Honduras
EU must cancel association agreement talks following coup d'état
Commenting on recent events in Honduras, Greens/EFA Vice-President Raül Romeva commented:
"I strongly condemn the military's anti-democratic overthrow of elected Honduran President Manuel Zelaya. Recent events echo the dark days of past military coup d'états in Central America. We must not see any repetition of the bloodshed that occurred in Honduras in the 1980s.
The international community must act immediately to unequivocally reject the legitimacy of Roberto Micheleti, declared President by Congress yesterday. International observers must be granted access to investigate. For its part, the European Union should cancel next week's planned trade negotiations with the Honduran authorities. (1) EU association agreements have democracy clauses that have clearly been violated by the new administration that is in place."
Note to editors:
(1) 'Association agreement' negotiations - with a strong focus on trade issues - are due to take place with six Central American countries, including the Honduras, 6-10 July 2009 in Brussels.
