La Gringa, last night:
Proceso Digital, an online Honduran newspaper, reports that Mel Zelaya has requested a ‘salvoconducto’ (safe conduct) and may be leaving for Mexico in the next hours. Radio Globo reported earlier in the day that they had information that Zelaya was making arrangements to leave the country.
…
Update 10:00: Enrique Flores Lanza, former Minister of the Presidency (who also has charges against him for withdrawing L.40 million in cash from the national bank two days before the proposed June 28 poll), has confirmed to Telesur that Zelaya has not asked for political asylum. The Mexican Chancellor confirmed that Zelaya does not have political asylum in Mexico. Political asylum would prevent Zelaya from political activities and apparently his intent was to do some last minute campaigning with foreign governments to try to return to office. As mentioned above, he’s now talking about negotiating a new agreement of some sort. Please! He’s violated every clause of every agreement so far.
This morning Noticias 24 reports that Mexico had requested safeconduct for Zelaya to travel to Mexico as a guest. The Honduran government denied the request, instead insisting that Zelaya would be allowed to leave if Mexico grants him assylum – which Zelaya has refused.
The NYT says, Fate of Ex-Honduran Leader Is in Doubt
In an interview with the Mexican TV network Televisa, Mr. Zelaya said that the de facto government had placed a “denigrating” condition on his departure from Honduras, offering him safe passage out of the embassy only if he would seek political asylum. He added that he has not asked for political asylum.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported that
Mexico’s foreign ministry, in an e-mailed statement, said it was acting upon a request from Zelaya
Apparently, Zelaya wants to head to Cuba by way of Mexico,
Zelaya, speaking earlier on Venezuela’s Telesur television channel, said he wanted to visit several countries in his role as the Central American country’s elected leader. He would not confirm earlier comments to Telesur by his chief of staff, Enrique Flores Lanza, that he was seeking to travel with his family to Mexico and then Cuba to attend a summit of the Venezuelan-led Alba trade bloc.
But then, maybe not.
Either way,
Honduran authorities denied Mexico’s request because it did not meet the legal requirements for granting safe-conduct to political asylum seekers, Rene Zepeda, a spokesman for the acting government, said in comments broadcast on Telesur.
As of now, Manuel Zelaya exile move from Honduras ‘postponed’
As Drudge says, developing…
UPDATE, 4PM Eastern
Noticias 24: Mexican government states there is no possibility of granting Zelaya asylum, since Zelaya himself turned it down. The Mexican government had sent an airplane last night to Honduras, where the plane was denied permission to land and had to land in El Salvador instead.
For the time being, then, Zelaya remains in the tin-foil lined room at the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa.
I like the idea of Honduras forcing Mexico to deal with the problem. If they, Mexico, grants him political asylum, as noted in the article, they would be responsible for making sure he no longer tried to subvert Honduras from a safe base.
It sounds like Zelaya is getting tired of TV dinners and re-runs. Remember, this is a crook who stole millions of dollars from the Honduran people before he was summarily vanquished from the president’s office and the country. The thought that he might be headed for Cuba is hilarious – at least the Brazilian embassy has toilet paper!
Besides – Cuba can’t afford another mouth to feed, either. Has Zelaya considered contacting Michael Moore?
I like the idea of his being permitted to leave only for political asylum. Why should Honduras let him go for him to traipse around the world proclaiming “I am the rightful President” as he did before he snuck back into Honduras ? Definitely do not let him leave to go to the ALBA confab in Havana.
No place to run, no place to hide. I like it!!
Since Donald Vesco is dead thaere has to be at least one mansion that the Cubans can move Zelaya into?