Talk:2009 Honduran constitutional crisis/sandbox


 * Note - there are many comments (<–– like this -->) that appear within the source. Some of them explain reasoning for the layout, among other things.

On the morning of June 28, 2009, soldiers abducted Honduran president Manuel Zelaya and flew him into exile. The Congress voted to appoint Roberto Micheletti, the next in line of presidential succession, as Interim President later that day.

Although the military worked under a detention order supplied by the Supreme Court of Honduras, in detaining the president, the event has become internationally known as a coup d'etat. The de facto government denied that the coup was illegal, owing in part to the Supreme Court's order and to the agreement of Congress.

Background
Manuel Zelaya was elected the President of Honduras in 2005 as a moderate of the Liberal Party of Honduras. His presidency was praised by labor unions and civil society groups for its economic and social policies. However, his unexpected alliance with the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) – established by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez – caused a divide between Zelaya and his party and constituents, who saw a leftward trend towards Chávez-style populist socialism. should a section be added to his relationship w/ the media?

In mid-November 2008, Zelaya announced a non-binding referendum to add a fourth ballot-box, or "cuarta urna", to the November 2009 election. The referendum would ask whether to hold a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. A preliminary poll was announced, in March, to be held later that year on June 28.

The day after the announcement, Honduran Attorney General Luis Alberto Rubi declared that Zelaya would face criminal charges if he proceeded with the referendum. Two days later, the Administrative Law Tribunal issued an injunction against holding the poll, which the court of appeals would uphold later that year on June 16. On June 18, the Administrative Law Tribunal ordered the President to conform to their injunction.

The Supreme Court of Honduras later found Zelaya in contempt of court for failing to comply with the order, and ordered that he be suspended on June 30 if he fail to comply. Meanwhile, the National Congress of Honduras passed a law forbidding polls, referenda, or plebescites if they were to take place 180 days before the general election.

On June 26 – the same day the Supreme Court made its decision – Justice Tomás Arita Valle issued a sealed order to detain Zelaya. On June 28 – the scheduled day of the poll – Zelaya was ousted by the military and Roberto Micheletti was sworn in as Interim President.


 * Timeline (not for inclusion)


 * 11 Nov '08 - Zelaya announces non-binding referendum to add a fourth ballot-bot ("cuarta urna") during Nov '09 election which asks whether to hold a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. Looking for English refs
 * 24 Mar '09 - Zelaya calls for preliminary poll on referendum to be held on 28 Jun '09. Spanish source (here) is on that day; can't tell if it's contemporaneous reporting.
 * 25 Mar '09 - AG says Zelaya would face criminal charges if he proceeded with referendum. The main article does not have a ref immediately after the claim, and of the four refs in the section I pulled this off of, I believe 2 are in Spanish, where the real meat is
 * 27 May '09 - Administrative Law Tribunal issues injunction against holding poll. Court of appeal upholds on 16 Jun '09. No immediate ref
 * 18 Jun '09 - ALT orders Zelaya to conform within 5 days. No immediate ref
 * 23 Jun '09 - Congress passes law forbidding holding polls, referenda, and plebescites less than 180 days before the next general election. This is flatly unsourced within main article
 * 26 Jun '09 - Supreme Court finds Zelaya in contempt of court for failing to comply with ALT orders. Would be suspended on 30 Jun '09 for contempt of court if uncompliant. No immediate ref
 * 26 Jun '09 - Supreme Court Justice Tomás Arita Valle issues sealed order to detain Zelaya. the "sealed, secret" claim is in Spanish, so can't verify
 * 28 Jun '09 - Zelaya ousted.

Coup d'etat
In the early morning of June 28, soldiers stormed the president's residence in Tegucigalpa, disarmed the presidential guards, woke Zelaya and put him on a plane at gunpoint. Colonel Bayardo said, “We said, ‘Sir, we have a judicial order to detain you.’"

Within several hours of his removal, Zelaya spoke to media in San José, Costa Rica, calling the events "a coup" and "a kidnapping." He had been awakened by gunshots, and stated that masked soldiers pulled him from his bed and assaulted his guards. They took his cell phone, shoved him into a van and took him to an air-force base. He said he did not know that he was being taken to Costa Rica until he landed at the airport in San José. Additionally, he stated that he would not recognize anyone named as his successor, that he would be meeting with diplomats, and that he wanted to finish his term in office.

The military put the prez on a plane to Costa Rica, the legislature voted to accept Zelaya's 'resignation'. It appointed Micheletti who was next in line.

Events after
Daily protests, UN, OAS, foreign governments, "coup", no recognition, aid suspended, ambassadors withdrawn by the bushel, World Bank, etc.

Crackdown and media war

Legislature voted to admonish Zelaya and remove him from office. Micheletti said Zelaya couldn't go back, so Zelaya snuck back in and showed up in the Brazilian embassy.