Home // Jul 10 2009 > Honduran cardinal denies church coup support

Make Text Larger Make Text Smaller Email this Article to a Friend Print this Article

Honduran cardinal denies church coup support

Published: July 10, 2009

Tegucigalpa Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga has backed a Honduran bishops' conference statement that appeared to tolerate the June 28 military coup saying that deposed Honduran President Manuel Zelaya engendered "class hatred."

In an interview with a Tegucigalpa journalist, published July 8 on elfaro.net, the cardinal denied that the church supported a coup d'etat. He said those who accuse the church of siding with Honduras' elite "are not listening", Catholic News Service reports.

"An unemotional person would read the church's message and would understand it," he said.

Cardinal Rodriguez said he has seen an unwelcome change in Honduras that he attributes to Zelaya's alliance with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

"Recently, I have observed something that did not previously exist in Honduras: class hatred," the cardinal said in the interview. "Zelaya had advisers in Venezuela, and stirring up class hatred was the strategy."

Cardinal Rodriguez explained that he was traveling between Rome and Tegucigalpa the day of the coup and thus did not participate in drafting the bishops' statement.

The statement emphasized the reportedly illegal actions by Zelaya prior to his ouster - he scheduled a popular consultation on a constitutional amendment that would allow him to run for a second term.

The Honduran Constitution says a president who promotes or supports changes to the one-term limit must step down as head of the executive branch.

The bishops' statement said Zelaya must answer to charges of treason and abuse of authority and criticized the international community for concerning itself only with elections rather than the democratic exercise of power.

Two lines in the two-page statement calling for an "explanation" of the June 28 "incidents" are the only reference to the coup d'etat.

Cardinal Rodriguez backed up the bishops' statement, stressing that the events had to be evaluated in a context in which the executive branch had broken the law several times over the previous few months.

He stressed that the bishops' attitude is one of seeking peace and offering to mediate a solution to the current political crisis.

"We cannot continue with the serious social injustices in this country that the actions of politicians have been perpetuating," he said.

FULL STORY @

Honduran cardinal backs bishops, says Zelaya engendered class hatred (Catholic News Service)

LINKS

Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga (Wikipedia)

Honduran Coup 2009 (Wikipedia)

 

 

It may take up to 24 hours for your comment to appear on the website as it will be moderated.
Email is requested for identification purposes only.

Recent Comments

  1. It is distressing that the Catholic Church heirachy is repeating the myth that a non-binding referendum for Constitutional Reform equals President Zelaya seeking a second term.

    "In fact", notes Mark Weisbrot, "there was no way for Zelaya to "extend his rule" even if the referendum had been held and passed, and even if he had then gone on to win a binding referendum on the November ballot. The 28 June referendum was nothing more than a non-binding poll of the electorate, asking whether the voters wanted to place a binding referendum on the November ballot to approve a redrafting of the country's constitution. If it had passed, and if the November referendum had been held (which was not very likely) and also passed, the same ballot would have elected a new president and Zelaya would have stepped down in January. So, the belief that Zelaya was fighting to extend his term in office has no factual basis. The most that could be said is that if a new constitution were eventually approved, Zelaya might have been able to run for a second term at some future date." (1)

    It is disappointing to see the Catholic Church heirarchy, which claims to care about he poor, side once again with the rich elites in Latin America instead of campesino farmers, labor unions struggling for a living wage (thanks to Zelaya, they have a new minimum wage), Afro-Hondurans and indigenous peoples.

    Gary Cozette, Program Director, Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America

    (1) http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=122274821656&h=lQgtt&u=-rCwk&ref=nf



    Posted By: Gary Cozette

  2. While the article headline asserts "Honduran cardinal denies church coup support", the article's content makes clear that the Cardinal, who supports the other Bishops, believe President Zelaya must "answer for treason."

    It is distressing that the Catholic Church heirachy is repeating the myth in this article that a non-binding referendum for Constitutional Reform equals President Zelaya seeking a second term.

    "In fact", notes Mark Weisbrot, "there was no way for Zelaya to "extend his rule" even if the referendum had been held and passed, and even if he had then gone on to win a binding referendum on the November ballot. The 28 June referendum was nothing more than a non-binding poll of the electorate, asking whether the voters wanted to place a binding referendum on the November ballot to approve a redrafting of the country's constitution. If it had passed, and if the November referendum had been held (which was not very likely) and also passed, the same ballot would have elected a new president and Zelaya would have stepped down in January. So, the belief that Zelaya was fighting to extend his term in office has no factual basis. The most that could be said is that if a new constitution were eventually approved, Zelaya might have been able to run for a second term at some future date." (1)

    It is disappointing to see the Catholic Church heirarchy, which claims to care about he poor, side once again with the rich elites in Latin America instead of campesino farmers, labor unions struggling for a living wage (thanks to Zelaya, they have a new minimum wage), Afro-Hondurans and indigenous peoples.

    Gary Cozette, Program Director, Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America

    (1) http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=122274821656&h=lQgtt&u=-rCwk&ref=nf



    Posted By: Gary Cozette

  3. Class hatred! The church should not tolerate any politician who might think the upper classes could ever be wrong! The Church is probably guilty of helping the upper classes exploit the poor. Why would he make such a remark if this were not the case? When will the Latin American prelates learn about Jesus and his compassion for the poor?

    Posted By: Prof. A J Carlos

^ Page Top

Delicious

More from this section

  1. National Guard also down on chaplains

    There is such a shortage of chaplains in the National Guard that waivers are being granted for priests who are over the maximum recruiting age.

  2. Stabbed Corpus Christi priest back in parish

    After two months of recuperation, stabbed Texas priest, Fr Shaji Varghese, is back at work at his Sinton, Corpus Christi parish.

  3. Four Catholic high schools make SI top ten

    Sports Illustrated has ranked Portland, Ore. Jesuit High School as the second-best high school sports program in the country with another three Catholic high schools also ranked in the nation's top ten for sports.

  4. Our Lady stumps Irish

    Some 14 years since her last major apparition in Ireland, the Virgin Mary is back in the lowly form of a tree stump in County Limerick, reports said.

  5. Vietnam rejects US Senators' call

    Vietnam has rejected a call by US senators for the release of Fr Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly, who is in prison after being found guilty of spreading anti-government propaganda, saying the normal legal procedures must apply.

Celebrating 142 years of publishing excellence.
Find out more »

Subscribe

Receive CathNewsUSA headlines in your inbox daily.

News Feed

Subscribe to the CathNews RSS feed to get the daily edition automatically delivered to you.

Daily Prayer