US embassy cable - 04TEGUCIGALPA813

UNCLAS TEGUCIGALPA 000813 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA, WHA/PD, WHA/CCA, WHA/PPC, AND WHA/CEN 
STATE FOR DRL, DRL/MLA, IO, INR, AND IIP/G/WHA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP, KPAO, PHUM, PREL, KDEM, CU, HO, CHR-1 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON UNCHR RESOLUTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS 
IN CUBA, APRIL 6, 2004 
 
 
1. Op-Ed by regular columnist Juan Ramon Martinez in 
Tegucigalpa-based liberal daily "La Tribuna" on 4/6 entitled 
"Why do you offend us `Presi' Maduro?"  I'm more surprised 
than Oswaldo Ramos Soto (National Party) and more indignant 
than Omar Cerna (Liberal) because of the position of 
subordination that Honduras has shown toward the U.S. 
objectives in Cuba. 
 
"It is not a matter of principles nor a fight in favor of 
democracy, neither, a matter of defending Cuba's style or of 
government nor to celebrate Castro's desire to maintain 
power". 
 
"If Honduras had decided as a sovereign power to obligate 
Cuba to respect the human rights of its citizens - by now, 
all us would be supporting the government's decision, but 
things are different.  According to the information, not a 
single country in the hemisphere accepted President Bush's 
order" 
 
"Presi' Maduro was urgently called by Powell who ordered him 
to do it - not even the President of El Salvador who was 
Bush's nominee for the OAS wanted to take such an 
embarrassing position.  The `Presi' of Honduras, as 
expected, agreed to table the resolution with enough 
knowledge of the risks of opinions that he has to undertake; 
but convinced this task would let him have access to the 
millennium account" 
 
2. Op-ed by regular collaborator Victor Manuel Ramos in San 
Pedro Sula-based liberal "Tiempo" on 4/6 entitled: "Oil 
street lamp." "Our government again is a protagonist in an 
action that is one hundred percent against the thought and 
feelings of the Hondurans" 
 
"It is interesting to know that the resolution tabled to the 
UNCHR has been written in Washington, and not precisely in 
the Honduran Embassy in that country but in the offices of 
the North American government.  The Honduran Foreign Affairs 
Minister looks more like a North American employee than 
Honduran- according to his statements and his perception, he 
thinks we all are stupid and do not know the truth." 
 
3. National Television news program Telenoticias on April 5 
carried an interview with former Foreign Minister Carlos 
Lopez Contreras, who is now an advisor to the current 
Foreign Minister, in which he said: "The United Nations 
Commission on Human rights has had this issue on its agenda 
for two years. The Commission has asked that an 
investigation commission be sent to Cuba to examine human 
rights abuses. No one should be surprised that the United 
States is interested in the issue of human rights and that 
the Cubans have set up obstacles to the investigation by the 
United Nations." 
 
5. Note:  Today's dailies ran a wire service article "United 
States trusts that Latin American countries will support the 
resolution against Cuba in Geneva.  End Note. 
 
Palmer