Perplexing International Reaction

It's puzzling to the casual onlooker reading the news why UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the European Union and U.S. President Barack Obama would give voice to a condemnation of events that took place in Honduras over the week-end, where the country's Supreme Court advised that it had authorized the country's military to remove its president, Manual Zelaya.

For the simple reason that President Zelaya, despite warning from the Supreme Court that what he planned to undertake was illegal, proceeded with it nonetheless. Former Honduran President Zelaya insisted on holding a referendum to change the country's constitution. Because he would have it so, despite being warned by the Supreme Court of its illegality.

The country's armed forces did just what the Supreme Court ordered them to do; arrested the president and ushered him out of the country. Whereupon the Honduran deputies unanimously elected Congress head Robert Micheletti as interim president. Mr. Micheletti is a member of Mr. Zelaya's Liberal party.

Despite international condemnation, and that the U.S. the UN and the EU have stated their backing for the ousted president, Hondura's new President Robert Micheletti rejects their position. "What we have done here is an act of democracy, because our army has complied with the order of the court, prosecutors and judges. Our national army ... complied with the constitution.

The Supreme Court contending it had so acted to protect law and order.

Former President Zelaya was removed from office for "repeated violations of the constitution and the law and disregard of orders and judgements of the institutions", while newly appointed President Micheletti promised to govern with "transparency and honesty" and to "work tirelessly to restore peace and tranquility that we have lost".

In the interim remaining in office until just past the turn of the new year when the new president who was elected in November 2009 is slated to take office. These are non-renewable four-year terms under the country's constitution.

Manuel Zelaya, taking inspiration from and encouraged by his great good friend Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, aspired to change the constitution to enable him to run again for election, and possibly, like Chavez, remain president for life. While Venezuelans, in the end, submitted to their president's will, Hondurans would not.

Public support for Mr. Zelaya had fallen to 30%. "Our country has been without a route and rudderless for quite some time, and agitated politically", according to opposition deputy Antonio Cesar Rivera. It would appear from all the data coming out of the country that the peoples' will has been done, and the country's constitution upheld by its judicial guardians.

U.S. President Obama, calling for calm stated "Any existing tensions and disputes must be resolved peacefully through dialogue free from any outside interference". That appears to have been done. Why then, does he then go on to state through a senior official in his office that Washington recognizes only Zelaya as president?

Gross interference, yet again, in another nation's internal concerns.