MICHELETTI SAYS EXIT STRATEGY MUST BE IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEGUCIGALPA 000005 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/07/2020 TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM HO SUBJECT: MICHELETTI SAYS EXIT STRATEGY MUST BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH LAW REF: TEGUCIGALPA 00002 Classified By: Ambassador Hugo Llorens for reasons 1.4 (b & d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary (PDAS) for Western Hemisphere Affairs (WHA) Craig Kelly urged de facto regime leader Roberto Micheletti on January 6 to accede to the call by president-elect Porfirio "Pepe" Lobo for there to be an interval of time between the de facto regime and the assumption of office by the Lobo government on January 27. PDAS Kelly said such a gesture would help the Lobo government and Honduras by facilitating re-engagement by the international community, including donor assistance. A sometimes angry Micheletti told PDAS Kelly and the Ambassador that any possibility of him stepping down would have to be fully consistent with Honduran law and its constitution. He said that he had to remain in office until January 25 when the Constitution requires him to address the inaugural session of the new legislature. Micheletti suggested that he might be able to step down if Lobo convinces the Honduran people en masse to call for his resignation and the Congress carries out a referendum on the issue. Following the meeting, several of Micheletti's senior advisors who were present told the Ambassador after the meeting that they would press the de facto regime leader to consider a legal and constitutional way to leave office. End Summary. ¶2. (C) WHA PDAS Craig Kelly, who was accompanied by the Ambassador, told de facto regime leader Roberto Micheletti during a January 6 meeting that the United States has maintained a pragmatic policy towards Honduras while steadfastly adhering to the principle that there mst be a restoration of the democratic and constiutional order. He noted that the U.S. supportedthe electoral process because it believed allowig the Honduran people to choose its future leades was part of the solution to the country's politicl crisis. Micheletti was accompanied in the meting by: de facto Minister of Foreign Affairs Calos Lopez Contreras, de facto Vice Minister of Freign Affairs Marta Lorena Alvarado Casco, de fato Minister of Defense Adolfo Leonel Sevilla, advsor and member of Congress Marcia Facusse Villeda,de facto Spokesman and head of FONAC (an umbrell organization of civil society organizations) Lenardo Villeda, and de facto Minister of Informaton Rene Zepeda. ¶3. (C) Lopez Contreras, who inteacted with PDAS Kelly during the first half of the meeting while Micheletti remained silent, stated that many countries are privately supportive of the de facto regime while not taking that stance publicly. Lopez Contreras expressed confidence that the international community, country by country, will re-engage with Honduras. Lopez Contreras thanked the U.S. for its critical role in achieving signature of the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord, while noting that it was President Jose Manuel "Mel" Zelaya who declared it defunct. Lopez Contreras said Micheletti offered president-elect Lobo the opportunity of creating a government of national unity, as called for by the Accord, by appointing persons to cabinet positions in place of the de facto incumbents before the January 27 inauguration, but that Lobo had not taken up the offer. ¶4. (C) PDAS Kelly stated that president-elect Lobo has expressed his support for implementation of the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord and that the U.S. has been working towards that end. He added that the U.S. told President Zelaya it was a mistake to disavow the Accord. PDAS Kelly said the U.S. recognizes the difficulty of installing a government of national unity, as called for by the Accord, before the January 27 inauguration of the new government. PDAS Kelly added that the U.S. wants to assist Lobo's government to begin governing effectively right after taking office since this will be for the good of Honduras. PDAS Kelly stated that president-elect Lobo has requested an interval of time between the regime and his government taking office. PDAS Kelly added that the U.S. believes this would be positive since it would facilitate re-engagement with Honduras by the international community, including donor assistance. PDAS Kelly said the U.S. wants to re-engage with Honduras, but this will be difficult without such a gesture, which would benefit Honduras by promoting national reconciliation. PDAS Kelly more than once assured Micheletti and his team that the U.S. would publicly welcome such a TEGUCIGALP 00000005 002 OF 002 gesture in a very positive fashion. ¶5. (C) The Ambassador recalled president-elect Lobo's statement that national reconciliation is essential if Honduras is to return to the path of recovery and development. He said the actions taken by the U.S. in the wake of the events of June 28 were not aimed at punishing individuals. He said that the U.S. wants to work with Honduras in the future, but in order to do so, must reaffirm its principled position regarding the return of the democratic and constitutional order. The Ambassador asked Micheletti and his team, whom he said he knew were friends of the U.S., to give the U.S. the political space it needed to be able to help Honduras. ¶6. (C) Micheletti stepped out of the room to take a phone call and the discussion became franker. Micheletti's collaborators asked for clarification regarding the interval between the de facto regime and the Lobo government. PDAS Kelly said the length of time of the interval would need to be long enough to allow the United States and other countries to take action in response to it by adopting positions regarding the new government; he suggested that it occur before mid-January. ¶7. (C) When Micheletti returned to the meeting, he engaged in a tirade expressing his astonishment that the U.S. would ask him to violate the Honduran Constitution. An angry Micheletti said he was disappointed in the U.S. policy towards Honduras and that the revocation of the U.S. visas of de facto regime members was a rude gesture. He added that he does not care if the U.S. takes away his visa "forever and ever," but that only he should be held responsible for the events of June 28 and that the revocation of the U.S. visas of his collaborators should be overturned. Micheletti said he has God and the Constitution on his side and is not afraid of being assassinated or facing trial in the United States. PDAS Kelly said that he could not accept U.S. assistance to the president-elect being characterized as rudeness. PDAS Kelly added that the U.S. is not intervening in Honduran affairs, but trying to assist the process. Micheletti subsequently apologized to PDAS Kelly for his harsh words. He said he had decided not to attend Lobo's inauguration, but that he must remain in power until January 25 when he is constitutionally required to deliver an address at the opening session of the legislature elected on November 29. Micheletti pledged to do all in his power to help the Lobo government succeed for the good of the country. He said, however, that he will not relinquish power before January 27 unless Lobo convinces the Honduran people en masse to call for his resignation and the Congress carries out a referendum on the issue. Micheletti dismissed the possibility that a temporary absence like the one he took before the November 29 election could be a solution. ¶8. (C) At certain points during the meeting, the atmosphere in the room became surreal as Marta Lorena Alvarado Casco announced that the de facto regime prevented communism from taking root in Central America and warned the U.S. to keep in mind that retaliatory steps against Honduras could result in other nation's leaders being afraid to fight the threat of communism. Micheletti said he would try to help Lobo, but would be very watchful that the new head of state did not become a communist the way Zelaya had done. Alvarado noted that Micheletti had rejected a proposal to hold a public ceremony in his honor before January 27. Lopez Contreras assured PDAS Kelly and the Ambassador that Micheletti would consider the points made by PDAS Kelly and would take into account his commitment to democracy, the best interests of Honduras, and the interests of the international community. Sevilla said Micheletti loves and respects Honduras above all and, if able to take action that will help its development, will do so. He added that Micheletti cannot take any action that will diminish his dignity, but expressed his confidence that whatever decision Micheletti takes will be for the good of his country. LLORENS