WASHINGTON - THE Organization of American States on Wednesday gave Honduras 72 hours to reinstate deposed President Manuel Zelaya or face suspension from the group, ahead of the ousted leader's planned talks here with US officials.
Mr Micheletti's foreign minister, Enrique Ortez, telling CNN en Espanol that Mr Zelaya had been letting drug traffickers ship US-bound cocaine from Venezuela through Honduras. Mr Ortez said the US Drug Enforcement Administration was aware of Zelaya's ties to organised crime.
The United States stood firmly by Mr Zelaya, however, with State Department spokesman Ian Kelly saying Washington sees no acceptable solution other than Zelaya's return to power. He said the United States is considering cutting off its aid to Honduras.
BOGOTA - THE regime that ousted Manuel Zelaya in Honduras claimed on Tuesday that the deposed president allowed tons of cocaine to be flown into the Central American country on its way to the United States.
Hondura's foreign minister, Enrique Ortez, told CNN en Espanol. 'We have proof of all of this. Neighbouring governments have it. The DEA has it,' he added.
SINCE Sunday's coup, Honduras has become increasingly isolated, with a string of Latin American countries recalling their ambassadors for consultations.
New authorities, led by interim leader Roberto Micheletti, extended a 9pm to 5am curfew until Friday and many media channels remained blocked. Financial institutions, including the World Bank and regional banks, have also ordered the suspension of loans and payments to the impoverished nation.
The organisation's general assembly instructed Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza to undertake 'diplomatic initiatives aimed at... the reinstatement of President Jose Manuel Zelaya Rosales,' within the next three days.
If these efforts prove fruitless, Honduras will be barred from the OAS, in keeping with group's charters, according to a communique.
Tensions have flared in Honduras since Mr Zelaya was deposed in an army-backed coup on Sunday and swiftly flown out of the country. The coup was the first in the major banana and coffee exporter in more than 20 years.
The OAS said it was 'gravely concerned about the political crisis in the Republic of Honduras as a result of the coup d'etat' which it said 'has produced an unconstitutional alteration of the democratic order.'
Mr Zelaya, who was elected in 2005 to a non-renewable four-year term, was due to hold talks in Washington Wednesday with US officials, one day ahead of his planned return to his Central American nation of 7.5 million people. His meetings in the US capital come as a growing list of nations pulled their ambassadors from Tegucigalpa, with Spain the latest country to recall its envoy.
Protests erupted on Tuesday for the second day in the Honduran capital, when unidentifed attackers hurled a grenade, which failed to explode, at the Supreme Court. Mr Zelaya has vowed to return to Honduras on Thursday accompanied by OAS leaders and Argentine President Cristina Kirchner. But many here fear his return could spark further clashes between his supporters and opponents.
Attorney General Luis Alberto Rubi has warned Mr Zelaya would be 'immediately' arrested if he returned to Honduras, where he faces charges that include 'treason' and 'abuse of authority.'
On Tuesday, Mr Zelaya said he would not seek a second term in office, dropping his plans to try to run again for office in November elections which had detonated the crisis.
'If offered the possibility to remain in power (for a second term), I would not do it,' he told a press conference in New York. 'I am going to fulfill my term up until January 27,' he added. -- AFP
