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Folks:
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<div>Rep. Sam Farr, from California (my district) just sent out a
Dear Colleague letter asking for a cutoff of aid to Honduras, and
an end to pressure on the OAH. It's great. We have until Oct. 7
to get as many signers-on as possible. Please beat the bushes as
much as you can, and broaden your list of Congressmembers to
contact, so we can get the numbers up even more this time.</div>
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<div>Also here's a link to an op ed I just published on the
Huffington Post. Feel free to use it to update people, and
summarize the key latest developments.</div>
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<div>Dana Frank</div>
<div><a moz-do-not-send="true" href="mailto:danafrank@ucsc.edu">danafrank@ucsc.edu</a><br>
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<div><a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dana-frank/repressions-reward-in-hon_b_738620.html"
style="text-decoration: none;">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dana-frank/repressions-reward-in-hon_b_738620.html</a></div>
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center;" align="center"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">
<hr tabindex="-1" width="100%" align="center" size="2"></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><b><font face="Tahoma"
size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family:
Tahoma; font-weight: bold;">From:</span></font></b><font
face="Tahoma" size="2"><span style="font-size: 10pt;
font-family: Tahoma;"> e-Dear Colleague <br>
<b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sent:</span></b> Friday,
September 24, 2010 5:11 PM<br>
<b><span style="font-weight: bold;">To:</span></b> <st1:personname
w:st="on">Hanson, Marc</st1:personname><br>
<b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Subject:</span></b> ForeignAffairs:
Dear Colleague: Support Democracy in <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region></span></font><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></div>
<h1 style="margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; font-size: 24pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-align: center;"
align="center"><b><font face="Times New Roman" size="6"><span
style="font-size: 24pt;">Support Democracy in <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region><o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h1>
<h2 style="margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; font-size: 18pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><b><font face="Times New Roman"
size="5"><span style="font-size: 18pt;">From: The Honorable
Sam Farr<br>
Sent By: <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:marc.hanson@mail.house.gov?subject=RE:%20Support%20Democracy%20in%20Honduras"
style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;">marc.hanson@mail.house.gov</a><br>
Date: 9/24/2010<o:p></o:p></span></font></b></h2>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ever since the
Micheletti coup d’état disrupted Honduran democracy on June
28, 2009, freedom of political expression, free speech and
human rights have been under constant assault.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Please co-sign the
below letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The
letter calls attention to the more atrocious violations of
human rights and incidents of politically motivated
violence.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The letter calls on
the Obama Administration to curtail assistance to the Lobo
government until it protects the rights of all Hondurans,
not just political supporters, and remove people who
participated in the coup d’état from the leadership of
government corporations.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The letter will close
October 7. To sign on, contact <a moz-do-not-send="true"
href="mailto:marc.hanson@mail.house.gov" style="color:
blue; text-decoration: underline;">marc.hanson@mail.house.gov</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-align: right;"><font
face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-align: right;"><font
face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-align: right;"><font
face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sept.
X, 2010<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Dear Secretary
Clinton,<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We are encouraged to
see that the <st1:country-region w:st="on">U.S.</st1:country-region> government
has acknowledged the gravity of the political and human
rights situation in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
The August 4<sup>th</sup>trip by senior State Department
official Maria Otero to review the state human rights and
democratic governance under Honduran President Porfirio Lobo
demonstrates a new assertiveness by the Obama Administration
to observe and protect political and human rights in the <st1:place
w:st="on">Western Hemisphere</st1:place>. We believe<st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">U.S.</st1:place></st1:country-region> assistance
should be suspended until the government of Porfirio Lobo
distances itself from individuals involved in the June 28<sup>th</sup> military
coup d’etat and adequately addresses the ongoing human and
political rights violations. <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Arial" size="2"><span
style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;"> </span></font><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We have received
credible reports from Honduran human rights organizations
that abuses continue with near impunity. Members of the
human rights community and select political operatives
continue to be attacked and intimidated. The Honduran
Committee of the Families of the Detained and Disappeared
(COFADEH), a highly esteem human rights organization,
reports assassinations, arbitrary arrests, beatings and
death threats targeting political activists and the human
rights workers who attempt to protect them. COFADEH
described August as a “black” month for human rights and has
documented a disturbing number of incidents that have taken
place in recent weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Since the beginning of
August, at least six individuals identified with the
opposition movement against the Lobo Administration have
been murdered, including several rural activists, a teacher
union leader and a journalist. Several journalists known
for their criticism of the coup d’etat have been arbitrarily
detained or suffered physical attacks. An opposition radio
station – Radio Uno of San Pedro Sula – was forced off the
air and its transmission cables were cut. <font color="navy"><span
style="color: navy;"> </span></font>The Honduran
authorities have failed to investigate and prosecute dozens
of other murders and violent attacks against pro-democratic
political activists since the June 28<sup>th,</sup> coup
d’etat. The victims and their families have been left
vulnerable with no access to justice. There is serious
concern that the rule of law is directly threatened by
members of the Honduran police and armed forces.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">On the weekend of
September 17, a leader in the Social Security labor union,
Juana Bustillo, was assassinated while riding in a car with
the union's president Hector Escoto, who was hospitalized.
Earlier in September, four peasants were murdered in the
Aguan region – home to a land conflict where landless
peasants are attempting to secure plots to build homes. In
the first incident, three people were killed, allegedly by
private security guards of Miguel Facussé Barjóm -- one of <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region>’
largest landowners. In the second incident, Francisco
Miranda, a leader among landless peasants, was shot several
times by unknown men while running errands on his bicycle.
The newspaper La Tribuna, owned by Facussé's nephew,
reported the killing was part of a dispute internal to the
landless peasants’ organization.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">On many occasions,
Honduran authorities have summarily dismissed the attacks
against political activists, human rights defenders and
journalists as a symptom of criminality linked to drug
trafficking and organized crime. Crime is a problem;
however, since the June 28<sup>th</sup> coup, there has been
a distinct pattern of political violence that merits a
strong <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">U.S.</st1:place></st1:country-region> response. <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">It is our expectation
that the Obama Administration will advance justice by urging
the Lobo Administration to recognize the undeniable
political character of many of the attacks against activists
and journalists. A strong democracy provides security to
those who participate peacefully in political process; lack
of security demonstrates deficiencies in Honduran
democracy. Tragically, since the August 4<sup>th</sup> visit
of Undersecretary of State Maria Otera, <st1:country-region
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region> has
not advanced human rights or political freedoms. Until the
government of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region> makes
sustained progress in improving its deplorable human rights
record, we believe it is inappropriate to provide direct
assistance to Honduran authorities, particularly the police
or military.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We also urge the Obama
Administration to refrain from supporting the immediate
re-entry of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region> in
the Organization of American States. The Obama
Administration does a great disservice to democracy and
human rights across the Western Hemisphere by making an
exception for <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Honduras</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
while the Lobo Administration continues to include
perpetrators of the June 28<sup>th</sup> coup d’etat and
fails to prosecute politically motivated crimes.<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sincerely,<o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt;
font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><font face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></div>
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