VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHTG #0584/01 1941826
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 131826Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY TEGUCIGALPA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0110
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 000584 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/10/2019 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SOCI DS SNAR HO
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATION POST-COUP UPDATE 2 
 
REF: TEGUCIGALPA 529 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Hugo Llorens for reasons 1.4 (b & d). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  The Attorney General's (AG) aggressive 
pursuit of corruption charges against Zelaya administration 
officials seemingly outweigh his consideration for the 
deteriorating human rights situation.  While the situation is 
not yet dire, civil liberties have been denied, arbitrary 
arrests and detentions are reported, and freedom of 
expression and freedom of the press have been obstructed. 
Civil society groups state that the perceived political 
partiality by the AG has forced them to turn to NGOs and the 
United States for the defense of human rights.  The 
Ambassador has strongly emphasized the importance of 
guaranteeing human rights publicly and in meetings with the 
Public Ministry, including a July 9 meeting with the Special 
Prosecutor for Human Rights.  Post will continue to push the 
AG and the de facto regime on the importance of these issues. 
 End Summary. 
 
------------------------------------------- 
ATTORNEY GENERAL ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND ZELAYA 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Representatives from the G16 donor group met with 
Attorney General Luis Rubi and four of his attorneys to 
discuss the human rights situation in Honduras on July 9. 
Poloff raised strong U.S. concern over the deterioration of 
the protection of human rights in Honduras since the June 28 
coup, including restrictions being placed on freedom of 
assembly and expression, warrantless arrests and searches, 
and the killing of a pro-Zelaya protester.  Rubi said all 
allegations of human rights violations are being properly 
investigated but provided very little information on specific 
cases raised by the group.  When 
briefed that many victims have not made official complaints 
because his office is considered partial to the de facto 
regime, he noted that victims should take their cases to 
Human Rights Commissioner Ramon Custodio.  (Note: The AG has 
been closely associated publicly with the coup and the 
Commissioner has made strong statements defending the de 
facto regime against allegations of human rights violations. 
End Note) 
 
¶3. (U) After fielding a number of questions, Rubi moved away 
from discussing human rights and began instead to brief the 
group on the Public Ministry's corruption investigations of 
President Manuel "Mel" Zelaya's administration.  He stated 
that the only "political" arrest warrants issued by his 
office are for Zelaya and Zelaya's minister of the 
presidency, Enrique Flores Lanza, who is charged with misuse 
of funds.  Rubi is also aggressively pursuing four 
ex-administrators of government-owned telecommunications firm 
Hondutel who have been charged with corruption.  Rubi denied 
charges that any political considerations had been made in 
the choice to pursue corruption charges against Zelaya 
administrative figures at this time. 
 
¶4. (C) Rubi presented preliminary results from his 
investigation into corruption charges against President 
Zelaya, providing documentation to all present.  He reported 
the discovery of evidence proving that Zelaya used 
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) funds to pay for his 
scheduled June 28 opinion poll on the Fourth Urn.   Rubi said 
that the investigation of Zelaya started the moment after the 
coup because his offices didn't have access to the evidence 
until after Zelaya's dismissal.  However, when questioned, 
Rubi conceded that all of the 18 charges filed against Zelaya 
have been political in nature.  The Canadian Ambassador 
(currently the G16 President) reiterated the international 
concern for human rights in Honduras and stated his 
reservations about the political nature of the AG's pursuit 
of Zelaya and his administration. 
 
-------------------------------------- 
USG EXPRESSES CONCERN FOR HUMAN RIGHTS 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Ambassador and Poloff met with Human Rights 
Prosecutor (HRP) Sandra Ponce on July 9 to discuss the human 
rights situation and a number of human rights cases of 
interest.  The Ambassador expressed the USG's strong concern 
over the deteriorating human rights situation and the United 
States, determination to ensure the protection of human 
rights for all Hondurans in these times of political tension. 
 The Ambassador emphasized that human rights issues are of 
paramount importance to the U.S. government, and that post 
would be monitoring both the overall human rights environment 
as well as specific cases of concerns, and raising those at 
the highest levels of the Public Ministry. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) One case of concern is the killing of Isis Obed 
Murillo on July 5 at Toncontin International Airport. 
According to HRP, preliminary investigations have identified 
over 170 cartridges of different calibers at the scene, of 
which 143 are the 5.56 cartridges used by M16 rifles carried 
by the Honduran military.  She said an autopsy has been 
performed on Murillo, and initial results indicate that he 
was killed by a bullet from a 5.56 cartridge.  Indications 
suggest that the trajectory of the bullet was from above 
Murillo's position and not behind him from the direction of 
other protestors, as has been reported in the Honduran 
newspapers.   HRP stated that the Public Ministry is waiting 
to collect eye-witness accounts of the incident before moving 
to charge anyone with the killing.  HRP confirmed that the 
second gunshot victim from the violence at Toncontin Airport 
is a 25-year-old architect named Alex Zavala and not a 
13-year-old minor as had been rumored.  Zavala is currently 
in critical condition at a private hospital, and his family 
have chosen not to assist the authorities in their 
investigation. 
 
¶7. (U) HRP related actions taken to reopen pro-Zelaya Channel 
36, which had been off the air since the June 28 coup, and 
remove military presence from its offices on July 6.  Station 
owner, Edras Amado Lopez, previously stated he would only 
reopen with the support of the United Nations as he was 
afraid the de facto regime would place conditions on his 
operation.  However, after working with the HRP, he has since 
been convinced otherwise and Channel 36 has started 
transmitting again.  HRP updated the Ambassador on the case 
of journalist Eduardo Maldonado, who has been off the air 
since the coup.  Maldonado used his program to promote the 
Fourth Urn, and according to the HRP, since the coup the 
owner of the station that broadcasted his program has chosen 
to reorient its message in greater accord with the current 
regime.  Thus, the case is between the owner of the station 
and the journalist but does, however, demonstrate a trend of 
self-censorship.  HRP also indicated that her team of 10 
attorneys must share one vehicle to investigate allegations, 
which severely hampers their effectiveness. 
 
--------------------------------------------- 
OUTSPOKEN FATHER OF KILLED PROTESTER ARRESTED 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (C) Late July 9, actions taken by the Public Ministry 
confirm a trend of politically inclined arrests.   After 
speaking out against the de facto regime and his son's death, 
the father of killed protester Isis Obed Murillo, Jose David 
Murillo Sanchez, was arrested and charged with attempted 
homicide.  According to news reports, the warrant for Murillo 
Sanchez's arrest was issued on May 18, 2007, in Juticalpa, 
Olancho, for a crime allegedly committed in 2004.  Earlier in 
the day, in a meeting with the Ambassador, the HRP confirmed 
that the warrant had been issued and alluded to the political 
nature of the prosecution referring to it as a, "terrible 
incident." 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8. (C) The Embassy will continue to speak out on the human 
rights situation and in defense of democracy.  Post will 
continue to report on human rights and work with civil 
society to document the situation.  Poloff will muster any 
logistical support for the HRP to increase her ability to 
investigate allegations of human rights violations.  In the 
meeting with the AG, the HRP looked visibly dismayed to all 
present as the AG discussed his office's actions taken to 
ensure human rights.  Her negative "body language" and a 
general concern for the AG's political partiality was later 
confirmed in a separate conversation where she stated that 
Rubi is partial to the de facto regime and has not provided 
the resources or demonstrated an interest in pursuing alleged 
human rights violations.   End Comment. 
LLORENS