NATIONAL |
NATIONAL |
Monday, October 30, 2000 Online Edition 44 |
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With
Venezuela
HONDURAS
SIGNS ENERGY COOP AGREEMENT The country was assigned 5,000 barrels of crude oil a day with a 15 year payment plan at 2% interest and an 18-month grace period
By
BLANCA MORENO CARACAS
-- The Energy Cooperation
Agreement signed by President Hugo Chavez and his Central America and
Caribbean counterparts offers energy relief to Honduras in the form of 5,000
barrels of crude oil daily. The
treaty was signed by the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, as well as the
Presidents of the Dominican Republic, Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, Haiti,
Cuba, Panama, Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras. Some
of the conditions set for Honduras were even modified more favorably towards
our nation thanks to the petition of Carlos Sosa Coello, Honduran Ambassador
to Venezuela. The new petroleum
treaty will allow the country a year and a half grace period before it must
begin to repay the financing provided for in the oil bill. Honduras
was the country most affected by Hurricane Mitch in 1998, after which it
signed letters of intent with the World Bank and the International Monetary
Fund that obligate these institutions to provide advantageous credit terms. Concessions
of the foreign debt could be made for up to the sum of 35% relief.
This percentage can be achieved in different ways: lowering some
types of interests, lengthening payment plans and extending grace periods.
These three variables can be juggled around until that percentage is
reached. This is how Honduras
was able to receive such a good deal in the Agreement. According
to the Caracas Energy Agreement, Venezuela commits to 80,000 barrels of
crude oil a day. This quantity
is additional to that agreed in the San Jose Pact for Central America and
the Caribbean. From this amount, Honduras will receive 5,000 barrels daily. The
Honduran demand for petroleum is about 40,000 barrels minimum daily.
The agreement establishes that this quantity could be increased in
accordance to the demand, the commitments Venezuela has with OPEP, and the
country's production capacity. The costs involve some 10 to 15 million
dollar's worth of credit. Still,
if Honduras buys all the petrol it needs from Venezuela, the amount of the
bill could rise to some 250 to 300 million dollars a year. The Caracas
Energy Agreement establishes that the 11 nations will pay for the supply of
crude petrol and products received. When the average price of petroleum
rises over 20 dollars a barrel, a new line of preferencial credit will be
opened. The terms for this are:
financing for 5 to 25% of the amount, depending on the size of the bill; 2%
interest rate with a one year grace period and a 15 year term to cancel the
debt generated by the credit line. While he signed it, Hugo Chavez said that
"Venezuela recovers its vision of integration, we are selling
petroleum, not giving it away. Venezuela
had lost its vision of a State involved with its surroundings.
We had turned our backs to the Caribbean, Central America, and also
Brazil." Chavez also
insisted on the need to establish the price between 22 and 28 dollars per
barrel. THE
SIGNIFICANCE TO HONDURAS Honduras
possesses one of the largest coefficients of debt in the world.
It is estimated to be an amount of four billion dollars. President Carlos Flores said that the Energy Cooperation Agreement signed in Caracas, provides relief to our country. More importantly, though, he continued, it brings up a more "ample concept of solidarity and immense value."
North
Coast cities struggle with response to gangs By WENDY GRIFFIN (Last of two parts) Fifteen
years ago, the word for gangs -- mara -- was not even in the common vocabulary of Hondurans.
New estimates are 35,000 gang members and their sympathizers in the
San Pedro Sula area, according to the Interinstitutional Committee for the
Prevention and Rescue of Youths in Gangs (CIPREMA).
Private citizens, organized groups and the government are struggling
to propose and implement solutions. Most
of the response of the government has been calls for law and order, such as
the Unit for the Investigation of Gang Members in San Pedro Sula.
However, with four to five homicides a day, the San Pedro Sula police
are overwhelmed as far as investigation is concerned, so most cases remain
unsolved. The
general insecurity has affected San Pedro Sula high schools.
Some high schools have hired private guards and have sweeps to disarm
students. Knives, chains, metal bars, bottles of liquors and homemade
guns have been confiscated. Gangs
have been known to take revenge on a vigilante
who disarms a student gang member. There
is a need for a clear strategy or mechanism for prevention.
One of the suggestions has been activities by the church.
However, half the gang members interviewed in San Pedro Sula already
belonged to a church. This
result is actually not too surprising.
In my hometown, 70 percent of the criminals who enter the county jail
belong to a church. Probably
the majority of Bay Islanders in jail in La Ceiba belong to a church,
especially the Methodist Church. Local
institutions are being created or expanded to meet the needs.
When Project Victoria began, most of the people who needed its
services were young street children who sniffed the Resistol brand glue in
Tegucigalpa. They have expanded their drug and alcohol detoxification
programs to San Pedro Sula, as stronger drugs are now being seen.
Narcotics Anonymous is expanding in Honduras. Home
economics students of the National Teaching University developed guidelines
for mothers on what they could do to help prevent their children from
joining gangs, such as supervising the television programs of their
children, know their children's friends, and know what their children do in
their free time. But most
parents of children at risk are single mothers who work long hours, so they
do not have much hope of implementing these suggestions. Job
training programs have had some success in the United States.
Some North Coast high school offer degrees in maquilas,
the assembly plants located around San Pedro Sula, Puerto Cortés and La
Ceiba. Informal courses in
sewing are also set up. In
Honduras, both men and women traditionally have worked in sewing.
However, maquila plants hire about 80 percent women and 20 percent
young men, so the young men around San Pedro Sula have little hope of
obtaining a good job in the future. Local institutions and people need to unify their efforts and resources to offer these young people alternatives, suggest UPN students. International funding agencies may also want to reconsider their support for the "race to the bottom" as different Third World countries compete to attract maquilas by devaluing their currencies. There is some point where the benefit of a low wage is offset by the increased danger, because of violence generated by wages in the general society that are too low to support an adequate standard of living.
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CENTURY 21 OPENS OFFICES IN
HONDURAS
By
C.F. AGURICA TEGUCIGALPA
-- Due to a growing demand in an expanding market, Century 21, one of the
world's leading real estate companies, opened its first two offices in
Honduras, one in Tegucigalpa and one in San Pedro Sula, last week. During
the inaugural press conference held in Tegucigalpa's Hotel Princess,
important local businessmen and members of the national media were able to
view a video describing the company, its objectives and interests in
improving and broadening Honduras' real estate market. Through
its 6,000 offices in 30 countries worldwide, Century 21 will now be able to
offer Honduran properties for sale anywhere on the planet.
Advertising on the internet will allow people on other continents
access to information and pictures of Honduran real estate for sale. The
real estate agency plans to offer clients the highest of customer service by
well-trained personnel. Each
office is linked to all 6,000 others under Century 21's global computer
system, allowing for the quick exchange of information.
Furthermore, stated a Century 21 representatative, the company will
attract foreign investment and creat new jobs for local workers who will
join the troops of over 100,000 employees world-wide. The company also announced plans to open two more agencies in the near future; one in Roatan, Bay Islands, and a second office in San Pedro Sula.
Five businesses held up in
less than 24 hours Metropolitan
Police reported Monday that in less than 24 hours from Sunday to Monday,
five business establishments were held up at gun point in Tegucigalpa.
The first crime was perpetrated by eight individuals who held up a branch of Bancreser on
the Morazan Boulevard; apparently well planned in advance, the robbers were
able to get off with all the contents of the safe by posing as clients and
introducing their weapon into the building in a box of chocolates.
The second hold up took place in Comayaguela, were five heavily armed
men got away with all the tellers cash.
The third robbery was aimed at DIPROVA, a supermarket located on the
Suyapa Boulevard, where at least four subjects held employees at gun point
while they stole Lps.200,000.00 and two guns belonging to security guards.
The fourth ill-fated business was fast food outlet Wendy's located on
the Juan Pablo Boulevard, where seven individuals stole Lps.30,000.00 as
well as the guards gun. Last but not least was the case of the Regis
Pharmacy in Comayaguela, a 2a.m. break-in that caused the alarm to go off,
but not before the thieves got away with a stock of medicine. --La Tribuna Cuero y Salado Wildlife
Refuge endangered by cattle ranchers and farmers The
Cuero y Salado Foundation that runs the Wildlife Refuge located on the north
coast outside of La Ceiba made a formal petition last week to President
Flores for his help in resolving the invasion of the refuge by cattle
ranchers and farmers. According
to Guillermo López, Foundation Director, out of the 11,000 hectars
designated to the refuge, 3,255 are in the possession of private individuals
or 196 farmers and cattle ranchers who claim ownership of the land. López
stated that if the situation persists, the area is in danger of disappearing
within three short years. He also said that since Standard Fruit has abandoned 800
hectares of land within the refuge due to lethal yellowing wiping their
plantation there, locals want to take possession of this land for cattle
ranching and african palm; and to make matters worse, the community of La
Masica has turned against the Foundation because the mayor is pushing for a
road to their community. López
added that a road into the area is against environmental laws, and that
cattle ranching and farming are what has the worst effects on the refuge
sanctity. --El Tiempo Congressman from Comayagua
shot to death Justo
Jiménez, the Liberal congressman from the Department of Comayagua was
kidnapped and murdered in Comayagua last Saturday. Jiménez was traveling en
route to Comayagua from San Pedro Sula with four other persons at 4p.m. when his vehicle was
ambushed by seven masked, heavily-armed individuals.
His companions where forced to get out of the car, tied up and left
by the side of the road. Police
found the congressman's body about midnight on the road between the villages
of La Sampedrana and El Tamarindo, about 300 meters from his car that had
been pushed down gully. He had
been shot four times in the leg and once in the head.
Investigators suggest that the congressman was either murdered for
revenge or an accident of the kidnapping.
They also surmise that the kidnappping was staged and that the
ultimate intent was always murder. --El Heraldo
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Monday, October 23, 2000 Online Edition 43 |
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Auction
of Hondutel a failure Following
a process full of obstacles, lack of trust and opposition, bidding on 51
percent of the nation's telecommunications company, HONDUTEL, ended in
failure Monday (Oct. 16) following months of preparations by the government. Only
three bidders made it to the final stage of the auction, Mexico's Telephone
Company, TELMEX; France Telecom; and Spain's Telefonica.
In the final moments of the auction, the latter two companies
unexpectedly dropped out of the bidding, leaving TELMEX as the sole bidder.
Unfortunately, TELMEX's bid of US$106 million was two thirds short of
the US$300 million asking price the government had set. Francisco
Javier Islas, representative of the Mexican company, explained his company
was not prepared, at this moment, to spend the minimum quantity set by the
ad hoc committee. However, he
added that the company still has interest in HONDUTEL. Secretary
for Privatization Mario Aguero commented that the failure was due to the
fact that the international market currently has a bigger interest in mobile
and not fixed communications. Finance
Minister Gabriela Nunez said the process was conducted with full
transparency with the government's interests in mind.
Still, she continued, HONDUTEL's future will not be decided unless
serious consultations have occurred. In
related news, the government's budget for next year is short of funds.
Honduras' budget for 2001 was prepared to include the estimated
US$300 million HONDUTEL's sale was supposed to bring in.
Government officials must now draw up contingency plans to solve the
large deficit problem. Young
people gain access to computer education By
Rosa del Carmen Aguilar Special
to Honduras This Week TEGUCIGALPA
-- A new computer school has been opened this month by World Vision
Honduras, Anglican Trinity Church of Canada, and Area Development Project
(ADP) Brisas del Valle. The
school, "Forgers of Hope," aims to benefit the young people of the
five urban communities supported by the ADP in the capital city. Forgers
of Hope provides an alternative method of development.
It will offer technical education in the use of different types of
software, including graphic design. In
the near future it will also allow students to learn about installation,
use, and maintenance of hardware. "Technology
has increased the differences between rich and poor, if we don't open new
doors for young people, with few economical resources, to grow
intellectually, the contrast will become stronger," says Elias Vega,
Computer School Technical Advisor. The
main beneficiaries of the center are World Vision-sponsored families.
With new skills and knowledge, it is hoped they will have better
options for working in the local market and will receive competitive
incomes. "Computers
are necessary tools to develop in an urban market; information is power and
computers are technology that administers information," says Vega. Vega
believes that this School Computer is an important aspect of sustainable and
transformational development because once the students learn how to use this
technology, they will have new ways to promote their rights. "If
we teach them the use of Internet, for instance, they will participate in
virtual group discussions and share their own interests and needs with young
people of other countries with the same profile and experiences." During
2000 and 2001, Forgers of Hope will offer the following courses: Computer
Systems Executive I and II. Then
during 2001 and 2002, the courses will also include: Programming Systems
Technician and Graphic Designer. All
courses last three months and involve a daily schedule of two hours, paying
lower rates compared to local market. Instructors
will form moral and spiritual values among the students and teach them how
to dress and behave in a real work setting as well. "One
of the values added to Forgers of Hope is that students will be the focus of
the school, not the profit," says Vega. Forgers
of Hope started classes Thursday October 19. Rosa
del Carmen Aguilar is the World Vision Honduras Communications Coordinator. Gangs
causing insecurity and violence in North Coast cities By
WENDY GRIFFIN (First of two
parts) When
a person decides to become a primary school teacher, certain frustrations
are anticipated -- noise, students who do not do their homework, and
cheating. However, teachers of
young children do not expect seeing a 9-year-old pupil killed in front of
their school in a struggle for territory between two maras
or street gangs. When
this happened in the Sabillon Cruz section of San Pedro Sula, home economics
students of the National Teaching University (UPN), La Ceiba campus decided
to interview gang members to find the reasons behind the violence. The
fights between gangs are called riñas
callejeras. A gang might
want to gain prestige. Gangs
might also want be fighting for control of a territory.
They also do not permit members of other gangs to show a lack of
respect to their members. Some
groups also seem to be permanent rivals, and they come into the other gang's
territory to provoke them, such as the San Isidro gang provoking the Barrio
Sierra Pino gang in La Ceiba. Residents
who live in the area where the gang members hang out are often afraid.
At night they hear drinking, insults, broken bottles, and occasional
fights. They say nothing to the
police because they are afraid of the gang, said an old man in Barrio Sierra
Pino. Gang
members see these fights in a positive way, that there is a whole group of
people, like family to protect them. This
may reflect a basic insecurity they feel in mostly fatherless families in
anonymous cities. Family
disintegration and lack of contact with extended families are partial causes
of gangs. One
of the questions the students asked was about the role of television and
videos. All gang members had
seen movies of gangs (mostly from the United States) and said they liked the
movies. Mexican soap operas
often have drug dealers and distributors as characters who have power, money
and beautiful young women. Most
gang members said the economic situation caused them to join gangs.
In the opinion of gang members, a well-formed gang does not permit
their members to suffer from crisis, hunger or lack of money.
The gang commits robberies, assaults, and distributes drugs to obtain
money. The
gang members said they feel economically solvent because of their gang,
which they also feel understands them better than relatives at home.
That is why their greater allegiance is to their gang, rather than to
their family. Although
individually the gang members feel they are doing better, their families do
not share their income. In
interviews with the mothers of gang members, it is only the mother's income
that buys food for the house, and thus the family does not eat well. Part of the gang member's money goes for alcohol and/or
drugs. Also,
gang members can be a burden on the family economy. One mother in Col. Pizatti of La Ceiba complained how, when
her 14-year-old son was involved in a robbery, the father of the victim shot
him. She had to pay all the
costs of his medical care, as well as take care of his younger brothers and
sisters. One
example of what happens to gang members is when a young man, one of nine
children of a cart owner, went to San Pedro to look for work.
He made friends with gang members and a marijuana distributor.
He sold drugs and was soon using them.
He returned to Sonaguera, but continued to use drugs.
He died of gun shot wounds, killed by unknown assailants. A
high percentage of gang members use drugs.
Drug addicts are likely to have a hard time finding or keeping a job,
desert school, lose their good judgement and thus have a higher risk for
getting incurable diseases like AIDS, their families fall apart, they are
rejected by society, and they could die young.
Most gang members interviewed in San Pedro had not finished primary
school. Some gang members are
later recruited by professional mafiosos. Young men do not consider the dangers before joining a gang. The gang members interviewed in San Pedro did not want to leave their gang, in spite of stories like these. |
Indigenous
people receive compensation In
compensation for injuries suffered during a protest march held on Columbus
Day, known in Honduras as Dia de la
Raza, last year, a total of Lps. 2.4 million was received by 45
indigenous people in an official ceremony held last Friday. During
last year's march, riot police fired into the crowd of indigenous protestors
when they insisted on crossing the police line to march directly in front of
the Presidential Palace, wounding several marchers and causing injuries as a
result of the ensuing tumult. Although
the recipients were satisfied with their compensation, they expressed that
many of the social injustices they were protesting still have not been
resolved. - La Tribuna U.S.
citizen stabbed to death in gas station For
as yet unknown reasons, an American tourist was stabbed to death in his
motorhome while parked at a gas station in Zambrano on Sunday. According
to authorities, Anthony Ronald Pawlack, 65, entered Honduras from El
Salvador and had visited several Central American countries. The
only witness to the crime, the guard on duty at the gas station, stated that
after Pawlack ran out of the vehicle yelling for help, two unknown
individuals also exited the trailer and fled.
The guard also said that before Pawlack came out, he heard one of the
suspects say that they were going to leave, thus leading to doubts as to
whether Pawlack knew his aggressors. Although
Pawlack was not robbed, authorities suspect that the motive for the crime
was robbery and are still investigating the case. - La Tribuna Price
of dailies hiked to Lps. 4 As
of Monday (Oct. 16), the nation's four daily newspapers, El Heraldo, La
Tribuna, La Prensa and El Tiempo, cost Lps. 4, a one lempira increase over
their previous price. One daily
attributed the increase to higher costs and the constant devaluation of the
lempira. Youth
tourism organization opens branch Otec,
a youth tourism organization with 30 years of experience in Europe and 20
years of experience in Central America, recently expanded its operations to
include Honduras by opening an office in Tegucigalpa.
Working together with Continental, American and Copa airlines, the
organization is offering students and teachers international airline tickets
with up to 50 percent discounts. Verushka
Lagos, manager of Otec Honduras, said the organization decided to open an
office in Honduras due to the fact that a large percentage of its population
is young. She also said her
organization in no way competes with other tourist operations since their
product is not comparable. Directed
mainly toward students and teachers, Otec offers special rates for people
who are studying abroad and for teachers who travel to receive additional
training, as well as discounts in museums, gymnasiums, movie theaters,
restaurants, theaters and stores in foreign cities. Otec also has a program that assists students and teachers in acquiring temporary jobs in other countries, including help in obtaining visas and lodging. -- La Prensa
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Monday, October 16, 2000 Online Edition 42 |
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Nationalities
of candidates questioned
By
BLANCA MORENO TEGUCIGALPA
-- Twenty years after being restored, the nation's fragile democracy is
threatened by a serious conflict in the electoral process.
The National Tribunal of Elections (TNE) has decided to temporarily
suspend the inscription of three candidates from the presidential race due
to controversies surrounding their nationalities.
Two of the candidates are Liberals and one is Nationalist. Twenty-four
hours after his inscription, a document was presented to the TNE challenging
the decision to register the candidacy of Ricardo Maduro, who heads the
Arriba Honduras movement. Leaders
of the Liberal Party contend that he is a citizen of Panama and not
Honduras. This
action, which was pursued with determination for many months, had not
previously been acknowledged by the leaders of the Liberal Party.
Nevertheless, in the early hours of Oct. 9, the TNE -- formed by one
member of the Nationalist, Liberal, Innovation and Unity and Christian
Democrat Parties and one member from the Supreme Court, also of the Liberal
Party -- determined to suspend the inscription of Maduro until he can prove
that he is a Honduran citizen by birth, a Constitutional requisite for the
presidency. CANDIDACIES
CHALLENGED The
same day two more challenges were submitted.
Both requested the disqualification of the Liberal Party's two
strongest presidential hopefuls, Congressional President Rafael Pineda Ponce
and banker Jaime Rosenthal. While
a decision is made, the Nationalists, headed by former President Rafael
Leonardo Callejas (1990-1994), have held peaceful protests in the downtown
area. Their demand is simple,
reinstate Maduro´' candidacy and allow him to be "qualified" or
"disqualified" at the polls. On
their own behalf, the Liberal and Nationalist candidates have presented
their respective documentation to TNE authorities proving their citizenship.
A
similar issue occurred in 1985 when Liberal candidate Jose Azcona Hoyo was
accused of being a citizen of Spain. According
to Nationalists, he had been brought to Honduras from Santander, Spain at a
very young age to avoid obligatory military service.
However, Azcona contended that he had been born in La Ceiba. The
problem was overcome, and Azcona was inscribed, though doubts still remained
about his place of birth. Azcona
went on to win the elections, beating Rafael Leonardo Callejas. HONDURAN
BY BIRTH The
Constitution states that the President of the Republic must be Honduran by
birth. According to Article 23,
Hondurans by birth are those born in national territory (right by land); and
those born abroad to a mother or father who is Honduran by birth (right by
blood). Ricardo
Maduro states that he is Honduran by birth, even though he was born in
Panama and his mother, at the time of his birth, had not been registered as
a Honduran citizen. His
maternal grandmother, Lucrecia Julia Midence Flores was born in Honduras in
1898. She married a German, by
the name of Luis Julio Joest, and then moved to Guatemala where she gave
birth to Maria Cristina Joest. Maria
Cristina married Osmond Maduro of Panama and, in Panama, gave birth to three
children, Ricardo among them. Maduro
applied for Honduran citizenship in 1982 based on the fact that his mother,
who had applied the previous year, was Honduran by birth. The applications of both Maduro and his mother were approved
by the Ministry of Government during the Liberal Administration of Roberto
Suazo Cordova. Jaime
Rosenthal was born in San Pedro Sula. His
father, Yankel Rosenthal, was a Jewish immigrant of Rumanian origins,
holding an Austrian passport; and his mother was Virginia Oliva, a
Salvadoran living in Honduras. Rosenthal
is Honduran by birth, but retaliating Nationalists question his citizenship
based on alleged discrepancies regarding the legal status of his parents
residency in Honduras at the time of his birth. FOUR
CERTIFICATES On
the other hand, Rafael Pineda Ponce has four different birth certificates,
each with a different name, including one issued in Guatemala, where his
mother was from. Before
the problem over Maduro's nationality broke out, he asked the TNE to
investigate him and the tribunal extended to him a certification of his
citizenship by birth. Pineda
Ponce is the only one of the three candidates whose father is still living. According
to some analysts, Pineda Ponce was born in a community in Guatemala, but his
father brought him to Honduras and registered him in the province of
Intibuca. General
elections are scheduled for November of 2001.
Nevertheless these problems must be solved before the primaries,
scheduled for Dec. 3, are held. Honduran
primary process significantly different from U.S. system
By
WENDY GRIFFIN The
first step toward the next Honduran elections has been taken.
Each presidential candidate has turned into the National Election
Tribunal (TNE) his or her planilla or slate of candidates.
This process is significantly different than the U.S. primary system. In
the United States, whoever is running for county commissioner or mayor will
run with the Republican, the Democratic, or, infrequently, a smaller party.
Sometimes the president will endorse a candidate for his party, but
most of the time he does not know who is running in local elections and the
candidates have no connections to him. Not
so in Honduras. For example,
Ricardo Maduro presented a slate of candidates for congress for all 18
departments. Also there were
candidates for all the nation's mayoral posts and city councilmen (regidor) posts. As
a minimum, this would require him to know the name and location of every municipio
or county in Honduras, which is probably a good thing (there are 298).
Then either he or a member of his political team would have to meet
with members of Nationalists in every municipio,
and ask the people which local Nationalist might be able to win. They
also have to make sure that the candidate lives there.
In the past, the TNE has thrown out the entire planilla
and disqualified a presidential candidate because two of his candidates did
not physically live in the area they were supposed to represent. The
recent petition to disqualify Ricardo Maduro because he was born in Panama
could possibly disqualify the whole slate of candidates that he heads, so
thousands of people's futures depend on whether or not he is eligible to
run. Honduran law requires
presidential candidates to be Honduran by birth.
Because Honduran law does not recognize dual citizenship, at birth
children born to Honduran parents overseas are given the citizenship of the
country where they are born and they must petition to have this changed as
adults. The
people on the planilla are part of
the corriente or faction of that
candidate. But there are also a
lot more supporters, some of whom are hoping for appointed jobs or
government contracts when that candidate comes to power. Being
in the wrong party or corriente
can be fatal to one's career. Once
an agronomist from the Liberal Party told me he might as well immigrate to
the States. Why? Because he supported a corriente
within the Liberal Party that lost, and so he had no hope of obtaining a
government job or consultant's position for the next four years.
Almost no one hires agronomists. Supporting
another party, especially a small party like the Innovation and Unity Party
(PINU) or the Democratic Unification Party (UD), makes a person ineligible
for jobs with the World Bank, U.N. Development Programme (UNDP), U.S. Agency
for International Development (USAID) and other aid projects.
It takes courage to put one's name on a ballot for one of these
elected positions. But if the planilla
is not full, then it does not qualify and no one can run from that party, so
some people must be found to take that risk. Even
before the planillas were turned
in, we know how corriente or
movement politics works. Both
Roberto Micheletti and Rafael Pineda Ponce, currently president of the
National Congress, were part of Flores and Reina's political teams.
But Micheletti agreed to merge his corriente
with that of Pineda Ponce in exchange for the first congressional seat for
Yoro. Some
candidates are not really running for president. They have some other specific job in mind for themselves
and/or their followers. In the
last election, Ramon Villeda Bermudez had his own presidential corriente. But he had
his followers support Carlos Flores in exchange for becoming the first
congressman from Francisco Morazan. Rodolfo
Pastor Fasquelle had his own presidential corriente,
but became Minister of Culture in return for supporting Reina. The
upcoming election promises to be very exciting, not so much for who is going
to become president, but rather finding out what the members of the
different corrientes will ask for
as Honduras heads into the primaries and afterward.
For example, Jaime Rosenthal supported Carlos Flores in the last
election, but in return for specific job for his followers like the head of
the forestry agency COHDEFOR and positions on the Supreme Court, which are
changed every four years after elections. The
main opposition candidate to Maduro in the Nationalist party is Elias
Asfuras. There has been a
proposed law that says whoever wins an office has to actually do the job.
Since Asfuras has won the election to be a deputy for the Central
American Parliament in 2002, this would make him ineligible to run for
president. The issue of
Maduro's citizenship is a similar maneuver to get him out of the running. One
of the best books I have read about Latin American politics said that Latin
Americans have not decided by which political rules they are playing.
This is certainly evident in Honduran politics over the last 30
years. The Honduran newspapers
are surprisingly open about documenting the problems, but it is like the
rain. Everyone complains about
the rain, but no one can do anything about it. |
Wreckage
found Authorities
on Wednesday confirmed that pieces of metal found near the island of Guanaja
belonged to the helicopter carrying Supreme Court President Oscar Avila
Banegas and four other persons that disappeared last Oct. 4. The
pieces were examined by Pablo Arriaga, an aircraft mechanic who had provided
maintenance to the Bell-206 helicopter.
"I recognize them because I have been servicing it [the
helicopter] since it came to Honduras six years ago," he told the daily
La Prensa. After
seeing the damaged pieces, Arriaga said he no longer believes the pilot and
passengers survived the crash. Experts
speculate that the helicopter crashed into the water as a result of bad
weather conditions in the area. Meanwhile,
La Prensa reported that a search team has located the wreckage of the EMB
T-27 Tucano that disappeared while searching for the missing helicopter. The
wreckage of the Brazilian-manufactured aircraft was spotted by the crew of
an Air Force helicopter near Ausencia creek, between the Los Hornitos and El
Bufalo mountains, about 11 miles south of La Ceiba. However, there was no sign of the aircraft's crew, Capt. Oscar Rene Fernandez Sierra and Lt. Jaime Vladimir Ortez Cruz.
Congress
prepares tax fine exemption bill Due
to the fact that many property owners failed to pay their taxes by the Sept.
30 deadline, the National Congress is currently preparing a bill to condone
fines and other surcharges applied for late payments. This move is aimed at encouraging property owners to pay
their taxes since many have refrained from doing so to avoid sanctions. - La
Prensa Women
groups still pushing for equal opportunity During
the ninth meeting of the Federation of Honduran Feminist Associations,
member organizations agreed to ask Security Ministry Guatama Fonseca to
prepare a Domestic Violence and Equal Opportunity Law as well, as the
enforcement of the Ley de Convivencia
Cuidadana (Citizen's Coexistence Law). Federation
President Maria de Jesus Benegas said that although a least 25 cases of
domestic violence are reported daily in Tegucigalpa alone, little is done to
resolve these cases. Benegas
also said that according to statistics the organization has examined, rising
crime can be attributed to a small police force, lack of values on a
national level and little citizen participation. - La Prensa Standard
to indemnify workers affected by poison The
Minister of Government last week announced that the Standard Fruit Company
has agreed to indemnify approximately 4,000 employees affected by the
agro-chemical nemagon in the early
1990s. The Minister also said the company will not be fined as a result of agreements reached between the government and workers and the company. It has been agreed that workers totally incapacitated will receive Lps. 110,000, while those partially affected will receive up to Lps. 45,000. - La Prensa
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Monday, October 9, 2000 Online Edition 41 |
|
In Mitch's
wake:
Blaming the
killer hurricane, a faltering economy, loss of values and family
disintegration, Casa Alianza reports a 20 percent rise in the number of
street children.
By W. E. GUTMAN TEGUCIGALPA --
The cataclysmic storm that battered Honduras in late 1998 did not only gouge
the country and lay waste to vital infrastructures.
It snuffed out thousands of lives and dismembered untold numbers of
poverty-stricken families. Mangled by
disaster, now at the mercy of uncaring or abusive relatives, many children
were cast out and left to fend for themselves.
Others sought refuge in the perilous anonymity of the streets. This exodus,
according to Dr. Irma Benavidez, program director for Casa Alianza, has
helped swell the ranks of homeless minors in Honduras by 20 percent. Unable to make
ends meet, seduced by the prospect of work, spellbound by the risks and
temptations of city life, they streamed out of their villages and hamlets
and flocked to the nation's urban centers.
There are now at least 200 more children trying to survive in the
streets of the capital," Benavidez said. This "catastrophic influx," said Benavidez, a physician who
specializes in drug rehabilitation, has inspired dramatic changes in some of
Casa Alianza's protocols. "We were forced to switch -- overnight -- from a reactive to a proactive stance. The sheer numbers [of homeless children] necessitated that we
not only rescue them as circumstances dictated, but that we actively
intervene to prevent those displaced by disaster or family breakdown from
mortgaging their lives in the streets." This strategy required that urgent procedures be put in place to
sensitize society, first by appealing to conscience and arousing compassion
for the children, then by stimulating the community to aid and defend -- rather than persecute and ostracize
-- them. The response has been, for the most part, positive.
Casa Alianza has since rescued about 50 minors, some of whom are
still being housed at the shelter on Avenida Cervantes.
A similar number of older kids are being cared for by Casa Alianza
through inter‑community programs that include transition and group
homes. "All of these children are victims of neglect," Dr.
Benavidez said. "Many bear
the deep emotional scars of physical and sexual abuse.
Now undergoing aggressive treatment, some came to us infected with a
variety of sexually transmitted diseases, including chlamydia and gonorrhea.
We are also caring for an 18‑year‑old girl who is
HIV‑positive." According to Dr. Benavidez, there are 14,000 "confirmed"
cases of AIDS in Honduras, a figure she describes as a "grossly
understated." Given the inevitable promiscuity that street life engenders,
she added, it is impossible to know for sure how many of these cases include
homeless minors. Not far from presidential candidate Jaime Rosenthal Oliva's palacial
estate, hidden from view by a serpentine mountain road, lies the "Crematorio,"
the sprawling municipal garbage dump. Generated
in the city below, tons of refuse are carted here every day.
About 30 families live on the rim of a pestilential chasm in
makeshift cardboard abodes, gutted cars and trenches lined with rags
salvaged from the rubble. To supplement family income, or as a last-ditch effort to avoid
the streets, about 30 minors work here daily, separating glass from metal,
paper from plastic and food scraps from medical waste, often in competition
with hordes of hungry vultures, feral dogs and brutish adults struggling to
stay alive. "For the kids, life here is a one-way ticket to
nowhere," laments Hector Palacios, head of Casa Alianza's corps of
street educators, who visits the Crematorio regularly. "They are not easily coaxed to the shelter.
Promises of a better future fall on uncomprehending, skeptical, if
not deaf ears," adds Leticia Herrera, Casa Alianza's national director.
"Of course, we are committed to diminishing the scourge of
homelessness among minors," she says, "but it is places like this
that remind us of the Gargantuan dimension of our work." Then, kneeling next to one of the kids and patting a grimy cheek,
Herrera looks beyond at a sky black with vultures.
"This place is not only a danger to their health.
It stunts their intellectual growth.
It corrupts their morals. And
it often shortens their lives. Look
at them," she sighs, "they are old before their age." The accompanying photos attempt to tell what words fail to convey.
By MELANIE WETZEL The Pan American Agricultural School, or Zamorano as it is more
popularly known, has long been a source of pride for Honduras.
Carefully tended fields, beautiful buildings and disciplined students
in their uniforms are a welcome addition to the landscape of Francisco
Morazan. Recent changes in the
educational and political systems of the university are providing even more
reason to celebrate this treasure of higher education in central Honduras. Zamorano is not a Honduran institution.
It is a non-profit corporation chartered in the United States.
Since its creation in 1942 until the 1980s, the Pan American
Agricultural School was somewhat isolated from its host country. Keith Andrews, General Director of Zamorano, says that this
was a result of cultural and political ideas prevalent at the time in Latin
America.
"If you had visited us at this time in 1980, we would have said,
'Zamorano is self-contained, self-sufficient, isolated and absolutely
protected from the surrounding context.'" Times have changed however. Globalization
and integration are portentous new political ideas and even institutions
such as Zamorano, which has thrived in isolation, are now looking outward
and developing important links with their community and host country. This is only part of many exciting changes at Zamorano.
"The fundamental changes have been: women coming in,
permeability, and becoming a four-year university," says Andrews.
The school's traditional program of a two-year agronomist degree has
been expanded to a full undergraduate program, as well as a masters degree
in connection with Cornell University.
Incoming students now study a four-year program with an orientation
in one of four areas: agricultural
science and production, agroindustry (with emphasis in food technology),
agribusiness management, or socioeconomic development and environment. Says Andrews, "We have moved way beyond straight technology and
gone much more into the business, social, and environmental dimensions of
integrated development." Between 20 and 25 percent of students are Honduran, with the
remaining students coming from 20 countries throughout Latin America.
Women were first admitted in 1981 and now account for about 25
percent of the student body. All students receive a subsidized education.
Self-pay tuition is $10,000 annually, while actual costs run about
$18,000. The school is supported through government, business and
private donations. Among the
biggest funders are the United States government, through the Department of
Agriculture and USAID, and the Swiss government. According to Andrews, four important characteristics make Zamorano a
unique institution in Latin America. First,
students come from 20 countries throughout the hemisphere and from a wide
variety of social and economic classes, making it a truly Pan-American
university. It is also known for its academic excellence, hands on
training or "learning by doing" and its development of character
and leadership abilities among its students.
This combination creates a highly successful learning environment for
thousands of students. "But its not for everybody," says Andrews.
"Not everybody will be able to benefit from the type of
educational environment that Zamorano offers." Zamorano admits 250 new students each year from a field of 1,500
applicants. The dropout rate is
somewhat high; this year 80 to 85 percent of those who enter will graduate.
This is up from 1992 when only 60 percent of entering freshmen could
be expected to graduate. Statistics
are good for those who do stick it out.
Seventy-five percent of graduates go on to post-graduate study within
five years. Though Zamorano is dedicated to serving all of Latin America,
Honduras benefits greatly as the host nation.
Seven of every 10 dollars that come into Zamorano stay in Honduras.
Honduran students receive 60 scholarships each year, far more than
any other country. The average
Honduran student pays only $3,000. Zamorano's new emphasis on Socioeconomic development is also reaping
great rewards in Honduras. Students
and staff are involved in consultation and outreach with local micro
businesses, assisting them in developing production and market strategies. Administrators hope that the new educational model and recruiting
techniques will allow them to grow to 1,000 students in coming years.
This growth, as well as Zamorano's expansion into community and
environmental development, will allow it to become an even more important
player in crucial rural development in Honduras. For
further information write to: |
A
week
after chopper disappears
TEGUCIGALPA --
It has been eight days since a helicopter carrying the President of the
Supreme Court of Justice, Oscar Armando Avila, and congressman Donaldo
Villatoro Hall, disappeared off the North Coast due to bad weather in the
area. As of yesterday,
authorities had not yet found any trace of the missing helicopter or its
passengers. Last Friday
(Sept. 29), Avila inaugurated a courthouse in Balfate, Colon, after which he
flew to Roatan, the Bay Islands to hold a political meeting with activists
of the Jaime Rosenthal Oliva faction. With
him were congressman Donaldo Villatoro; Antonio Salazar, a court official;
Jose Sarmiento, a bodyguard; and the pilot, Jose Ferrufino. In the
afternoon, the crew was informed about hazardous weather conditions caused
by the formation of Hurricane Keith off the Caribbean coast.
Nevertheless, Avila said he wanted to be on time for the inauguration
of another courthouse in Jutiapa, Atlantida and gave orders to fly there. All contact
with the privately-owned Bell-206 helicopter was lost at 1:28 p.m.
Rescue efforts began later Friday afternoon, but have so far been
unsuccessful due in part to the lack of advanced technological resources. The location
where the helicopter went down is still uncertain and rescue teams have only
been able to narrow their search to the area between Roatan and Jutiapa. Coincidentally,
Ferrufino was also the pilot of the craft carrying Carlos Flores that was
involved in an accident back in 1997, during Flores' presidential campaign. Aside from the
tragic loss of life, Avila's disappearance has also created a difficult
situation in the judicial branch since a high public official like that of
the president of the Supreme Court of Justice is not easily replaced. For the moment,
magistrate Miguel Angel Rivera Portillo, former head of the court during the
administration of Carlos Roberto Reina, is temporarily filling the post.
He will remain there until the situation is resolved, or the missing
justice found. During the time
he had spent as head of the Supreme Court, Avila was confronted with many
difficult situations and cases. His
hardest task has been dealing with the functions of the courts in Honduras
and the precarious state in which they were found by him. The president
of the Supreme Court and its justices are ratified by the National Congress.
There is already talk of candidates for the position, even though
Avila has not yet legally been declared dead.
This has provoked indignation among many Hondurans for the lack of
respect it shows the families of the missing persons. In the reforms
that President Flores has presented to Congress for improving the
administration of justice, there is the recommendation that in event of
death, the president of the Supreme Court should be replaced by the sitting
justice with the greatest seniority.
First
Lady Mary Flake de Flores has donated corn and bean seeds to The
Cacique or chief of the Tolupanes,
Cipriano Martinez, personally thanked Mrs. Flores and said that it was the
first time any first lady had visited them or brought any kind of
assistance. "We
receive this important donation with happiness and with confidence that soon
we will have enough to feed our families," he said. Mrs.
Flores also stated that the schools in the area would be included in the
Healthy School Program, which will benefit about 500 children. As
of Oct. 1, the nation's four international airports will now be managed by a
private company. The main
executives of Inter Airport announced that they plan to invest $55 million
over a five-year period to transform airport facilities, starting with
Tegucigalpa's old terminal at Toncontin International Airport. Inter
Airport announced that the airports are to be upgraded to a "B"
category. This includes adding
300 meters of runway to Toncontin, boarding tunnels at Ramon Villeda Morales
Airport in San Pedro Sula and similar remodeling in Goloson Airport in La
Ceiba and Juan Manuel Galvez in Roatan. Inter
Airport acquired the concession for 20 years. Roberto
Fuentes Bonel, 45, alias "El Pelon" and considered to be linked to
multiple kidnappings, carjackings and bank robberies in the North Coast, was
killed while being pursued by a policeman last Sunday According
to reports, Bonel was driving a stolen car and ran a stoplight.
Two policemen followed in a patrol car, forcing him to stop.
During the ensuing pursuit on foot, Bonel fired at Policeman Juan
Aviles, wounding him in the arm and stomach.
However, he was able to return fire and killed the dangerous
criminal. Meanwhile, Aviles'
companion captured another man who rode with Bonel. Aviles,
who is the chief of the traffic department in La Lima, was operated in San
Pedro Sula for his wounds.
Vehicular
transit between Honduras and Nicaragua was brought to a halt this week after
flood waters washed away road embankments near the bridge over the Sasacale
River, approximately 13 kilometers from the border. The
bridge, which was severely damaged during Hurricane Mitch two years ago, was
virtually left unattended by the Ministry of Public Works, Transportation
and Housing (SOPTRAVI). The bad
repairs were washed away last week when the river rose almost four meters.
Now, the bridge's concrete platform is askew and in need of major
repairs. Passengers
to and from Nicaragua have to cross on foot and board other vehicles to
reach their destinations.
|
Monday, October 2, 2000 Online Edition 40 |
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By
WENDY GRIFFIN When
Hurricane Mitch swept through the North Coast in November 1998, it destroyed
18 sections of the North Coast highway from La Ceiba to Trujillo. When Tropical Storm Katrina came through last year, the
highway was again destroyed or washed out in 15 places. If you enjoy watching heavy machinery at work, this is the
road to travel. The
largest bridge in Central America is the one that crosses the Aguan River at
Saba. Flooding of the Aguan
caused Dole containers to float loose, acting as battering rams against the
bridge. The destruction is
impressive. So
is the work by Skanska, a Swedish firm that is putting up the new bridge.
It will take 92 people working two years to finish the bridge,
reports La Prensa. Currently,
two Bailey-type bridges permit traffic to cross the Aguan, one of Honduras'
deepest and widest rivers. After
the collapse of the Bailey-type bridge in Tegucigalpa, there are now weight
limits posted on the bridges and traffic is limited to one way at a time. Flooding
of the Aguan and other rivers washed out various sections of this highway.
Heavy equipment operators have been working to make a level raised
road bed, made of Honduran red clay and gravel.
Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that they will get it paved before
the really heavy rains come in October.
This means cars and buses will be stuck in the mud, and much of the
leveling work will have to be redone during next year's dry season.
The cost of this road project is $62 million, reports La Prensa.
Last
year during the rainy season, Honduran papers complained bitterly about the
lack of progress in post-Mitch reconstruction.
A U.S. Embassy spokesperson verified that, in fact, not a lot of
funds were available last year for reconstruction work. "First
there were two months of emergency control, like the evacuation of people,
getting roads and airports reopened, emergency food and shelter," said
the official. Then the foreign
donors were requiring a detailed work statement from the Honduran
ministries. In the case of
roads, for example, they had to say exactly which roads, where, what they
would use the money for, and why these roads were a priority. Also,
environmental impact statements were also required before donors would
release the funds. Because
Mitch had changed the depth and courses of the rivers significantly, the
agencies needed last year's rainy season to see what the new flood stages of
the rivers were. Some
municipalities like Juticalpa and La Paz put up permanent bridges before the
first rainy season after Mitch. The
bridge to La Paz was washed away. The
one in Juticalpa, built at a cost of Lps. 750,000 actually caused backwash,
worsening the flooding and destruction of houses in central Juticalpa.
That bridge then had to be torn down at an estimated cost of Lps.
250,000. There
has been some concern about the environmental impact statement process.
Driving into Trujillo, there is a sign stating that Trujillo has been
approved for a project "to reconstruct the sewage system."
There was no sewage system before Mitch, so it is not correct to say
reconstruct it. This is a new
infrastructure project. The
project is to include a sewage treatment plant in Barrio San Martin, a
Garifuna neighborhood in Trujillo. The
Garifunas have been concerned about this issue, since the proposed site is a
wetland. They believe there are
going to be problems with settling and cracking of tanks.
Also, the tanks are going to be open, and it has been admitted that
they will overflow during the rainy season and run into the creeks and sea
there. Having five open tanks
in the tropics sounds like a vacation resort for dengue and malaria carrying
mosquitoes. Even
the issue of smell that close to residences has not been addressed.
These issues have been raised by community representatives, but no
responses have been forth coming. After
approving the environmental impact statements, the funders then permitted
the project to be put up for bid. Then
there are negotiations regarding the bids. The
complaints of corruption have mostly come at this level.
There are concerns that some of the companies do not have the
experience or equipment necessary to carry out the work they were hired to
do. Other concerns are that the
Honduran Social Investment Fund (FHIS) accepts a low bid, but the work
cannot be done for that sum. The
contractor stops in the middle and renegotiates more money or just walks
away, noted La Prensa. The
retention dikes, particularly for Sula valley, seem to lend themselves to
this problem. People in various
North Coast communities are beginning to sit on pins and needles as the
North Cost rainy season approaches. Will
La Lima, a town of 90,000 people, again be seen on television as the Venice
of Honduras? Will the people of
Urraco again have to swim for it? The
complaints of corruption are being investigated. Another
interesting problem is what happens to projects that both private
organizations and government agencies are working on.
The Ema Romero de Callejas Kindergarten in Barrio San Martin,
Trujillo suffered significant damage during Mitch.
Part of the reconstruction work was done with a Lps. 10,000 donation
by the Comite de Emergencia Garifuna. Socorro Popular de Francia provided
materials and food for work. These
private donations were not enough. The
floor has not been finished. The
latrines have not been installed. The
gate is not finished. FHIS
announced in the meeting of the Local Emergency Committees (CODEL) that they
had donated Lps. 45,000 for the reconstruction of this school, but the
school's principal has not received the money and the school has not been
able to reopen because the floor is not finished. The
U.S. Embassy spokesperson said by this year's rainy season we should see
some advances in post-Mitch reconstruction.
Advances have been made, but in agricultural sectors, housing, roads
and bridges the work is going to be continuing over the next several years.
Testing,
which will take two weeks, could show that the remains found on top of a
tomb are one of the 16 rulers of the civilization at Copan. If it is, this
find will be one of Honduras' most important archaeological discoveries of
the past decade. The remains
include a jade-encrusted kneecap. "Our
research so far indicates that the tomb belonged to one of the Maya
governors of Copan, between the sixth and 10th leader of the dynasty that
ruled during the sixth century," said Japanese archaeologist Seichi
Nakamura. The
tomb itself has not yet been opened. "This
discovery, among the most important of the past 10 years, will allow us to
continue unraveling the history of the Mayans of Copan," said Olga Joya,
director of the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History. Previously,
eights sets of remains have been identified as those of Copan governors.
The
news on coconut disease continues to get worse and worse.
First, hybrid coconuts from Costa Rica were hailed as the solution.
Garifunas in Barranco Blanco planted the hybrids, but they did not do
well in the sandy soil. An
American businessman in Trujillo bought 100 for his property and nine died
the first year from the lethal yellowing disease. People
then became interested in coconuts from Jamaica, where lethal yellowing
disease has been a problem since the 1970s.
These hybrid coconuts reportedly grow until they are five years old,
then when they begin to bear fruit they die, said a Garifuna from Trujillo. Several
organizations bought many hybrid coconuts to start nurseries and distribute
resistant coconut trees. However,
the second generation of coconuts are not resistant to the disease. Most
of the trees affected by lethal yellowing are the Jamaican Tall coconut
trees. A few people said,
"The Philipino coconuts will be okey."
There are two kinds of Philipino coconuts -- green ones and yellow
ones. Around Trujillo a lot of
the green Philipino coconuts have already died.
Even some of the yellow ones have died, although they seem to be
slightly more resistant. Theories
on what is causing the yellowing symptoms of the trees vary. The best theory is that it is being caused by a phytoplasma
disease being spread by a planthopper.
Another theory is that it is caused by an airborne virus.
The agricultural consulting firm, CONSERVAR, in La Ceiba is trying to
test its theory that the yellowing is actually caused by molds in the
ground. The first theory was
that it was caused by nematodes. "If
it is caused by insects, can't we just get something to kill them?"
asked some Garifunas. A few
Garifuna farmers tried insect traps early on in the crisis, but they caught
few, although many trees died. Recent
visitors to the North Coast saw Trujillo and exclaimed, "We just drove
past what looked like a lot of coconut tree graveyards.
What is happening?" There
is great interest in reforesting North Coast beaches with coconut trees, but
what to plant and how to protect them from dying still remains a mystery
five years into the crisis in Honduras and 25 years into the crisis in the
region. Coconuts
are used to make coconut oil both in factories and at home. Also, many homemade treats such as coconut bread, coconut
candy and coconut soup depend on the nation's coconut crop.
|
TEGUCIGALPA
-- During her 40-hour visit, the vice president of the Republic of China,
Dr. Annette Hsiu-Lien Lu, made a commitment to consolidate the ties of
cooperation between Taiwan and Honduras. She took with her the support of
the Honduran government in her country's cause to reincorporate Taiwan into
the United Nations. "Honduras
has always been a steadfast friend of the Republic of China," said Lu.
"Our two countries have maintained a deep friendship and
cooperation for over half a century, mutually supporting each other,"
she said. The
Chinese vice president's visit was sharply criticized by the People's
Republic of China, which accused her of employing "dollar
diplomacy" in the Central American countries.
Communist China strongly opposes the reincorporation of Taiwan in the
U.N., calling it a "renegade province" after their 50-year
separation caused by the
Communist revolution. In
response, Lu said she was "representing my country and its people who
are willing to defend our sovereignty."
She added that she expects other countries to join Honduras in
supporting these diplomatic efforts. Lu,
a feminist and defender of human rights, said her government is prepared to
continue helping Honduras. China,
she said, will "teach (Hondurans) to fish so that we may fish
together." In
her meeting with President Carlos Flores, the two leaders talked extensively
about democracy and the economy. She
also invited Flores and his wife to travel to Taipei in November. During
her brief stay in the country, she visited handicraft centers and health
projects with First Lady Mary Flores and Vice President Gladys Caballero
Arevalo. Lu
said she would help strengthen tourism between the two countries, especially
in the area of handicrafts, after her visit to Valle de Angeles. The
Taiwanese vice president left Taipei last Friday, flying through Miami and
Los Angeles, before beginning her tour of El Salvador, Honduras, Belize and
Guatemala, Taiwan's allies in Central America. She arrived in Tegucigalpa on Tuesday morning (Sept. 26), leaving the following day.
The
International Development Bank warned Tegucigalpa authorities that it will
reorient or cutback a $40 million loan if the implementation of projects by
the municipal government continues at a snail's pace. According
to Manuel Vargas, Director of the City's Project Unit, the IDB sent a letter
stating that current projects face delays that are hard to justify.
The letter also said disbursements are excessively slow, which leads
it to conclude that projections in the implementation of projects are beyond
the capabilities of the Mayor's Office. The
IDB is requesting explanations on why the construction of schools and
recreational areas has not begun, according to schedules approved in July. According
to the IDB, the arrival of the rainy season in conjunction with internal
deficiencies of the municipality will further compromise signed agreements. -- Alleged drug runners transferred
to Tamara Under
heavy guard, three men suspected of belonging to the Atlantic Cartel were
transferred to the maximum security prison in Tamara, near Tegucigalpa. Jeremias
Echeverria Haylock from La Mosquitia; Jose Contreras Hernandez, a former
police official; and Ruben Matheus from Colombia are being held for their
alleged participation in the smuggling of 400 kilos of cocaine. According
to reports, Hector Matheus, another suspect, allegedly flew the drug in a
small plane to La Mosquitia and then burned the aircraft.
The other three reputedly gave Hector Matheus logistical support.
At that time, the National Police surrounded a huge area in the
department of Colon, but only captured him with 27 kilos.
He was later released by Judge Pedro Norales and fled the country.
The judge has since been fired from his post. Subsequently,
the police decided to transfer the remaining suspects in Tamara, where
security is tighter. The three
men were captured with three AK-47s, two 9mm handguns, a double cabin pickup
truck and $14,800 in cash. -- Security minister has been
offered "dirty deals" Gautama
Fonseca, the new security minister who has encountered heavy opposition from
certain sectors due to his drastic measures against organized and
"disorganized" crime, declared that he has been offered indecent
business proposals. Fonseca,
who in one month has taken radical decisions regarding all aspects of
citizen security ranging from the destruction of clandestine airstrips used
by drug runners to prohibiting people from riding in the beds of pickup
trucks, reacted furiously to the proposals that were transmitted to him
through two of his sons. He
said that if these people came to him directly, they would leave his office
handcuffed. IHAH will not return confiscated
relics The
Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History, IHAH, issued a statement
saying it will not return relics confiscated from an antique business in San
Pedro Sula since they are protected by the Cultural Heritage Protection Law. However,
Judge Randolfo Discua of the Fourth Criminal District explained that the
IHAH report was vague regarding the approximately 100 pieces. Some, he said, are copies and the IHAH has yet to determine
which are original. The
lot contains paintings, statues of saints, chests and picture frames, among
others. The alleged owners say
that the pieces are copies made from plaster and wood. -- Nicaragua protests fishing boat
capture The
Nicaraguan government last Monday sent a letter of protest to the Honduran
government for the capture of the fishing boat Mister Kerry in Nicaraguan
waters. Nicaraguan
Foreign Minister Adan Guerra said this action does not contribute to the
peace and friendship efforts being made between the peoples and governments
of both countries since it violates Nicaraguan territorial sovereignty. Honduras
and Nicaragua have had territorial disputes since November 1999 when
Honduras signed a bilateral treaty with Colombia, delimitating a maritime
area that Nicaragua claims as its own. -- Big reward offered for return of
Coke bottle An
inflatable Coca Cola bottle disappeared and the owners are offering a
generous reward. The
"bottle" is used for advertising purposes. According to the owners, it is approximately 15 feet high.
No questions will be asked of the person or persons who return it. |
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President
Hugo Chavez poses with his peers from C.A. and the Carribean, President
Flores is third from the right, next to Mireya Moscoso of Panama.
Ricardo
Maduro (middle) is the leading presidential contender in the National Party.
"Tono"
is old before his age.
Much
of the architectural style of the Pan American Agricultural School is
inspired by the city of Antigua Guatemala.
Skanska,
a Swedish firm, is rebuilding the bridge over the Rio Aguan, Central
America's longest bridge.
