San Jose, Nov 15 (EFE) Ousted Honduran president Mel Zelaya has said the US is not serious about his reinstatement but focusing more on the upcoming presidential elections in November.
“They have left us in the middle of the river, saying now that their priority is the elections and not the restoration of democracy,” Zelaya told Costa Rica’s ADN Radio Saturday.
A US-brokered pact to end the impasse between Zelaya and the de facto government collapsed last week when the latter pressed ahead with formation of a national unity government.
Critics say the current regime was emboldened when US diplomat Thomas Shannon said Washington would recognise the winner of the Nov 29 election regardless of whether Zelaya was reinstated.
Asked this week about Zelaya’s reinstatement, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said: “It’s not about any one person. It’s about return of democratic processes and democratic government. It’s an important aspect to us of continuing to support democracy within the hemisphere.”
The head of the Organisation of American States (OAS) has ruled out sending OAS election observers to Honduras under the current circumstances. Most members of the OAS have indicated they will not recognise the Honduran elections as valid unless Zelaya is reinstated before that.
Zelaya was forced into exile to Costa Rica after he was ousted from power in a military coup June 28. Zelaya is currently staying at the Brazilian embassy in Honduras capital Tegucigalpa.
