The fascist coup
d’état against President Zelaya is an insult to all
the peoples
•
Speech by President Raúl Castro Ruz
in the extraordinary session of the Rio Group Summit,
Managua, June 29, 2009
Distinguished presidents and
ministers:
I
shall be brief; there are many heads of state and
high-ranking representatives of our governments here
who also wish to speak.
A serious and extremely significant event for
Latin America and the Caribbean has brought us
together here. We all know about the mistreatment
and abuse to which the president and foreign
minister of Honduras, and the ambassadors of
Nicaragua, Venezuela and Cuba were subjected. The
right of the Honduran people to express themselves
politically has been trampled on.
Our first message to the Honduran people is one
of solidarity and support.
Cuba strongly condemns the brutal coup d’état
against the constitutional government of Honduras
and its legitimate president and rejects the
criminal attack on that nation’s popular sovereignty.
Aggression against the political
constitutionality of any member country must be
unanimously rejected by the Rio Group and in the
most forceful terms.
As President Chávez rightly said last night, this
is the moment to act according to one’s beliefs,
wasting no time and unmasking those who condemn the
coup, but then applaud under the table, as has
happened so many times in our common history.
In Honduras, there is and can only be one
president. José Manuel Zelaya must return
immediately and unconditionally to the performance
of his duties (Applause).
We believe that there can be no negotiations
whatsoever with the perpetrators of the coup, nor
any condition or demands of any kind for the
legitimate government of President Zelaya.
The conflict between the people’s aspirations for
a better future and the interests of the oligarchic
sectors in perpetuating an unjust and unsustainable
order will be decided there. It is a conflict that
transcends Honduran borders and is an expression of
the danger of a return to the past of military
dictatorships which, in the recent past and with the
support of the U.S. government, terrorized for
decades the Latin American peoples – particularly
those of Central American and the Caribbean – but
virtually without exclusion.
We recall the most recent attempts: Bolivia, with
Evo threatened by separatism. Friendly governments
rallied to his defense, undertook their role, halted
that variety of aggression against a sovereign
government and a president who, for the very first
time, represents those born on this continent who
have taken on their shoulders most of the burden of
exploitation (Applause).
Before that, it was with Chávez, the double coup,
the typical coup d’état, and shaking up the whole of
the population and restoring President Chávez to his
rightful place once again; the oil coup that cost
Venezuela millions of dollars.
And now with Zelaya in Honduras. I don’t know if
it is just by pure chance that the three individuals
mentioned form part of the nascent ALBA which,
although they are not saying it, is worrying many
persons.
These three examples alone demonstrate that the
oligarchy and exterior forces that accompany them
still have a lot of influence in terms of holding
back history.
I ask myself what they will do with Correa in
Ecuador. I fear that he is the next candidate and
the next meeting of the Rio Group will be to
congratulate Correa for successfully defending his
country and revolutionary process (Applause).
I have only mentioned a few countries; I could
mention some others that belong to the ALBA. For
that reason, the fascist coup d’état against
President Zelaya is an affront to all the peoples
and governments of Latin America and the Caribbean,
and cannot not go unpunished. Its masterminds will
have to take responsibility for the crimes and
outrages that have taken place in this sister nation.
The mass media will also be responsible as
accomplices, for lending themselves to the coup
faction’s aims and for confusing the people. At
least we were able to find out what was happening
through the vital work of Telesur (Applause).
Equally responsible are the oligarchic groups
that are trying to legitimize a criminal act of this
magnitude, and reactionary sectors in the hemisphere
that are backing the transgressors of
constitutionality.
The U.S. government must act in line with its
declarations and assume them with all seriousness. I
believe in the sincerity that President Obama and
his secretary of state can demonstrate, but they
must demonstrate it with actions, not with words.
Without popular support, with the total rejection
of Latin American and Caribbean governments, no coup
perpetrators can last. As Fidel said in his
reflections of yesterday, those in Honduras can’t
even breathe without the support of the United
States or some of the forces with power within the
government of the United States.
To the Honduran people, campesinos, workers,
professionals, teachers, health workers, the
business sectors, and to all the sons and daughters
of the homeland of Morazán, I reiterate the message
of solidarity and support of the Cuban people, and
our commitment to accompany you in this battle for
justice and dignity.
Thank you very much.
