The Last Great Honduran Coup

The last "great" military coup that occurred in Honduras was not on June 28, 2009, but rather on October 3, 1963 when Colonel Osvaldo López Arellano overthrew the democratically-elected President Ramón Villeda Morales in a bloody military coup that resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people and kept the Honduran military in power for the succeeding two decades.

By Marco Cáceres
Barack Obama is a socialist. I disagree with that opinion. Jesus of Nazareth should be worshipped more as a deity who created the universe than for the greatness of his humanity and wisdom. I do not share that sentiment. Sarah Palin is fit to be president of the United States. I have a real problem with that one. Look, reasonable people can disagree on countless issues, interpretations, and doctrines, particularly when it comes to politics and religion. The trick is not to let our differences consume us and lead us to do nasty things like discriminate, belittle, or get violent. One of the biggest disagreements related to Honduras has to do with whether or not the ousting of Manuel Zelaya was a "military coup". That squabble is probably destined to have a very long life-span.

For the record, my view is that, while the removal of Mr. Zelaya may have been many things that could be argued to be illegal or wrong, it was clearly not a power grab by Honduras' military establishment. This realization was heightened a couple of days ago when I read that General Romeo Vásquez Velásquez, who recently retired as head of Honduras' Armed Forces, has been appointed to manage HONDUTEL. That is a far cry from anything resembling a "power grab". Gen. Vásquez was the man in charge of the military when Mr. Zelaya was arrested and flown to Costa Rica to commence his ordeal.

From day one, Gen. Vásquez said that he was acting under orders from the Supreme Court of Justice, led by Judge Jorge Alberto Rivera. If what occurred in Honduras was a "coup", then, if anything, it would be more accurately described as a "judicial coup". But somehow that wording does not carry near the same dramatic punch as a "military coup". Most people would not even know what to make of it. Now, a military coup... that's something people can easily get their arms around.

The last "great" military coup that occurred in Honduras was not on June 28, 2009, but rather on October 3, 1963 when Colonel Osvaldo López Arellano overthrew the democratically-elected President Ramón Villeda Morales in a bloody military coup that resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people and kept the Honduran military in power for the succeeding two decades. Ironically, it was the Liberal Party's nomination of Modesto Rodas Alvarado (against the wishes of fellow Liberal President Villeda) to run in the presidential election scheduled for October 13, 1963 that scared the heck out of the military so much that some of its brass felt they had to act.

Mr. Rodas, who was the father of former Foreign Minister and ideological mentor in the Zelaya administration Patricia Rodas, was considered to be far too much of a political leftist at a time when there was an elevated fear of communism in Latin America. Remember, Fidel Castro had come to power in Cuba in 1959, the failed US-sponsored Bay of Pigs invasion occurred in 1961, and the Cuban Missile Crisis, which took place in October 1962, was still fresh in everyone's mind. The Cold War was reaching its peak and paranoia about the spread of communism was widespread.

The Honduran military did not give up the reins of power until January 27, 1982, when Roberto Suazo Córdova of the Liberal Party was inaugurated as Honduras' president. Mr. Suazo had been elected in November 1981.

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Honduras was governed mostly by a successive series of military dictators. In his first stint as "president", López Arellano ruled until 1971 when he allowed for elections in April which were won by Ramón Cruz Uclés of the Nationalist Party. Mr. Cruz was installed as president on June 7, 1971. After serving only 18 months, President Cruz was removed from power on December 7, 1972 by General Oswaldo López Arelleno in another military coup. Gen. López served as president until April 22, 1975 when he was ousted by another military coup orchestrated by his colleague, Gen. Juan Melgar Castro.

Gen. Melgar was overthrown in a bloodless coup in late-1978 by yet another general, Policarpo Paz García. It was Gen. Paz who in 1980 decided to restore civil power in Honduras under a new constitution. He made way for President Suazo in 1982.

If one insists on referring to Mr. Zelaya's overthrow as a military coup, then that is certainly one's prerogative. All I can say is that if it was a military coup, it was one sorry example of one. On the one hand, you have Oswaldo López Arelleno who was obviously consumed by power and would not go away quietly. On the other, you have Romeo Vásquez Velásquez, who is now the manager of a phone company. (3/14/10) (photo of Oswaldo López Arelleno courtesy Internet)