Inter-American Dialogue

A Conversation with José Miguel Insulza

By Matthew Schewel
July 16, 2009

Click here to listen to an mp3 audio file of the event

Two days before talks to resolve Honduras' political crisis were scheduled to resume, the head of the Organization of American States said Wednesday he was “cautiously optimistic” about the negotiations led by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, but added it was unlikely they would be concluded by Saturday.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Inter-American Dialogue, Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza defended the OAS’ quick condemnation of the military coup which ousted Honduran President Zelaya on June 28, calling it “a rape of democracy.” Roberto Micheletti was installed by the Honduran Congress as interim president later that day. Insulza said the OAS’ swift action in the days following the coup, which included an ultimatum to Micheletti and eventually the expulsion of Honduras from the organization, thwarted international recognition of the Micheletti government and made Arias’ intervention possible.

In the PressDialogue experts also weighed in on the ongoing crisis in Honduras. Peter Hakim was quoted by Bloomberg, VOA, CNN, Washington Post, Business Week, El Universal and New York Times; Michael Shifter testified before the House Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere Affairs (video) and was quoted in Time, NPR, Houston Chronicle and Wall Street Journal; Dan Erikson was interviewed on the Kojo Nnamdi Show and by AsiaOne news; and Manuel Orozco was quoted in the Miami Herald and by the AP, and wrote an opinion piece in Foreign Policy.

"President Arias is not an alternative to the OAS,” Insulza said, adding that the Nobel Peace Prize winner agreed to serve as mediator on a personal invitation from Insulza. The secretary-general said Saturday’s talks would likely include the possibility of setting up a national unity government, as well as issues such as amnesty for officials in the de facto government and Zelaya’s offer not to pursue his referendum to change the Honduran constitution. Those points were echoed Wednesday in statements Arias made on Costa Rican radio. Both leaders rejected Micheletti’s offer to step down as long as Zelaya doesn’t return to power. “This necessarily passes through the reinstallation of [President Zelaya],” Insulza said, although he ruled out the possibility of military intervention if other efforts fail. He also said he wasn’t concerned with an outbreak of violence in Honduras, as protests on both sides so far have been relatively peaceful.

Insulza said he had been aware of the crisis brewing in Honduras in the days leading up to the coup, when the country's Congress and Supreme Court rejected President Zelaya’s planned referendum. He sent an envoy to negotiate with the relevant political actors, and had planned to lead an OAS mission, which was preempted by the coup. "It was surprising for everybody,” he said. When ousted President Zelaya later attempted to return to Honduras by plane, Insulza did not accompany him because the move wasn’t agreed upon by the OAS council, he said.

While the crisis in Honduras marked the first time the Inter-American Democratic Charter was applied in response to a coup, it also highlighted the document’s limitations, Insulza said. The charter gives presidents the right to appeal to the OAS under certain circumstances, but doesn’t grant the same powers to other branches of government, which in the case of Honduras could have averted the crisis. “We had a problem of access,” Insulza said. He also referred to an article of the charter that identifies acts in a country that “seriously affect domestic order,” but doesn’t identify what acts might fall under that category.

The event was held in the Root Room at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and was moderated by the Dialogue's Peter Hakim.