozens of people have been killed over the past two years in land conflicts. The Human Rights Monitoring Center for the Aguán is scheduled to open on November 11; it will be based in the city of Tocoa in the department of Colón.

Caribbean Disturbance May Become Tropical Depression

news-press.com
An area of low pressure in the western Caribbean is becoming better organized and has a high -- 60 percent -- chance of becoming a tropical depression, according to the United States National Hurricane Center. The disturbance is located about 150 miles east-southeast of the Nicaragua and Honduras border and its expected to move slowly northward and then northwestward over the next 48 hours. Forecasters say conditions are expected to be more conducive for development and the disturbance could be upgraded into a tropical depression during the next day or so. Regardless of development, heavy rains and winds could affect parts of Honduras and Nicaragua through Monday. (image courtesy Internet)