NATIONAL |
NATIONAL |
Monday, December 28, 1998 Online Edition 138 |
Minister resigns from Reconstruction Cabinet By BLANCA MORENO After only 20 days in existence, the Special Cabinet of National Reconstruction directed by Honduran President Carlos Roberto Flores, suffered the loss of one of it's members when Fernando Martinez, Minister of Foreign Affairs resigned because of differences with other cabinet members. Friction between Martinez, labeled as conflictive, and other cabinet members, began when he was nominated to the team in charge of national reconstruction after Hurricane Mitch and consequent flooding caused the national economy to suffer losses in the millions. The Special Cabinet for National Reconstruction is directed by the President and comprised of the secretariat of State of the Presidential Office, Gustavo Alfaro; the Minister of Finance, Gabriela Nuñez; the Minister of Public Works, Transportation and Housing, Tomas Lozano; the Minister of the Technical and International Cooperation, Moises Starkman; as well as the president of Central Bank Emin Barjum and the Minister of Foreign Affairs as advisors. Apparently Martinez wanted to be part of the main team and a problem arose when Moises Starkman was put in charge of international cooperation because Martinez considered this his duty as Minister of Foreign Affairs. Martinez formally resigned from the Special Cabinet for National Reconstruction on Tuesday, December 22. According to the Minister, his decision was based on his having limited amounts of time, saying that he can't wear two hats or have two jobs. The Minister stated, "I decided to resign because I don't think my presence is necesary." Although Martinez assured the press that he had no problems with other members of the cabinet, there are rumors of personal problems with four Ministers; Moises Starkman, Tomas Lozano, Gustavo Alfaro and Delmer Urbizo. Gustavo Alfaro reacted to Martinez' resignation by saying that Martinez did things that were not part of his functions on the cabinet. He also said that Martinez had been chosen because of his experience in urban development and he was asked for advice in housing. He explained that Martinez also does things that are not included in his job description as Minister of Foreign Affairs; in other words, he should limit his activities to external state politics. "Some of his actions are applauded, but that's because people don't know what he's supposed to do," Alfaro stated. The reconstruction of Honduras will not be held up because of this problem. The team is working and holding meetings with the international community and prioritizing projects that should be financed. The resignation of Martinez was received with indifference. It is rumored that he resigned so as to be able to attend visitors to the creche that he traditionally sets up in his exclusive home. The People of
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Wood Producers Meet Wood producers met with with the Vice Minister of Industry, Dario Hernandez (Dec.18), to petition their products be included in negotiations of the Free Trade Agreement between Honduras, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Panama and Chile. Since the agreement has not yet been concluded they are interested in the status of their product in this market. Congressional Session Ends The first session of Congress during President Carlos Roberto Flores term came to an end on December 18 as the legislators gave themselves a resounding chorus of applause. They were very pleased with the fact that 315 bills have been passed, of which several were considered very important. Reduction in number of Congressmen reject Reform of Article 202 that would have reduced the number of Congressmen, and that was passed a previous legislative session, was rejected by Congress on December 17. Bills must pass two legislative sessions to become law. Those opposing the ratification of 202 argued that the bill was of limited scope. Traffic control measures still in a jam The central government, the mayor's office of Tegucigalpa and traffic authorites are gridlocked on vehicular restriction measures. No final agreement has been reached concerning traffic control in Tegucigalpa and Comayaguela. In the meantime, the controversial odd and even license plate number regulation will be in effect from the December 24 to January 4, 1999, excluding December 25 and January 1. New National Penitentiary mutiny results in death In the second jail mutiny attempt in a week, guards shot and killed one inmate and wounded another. Since the new penitentiary was opened in Tamara in November, 20 inmates have been killed in escape attempts, 35 have been wounded, and 15, including two major drug dealers, have escaped. The Central Penitentiary in Tegucigalpa damaged during Mitch is being rebuilt to hold the most dangerous prisioners. |
Monday, December 21, 1998 Online Edition 137 |
Dogs
to sniff out land mines By KETZI CHACON ZYLSTRA TEGUCIGALPA -- The conflicts that afflicted Central America during the 80s are long over, but their horrible legacy still continues vis-a-vis the thousands of antipersonnel mines that remain behind just under the surface of the earth in the border regions between Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Despite international efforts over the past few years to resolve this problem, it has become even more serious following Hurricane Mitch due to the fact that many of the mines that were previously located near river basins are now spread throughout a much wider and unknown area. Fortunately, the tragic experiences that many rural inhabitants and farm laborers in the region have suffered may hopefully soon be over thanks to recently increased efforts among various groups to demine and return these lands to use. Two of these groups, the Organization of American States (OAS) and the Inter American Defense Board, have been working with the American corporation RONCO Consulting to establish a new demining program in Central America called CAMINA, a Spanish acronym for Caninos Antiminas, or Anti-mine canines. Under this program, various members of the Honduran, Nicaraguan and Costa Rican security forces are being paired up with a total of 12 highly trained dogs that are sensitive to mines and other war debris to gradually comb through affected areas in an effort to reduce the number of outstanding mines. The use of dogs in the demining process is currently being presented as the top alternative in the process because of their superior accuracy and detective abilities over other available options. In addition, mine dogs are also highly environmentally friendly as compared with machinery, and this factor makes them more appropriate when clearing a land for agricultural use. On Dec. 15, the graduates of the 10-week training program held by RONCO Consulting in Ojo de Agua, El Paraíso received their official certificates of completion and will begin heading out to their respective assignments to carry out this important work. Each of the three countries involved will have four national handlers and one instructor, supplied by RONCO, which will remain for approximately one year with their charges supervising their work and providing assistance in the process. According to the experience that the instructors have had in places like Afghanistan, Mozambique and Bosnia, the dogs will be able to work, on a good day, an area up to 2,000 square meters. Mitch leaves ag
in ruins In Honduras, 60 percent of the population lives from agriculture. Part of this is commercial agriculture, such as coffee and bananas that together represent 80 percent of the country's exports. However, most rural people produce for Honduras' domestic market sugar, rice, yuca, vegetables, beans,and corn. A significant part of the banana and plantain crops are also consumed by Honduras, particularly in the North where they are more important staples than corn due to heavy Afro-Honduran influence on the coast. Corn and beans in Honduras are produced in two growing seasons. "La primera" is the harvest that was just completed in September. Some of these grains stayed dry, as the Honduran Agricultural Marketing Institute (IHMA) buys grains at harvest to have them for sale later in the year, particularly through National Supplier of Basic Products (BANASUPRO) stores, to help control prices. In much of Honduras the first harvest was poor due to drought. But many of the grains harvested in the primera were in markets, rural stores and in storage in people's rural homes. Much of these grains became wet or were carried away by flooding. The second stage of planting, called "la postrera" is from October to January. These were the crops in the fields when the flood hit. In many departments, these crops were totally ruined. There is hope of a partial harvest in Olancho, Santa Barbara and Copan by the end of the year. Obtaining seeds to replant may be a problem in many areas, including the Mosquitia. Loss in basic grains were estimated at Lps. 1,500 million in a La Tribuna report. This actually is probably a low estimate, because it did not include crop loss in the Mosquitia. Along the Patuca River in particular, but all over the Mosquitia, the Miskitos grow rice, bananas, coconuts, and yuca. Rice is sold at Barra Patuca and Cauquira for the Bay Islands and other parts of the country. The owner of Cielito Lindo, a packager of rice for all of Honduras, is based at Sico, where he buys Mosquitia-grown rice. MOPAWI, the chief development agency in the Mosquitia, has reported 90-100 percent crop loss along the Patuca, the Rio Kruta, and possibly 100 percent along the Segovia or Rio Coco. This last river begins way down in Nicaragua near El Paraiso and collected flood waters all along its length. On Nov. 15, more than two weeks after the rains started, there were still 1,500 people stranded on roofs and trees waiting to be rescued and fed. MOPAWI estimates there are 12,000 Miskitos out of a total Miskito population of 45,000 on the move looking for food. Ethnobiologist Paul House warns if they do not get started on the planting season that begins in December, an entire year could pass before there is adequate food in La Mosquitia. Some of Honduras' chief coffee growing areas were seriously affected by floods, including the Sierra de Agalta in Olancho where at least two villages were washed away. In Santa Barbara and El Paraiso, coffee growers say they have coffee on their trees and it will be ready to pick in December. However, they face other problems. In Santa Barbara, with many bridges out, coffee growers are concerned that they cannot get the coffee off the mountains and out of the beneficios, or factories where the final processing of coffee beans occurs. In El Paraiso, growers are concerned about how to get workers to pick coffee. In recent years, the shortage of coffee pickers has caused finca owners to hire Nicaraguans to harvest coffee. This year Nicaragua has problems of its own, including the fact that heavy rains unearthed more land mines from the Contra era along the border. Over 93 percent of the Honduran coffee harvest was already sold. The fear that Honduran exporters are not going to be able to meet their quotas raised prices from coffee on the future exchanges. The Ministry of Agriculture estimated Lps. 969,000,000 in coffee losses. Most Honduran cacao is sold domestically, so the almost complete destruction of this crop has not affected international prices. However, it will affect the buying power of the Miskito and Tawahkas that grew it, since it is almost their only cash crop besides rice. The sugar industry, based in southern Honduras, also reported heavy losses in the order of Lps. 1,440 million. This will not be a sweet year. The hurricane actually made the front page of the Wall Street Journal, when both Dole and Chiquita reported they would each take $50 million in losses against 4th quarter earnings due to the destruction of North Coast banana and plantain crops. The Ministry of Agriculture reported banana losses at Lps. 2,800 million because many small growers also lost their crops. The infrastructure loss of Chiquita is much greater than the write-downs, as even where the houses where the workers live -- "los barracones" -- were washed away by the floods. Many workers were still stranded on roof tops and hills 10 days after the rains began. Crocodiles that escaped from a crocodile farm made trying to get down and get food even more dangerous. Some people survived the flood, only to be eaten by the crocodiles. Bananas and plantains only produce one bunch per year. Then the adult tree dies. A young tree begins to grow up from the root of the old one. There is fear that these young trees that would produce a year from now were also damaged by the flooding, and that it may be two years before a good harvest can be expected. This means serious problems for North Coast families, who eat large quantities of bananas and plantains. Over the last few years, Honduras has made an entry in the cut flower market, which reaches its peak between December and February. The areas, particularly Saba in the Aguan Valley, were very hard hit by flooding. Lost bridges isolated the area in all directions. Other fruits that reported heavy losses include cantaloupes, mostly in southern Honduras with losses estimated at Lps. 794,000,000, and pineapples around La Ceiba with Lps. 320,000,000 in losses. Most disaster relief is short term. People who know Honduras are suggesting people involved with Hurricane Mitch relief be prepared for the long run. All these losses mean the thousands of Hondurans who work as jornaleros or day laborers will have no work. Families have lost their farm animals. In Irish stories, a family was hard up when they had to sell the family cow. In Honduras, to have lost your last chicken is to be absolutely, miserably destitute. Many people are staring destitution in the face and asking where can they go from here?
Two killed in crash Two Salvadoran nationals were killed Wednesday (Dec. 16) when their Piper Navajo airplane belonging to the company Transportes Aereos de El Salvador crashed near the community of Santa Ana, about a half-hour's drive south of Tegucigalpa, the daily La Prensa reported. The victims were identified as Jorge Antonio Colorado (46), the pilot, and Napoleon Garcia (26). The accident occurred less than 1 km from Las Mesitas, where a TAN-SAHSA Boeing 727 crashed in 1989, killing more than 100 people. Joya detained A fugitive from justice for more than three years, retired Capt. Billy Fernando Joya Amendola turned himself in to law enforcement authorities Tuesday evening (Dec. 15), the daily El Heraldo reported. Joya's detention comes just one day after the First Court of Appeals ruled that members of Honduras' security forces accused of human rights violations during the 1980s are covered by the amnesty decree approved by Congress in July 1991. Cold claims victim A street person is the first reported victim of a cold front affecting the nation, the daily El Heraldo reported Friday (Dec. 18). This week temperatures in the capital city were recorded in the low teens, which coupled with strong wind has produced some of the chilliest weather in recent memory. Forecasters said that a second more intense cold front is on the way, spelling at least another week of cold weather. They added that at higher elevations and in the western highlands temperatures could reach zero degrees centigrade. |
Clinton
to visit Central America early next year Clinton announced this Dec. 11 at a Rose Garden event, following 90 minutes of conversation in the Oval Office with the leaders of five Central American nations: Presidents Miguel Angel Rodriguez of Costa Rica, Carlos Flores of Honduras, Arnoldo Aleman of Nicaragua, Armando Calderon-Sol of El Salvador, and Vice President Luis Asturias Flores of Guatemala. "Central American nations face, in varying degrees, the formidable task of rebuilding from the region's deadliest storm in modern history," the President said, noting that 9,000 persons are confirmed dead, another 9,000 are missing and feared dead, and 3 million people are homeless or displaced. "I say to the leaders here and to the people of Central America, the United States will continue to do everything we can. 'Ayudaremos a nuestros hermanos'; we will help our brothers and sisters. It is the right thing to do. And I say to my fellow Americans, it also serves our long-term interests in a stable, free, and prosperous hemisphere," Clinton said. "The United States already has committed $283 million in assistance, and we will provide an additional $17 million through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for food assistance," Clinton added. He said thousands of U.S. troops and civilian officials are in the region supporting relief efforts, and noted that both First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and Tipper Gore, the wife of Vice President Al Gore, have visited the region following the hurricane, and in November they led a conference of charitable organizations to coordinate aid to the region. The United States is now focusing its efforts on reconstruction, Clinton said: "Working with Congress on a bipartisan basis, our effort will include funds for rebuilding, debt relief and new financing, trade and investment initiatives, and immigration relief." He said debt relief and new financing are essential to recovery, and noted that the United States and other creditor nations will relieve Honduras and Nicaragua, the hardest-hit nations, from debt service obligations until 2001. In addition, the United States is working with international institutions for new financing, and will work with Congress to help these countries meet their loan obligations. "Together these efforts could provide more than $1.5 billion [$1,500 million] in relief and new resources," he said. "For the longer term we will support, and I am pleased other creditor nations have said they will support, substantial forgiveness of bilateral debt. We call on other creditors to join us" in that effort. Regarding immigration, he noted that after the hurricane struck, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service stopped deportations to Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala through early next year. "We are considering further immigration measures, temporary and long-term, which will be announced shortly," the President said. President Flores of Honduras, speaking for all the Central American leaders, expressed satisfaction "with today's most fruitful and productive dialogue with the President of the United States of America. That reaffirms our confidence in his strong leadership and superb ability to understand our people, both simply as human beings and in terms of their needs for the enormous task of rebuilding our devastated lands." The People of
Honduras Need Your Help.
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Monday, December 14, 1998 Online Edition 136 |
Patuca residents hardhit by flooding The Rio Patuca's river banks, once graced with overhanging rain forest vegetation, were left barren by rising waters during tropical storm Mitch. (Photo by Denise Dunning.) By MARIA FIALLOS PICHOLO, Olancho -- All along the Rio Patuca the story is the same: "The river rose 20, 30, 40 feet during tropical storm Mitch and washed all our possessions away." Indigenous peoples and Ladino colonists who make their living as subsistence farmers, cattle ranchers and gold panners all suffered losses, some more than others. The subsistence farmers were the hardest hit, the loss of their homes they mourn less than their food crops. Crops of corn, beans and manioc planted on the riverbanks were totally destroyed, as the topsoil washed away leaving barren bedrock in its place. Help is a long time coming and many are having trouble finding food. Those who have share with those who don’t. Don Ricardo, an intelligent, and optimistic man, said in a shy voice, "Now I’m a damnificado (flood victim)." Don Ricardo had his camp and three gold panning machines on the Rio Patuca when the storm hit. He was able to save two machines. Now he is camped on the Cuyamel River in a pair of plastic shacks. When he invited me in for some coffee and a meal of rice, beans and wild pig, I asked him if the people there were his family. He said, "Not by blood, but we live and work together and that makes us a family, we all take care of each other." Don Ricardo is also planning to sell one of his gold panning machines to another inhabitant of the Patuca who lost both of his, and who was at that moment in Catacamas selling the last of his livestock (five pigs) to come up with the money. Leadership qualities such as those displayed by Don Ricardo are not rare in this area. Many of the people are immigrants from the deforested Choluteca region, and although their presence may not be conducive to protecting the rain forest, they are true frontiersmen. Thomas Horner, an American who has been panning for gold in the river for 11 years, has also been active in the area, trying to get food to residents. Horner, along with Don Ricardo and a medical brigade from Catacamas, joined our expedition to assess the needs of the people along the river and to get geographical coordinates that will enable a helicopter to land in the area with food supplies.
Arnaldo Navarro of the Health Ministry vaccinates a resident of Picholo on the Rio Patuca. (Photo by Denise Dunning.) The medical brigade was sponsored by the Patuca Foundation and the Olancho Ecological Group (GEO). One doctor, two nurses and two specialists in animal and insect transmitted diseases treated approximately 300 people along the Cuyamel and Patuca Rivers. Many of the people hadn't received medical attention in years and some never at all. Most of the children had never been vaccinated. Unfortunately for them, they got all their shots at once. The doctor stated that the most common illnesses found were intestinal parasites, pulmonary infections and skin and eye ailments. Due to the complete lack of medical services in the area, Patuca/GEO is at this time considering the possibility of setting up a health clinic at the site of their model farm in Matamoros on the Cuyamel River. U.S. may seek larger military presence in Honduras By W. E. GUTMAN To offset the closing of its main airfield in Panama next May and its subsequent loss of control of the Canal at the end of 1999, the United States is negotiating the transfer of its military forces to other parts of Central and South America. U.S. troops have been in Panama since the Canal opened in 1917. That presence has shrunk gradually since 1977 when President Jimmy Carter pledged to return the Canal to Panama. The United States now maintains about 4,000 troops in Panama, with roughly half billeted at Howard AFB. The airfield is the linchpin of U.S. regional drug-interdiction operations designed to stem the flow of cocaine and other drugs from South America to the United States. New bases are essential, U.S. military commanders argue, if the war on narcotrafficking is to continue unimpeded. Honduras is an obvious first choice. For the past 15 years, the United States has maintained a contingent of about 1,500 troops at its base at Soto Cano. Long-standing U.S. economic interests, historic alliances, national security issues and political objectives clearly enunciated by U.S. foreign policy in the region, further support expansion of a U.S. military presence in Honduras. Meanwhile, the U.S. is conducting talks with other nations, including Ecuador and Peru, which could be persuaded to allow surveillance aircraft such as AWACs to operate from existing airfields. U.S. Defense Secretary William S. Cohen said he had discussed U.S. aims with a number of diplomats gathered in Cartagena, Colombia for a three-day conference of defense ministers from the Americas. Cohen conceded that no decision had been reached. "What we're looking for are forward operating sites that could help us survey the territory to prevent the transfer of narcotics," he said. About 15,000 interdiction missions a year are flown from Howard AFB. The Pentagon had hoped to keep a U.S. military presence in Panama beyond 1999 and was negotiating a multinational counter-narcotics command center at Howard. But negotiations ended abruptly last September when the United States insisted that it be allowed to launch unspecified military operations -- other than drug interdiction missions -- from Panama. Some of the units long based in Panama have relocated, including the headquarters of Gen. Charles. E. Wilhelm, commander-in-chief of U.S. forces in Central and South America, now located in Miami. The Southern Command's army and special forces units are being moved to Puerto Rico. Gen. Wilhelm, who declined to identify potential sites, said, "we need to be close to the regions where we need to operate." A strong contender, senior defense officials pointed out on condition of anonymity, Honduras would limit coverage to Central America and the Caribbean basin. A site in Ecuador or Peru would facilitate surveillance of the Andean region, where much of the cocaine destined for the United States is produced. The officials added that while the area is of critical importance to U.S. security, the United States is not interested in massive installations but rather in maintaining readiness conditions and logistical support in the vent of limited missions in the region. In private, they conceded that the administration may yet try to negotiate for a "comprehensive and fully operational base" somewhere in the Isthmus. They would neither confirm nor deny that Honduras was a prime candidate but acknowledged its strategic importance in the fight against drugs. |
Murder suspect 'executed' The body of a youth sought for the murder of television newscaster Yadira Ramos was found last Friday (Dec. 4) in a sugar cane field not far from San Pedro Sula's new Olympic Stadium. Police said the victim, identified as Fernando Rizo Abudey (20), had three bullet wounds in the head and was blindfolded, with his hands tied behind his back. Sara Abudey, the boy's mother, told La Tribuna that two men claiming to be policeman detained Fernando -- a member of the Salvatrucha gang -- in their home the night before his body was found. Abudey accused controversial Channel 6 owner Rafael Nodarse, the husband of Yadira Ramos, and a gang leader known as Chente of the murder. In a comatose state for more than two months, the 22-year-old Ramos died on Oct. 9 from complications arising from a bullet wound to the head. She was allegedly shot by two members of the Salvatrucha gang, identified as Melvin Joel Moya and Rizo Abudey. NGOs to be regulated The National Congress this week began discussing legislation aimed at regulating approximately 70 private development organizations operating in Honduras, the daily La Tribuna reported Friday (Dec. 4). Through this legislation, legislators aim to regulate the financial activities of these NGOs which provide financing and credits to microenterprises to ensure transparency and to strengthen the system. According to government figures, there are almost half a million microenterprises providing employment for more than 1.2 million people. New Teguz mayor sworn in Overcoming several legal bids to nullify her nomination, Vilma Reyes de Castellanos on Friday (Dec. 4) was sworn in as the new mayor of Tegucigalpa. Vilma succeeds her husband, the late Dr. Cesar Castellanos, who died in a helicopter crash Nov. 1. Moon rock in country Pieces of moon rock donated to Honduras by President Nixon have never left the country, according to Olga Joya, the director of the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History (IHAH). Joya told La Tribuna that IHAH has had custody of the rock since 1993, when the Museo de Historia Republicana was inaugurated. Recently, FBI agents in Miami detained a man who was offering to sell a moon rock for $5 million. It was reported that the rock was allegedly one that President Nixon gave to Honduras in 1973. Bus assaulted, passenger raped For the second time in less than a month, armed bandits have held up an interurban bus on the highway between San Pedro Sula and the Guatemalan border, the daily La Tribuna reported. On Monday (Dec. 7), seven gunmen stopped a bus belonging to the Copaneco company near the village of La Ceibita in Santa Barbara department. After ordering everyone off the bus, the thugs proceeded to take more than Lps. 100,000 from the passengers, most of whom were small businesspersons who were traveling to Guatemala to buy merchandise. One of the thugs also raped a 25-year-old woman in the rear of the bus. Previously, armed bandits robbed a Congolon company bus on Nov. 18.
The People of
Honduras Need Your Help.
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Momday, December 7, 1998 Online Edition 135 |
Mexico's first lady delivers more aid
By BLANCA MORENO TEGUCIGALPA -- Mexican First Lady Nilda Patricia Velasco de Zedillo Leon paid a visit to Honduras last Friday (Nov. 27) for the purpose of personally delivering another US$ 4 million dollars in donations that will go toward the nation's reconstruction. President Zedillo's wife expressed her people's grief over the human loss and damage caused by Hurricane Mitch. "We share your pain, and commit ourselves to its relief out of humanity as well as the fraternal ties that bind us: Honduras and Mexico are intertwined not only by geographic proximity, but also share common history and similar cultures," she said. The Mexican Presidential couple initiated a relief campaign in Mexico on Nov. 8 titled "Mexico for Central America" to draw support and assist the people affected by the devastation caused by Hurricane Mitch. Mrs. Zedillo said that all of Mexico united to make the campaign successful. More than 30,000 collection bottles were handed out to teachers and students with the message "Mover el bote" (pass the bottle) so all could collaborate. Funds collected were donated to strengthen the affected nations' capacity to confront the emergency situation and initiate reconstruction activities. Collection was held Nov. 11-15 and more than 96 million pesos were donated. Honduras received 38.8 million pesos, nearly $4 million dollars or Lps. 55 million. Distribution of the funds was supervised by the National Family Development System, with 40 percent going to Honduras, 30 percent to Nicaragua, and 15 percent each to El Salvador and Guatemala. President Carlos Flores expressed his gratitude on behalf of Honduras. "All our words are not enough to show you our most sincere and profound gratitude to the Mexican people and their government. Please read it in the eyes of every Honduran at every point of this nation, who, in the middle of tragedy and pain shared by the Mexican nation, reserve in the back of their minds and in the depths of their hearts a "thank you Mexico," that will ring in time and space now and for many years to come." Germany provides more help to Honduras By KETZI CHACON ZYLSTRA TEGUCIGALPA -- In conjunction with the growing demand for public health services, Germany has made a commitment to the people of Honduras to increase their contributions in this area. During the past week, German Ambassador to Honduras Andreas Kuligk, along with Health Minister Dr. Marco Antonio Rosa and German Technical Cooperation representatives, signed an agreement whereby Germany would make a contribution valued at US$250,000. Many hospitals and clinics are currently unable to provide basic health items due to logistical damage inflicted by Hurricane Mitch. In addition, the advance of contagious disease in the Choluteca River basin and in the Mosquitia is of special concern for the German representatives. Another fundamental concern will be to rehabilitate the drinking water systems that provide water to both hospitals and health clinics in El Paraiso. The German assistance is being planned in conjunction with the Honduran Health Ministry, PRAIM, the Pan American Health Organization, the Honduran organization Unidad de Reconstruccion and municipal authorities in the areas of Oropoli, Ojo de Agua, San Lucas, San Antonio de Flores and Yuscaran and El Paraiso, Choluteca and Gracias a Dios departments.
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Hurricane death figures inflated The governor of Santa Barbara has been suspended temporarily by the Ministry of Justice and Government for allegedly inflating the death toll from Hurricane Mitch, the daily La Tribuna reported Saturday (Nov. 28). An official communique stated that the government Center for Processing Information has reviewed data from Santa Barbara and determined that the number of deaths for that department is actually 282 and not 1,159, as previously reported. Nationwide, the official death toll is now 5,657 and the number of persons still missing 8,058. The Ministry of Justice and Government has launched an investigation into the matter. More cases of leptospirosis The number of suspected leptospirosis cases in Honduras has climbed to 66 -- including seven in Tegucigalpa, causing concern among health officials of an epidemic. However, only 16 have been confirmed, four in the capital. A bacterial disease, leptospirosis is spread by contaminated water, damp soil or vegetation. Symptoms include fever, headache, eye inflammation, muscle aches, loss of appetite, chills, nausea and vomiting. Copter crash blamed on power lines The helicopter crash in which Mayor Cesar Castallonos died was caused by the craft's rotor blade becoming entangled in some power lines, according to Judge Dagoberto Aspra in a La Tribuna report Tuesday (Dec. 1). He said an report prepared by the Honduran Air Force stated that prior to the accident the pilot made a call to the control tower indicating that one of the emergency indicators had turned on and that he was returning to base. However, the pilot decided to make an emergency landing on the Boulevard Fuerzas Armadas and the helicopters blades apparently hit some high-tension power lines, causing an explosion.
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