Honduras, August 14: Thousands of Hondurans supporting ousted President Manuel Zelaya protested in the nation’s capital, as a US diplomat prepared to meet representatives of the government that has been in power since a military coup.
Mr. Zelaya, who was rousted from his home at gunpoint in June and flown into exile by Honduran soldiers, spent the day in Chile, his latest stop on a Latin American tour he hopes will solidify backing from the region’s governments.
Chile’s President Michelle Bachelet received Zelaya with head-of-state honors and reiterated her government’s recognition of him as the democratically elected president of Honduras.
“We will continue to support all actions” aimed at restoring Mr. Zelaya to the presidency, said Bachelet, whose country saw a CIA-backed coup in 1973 that ushered in the dictatorship of Gen Augusto Pinochet.
On Wednesday, Chile refused to recognize Honduran ambassador Francisco Martinez who has reportedly declared himself an ally of interim President Roberto Micheletti.
The Honduras coup has been widely condemned around the world, and the United States and the European Union have called for Zeyala’s return to the presidency.
Mr. Micheletti’s interim government has refused to consider Mr. Zeyala’s restoration which is a key provision of an accord proposed during talks mediated by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
–Agencies