OPINIONS & EDITORIAL |
OPINIONS & EDITORIAL |
| Monday, Feburary 23, 1998 Online Edition 94 |
Honduras This Week Online For all the public, our Web Masters, Stanley and Linda Marrder, are the ones who take the print version of HTW and turn it into the interactive Web version. Anyone who has seen their work at http:\\www.marrder.com can easily see why our web page has won 12 awards for outstanding design and content. The talent and quality of our journalists adds to this success and wide readership, without a doubt the widest readership of a Central American media. Internet is a free system created precisely so that information could flow more easily around the world. "Free," however is relative. In most of the developed nations of the world, an Internet service with unlimited time costs around $20 a month. In most of Latin America and other under developed nations, the costs are much higher. Limited numbers of servers plus charges for local phone calls make the Internet cost-prohibitive for all but the rich in this part of the world. For us, it has not been impossible to overcome this obstacle because we have the technology needed to access the service and we consider the added expense of reading and responding to many e-mail messages daily is a contribution to the country we live in. We feel a great honor, as the only English-language newspaper covering national events in Honduras. We try to live up to this challenge by offering an honest view of Honduras, while celebrating the rich traditions and fascinating people who are contributing to the country. We also try to fulfil our role by presenting to the world the best that our country has to offer in tourism and investment opportunities for foreigners. Death squads or proactive police? By W. E. GUTMAN Are army death squads back in business in Honduras? Yes, says an Associated Press dispatch recently published in the Oregonian. Quoting a report released by the Committee for Human Rights, which claims that summary killings by police and soldiers "are much more common now than in the war-plagued 1980s," the article alleges that death squads are now targeting "common criminals rather than political activists." It also purports that the number of killings is rising dramatically. The report was issued in the final days of the four-year administration of President Carlos Roberto Reina, who had campaigned on a pledge to improve the country's human rights situation and whose record, on that score, has been less than sterling. Speaking off the record, a Honduran government spokesman in New York first refused to comment on the report then dismissed the charges, saying that an increase in crime in Honduras is simply being countered with "commensurate crime-fighting measures." He categorically denied the "existence and/or deployment of death squads." Semantics or sophistry? The absence of analysis, political perspective and regard for economic realities renders the Oregonian report incomplete and misleading at best. As such it does grave injustice to Honduras and diverts attention from reality. Yes, special details -- mostly policemen out of uniform -- have routinely been empowered to conduct periodic "cleansings." Because of a technicality -- police cannot effect an arrest without a signed court order -- they are wont to take matters into their own hands, often with the government's blessings, and will periodically hunt down and eliminate known "delinquents."
No, they do not only go after "criminals." The word "delinquent" has great elasticity in Honduras (as it does throughout Latin America) and covers a wide range of social outcasts, including felons, the homeless, derelicts and growing tides of street children. A recent document by Casa Alianza chronicles and depicts the violence that has been meted out against street children in Guatemala and Honduras in recent months. These pogroms have been for the most part carried out by the police, generally after hours, in the complete anonymity afforded by civilian clothes and with the added incentive of total passivity on the part eyewitnesses. It should come as no surprise that onlookers seldom, if ever, come forward to finger an errant cop, whereas a homeless kid who steals a piece of bread is swiftly set upon and often shot for his dastardly deed! No one in Honduras has ever been arrested for killing a thief caught in flagrante delito. Sporadic and extemporaneous, such incidents are either quickly hushed up by the police or rationalized by the press with euphemisms such as "settlement of accounts," "gang war," "crime of passion," or -- when a shooting occurs in public -- "self-defense..." There is an added perversity to this problem, a daunting one for Honduras: Policemen earn 900 lempiras (about $69) a month, hardly enough to support a family. The government's recent claim that 26 lempiras a day is enough to survive, is nonsense. Moonlighting in the service of death adds valuable extra cash to a policeman's pay. Few, if any, will turn down an opportunity to add to their meager earnings. The temptation becomes all the more inviting when full immunity from a blind and inept judiciary is assured. The business community has responded with predictable hostility: "These are peripheral events that do not concern us," says one of the richest men in Tegucigalpa on condition of anonymity. "The police have a job to do; let them." "Delinquents [here we go again] and other dregs of society should be dealt with in any way necessary," offers a shoe-store owner. "Image is what drives the business machine in Honduras," argues a maquilla operator outside San Pedro Sula. "Crime has sullied that image." Does such a mindset encourage or deter indiscriminate violence in the name of justice? As for the tourists, with whom I've often compared notes, they're like Sergeant Shultz of Hogan's Heroes: they know nuttin', they see nuttin'. Recognizable by their ghastly urban complexion, they walk around with seven cameras hanging from their necks, and they go home with memories of white sandy beaches and spectacular vistas and treks through magnificent nature trails and "friendly natives" and cool restaurants and groovy hotels. Only the obvious eludes them. "How conveeeeeeenient," the church lady would say! And so, reality endures, shielded by the guileless who don't know how to look and the cowardly who pretend not to see. W. E. Gutman is a Connecticut-based investigative journalist and a frequent contributor to Honduras This Week.
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Let the little children show the way By JAMES MICKEY MCCARTHY Special to Honduras This Week Not too many years ago when most families lived in small pueblos and Honduras was primarily an agricultural country and mama was preparing food in the cocina or on the fogon, it was most unusual for food to come in a bag (to be thrown away), a bottle and practically never in a can. A bag, used to carry corn or rice from the pulperia, was saved to be used next time. A bottle was washed thoroughly and became part of the kitchen utensils to be used over and over again. Peelings from the plantain or banana, the orange, lemon or grapefruit, the potato or other such vegetables and the bruised parts of those vegetables that mama deemed uneatable, were thrown out of the kitchen window and eaten by the village pig and chickens that roamed free. Later, the villagers ate the pig, obtained eggs from the chickens and in time ate them too. However, there was always a new pig and more chickens to replace the old ones. Consequently, the lanes and paseos of the pueblo were by all standards "clean." Today more than half of the burgeoning population of 5.6 million citizens of Honduras live in cities. There are, with some exceptions, few roaming pigs or chickens. Some short-sighted environmentalists with help from political sources suggested that Hondurans would learn to classify and sort their garbage. This generally is not the garbage that makes the city unsightly. Without the government being able to invest in containers into which each individual household can sort their garbage -- one container for ordinary garbage, one for glass and plastics, and one for paper and cardboard -- the system will not work. In fact, to supplement their income men working on the garbage trucks do a much better job of sorting. The mamas of Honduras still make excellent meals. While the old habit of throwing food scraps from the kitchen window has ceased, the garbage including scraps is put in bags to be picked up twice weekly by garbage trucks. This practice does not make the city unsightly. However, in addition to mama this modern era has the fast food establishments with take-out orders in plastic, cardboard or paper containers. It has the street corner vendor who will serve you a taco or enchilada on plastic or paper plates or wrapped in paper and a soft drink that comes in a throw-away cup. Even more than the fresh fruit, which still comes in various throw-away peelings, we have candy, popcorn, potato chips, fried platano slices and chee-wees in cellophane bags plus the omni-present cigarette packaging and butts. All of the above have one destination for the throw-away or the thrash-the city street, where they will be trodden under foot or by automatic wheel and wind up in the gutter or along the curb. In San Pedro Sula during a heavy rain, because there is no sub-surface drainage, an old saying tells us that God is helping the mayor clean the city. Perhaps the adult population is ingrained in throwing anything anywhere, but usually in front of someone else's property. However, no matter how fortunate or unfortunate one's circumstances are, Hondurans have great pride in their country and certainly should want to keep it beautiful, but sadly, bad habits are hard to break. It is not right to criticize unless one offers solutions to remedy bad situations. Therefore, let's start with the school children and get them excited about keeping their cities clean. As school and class projects, let's have each child make two small signs, on white paper or cardboard background, lettered in black and one sign have a boarder in red and the other in blue, so that neither major political party can take credit for the idea. The sign would simply state: "I will be responsible for keeping the front of my home or place of business clean; and I will not throw garbage in front of someone else's home or place of business." To enhance the success of the project, let us hope that the media (newspapers, TV and radio) in the spirit of public service give the project lots of publicity. An excellent example of positive thinking is the new trash cans being installed in Tegucigalpa. They will do wonders if they are cleaned and serviced on a daily or regular basis. Let us hope that the children can show their elders or "embarrass" them into using such implements. Let's also help our mayors achieve their goals. If we do this, everyone will win and we will wind up with cleaner cities. |
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IS JUDGE ABOVE THE LAW? In Honduras, people in high places have always done in the underdog. The reason that the houses were originally built over water was due to plumbing reasons, and the fact that it was always cooler on the water. I sincerely wish the attorney representing these people lots of luck with the U.N. [Commission for Human Rights]. S. Kirkconnell ILL-FATED VOYAGE, PART 2 Now all of this can be confirmed if you write to or phone Regal Cruises Ltd. (new name), 300 Regal Cruise Way, Suite 2 (new address), Palmetto, Fl. 34221; Tel. (941) 721-7300 (new number) Fax. (941) 723-0900. Or you might try International Shipping Partners, 4770 Biscayne Blvd., Penthouse A, Miami, Fl. 23137; (305) 573-6355. I am amazed that I have not even received a letter of apology from the company that owns the ferry service. I purchased a round trip ticket to save me money. My budget started out at $2,000 and ended up costing twice that, and not one word from the company. Just false promises over the phone, but not a single thing in writing. I wonder why? Could be that they do not want to be held libel for something in writing. It took me one month to get my car back from the company who shipped it. I am just grateful that it was not a load of bananas, or a load of any kind of fruit that we ship out of Honduras. Joe Dyer ESP PROOF ON INTERNET Giovanni Pieroni FOCUS ON HONDURAS Jeffrey Scott Wright GREAT JOB Juan Carlos Torres |
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| Monday, Feburary 16, 1998 Online Edition 93 |
Reengineering There has been much discussion since the new administration took over of a process of reengineering the administration. We cannot be certain of exactly what the new president plans to include in this reengineering, but accepting that, in business, reengineering reorients and adjusts the functions of a business to obtain better results, we can assume that he will apply the same theories to his administration. Reengineering is often used in connection with other phrases, such as total quality, which implies quality, high technology, lower costs and a superior product with better marketing image and publicity. It seems that these terms can more or less be used to represent the plan offered by President Flores. When reengineering is called for in a business the first thing which must be contemplated is a revision of the internal laws, the rules and regulations which exist in the institution, because if these rules and regulations are an obstacle there can be no change. The internal regulation must be studied along with the economic accounting, to make sure that the department is operating with incomes to match the costs. Theory says that government institutions are designed to consume their entire budget and close in the red. In this way there is a distribution of the tax money back to the taxpayers in the form of public works, health, and education. In both systems, the reengineering with total quality and the redistribution of tax money, it is important to remember the spirit that what is spent should benefit all. Government investment should motivate the private enterprise and private institutions that will contribute even more in the form of employment, exportation, and of course, taxes. President Flores said in his inaugural address, "If I can do just one thing for Honduras, it would be education." The complex dilemma of reengineering and the number one goal of Flores' administration share the same fundamental base: education. The entire administration should be reeducated. Reengineering must be well defined, and it must be taught to every pubic employee, demonstrating that each job is part of the plan and with a good structure each and every public employee can become better in his job and improve the entire public service. For the moment, the greatest obstacle is internal laws regulating public offices. Many are old and out of touch with the current reality of the country, and often they do not promote cooperation between different government offices. Changes are necessary to produce an administration that works efficiently, and is ready to confront the constant changes that are part of today's world.
VOTER FRAUD Dear Editor: Wasn't the large amount of voter fraud in the recent presidential election a major story? Your articles seem to completely ignore the voter identification fraud. I know that many countries in Latin and Central America have poor histories vis a vis democratic elections, but if the press won't report the truth, then who will? Kevin Thomas O'Neill kto9@serv2.fwi.com EDITOR'S NOTE: Voter fraud in last year's elections was not a major story in the press because there wasn't any, with the exception of some isolated cases that had no significant bearing on the final results. In fact, the Dec. 1 elections were described by international observers as the most transparent and uneventful since democracy was restored in 1981. QUAKE ARTICLE RAISES QUESTIONS Dear Editor: I especially enjoyed the article Earthquakes are major part of seismic events in Honduras by Rosibel Gutierrez in the Dec. 27, 1997 edition, which raised a number of important questions that could be explored in future editions. What geological features make Honduras less susceptible to seismic activity than Guatemala or Costa Rica? Given the statistical probability that another large earthquake could hit Honduras, what dispositions is the government taking to (a) alert the population in advance; (b) minimize the damage; (c) to handle emergencies and offer disaster relief. W.E. Gutman Ridgefield, CT EDITOR'S NOTE: Mr. Gutman's questions were passed on to Geophysicist Carlos Tenorio of the National Autonomous University of Honduras, who provided the following answers: 1. There are many geological features in Honduras that suggest strong seismic activity in the past, and are known to produce microseismicity at present day. Among them we can mention The Honduras depression -- a system of quaternary grabens running roughly north-south from Cortes to Choluteca, whose main features are the Sula Valley and the Comayagua Valley; the remarkable Guayape fault in the eastern part of the country that shows evidence of recent Holocene displacement according to Finch and Ritchie (1991); the Chamelecon fault across the northern Sula Valley; the Aguan and La Ceiba faults, as well as many other mapped faults and features. Those structures have been scenario of important events in the geologic past. However, the size of these faults is small compared to the colossal subduction zone off the Pacific coast of Central America (the contact zone where the Cocos plate in the Pacific collides and sinks under the Caribbean plate) and the large Motagua-Polochic fault system in Guatemala, where the North American plate and the Caribbean plate find their common boundary. Given that the amount of stress accumulated in a fault and the corresponding release of seismic energy depend partly on its physical dimensions (the area of contact along the fracture), we can certainly expect more and greater earthquakes in the vicinity of the larger features, as it is the case. However, we should not dismiss the smaller faults and they are known to produce a wealth of microseismicity, most of which lies below the threshold of human perception, and have potential to produce damage in the future. 2. a) Unfortunately, the government of Honduras through the National University (UNAH) has no funding allocated to the task of deploying and maintaining an efficient seismic network that can monitor the activity of the aforementioned features with acceptable resolution. In other Central American countries, this endeavor has been directly sponsored by the government after massive loss of human lives and properties in the aftermath of seismic events or volcanic eruptions has elicited public interest in the geological sciences. Honduras is yet to suffer the catastrophic consequences of its neighbors, therefore there is little awareness of the benefits that well planned, long-term, and consistent research could bring towards understanding the local geology and ensuing seismicity and how to protect ourselves from its more dreaded effects. b)With regard to emergency situations, there is a government organization called COPECO (Permanent Committee for Emergencies) that coordinates all relief efforts from other institutions, such as Red Cross, local fire departments, the military, international emergency aid, etc, in the event of national emergency. So far they have experience handling emergency evacuations due to flooding in the North Coast and cases of landslides in slum neighborhoods of the capital. COPECO also coordinates education programs in schools implemented by Fire Department personnel, mainly on how to react and how to prepare in cases of natural disasters (floods, earthquakes, etc). However, in case of an earthquake emergency the implementation of fast assistance would be difficult because water pipelines and electricity and communication lines would certainly fail, as they haven't been designed earthquake-proof or according to modern urban seismic microzonation schemes. Uncontrolled fires would spread fast and blocked or failed roads would incapacitate emergency services to get where they are needed in a short time. I know the people of COPECO receive funding and training from CEPREDENAC (Center of Coordination for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America, an agency financed by the governments of Norway and Sweden).
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Casting the first stone By W. E. GUTMAN George Washington padded his expense account. He was rewarded with his effigy on U.S. currency and stamps. Roosevelt lied about his health. He may have withheld the truth about the impending Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Johnson lied about U.S. "victories" in Vietnam. Nixon lied about Watergate. Reagan lied about his failing memory of atrocities committed by U.S.-led death squads in Central America. Asking the people to read his lips, Bush lied about new taxes. At least fourteen U.S. presidents are known to have had "illicit" affairs, among them Harding, Cleveland, Roosevelt, Eisenhower and Kennedy. Posterity has shown remarkable restraint toward these men. So why Bill Clinton? Why now? Why the malice and the petulance? Why the feeding frenzy in the absence of unimpeachable proof? Why the trial by ambush when the facts are not in? Why the headlong, mean-spirited rush to judgment when even his political detractors -- some of whom must be salivating with joy in private -- yield in the absence of damning facts and refuse to take part in the lynching? What exactly do we begrudge Mr. Clinton? A faltering economy? Runaway inflation? Exorbitant taxation? Civil disorder? Rampant crime? What trespass has he committed? Treason? A breach of national security? A crippling war? An indiscretion, you say? A lie? A lack of vehemence in disputing his accusers' assertions? We must all be great judges of character if we can tell a man's guilt or innocence by the way he emotes. There's a larger issue that transcends President Clinton's morality or lack thereof and perhaps it's time for Americans to take a hard look at themselves. If America were a paragon of virtue, public indignation over Mr. Clinton's tryst(s) -- real or alleged -- would assume some measure of legitimacy. But America is the most sex-obsessed, promiscuous nation on earth. The puritan ideals it claims to cherish are both sham and shamefully subverted by an all-consuming fixation with carnality. Commerce drives morality in America. Sit yourself down and turn on the tube and watch as your optic nerve is splashed with soap operas, sitcoms and features suffused with sexual drama, willful verbal innuendo and occasional simulations of intercourse so realistic as to make the real thing quite superfluous. Flip the channels. Under the guise of studying animal behavior, nature shows dispense either gruesome scenes of cannibalism or graphic displays of furious mating rituals. Music videos -- from the barren vulgarity of rap to the strident, decibel-reckless rock --regurgitate thinly veiled or explicit obscenities. Ubiquitous and all-pervading, ranging from the racy to the salacious, commercials are the crucibles in which sex is given legitimacy. Detroit packages sex with every sales pitch. Travel ads promise exotic sex. The soft drink industry bottles sex every time a nubile, erotically appealing nymphet or muscle-bound hunk sips its popular fizzes. For years, tobacco companies sold cigarettes by glamorizing and sexualizing the deadly addiction. The liquor industry still promotes its quaffs by implying that drinking booze adds to sexual desirability or prowess. On the big screen, sacrificing good taste for mindless titillation, plot for revenues, sex, Sex, SEX subverts narrative, eloquence, ennoblement. Death at the box office is the contemptible sin, not decadence and degeneration. At the fringes, America's thriving pornography machine continues to cheapen sex, debase women, defile children and make millionaires out of pimps and libertines. Personal want-ads, the most bountiful and fastest-growing form of advertising per column-inch, are filled with offers and solicitations redolent with sex -- straight, gay, kinky and worse. Let's face it, sex is El Dorado, Nirvana and Valhalla all rolled into one. For business, it's a Promised Land rich with Elysian Fields paved with gold. And no one seems to mind. Enamored of the scabrous, the rest of us, sanctimonious voyeurs and villainous media snoopers, we the quintessential archetypes of probity and rectitude, seek rapture in the discomfiture of others. We speculate, conjecture, hypothesize and infer. We opine. We orate. Rumor, slander and calumny are the ambrosia of the bored. We notice everything. Only the obvious eludes us. Bill Clinton is a GOOD president and a popular world leader. The U.S. has never been in better shape. Unemployment is at an all-time low. The economy is vibrant. Crime is down. The budget is sound. Domestic tranquillity reigns. We've had our kicks -- literally and figuratively. We've cast the first stone. It's now time to let your president and mine lead the ship of state and make the policies that impact our lives. W. E. Gutman is a Connecticut-based investigative journalist and a frequent contributor to Honduras This Week. |
| Monday, Feburary 9, 1998 Online Edition 92 |
The Central American dream Last month thousands of Honduran citizens living illegally in the United States marched on Washington D.C. to protest for permanent residency in the United States. The subject of Honduran residency for foreigners has been discussed recently in Honduras This Week, and we have come to several interesting conclusions. First of all there is no such thing as permanent residency for foreigners living in Honduras. All residencies are reevaluated every year, and unless you are a close relative to a Honduran citizen, your residency depends on maintaining the same job with which you applied or an income from outside of Honduras of at least $600 a month. It is necessary to use a lawyer to process your application for Honduran residency. According to the legal fees decided upon by the Colegio de Abogados and approved by Congress, Central Americans immigrating to Honduras pay about $380 for legal services related to residencies, while all other foreigners pay about $770, for the same service. The process of immigrating to the United States costs approximately $400, in a normal case. It is, however, more difficult to get an immigrant visa to the United States. In many categories there are quotas and only a certain number of persons are allowed to immigrate each year, which can result in a long wait. The only people who have a good chance of receiving a visa in a relatively short time are relatives who meet all requirements. It is also difficult for many Hondurans to get a tourist visa to visit the United States. It is very easy to get a tourist visa to Honduras. They pass them out like peanuts on the plane. Most foreigners can move freely in and out of the country on a tourist visa with few problems. The problems start when they choose to legalize their status here for a long-term stay, and the problems continue as long as the person resides in Honduras because there is never a permanent residency. Is it too much to ask for parity? Is it too much to ask that any concession of new U.S. residency status for Hondurans living illegally in the United States also includes concessions for U.S. citizens trying to live in Honduras? In the words of President Flores, "It is fine to demand, but we must not demand more of others than we are willing to demand of ourselves."
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BLOWN AWAY Dear Editor: I stumbled onto your web site, and was totally blown away. I received in one hour news on my country that would have taken me days to find out. The fact that you print stories having to do with politics ... is totally fascinating. I am originally from Oak Ridge, Roatan, but currently live in Houston, Texas. In November, I am moving back to Guanaja to live. When I left Roatan 14 years ago, there was nothing on the Internet that talked about the islands. As a matter of fact, if you mentioned Roatan people generally would go, "Where????" Now because of a paper such as yours their response is different. Keep up the great work. S. Kirkconnell
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| Monday, Feburary 2, 1998 Online Edition 91 |
Can one person
produce magic?
The inauguration of President Carlos Roberto Flores was a very festive event, with both the new president and the outgoing president receiving warm applause from the thousands of citizens in the National Stadium. All the presidents of Central America as well as dignitaries from many parts of the world accompanied the triumphant Liberal Party and Flores down the stadium track. From the midst of a struggling economy, Hondurans look to Carlos Flores with great hope, seeing him as their best bet for a brighter future. Some of the media have mentioned that the team put together by Flores as his cabinet do not meet the necessities of the country, and we have noted the lack of "international figures," so necessary in this time of globalization. But this view can only be verified with the passing of time, and if the cabinet proves to lack the necessary skills to support the president, we hope changes can be made quickly. Flores has, therefore, already received negative reactions in the media, widening the gap that was created in the inaugural ceremony where the media were forgotten. But we must not forget that Flores, a colleague of the media owners, is now the highest representative of the people. He now must represent the country instead of the Liberal Party. After today Flores will be more weighed down than before, because the work before him is not easy. There are no money trees, therefore the lack of economic power must be battled with hard work, and as Flores said in his inaugural address, we must not seem like beggars in the international arena. Flores encouraged Hondurans to work for themselves and not wait for help to come from the government. Hopefully Flores has learned from past governments that it is a mistake to fire too many public employees, because the resulting confusion and lack of experience only produces lethargy in the government. Flores can count on the support of all Hondurans, as we all yearn for a country with justice, peace, social democracy, and at least a moderate economy; where, if not caviar, we can at least eat chicken three times a week. We wish him strength and energy with which to guide the nation.
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ILL-FATED VOYAGE ON FERRY Dear Editor: We drove from San Francisco to Port Isabel, Texas in good time, to be loaded on board ship Jan 4, 1998. On Jan. 6, 1998 the ship come to an abrupt halt in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, the word from Capt. David Ryan was that we would be on our way in about four hours and that they were having some kind of engine problems. Four days later, the same Capt. David Ryan told us that we will have to leave the ship in Cancun, Mexico, something about not having anymore food or water to give to us. So we were assured by Capt. Ryan that as soon as the engines were fixed, they would be in route to Puerto Cortés within the day and arrive a few days late. Got to the plane in Cancun to fly to San Pedro Sula. Everyone now has to get off plane to identify their luggage, everyone gets back on the plane. We arrive in San Pedro Sula at 6 p.m., and there are no flights headed to our destinations. Too late to fly anywhere, so I was approached by others to rent a Suburban that could take all nine of us to La Ceiba, and the next morning bring the Suburban back to the airport, and then someone would pick me up and drive me back to La Ceiba. All this made sense to me at the time. The next day, the gentleman with the car did not show up, so I got to keep a car that I did not want to have an extra day, but had to keep it just the same. The next day I left for airport at San Pedro Sula only to find out that I could have dropped it off in La Ceiba. Spent the night at a hotel in San Pedro Sula, flew back to La Ceiba the next day. Did I mention that the car that I brought on the trip, that is now headed to Puerto Cortés, is also a Suburban. So far I am 10 days into my trip, and I really have not been able to find anything out about my car. Finally, a name is given to me, one Nubia García 53-3519, who may be of help, but what I found out from Nubia García was that the ship was now headed to Tampa Bay, Florida. She said the company was going bankrupt, and that they had a little money to buy tickets for us to get back to the States. There are now four days left of my vacation and a return trip on that same ferry scheduled for Jan. 21, 1998. When the ticket to Tampa Bay arrives, I'll have to say good bye to Honduras and not accomplish anything that I set out to do. I wait, and wait, and wait. Did Nubia García lie to me, was she lied to, I really do not know. I do know that I finely had to purchase a ticket myself, not to Tampa Bay, but to San francisco. Waiting for that ticket from Nubia García, and believing what she had said, I over extended my stay, and had to fly home for several appointments that had to be kept. So now my quest is still not over, and I still have to go to Tampa Bay to get my car. International Shipping Partners are the ones who own the Regal Voyager, and I have heard that they are ready to put another ferry in service under another name. If anyone would like to know more on this subject, I am sure you can get in touch with Fred Drew, the owner of the company 1-800-750-9102 his e-mail address is fdrew@ids.vt.com, but more than likely all of this has either been disconnected or he will lie to you like all the rest of his staff, from the captain to all of his agents. I want to take this time also to thank you for your HTW paper. I feel that it does contribute a lot to all of us who are so inept in the Spanish language, you are able to span the gap for me. Joe Dyer |
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