Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Mexico City (Agenzia Fides) - “On behalf of the Bishops of Mexico and the Catholic people we serve, we wish to convey our prayers and solidarity in this difficult moment for the people of Honduras,” says a letter of solidarity sent from the Bishops of Mexico to Cardinal Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa and President of the Honduran Bishops' Conference.
The text continues: “In light of the declarations made by the Honduran Bishops' Conference, we understand the complex nature of the situation and the difficulty in understanding, especially from the outside, the causes and factors that have led the legislative and judicial powers in the country to make certain decisions.” Thus, they consider the fact that there is no one who “knows how these saddening events have come to pass,” more than the Hondurans themselves. Therefore, the Bishops of Mexico show their surprise for “the voices that, from outside the country, call for a merely formal version – a return to normality without an examination of what has provoked the situation.”
“We consider the declarations – both personal and those made by the Honduran Bishops' Conference – very prudent, calling all Honduras's people to calm and asking citizens to seek paths of harmony and peace,” the text says.
The Bishops conclude their letter assuring of their prayer for the Cardinal, for all the Bishops of Honduras, and for all the people they serve, “that Jesus Christ, Lord of History, fill them with His wisdom and strength, granting them reconciliation and peace.”
On July 27, nearly a month after the military coups of June 28, Honduras's Congress analyzed the plan proposed by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias to resolve the country's crisis. The Congress of Honduras proposed its decision in terms of political amnesty for the deposed President Manuel Zelaya. The representatives have appointed a special commission that will decide this week on granting pardon to Zelaya, who is accused of violating the Constitution with his aspirations to extend his term.
Manuel Zelaya remains on the border, in Nicaragua, with his supporters, while on the Honduran side, the curfew has been extended since last Friday. The deposed President has now spent four days in the Nicaraguan town of Ocotal, near the border town of Las Manos, while on the Honduran side, police and soldiers have been deployed to impede, for a fourth consecutive day, his supporters' access to the border. Zelaya is trying to gain the support of the larger sectors of society, in the hope of creating a movement that would allow him to recuperate power. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 28/7/2009)
