The following is an extract from an interview with a Honduran poet living in the capital Tegucigalpa......
In a telephone interview from Tegucigalpa, the poet Fabricio Estrada (Honduras, 1974) denounces the coup d'etat carried out by the armed forces.
Sr. Estrada supports the government of the President of Honduras: " Mel Zelaya opened a much needed space for all of the progressive forces in Honduras, for the benefit of all the historically dispossesed and marginalised classes in this country. What his government achieved was to create a platform for action for those sectors of society in favour of fundamental changes in Honduras. Among his key achievements was giving the power of participation to a population which has always been detached from the decisions of the state-- this threatened to cause a rapid erosion of the power of the traditional political class.
MC.- People woke up to news of the coup, now Congress is trying to legitimise it. How was this all received in Tegucigalpa?
FE.-We all know-- including reactionaries-- that the session in Congress is a farce, the purpose of which is to legitimise the coup legally using the Constitution of the Republic which the business leaders and those who have held power in this country for decades have repeatedly ignored when it was inconvenient for them. The oligarchy and sections of the population disorientated by the media bombardment have been clamouring for a coup since 3 weeks ago so therefore it is not a huge surprise what has happened. However, the disproportion of the military's actions were not expected. We thought that there would be a growing crisis without the intervention of the military, who were thought of as professional and non-partisan. In the back of everyone's minds, however, is the collective memory of the terror caused by the miltary in the past. This was built up during decades of dictatorship so when the armed forces did step in, their old reputation quickly returned.
MC.--So, the consultation over the referendum (The 'Fourth Urn') was an excuse? Were you planning to participate in the survey proposed by President Zelaya?
FE.-- Almost 400,000 people signed up. The 'Fourth Urn' was designed to create a popularly-elected assembly which would limit the power which the transnational business elite and criollos hold in this country. In one way or another, this crisis was going to come to a head as the popular movements have been steadily building up, from one crisis to another, their struggle over the last 7 years.
MC.-- The most recent coup d'etat in Latin America occurred in April 2002, against the government of Hugo Chavez, but we can't forget when military jets flew over the capital of Chile on the 11th September 1973. Why do we keep seeing these interventions from the military and business elites?
FE.-- The same sound of F-5E jets which we heard in the 1980s still wakes us up today. Once more the psychological repression comes from the military which had been masked by its civilised and non-aggressive behaviour. The political class continued its close relationship with the armed forces in secret and they never stopped provoking the military into action against the democratic achievements, brought about by the will of the people. This incitement was also carried out with the Catholic and Protestant churches who were even praying outside the barracks, so that the army would intervene and stop the satanic government of Mel Zelaya.
Interviewer: Mario Casasus
Translated by Czarny Kot 02/07/09 Source: El Clarin de Chile
In a telephone interview from Tegucigalpa, the poet Fabricio Estrada (Honduras, 1974) denounces the coup d'etat carried out by the armed forces.
Sr. Estrada supports the government of the President of Honduras: " Mel Zelaya opened a much needed space for all of the progressive forces in Honduras, for the benefit of all the historically dispossesed and marginalised classes in this country. What his government achieved was to create a platform for action for those sectors of society in favour of fundamental changes in Honduras. Among his key achievements was giving the power of participation to a population which has always been detached from the decisions of the state-- this threatened to cause a rapid erosion of the power of the traditional political class.
MC.- People woke up to news of the coup, now Congress is trying to legitimise it. How was this all received in Tegucigalpa?
FE.-We all know-- including reactionaries-- that the session in Congress is a farce, the purpose of which is to legitimise the coup legally using the Constitution of the Republic which the business leaders and those who have held power in this country for decades have repeatedly ignored when it was inconvenient for them. The oligarchy and sections of the population disorientated by the media bombardment have been clamouring for a coup since 3 weeks ago so therefore it is not a huge surprise what has happened. However, the disproportion of the military's actions were not expected. We thought that there would be a growing crisis without the intervention of the military, who were thought of as professional and non-partisan. In the back of everyone's minds, however, is the collective memory of the terror caused by the miltary in the past. This was built up during decades of dictatorship so when the armed forces did step in, their old reputation quickly returned.
MC.--So, the consultation over the referendum (The 'Fourth Urn') was an excuse? Were you planning to participate in the survey proposed by President Zelaya?
FE.-- Almost 400,000 people signed up. The 'Fourth Urn' was designed to create a popularly-elected assembly which would limit the power which the transnational business elite and criollos hold in this country. In one way or another, this crisis was going to come to a head as the popular movements have been steadily building up, from one crisis to another, their struggle over the last 7 years.
MC.-- The most recent coup d'etat in Latin America occurred in April 2002, against the government of Hugo Chavez, but we can't forget when military jets flew over the capital of Chile on the 11th September 1973. Why do we keep seeing these interventions from the military and business elites?
FE.-- The same sound of F-5E jets which we heard in the 1980s still wakes us up today. Once more the psychological repression comes from the military which had been masked by its civilised and non-aggressive behaviour. The political class continued its close relationship with the armed forces in secret and they never stopped provoking the military into action against the democratic achievements, brought about by the will of the people. This incitement was also carried out with the Catholic and Protestant churches who were even praying outside the barracks, so that the army would intervene and stop the satanic government of Mel Zelaya.
Interviewer: Mario Casasus
Translated by Czarny Kot 02/07/09 Source: El Clarin de Chile
1 comment:
As soon as you start using words like "elite" I know what your going to say before you say it.
I live in Honduras as well and the last thing they need is a Chavez puppet running this country for life.
Megan Mills
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