criesdif@mtxinu.COM (09/25/89)
/* Written 3:46 pm Sep 23, 1989 by criesdif in ni:ni.centam-elect */
/* ---------- "Honduras: Army and Parties" ---------- */
*************
ROLE OF ARMED FORCES
CHRONOLOGY
1954.- Modernization begins with the first Constitutional
Law and the agreement with the US on military aid. The
Secretary of War is created, answerable to the President and
in charge of army, navy, and air forces.
1956.- Coup.
1957.- The Armed Forces High Command is created and becomes
autonomous from civic power.
1963.- Coup.
1970.- The Supreme Council for National Defence is created
with 19 members, all of them military.
1972.- Coup.
1975.- The Supreme Council becomes a decisive body and its
members unite democratically against the government of
General Lopez Arellano.
1977.- The Supreme Council becomes hierarchical once more
and all lieutenant-colonels are expelled.
1978.- Coup.
1980.- The Supreme Council of Armed Forces (COSUFFAA) is
created with 45 members.
1984.- The COSUFFAA is reduced to 21 members, with a Junta
of Commanders of 8 members.
1985.- The COSUFFAA regroups with 47 members.
1987.- Internal crisis due to the election of Humberto
Regalado.
CHARACTERISTICS
Corporativism and non-institutionalism.
From 1957 onwards, the Armed Forces obtain autonomy
from executive power, due to the creation of the Supreme
Council of the Armed Forces, a corporative body which makes
all the decisions within the institution, separate from the
president and the cabinet. From 1963 onwards, the Armed
Forces violate institutional legality by a series of coups.
>From 1972, the army starts controlling the key mechanisms of
the country, in economy, planning, and foreign policy,
imposing their own project independent of traditional
politicians.
Despite the fact that the army returned formal control
of the political process and public administration to
civilians, they still run internal affairs, and therefore
the election of the Chief of the Armed Forces, which should
be done by Congress following a nomination by COSUFFAA, is
done directly from within the military body, violating the
Constitution and the Constitutional Law of the Armed Forces.
In May 1985, due to an institutional crisis provoked by
President Suazo Cordova, the Armed Forces once again impose
a political system, defining the mechanisms for the 1985
elections.
Conflicts within.
The different graduating classes of the Francisco
Morazan Military Academy since 1963 attempt to control the
command of the Armed Forces or the COSUFFAA. In 1975 the
COSUFFAA is extended to support the army's strong role in
public administration, but two years later all lieutenant-
colonels are expelled. In 1980, it is extended once more
under General Alvarez, but four years later the officers
from the 6th and 7th graduation depose Grl. Alvarez and name
General Walter Lopez as Chief of the Armed Forces. In 1986
General Humberto Regalado is named, but his renaming for a
second term provokes a military rebellion. At the moment,
Regalado maintains his position by moving against those
officers who may oppose him.
THE HONDURAN POLITICAL PARTIES
THE NATIONAL PARTY (PN)
Founded in 1919 as a split from the Liberal Party,
opposing Morazan's Central Americanist tendencies. It
represents the interests of the latifundist and military
sectors. This party organizes the first professional army.
Traditionally identified with the more conservative
interests of Honduran society. As of 1963, it becomes the
civilian component of the military governments.
In the recent electoral process the party was divided
into two sections, when Leonardo Rafael Callejas, a
technocrat who worked in planning with the military
governments in the 70's, became leader. Later, General
Alvarez is put in charge of coordinating the participation
of unionist and corporativist movements for APRHO.
In the 1985 campaign he reappears in a new, non-
traditional business export sector and a new technocracy of
the "Taiwanese model". Callejas represents a current of
economic "neo-liberal" thought which confronts the rural
bossist mentality of earlier leaders. With strong propaganda
($6 million), he obtains the most votes. He replaces the
ideology of Ricardo Zuniga, traditional leader of the party
and military advisor.
Later he makes a pact with Azcona and gains control of
the electoral bodies and the Court of Justice, and thanks to
this he manages to dominate in the party presidency and
nominates himself presidential candidate. Zuniga's ideas are
practically removed from the party.
Since 1985 Callejas has been searching for "ideological
shade" under which to shelter his neo-liberal ideas. In 1986
he initiates an agreement between the PN and the Christian
Democratic International. After that he approaches the
Democratic International Union (of social-democratic
tendencies), favoring a visit of its leaders to the country.
Lately, Callejas has been claiming his party stands for the
genuine values of liberalism, basing this on the 1919 split
and accusing the Liberal Party of betraying them.
In the last PN convention only 100,000 voters turned up
out of the expected 500,000, and rivals accused him of fraud
for claiming the presidency of the party and electoral
nomination.
LIBERAL PARTY (PL)
Emerged in 1891, representing liberal capitalism and foreign
investment. Initially its members are the business class
linked to foreign capital.
After presiding various reformist governments in the
50's and 60's, it loses power after the 1963 coup and does
not win it back for another 17 years. When it reappears, it
has three internal tendencies: The Liberal Roderist
Movement, founded by Modesto Rodas Alvarado (who died in
1980), which represents a conservative turn after the
previous experiences. It emerges in the 60's founded by
Suazo Cordova. The People's Liberal Alliance is created in
1977 by the progressive currents of liberal industrialists
and bankers from the north of the country. The M-LIDER
movement of Carlos Reina is a split from ALIPO in 1977,
which is looking for a more social-democratic ideology
within the ranks of the PL.
Suazo Cordova's maneuvers and the tendencies existing
in the PL mean that four candidates are present at the '85
elections. Azcona wins, having left the Roderist current to
ally itself with ALIPO, and Suazo Cordova's candidate, Mejia
Arellano, former minister of government who controlled the
organization of the party, takes second place. In third
place is Bu Gin, the representative for Roderism, and
last, with only 43,373 votes, the social-democratic
tendency's candidate.
Under Azcona's presidency, another internal current
emerges headed by Carlos Orbin Montoya, who obtained 27.2%
of votes in the last convention. The same convention,
however, is won by Carlos Flores Facusse, who represents the
Roderists and has been supported since 1985 by Suazo
Cordova, obtaining 35.5% of internal votes. ALIPO's
candidate was Ramon Villeda, who only received 10.4% of the
votes. Carlos Reina of the M-LIDER obtained 168,415 votes,
which is a surprising result considering his total of only
43,373 votes in the 1985 presidential elections.
During Azcona Hoyo's term as president, the Honduran
Liberal Party ends up presiding the Liberal Federation of
Central America and the Caribbean, which is formed by El
Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and
Honduras, and is patronized by the Frederich Naumann
Organization.
The convention for the election of a presidential
candidate got 614,312 votes (78% of the electorate) and
nominated Carlos Flores Facusse.
The presidential candidate for the '90-'94 term is the
owner of "La Tribuna" newspaper and nephew of Miguel
Facusse, owner of the Galaxia investment group and principal
economic advisor for president Suazo Cordova. Under Azcona's
rule the financial scandals of the Galaxia Group since the
'70's with the National Investment Corporation were brought
into the open and Miguel Facusse became one of the most
attacked personalities in the country. Carlos Flores was
presidential Secretary and Liberal deputy with Suazo
Cordova.
HONDURAN CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY
Born in 1968, its members are from reformist sectors of
the petit bourgeoisie who want to reach the popular sectors.
They define themselves as social-christians and are
considered the most progressive of Central America's
Christian Democratic parties.
Their presidential candidate for 1985 was Hernan
Corrales Padilla, founder of the party who manages to double
the party's votes (18,000 in 1980, 30,173 in 1985), partly
by capitalizing on the parliamentary opposition work of
deputy Efrain Diaz Arrivillaga.
He becomes president of the party and presidential
candidate in 1988, displacing more conservative sectors of
the party. He has proposed political union with the PINU.
INNOVATION AND UNITY PARTY (PINU)
Created in 1969 and representing a sector of the
reformist middle classes which emerged with the capitalist
development of the country. It stands for certain liberal
ideologies in economics and politics.
Their candidate in 1985 was Enrique Aguilar Cerrato,
Minister of Health in several previous governments. But the
electoral results bring them down from 3.6% in 1980 to 1.5%
in 1985.
In 1986 the Social-democratic Movement emerges headed
by German Leitzelar, who immediately proposes that they ally
with the Socialist International. At the same time, certain
currents emerge within the M-LIDER which suggest separation
from the Liberal party and the construction of their own
social-democratic strategy, and which were stopped when
Carlos Roberto Reina obtained 24% in the PL's internal
convention and his brother Jorge Arturo (The other leader of
M-LIDER) allied himself with Montoya's liberal current.
At the approach of the 1989 elections the PINU-Social-
democrat Union is formed in 1988, and it joined with the
Honduran Social-democrat Party founded by Jorge Illescas
Oliva. Both of them renominate Enrique Aguilar Cerrato as
presidential candidate for 1989.
---
Patt Haring | United Nations | FAX: 212-787-1726
patth@sci.ccny.cuny.edu | Information | BBS: 201-795-0733
patth@ccnysci.BITNET | Transfer Exchange | (3/12/24/9600 Baud)
-=- Every child smiles in the same language. -=-