HONDURAN MILITARY ARRESTS PRESIDENT ZELAYA

id: 214296

date: 6/28/2009 14:58

refid: 09TEGUCIGALPA504

origin: Embassy Tegucigalpa

classification: CONFIDENTIAL

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C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 000504

C O R R E C T E D COPY - ADDING INFO ADDRESSEE

SIPDIS

FOR OPS CENTER, WHA/CEN AND CA/OCS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/28/2019

TAGS: PGOV, CASC, MARR, HO

SUBJECT: HONDURAN MILITARY ARRESTS PRESIDENT ZELAYA

Classified By: amb. Hugo Llorens, e.o. 12958 1.4(b) and (d)

 1. (C) At approximately 02:30 local time (04:30 Washington)

Honduran military forces entered the Presidential Palace and

arrested President Manuel "Mel" Zelaya.  Embassy sources

report Zelaya was taken to the Air Force Base adjacent to

Toncontin International Aiport and then flown by military

aircraft to Costa Rica, where he was said to be as of

07:30.It has been reported that Zelaya has signed a letter of

resignation.

2. (C) Military commanders told DATT they had acted on

instructions from the National Congress and the Supreme Court

to prevent Zelaya from carrying out a poll, scheduled to take

place today, on whether there should be a "fourth urn"at the

November general elections to seek voter approval to convene

a constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution.  The

courts, the attorney general and the solicitor general had

all declared the poll illegal.

3. (C) Both the Attorney General and the individual members

of the Congress we spoke to say they had only ordered the

confiscation of the polling materials and had not asked for

Zelaya,s arrest. Juan Orlando Gutierrez added, however, that

Zelaya could be arrested for having committed several

"flagrant" acts up to 24 hours after the act.  When asked if

the National Police (HNP) were in solidarity with the

military forces, Minister of Security Jorge Rodas told Emboff

the HNP "are in support of the Constitution and rule of law."

4. (C) As of 09:00 streets are calm in Tegucigalpa, although

there is an unusually large police presence.  The military is

confiscating poll materials throughout the country, according

to the director of police.  Television and radio broadcasts

have been suspended, and there are sporadic power outages.

Television stations had reported the arrest before going off

the air.  The government-controled Channel 8 urged Zelaya

supporters to congregate in the Central Park and in front of

the Presidential Palace to oppose the military's action.

5. (C) Post held an EAC. There are no/no reports of violence.

 Post is preparing a warden message to American Citizens and

instructing all Embassy personnel to remain at home.  We are

contacting airlines to determine status of departing and

incoming international flights.

6. (C) Ambassador spoke to President of Congress Roberto

Micheletti, who said Zelaya,s publication of the poll in the

official Gazette was a violation of law, and that Zelaya

intended to convene a constituent assembly immediately after

the poll, so Congress acted to preempt him.  The Ambassador

told Micheletti that, while we realized that the poll had

been ruled illegal by the courts, and that the publication in

the Gazette may have defied the law, sending in the military

to arrest Zelaya was not appropriate or legal.  Embassy

continues all parties to seek a democratic solution to the

current crisis while making clear that the military's action

in this case was in our view inappropriate.

LLORENS

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