HONDURAS - U.S. Pressure Stopping Coup d'État

Ousted President Zelaya might now officially return to his country and share power with his rival Micheletti who incited a coup d'état against him with the help of Hondura's army.

It needed nothing more but some pressure from the U.S. to enable a return to constitutional peace in one of Latin America's poorest countries. Or at least that is what it seems to be. In July, Zelaya had been ousted because of his intention to push ahead a referendum on changes to the constitution, seen to be vital to improve the lives of Honduras' poor.

Zelaya had to flee from his country to Nicaragua whose left-wing orientated president Ortega granted him political asylum. Though his return to Honduras had been hindered more than once by the military, he finally managed to get into the Brazilian embassy to Honduras where he stayed up to now.

Yesterday, a deal has been reached that includes the formation of a unity government supported by both rivals.

As political pressure has been rising from other left-wing orientated governments in Latin America, including Venezuela, and after the President of the United Nations' General Assembly having condemned that coup d'état, the Obama administration finally decided to interfere.

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I remember that it was at the very beginning of the affair when an expert expressed the opinion that only two or three armoured vehicles from the nearby U.S. garrison in Honduras might restore constitutional peace at once. Now, its not the armoured vehicles but a U.S. envoy who seems to have reached an agreement of peace. At the beginning, as well, another expert on constitutional law in Latin America made it clear that most constitutions in that area include the predominance of the military when "a civil government has become unable to guarantee internal stability". Seen from such point of view, that expert even came to the estimation that President Zelaya's "forced resignation" might be "a lawful act". If that's true, it would imply an urgent necessity to exclude such military predominance from any constitution of that area as soon as possible, even though Latin America is still holding the armies of Simon Bolivar and General Sucre in high esteem as the liberators from colonialism and the guarantors of constitutional peace in the newly founded republics.