VISAS BEAR: MEZA LOPEZ, VICTOR ORLANDO, HONDURAN

S E C R E T TEGUCIGALPA 000871

SIPDIS

CA/VO/L/C, HQ BICE ATTENTION: OIE 428 PROGRAM

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/19/2018
TAGS: CVIS HO CLOK
SUBJECT: VISAS BEAR: MEZA LOPEZ, VICTOR ORLANDO, HONDURAN
MIN OF INTERIOR

REF: A. A) 88 TEGUCIGALPA 002353

B. B) 88 STATE 053620

C. C) 91 STATE 284952

D. D) 91 TEGUCIGALPA 14353

E. E) 91 STATE 340217

F. F) 93 TEGUCIGALPA 5037

G. G) 93 TEGUCIGALPA 4865

H. H) 93 TEGUCIGALPA 5025

I. I) 93 STATE 162116

Classified By: CG Douglass Benning, Reasons 1.5 (b) & (d)


1. (C) Victor Orlando Meza Lopez (DOB 02 OCT 1945),the
Honduran Interior Minister, has applied for a visa to visit
the US from September 20 to 25, 2008 on official business.
His CLASS record shows a '28' hit dated May 25, 1993. Post
records indicate that the '28' refers solely to Meza's prior
membership in the Honduran Communist Party. Post requests
Department concurrence in removing this hit.


2. (S) Reftels show that Post requested Meza be entered in
CLASS as a DPT 00 in February, 1988, based on suspicions that
Meza, an alumnus of Patrice Lumumba University and a delegate
in Honduras, Peoples Revolutionary Army, was active in
obtaining arms for that group, was used in communication
between Honduras and the FSLN government, received military
training in Cuba and was a suspected Cuban agent. Ref C
stated that 'the Department has conducted exhaustive
Washington area namechecks and is unable to confirm
subject,s participation in activities described (in Ref A)'
and requesting Post conduct further investigation to confirm
those charges.


3. (SBU) On several subsequent occasions, Meza requested and
received a waiver of those ineligibilities to travel to the
US (see Refs D, E and F). On at least one of these trips,
Meza traveled at the invitation of the USG under the
International Visitors Program (Ref G).


4. (S) At Post's request, in May 1993, the DPT 00 hit was
removed (Ref I),based on a lack of information to
substantiate the allegations which would render the subject
ineligible for a visa. Almost concurrently, the '28' hit was
entered. The timing of these two events indicates that the
'28' hit refers only to Meza's membership in the Communist
Party and that all other derogatory information on Meza was
deemed unsubstantiated and removed.


5. (SBU) Post requests Department concurrence in removing
the '28' ineligibility prior to issuing Victor Meza an
official visa for his projected trip and future travel.
LLORENS