US embassy cable - 03TEGUCIGALPA2751

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 002751 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/PDA (OHILTON), WHA/CEN, AND INL/LP 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: OIIP, PREL, KPAO, SNAR, HO 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON DRUGS, NOVEMBER 20, 2003 
 
 
1. Op-ed by Ramon Villeda Bermudez (current Liberal Party 
Congressman) in Tegucigalpa-based liberal daily "La Tribuna" 
on 11/20 entitled "A hundred tons of cocaine ".  "The U.S. 
Ambassador Larry Palmer recently revealed that almost a 
hundred tons of cocaine go through Honduras and Central 
America on its way to the U.S every year.  This shocking 
figure means that the drug seizures done by our security 
forces have gotten only an insignificant amount of the drugs 
transported through our country.  This announcement came 
just a few days after our security forces presented the data 
of drug seizures for this year, which we had seen as a huge 
success." 
 
"The first question that came to my mind was, how did those 
figures, which are a matter of concern to the Ambassador, 
his and our government, and all decent Hondurans, came to 
the attention of the Ambassador?  I'd also like to know: if 
the U.S. knew this all along, how come the powerful northern 
country hasn't done anything to stop it?." 
 
"Honduras has repeatedly explained to the Americans that, 
although the government has increased the amount of drug 
seizures and has improved our mechanisms to arrest drug 
traffickers, we have insufficient means to improve our 
results in this fight.  We have repeatedly said to them that 
we can't use our entire limited budget to build a fence to 
protect the back of a rich neighbor that has all the 
necessary means to build it by itself." 
 
 
 
"The Honduran request for more economic aid, equipment and 
five helicopters to increase our effectiveness in our fight 
against drug trafficking is widely known internationally. 
Our governmental authorities talked about this issue when 
the Secretary of State Colin Powell visited Honduras, 
although I believe Powell didn't like this idea that much." 
 
"The Ambassador of the most powerful country in the world 
has mentioned a list of requests from the Bush 
administration to Honduras, which include the reforms of our 
legal system to increase our effectiveness in the fight 
against narcotrafficking." 
 
"It's a national shame that some of the narcotraffickers we 
have arrested, just a few days later have escaped from 
prison.  It's also a shame that some of the cocaine seized 
by the police has been later sold by the same police 
officers who seized it, as it happened recently in 
Choluteca.  Maybe Colin Powell was thinking about these 
facts when he said that we must fight corruption in a more 
decisive and effective manner." 
 
"There are a hundred million reasons to seriously think 
about what Ambassador Palmer has recently said, and there's 
also a hundred million motives for Honduras to get the 
assistance we need from the U.S." 
 
Palmer