Day 138 of HONDURAS COUP RESISTANCE – “THE ELECTIONS ARE FRAUDULENT AND WE ARE NOT GOING TO PARTICIPATE”
(November 12, 2009, Honduras Coup Alert#90)
“On November 29th, we are not going to have time to vote. Just like them who do not have time to meet to discuss Zelaya’s restitution, Hondurans in resistance will not vote on November 29th.” (Juan Barahona)
As the date for the presidential elections, November 29, approaches, the Honduran people’s pro-democracy, anti-coup movement continues to take to the streets, this time in front of the National Congress to keep up the energy, discuss strategy and reconfirm their commitment to boycott the elections.
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(All pictures, Karen Spring, November 11)
On Day 137 of resistance to the coup regime, Juan Barahona, a leading member of the National Front Against the Coup, speaks to the media in front of Honduras’ National Congress (downtown Tegucigalpa) about the resistance movement’s decision to boycott the elections “with or without Mel”.
This past Sunday (November 8th), Carlos H. Reyes, an independent presidential candidate and well respected political figure in the people's resistance movement, announced that he will not participate in the elections.
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Bertha Caceres, a leader of COPINH (Civic Counsel of Indigenous and Popular Organizations of Honduras) and the National Front Against the Coup, also spoke in front of the National Congress:
“We remain firmly convinced that the struggle of the Honduran people is for the re-foundation of our country. We are going to construct a just and more humane country where they listen and where the people make the decisions.”
“What have we won ? We have won a country where people are politically aware. We have learned the last names of our enemies, because they don’t have other names, compañeros. It’s the oligarchy, they are our enemies, the transnationals, the gringos, that put in systems of domination, not just in Honduras, but the entire region.”
Both Carlos H. Reyes’ announcement and the resistance movement’s decision not to participate in nor recognize the elections “with or without Mel” was celebrated this past Sunday at the weekly General Assembly of the National Front Against the Coup where participation remains high.
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National Front Against the Coup’s weekly General Assembly in the STIBYS union building, Sunday November 8, 2009.
There is growing anticipation and tension, and speculation as to what will happen on election day. Strategies are being discussed and meetings are being organized in communities and neighbourhoods across the country.  The coordinating body of the resistance movement is encouraging people to mobilize, boycott and protest on the election day.
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Newspaper clippings describing the coup resistance struggle, displayed outside the Congress for all to read.
Community education and organizing continues ...
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ACTION NEEDED in the USA
TELL YOUR CONGRESSPERSON, SENATOR, THE WHITE HOUSE & THE STATE DEPARTMENT NOT TO RECOGNIZE THE HONDURAN COUP REGIME & THE NOVEMBER 29TH PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS
The U.S. government announced it will recognize the results of the November 29 presidential “elections” in Honduras with or without democratically-elected President Zelaya back in office and power.
From the Honduran people’s pro-democracy movement and the National Front Against the Coup, to governments across the Americas, to the Organization of American States, everyone and institution recognizes there are no conditions whatsoever in Honduras – under the control of an illegal and repressive military-oligarchic regime - to hold free and fair elections.
Since the June 28 coup, the regime has killed some 2 dozen Hondurans, illegally jailed over 3000 people, tortured (including rape) hundreds of people in illegal detention, and wounded hundreds in protests (due to rubber and live bullets, tear-gas and beatings).  It is in the context of this on-going repression that the illegal regime aims to hold elections as their way of legitimizing and justifying the un-legitimizable and unjustifiable coup.
We urge U.S. citizens to contact your member of congress, senator, the white house and state department, to demand:

STATE DEPARTMENT, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Assistant Secretary Thomas Shannon: 202-647-4000
WHITE HOUSE, President Barack Obama and Dan Restrepo (Special Assistant to the President and National Security Council Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs): 202-456-1111, 202-456-1414
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STATEMENT BY HONDURAN PRESIDENT ZELAYA:
Tegucigalpa November 6, 2009 [Translation by Patricia Adams, The Quixote Center]
DECLARATION
Our weapon are ideas, our struggle is peaceful
Agreement Failed because of Micheletti’s Failure to Comply
In the face of the mockery that Mr. Micheletti has made of the Honduran People and the International Community - boycotting the Tegucigalpa/San Jose Agreement; letting the deadline for the creation of the Government of Unity pass without convening the National Congress, as is within his power and responsibility to do per the written agreement; the lack of a will to fulfill the Agreement in both letter and spirit is clear; ignoring the Plan Arias proposal, as well as the OAS and the UN resolutions - we declare that the Agreement has been a failure, because of the failure of the de facto regime to comply with the commitment to organize and install a government of unity and national reconciliation by this date; a government which should by law be presided over by the President elected by the People, José Manuel Zelaya Rosales.
1. We are not willing to give up the rights of the people by legitimating this Coup d’état
2. We do not accept the militarization of society nor that the President of Honduras be named by the elite of the Armed Forces
3. Democracy is the highest good of society and is the only path for confronting the problems of the third poorest economy in Latin America, and therefore we are not willing to be cheated nor that our Democracy be robbed from us
4. The permanent violations of Human Rights, the cancellation of public freedoms, the confiscation of communication media, as well as the status of the President elected by the people who is surrounded by the military inside the Brazilian Embassy and the political witch hunting, is all proof of the preparation of an enormous Political-Electoral fraud on November 29th
5. We announce that we will completely ignore this electoral process and the results of the aforementioned evils, elections under a dictatorship are a fraud for the people
6. We invite the Ministers of the OAS to make immediate pronouncements about the actions of the government legitimately elected by the people of Honduras and to continue to condemn and ignore this de facto regime
7. On behalf of the people, we thank the International Community, the OAS, Secretary Insulza, the ex- President of Chile Mr Ricardo Lagos Escobar, and the US Labor Secretary Mrs. Hilda Solís.
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HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION TO HONDURAS, November 24–December 1, 2009
Consider joining a Rights Action human rights observation delegation to Honduras.  For information: Grahame Russell, info@rightsaction.org, 1-860-352-2448
TO DONATE FUNDS
Please continue to financially support the pro-democracy, anti-coup movement in Honduras.  This extraordinary struggle, to defeat the oligarchic-military regime and to remake their constitution and country, will continue well into 2010.   Make your tax-deductible check to “rights action” and mail to:
UNITED STATES:  Box 50887, Washington DC, 20091-0887
CANADA:  552-351 Queen St. E, Toronto ON, M5A-1T8
CREDIT-CARD DONATIONS:  http://rightsaction.org/contributions.htm
For foundations and institutional donors, Rights Action can (upon request) provide a full proposal of which organizations and people we are channeling funds to and supporting.
VIEW The Real News:
“Nothing resolved in Honduras: Widely-celebrated, US-brokered agreement looks to have strengthened coup instead of reversing it”: http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=4431
WATCH A 2-PART “FAULT LINES” NEWS REPORT ABOUT HONDURAS:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYY4vj9ROC0&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upMu_oR2YUU&NR=1

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