HONDURAS UNWILLING TO TAKE LEAD IN DRAFTING UNCHR

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 000365

SIPDIS

STATE FOR INR/AN/IAA, IO, AND USUN
STATE FOR WHA/CCA, WHA/CEN, AND WHA/PPC
STATE FOR DRL AND DRL/MLA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/18/2014
TAGS: PHUM PINR PREL KDEM CU HO CHR
SUBJECT: HONDURAS UNWILLING TO TAKE LEAD IN DRAFTING UNCHR
CUBA RESOLUTION; LIKELY TO REPLACE CURRENT CHARGE IN HAVANA

REF: A. TEGUCIGALPA 307


B. STATE 20401

C. STATE 13279

D. 03 STATE 313469

E. 03 TEGUCIGALPA 2866

Classified By: Political Counselor Francisco Palmieri;
reasons 1.5(B) and (D).


1. (U) Deputy Chief of Mission and Political Counselor met
with Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Anibel Quinones and
Senior Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Foreign Policy
Advisor Policarpo Callejas on February 18 to further discuss
GOH willingness to draft this year's Cuba human right
resolution at the UN Commission on Human Rights session (Ref
B.) Quinones repeated earlier MFA position that Honduras was
not ready to take the lead in drafting the resolution but
left open the door to the possibility of co-sponsoring a
resolution drafted by fellow Latin Americans. He stated that
Honduras was prepared to press Cuba at the UNCHR on its human
rights record. He also made clear that the GOH felt no
pressure from Cuba over the issue of the two countries'
pending bilateral maritime treaty. However, he demurred when
pressed to become one of the principal drafters of a
resolution.


2. (C) Quinones asked for Washington's view on his earlier
proposal to strengthen Honduran diplomatic representation in
Havana without upgrading its relations (Ref E.) When we
passed guidance in Ref D, Quinones indicated that the MFA may
move soon (no specific timetable was outlined) to name a
senior career Honduran diplomat to the Charge post in Havana.
He added that the current Honduran Charge was simply not
producing enough information about the situation in Cuba. He
repeated earlier comments that the GOH is concerned about the
more than 700 Honduran nationals who are studying there.


3. (C) Quinones confirmed Foreign Minister (FM) Leonidas Rosa
Bautista's desire to visit Washington during March 5 through
8 timeframe after the FM's March 1-5 trip to Madrid with
President Maduro (Ref A.) DCM told Quinones that the Cuba
UNCHR resolution would figure prominently on the agenda of
any visit to Washington by the FM. Quinones took the point.


4. (C) COMMENT: DCM pressed Quinones on need for GOH to draft
this year's resolution. However, while Quinones is generally
very pro-U.S. and friendly to U.S. interests (he played a key
role in moving the ICC Article 98 agreement through the GOH
bureaucracy),he did not move much on the issue. Quinones
also quipped that Rosa Bautista would need to be accompanied
to DC, if the Cuba issue was to be raised, suggesting that
Rosa Bautista would need more seasoned MFA advice on how to
deal with the issue. END COMMENT.
PALMER