Head of OAS to travel to Honduras Friday (Roundup)

Jul 2, 2009, 22:50 GMT

Washington/Tegucigalpa, Honduras - Organization of American States Secretary-General Jose Miguel Insulza is set to travel Friday to troubled Honduras to pursue further 'diplomatic initiatives aimed at restoring democracy,' the OAS said in a statement.

During his stay in Tegucigalpa, Insulza will 'notify the Honduran stakeholders' of the OAS' position on the crisis in the Central American country. This will include a 72-hour ultimatum issued by the OAS early Wednesday to demand reinstatement of democratically elected Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, under threat of Honduras' suspension from membership of the OAS.

The statement did not specify what 'stakeholders' would be involved in talks with Insulza, who vowed Wednesday that his negotiations for Zelaya's restoration would not include talks with the post-coup government headed by former Congress speaker Roberto Micheletti.

Earlier Thursday, Micheletti warned presidents Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner of Argentina and Rafael Correa of Ecuador against travelling to Honduras with Zelaya.

'I will hold Cristina Kirchner and Correa accountable for whatever happens in the country,' Micheletti said in an interview published Thursday in conservative Argentine daily La Nacion.

Ousted early Sunday, Zelaya confirmed Thursday at a press conference in Panama City that he would return Saturday to Honduras.

Zelaya was arrested and exiled to Costa Rica in a coup ordered by the country's Supreme Court, reportedly to stop him from attempting to change the constitution and seek a second term.

Fernandez de Kirchner and Correa were planning to accompany Zelaya back to Tegucigalpa after the OAS ultimatum expires Saturday.

Micheletti has said that Zelaya would be arrested if he returned and warned that the ousted president's intention to come back to Honduras with high-profile foreign escorts was 'a big mistake.'

'If violence breaks out in case Zelaya returns, I am going to be worried about the presidents who may come over,' Micheletti said.

He expressed concern over the withdrawal of ambassadors from many nations, including all members of the European Union, but noted that Israel and Taiwan have already recognized his government and that 'international backing will grow.'