HONDURAS, November 5, 2009. The verifying commission of the agreement to put an end to the Honduran crisis assured today there is progress in the steps taken, but left in the air whether this progress includes the restitution of president Manuel Zelaya. For over four months governments and multilateral institutions have demanded the return of the legally-elected President, victim of a military coup, and the restablishment of constitutionality in this Central American nation. One of the members of the commission, former Chilean president Ricardo Lagos, indicated at a press conference he had talks with the de facto head of government Roberto Micheletti and leaders of Congress on how to make up the agreed government of unity and national conciliation, as it is established in the Tegucigalpa-San Jose pact. According to Lagos, Micheletti would agree to step down, but it was not clear whether the legislative body would meet to announce the restitution of Zelaya, ousted by force on June 28 last. Lagos commented the verifying process is difficult and complex and the actions should be carried out step by step, to create the best environment for the upcoming general elections next November 29 and the next stage with the new elected president. Another of the members of the commission, US Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solís, also explained there is no time or date to form the government of unity and reconciliation, although several names are being handled. The representative of Micheletti, Arturo Corrales, described the work in progress as intense and confirmed there is a list of personalities that could form the Government of Reconciliation. For the Zelaya delegate, Jorge Arturo Reina, the most important thing is to restablish the democratic order and put things as they were before (the coup d’Etat)and improve them even more. It is, he said, a very big effort. It is not easy, but it is not impossible to rescue constitutional legality and establish a regime of peace. Some of the participants led out that a reconciliation government could be established without putting Zelaya back as leader of the Republic.(Cubaminrex- PL) |