A Series of Wrongs with a Young Democracy

by Kyle Huhtanen

Common American sayings that have often come to mind this week in Honduras:

1.       Two wrongs don’t make a right.
2.       Don’t throw out the baby with the bath water.

I have decided to share a few thoughts and observations as a U.S. citizen living in the rural area of Honduras in the city of Catacamas, Olancho, which [deposed Honduran president] Mel Zelaya calls home.  It has been hard for me to put my thoughts together, and this week has been surprising stressful for me, although I have lived in Honduras for 11 of the last 13 years of my life.  I share this with those who are looking for another opinion or perspective of the situation which continues to be a crisis for the country of Honduras.

The First Wrong

The survey to ask the people if they wanted to change their constitution was promoted as a “more pure democracy.”  It was promoted as a way to take government directly to the hands of the people and ask them how it should be changed. The Zelaya administration used the word survey, although the instrument was not a survey.  It was conducted with the logistics of a vote, incorporating voting boxes and registration of names.  The Executive Branch pointed out that elected representatives in the Congress were in positions of power and did not respond to the people’s need, but rather to their own preservation of power. This rhetoric appealed to many who feel marginalized in the political system and daily experienced exclusion from government.  Many people here in Olancho have ties directly to those in the executive branch and felt part of the team that was looking to further the concept of democracy in Honduras.

Yet, this concept is mistaken.  As an outside observer, I have spent months learning about the constitution, listening to the words of the people, the lawyers and others.  This is a democracy by representation in which elected leaders are making decisions (as is my country).  These elected representatives are the voice of the people and those who put forth and vote on the laws that are needed by this country.  The constitution is constructed with methods and procedures providing for it to be revised and changed with the participation of the representative government.  The invitation of the people to change their constitution was not about arriving at a purer democracy, but rather about abandoning the entire structure of government that has been established by this republic.  The proposal offered by the Zelaya administration inviting the people to change the constitution of this country only points out that this young democracy does not yet believe in its design of representative government.   The need to actively educate citizens about participating in the civic duties of a government by representation must be further pursued in the maturing of this young democracy.

The Second Wrong

The second wrong was committed early Sunday morning when the Congressional and Judicial branches of government instructed the Honduran Armed Forces to remove Zelaya from office and take him in exile to Costa Rica.  Accompanied by lies, cover-ups, and the repression of civil liberties this wrong has been loudly pronounced by many — initially by the exiled President and followers of the survey and now by the international community.

This action was mistaken.  For weeks, the Judicial Branch had declared the survey unconstitutional and proclaimed that this could not move forward as a permitted activity of government.  Yet, the use of formal accusations of wrongs, presented by the Judicial Branch to the court system were not enacted to correct or deter the actions of the Executive Branch of government.

Rather, in a moment of desperation and panic, the government resorted to tried and true methods which have worked in generations past to correct the first wrong.  In this week after the president's exile, they have presented 18 charges against Mel Zelaya.  This judicial procedure demonstrates a lack of trust and belief in the system to carry out justice for the president who was deemed to be acting in opposition to the law.  The need to actively develop trust and credibility in judicial procedures must be pursued in the maturity of this democracy.

The Third Wrong

This week, the UN and Organization of American States (OAS) listened to a presentation by Mel Zelaya of his account of the military action taken to remove him from office, and made decisions to correct those who implemented the second error.  The manner selected was to support Zelaya in his unconditional reinstatement of the position as the elected president of the country through the suspension of trade agreements and monetary funds.

This action was mistaken.  The interpretation of the brutal force which engaged the military to remove Zelaya is seen as the overriding action which must be corrected to avoid a return to times when military dictators occupied positions of control in Central American countries.  Yet, the first error must be addressed in an effort to maintain government by representation, government operating based on a stable constitution, and governments that are responsible to confront national challenges instead of escaping them through referendums, internal finger pointing, and superficial alliances.

The international community must validate young democracies, yet understand that they are not always going to look pretty.  Today, Honduras looks like an ugly democracy in the eyes of the world.  For Hondurans, it has looked ugly for a while.  The actions of the UN and OAS do not address the need to work with Honduras in efforts leading to the maturity of its democracy, but rather, instead, focus on reconstructing a pretty picture of a democracy that fits their needs.  Leading countries in the world must evolve in the way they participate with young democracies and give real help and guidance that allows them to become nations that can resolve weaknesses in their democracy without military intervention.

As a Christian, I am reminded that modeling Christ will have great impact and that compromising this model by bending or breaking the rules will have great consequences.  We must trust that we are most instrumental in God’s work when we are in complete obedience to His way.  Someone told me today, “What is not done out of love is simply manipulation.”



Kyle Huhtanen
Director of International Relations
Asociacion Hondurena Predicar y Sanar (PREDISAN)
www.predisan.org