To the White House: Do not recognize the 29 November elections in Honduras

The climate of repression that dominated the elections held in Honduras on 29 November has exacerbated, rather than resolved, the threat that the June coup d'état represents to democracy in Latin America. Recognizing these corrupt elections will do nothing but further undermine the credibility of the U.S. government in a region where it has historically been a threat to democracy and national sovereignty.

That the leaders of the coup, Generals Vasquez Velasquez and Prince Suazo, are both graduates of the School of the Americas (or Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation) is a testament to the U.S. government's legacy of destabilization and exploitation in Central and South America. President Obama, as a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, now has an opportunity to break with this tradition and defend the Honduran people's right to self-determination by refusing to recognize the elections, insisting that President Zelaya be restored for the remainder of his term, and promoting a democratic government capable of holding free and fair elections. If President Obama is sincerely committed to promoting democracy around the world, then he should side with the Honduran people in opposition to the tyrants behind the coup d'état and their mock elections.

Submitted to the White House on 1 December, 2009