Presidential decree banishing non-coup mediaExecutive Agreement Number 124-2009
The Constitutional President of the Republic
Considering: That the human person is the supreme end of society,
the state, and all have the obligation to respect, protect, and conform
to article 62 of our Constitution, the rights of every person are
limited by the rights of the others, for the security of all, and for
the just demands of the general good and the developing democracy.
Considering: That the President of the Republic and the Council of
Ministers have answered, through the organs of defense and security of
the State, and other entities, the deterioration which we have begun to
have, the pretense of protected goods, by social communications media,
systematically denaturing the objective of the Democratic State of law,
and generating a regime of social anarchy encouraging vandalism up to
the point of attempting against the social peace and the security of
the state, and leaving incalculable effects on the national economy.
Considering: That it is an urgent necessity to preserve the public
order and peace in all the national territory, to guarantee life and
the well being of all people residing in the national territory, with
the ultimate end, guaranteed by our constitution of the Republic, and
with the democratic system, fundamental pillar of our society.
Considering: That it corresponds to the State to guarantee liberty
of though and expression, but when the communications media attempt
against the national security, the public order, the health, or the
public morals, it makes it imperative to execute regulations founded in
the existing legislation in conformity with the INTERAMERICAN
CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS.
Wherefore
The constitutional President of the republic, in conformance with the
articles 245 points 7 and 16, 248 and 252 of the constitution of the
Republic, articles 11, 17, 18, 20, 22 number 10, 24, 116, and 117 of
the General Law of Public Administration and the rest that the
constitution and the laws confer.
Agree
Article 1: Declare, for reasons of national security and in application
of the commands in Article 28 of the case law of the Telecommunications
sector, specifically that referring to the use of the radio spectrum in
the national territory, apply the measures which in law correspond to
those that infringe the law.
Article 2: Instruct for legal effects corresponding to the National
Commission of Telecommunications (CONATEL) and other competent organs
of the state, that they proceed in conformity with their laws, to
protect the national security in the function of the larger interests
of the country, the good, the physical and moral integrity of humans.
The state, as owner of the radio spectrum can revoke or cancel the use
of approved titles (licenses and permissions) authorized by CONATEL to
operators of broadcast speech and television that emit messages that
generate national abhorrence, pretend to be protected speech, and also
call for a regimen of social anarchy against the democratic state that
attempts against the social peace and human rights.
Article 3: Remit to the National Commission of Telecommunications
(CONATEL), the communications contained, the reports emitted by the
defense and security forces and other parts of the government for its
fulfillment.
Article 4: The present accord is executed immediately and should be published in the official newspaper La Gaceta.
Given in the city of Tegucigalpa, municipality of the Central District the 5th of October of 2009.
Communicate and Publish this.
Robert Micheletti
Constitutional President of the Republic
Oscar Raul Matute Cruz
Secretary of State
[Dated Monday, October 5th, "effective immediately"]
Michetteli had just announced the recension of his previous decree due to international and domestic pressure. But he has continued acting as if the previous decree was still in effect, stating that it won't stop until the recension is published in La Gaceta ( which is like our "Congressional Record.) He stated that the printing press was broken, so he was compelled to continue denying Honduran people their basic constitutional guaranteed liberties.
Meanwhile, Radio Globo is broadcasting clandestinely on Internet Radio from a secret location in Honduras. You should be able to hear it at this link. If you understand Spanish, you're in luck. Actually, since the Gestapo shut down it's radio operation and they went underground, their numbers have grown enormously. 400K listeners now, 100K in Honduras.
Channel 36 owner, Esdras Amado Lopez, is now in hiding after the Gestapo shut down his TV station. He has received death threats, and believes that there is a warrant out for his arrest.
This is the reason the international community, including the US and OAS, feel that the November elections cannot be considered legitimate. Michelleti keeps exacerbating the situation with his repression of civil freedoms, while rhetorically giving voice for his hope for free elections next month. He has stated that if there is no president elect to take office in January, he will remain as president for the next two years. Looks to me like this is his power play, folks - whine about elections while doing everything he can to make sure elections will not take place in Honduras.
