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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 05 TEGUCIGALPA 000099 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/27/2020 
TAGS: PGOV PINR KDEM HO
SUBJECT: HONDURAN PRESIDENT LOBO'S CABINET TAKES SHAPE 
 
Classified By: Amb. Hugo Llorens, E.O. 12958, 1.4(d). 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  Summary/Introduction: President Porfirio "Pepe" 
Lobo began to officially announce the members of his cabinet 
and inner circle on January 26, the day before his 
inauguration, and made further announcements over the next 
two days.  He has still not named ministers for defense, 
agriculture, international cooperation, and natural resources 
and environment.  With three of his presidential election 
opponents, representatives from all the established political 
parties, two members of the pro-Zelaya Resistance, and two 
union activists in his cabinet, Lobo has succeeded in putting 
together a government of national unity, fulfilling a 
provision of the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord.  One of the 
remaining vacancies may come from former presidential 
candidate Elvin Santos's wing of the Liberal Party.  Several 
appointees previously worked for the GOH under President 
Maduro (2002-2006).  Biographic information on the cabinet 
members follows.  End summary/introduction. 
 
---------- 
Presidency 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (U)  Maria Antonieta Guillen-Bogran, First Presidential 
Designate:  Bogran will be appointed "in charge" of the 
Ministry of the Presidency, but will not become Minister, and 
will carry out those duties in tandem with her position as 
First Presidential Designate.  She served as Lobo's campaign 
manager and was a consultant at the Ricardo Ernesto Maduro 
Foundation, which promotes education.  Bogran served as 
Minister of Tourism during the tenure of President Ricardo 
Maduro (2002 to 2006).  She served as director of the 
Honduran Institute of Tourism under the administration of 
President Rafael Callejas (1990 to 1994).  During her tenure 
at the Tourism Institute, Bogran focused on ecotourism 
development.  She also worked in the private sector as a 
consultant; her clients included the International 
Development Bank (IDB).  In the 1980s, she was head of the 
department of business administration at the National 
Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH). 
 
¶3.  (U)  Samuel Reyes, Presidential Designate:  During 
President Lobo's campaign, he was the general coordinator for 
the National Party's youth group.  Over the past month, Reyes 
represented agricultural interests for Lobo's transition 
committee. 
 
¶4.  (U)  Victor Hugo Barnica, Presidential Designate: 
Barnica was the secretary of the National Congress from 2002 
to 2006.  While in Congress, he also served as vice president 
of the commission on health and was a member of the 
commission on foreign relations.  In addition to his work in 
Congress, he is a medical doctor. 
 
¶5.  (U)  Marlon Tabora Munoz, Vice Minister of the Presidency 
and Chief of Staff:  Tabora has a bachelor's degree in 
mechanic industrial engineering, a master's in technical 
marketing and international business and a doctorate in 
science administration.  He worked in various positions at 
the Honduran Telecommunications Company (HONDUTEL), including 
project engineer and infrastructure project manager.  In 
1993, Tabora left HONDUTEL to manage the construction of the 
Central Bank headquarters.  In 1995, he joined the Grupo 
Inversiones La Paz, also known as Groupo Maduro.  In 2002, he 
was appointed to head CONATEL, Honduras's telecommunications 
regulator.  He served as an advisor to President Lobo's 
campaign. 
 
------------------------------------------ 
Cabinet Members and Other Senior Officials 
------------------------------------------ 
 
Foreign Relations:  Mario Miguel Canahuati 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶6.  (U)  Canahuati was the Honduran Ambassador to the United 
 
TEGUCIGALP 00000099  002 OF 005 
 
 
States from 2002 to 2005 during the presidency of Ricardo 
Maduro (2002-2006).  After losing to President Lobo in the 
2004 presidential primary, he was named vice presidential 
candidate on Lobo,s ticket in the February 2005 primary 
election.  After Lobo won the National Party candidacy, 
Canahuati resigned his post as Ambassador to concentrate on 
campaigning for the 2005 general election. 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  Canahuati ran again for President in the National 
Party primary elections of 2008, losing again to Lobo.  He 
and Lobo have subsequently battled for power within the 
party, although they have been able to see beyond their 
differences, as evidenced by their traveling together on a 
trip to Washington, D.C. in June 2009. 
 
¶8.  (U)  Mario Canahuati is the son of Juan Canahuati, one of 
San Pedro Sula's wealthiest industrialists.  Canahuati served 
as a representative of Honduran private businesses in 
bilateral trade negotiations with neighboring Central 
American countries.  He was the vice president of the New 
Life Foundation, an organization dedicated to providing 
affordable housing in the San Pedro Sula area.  He has been 
an advocate for improving the Honduran education system, 
working with the Educatodos Project sponsored by USAID.   He 
also previously served as the President of the Honduran 
National Business Council (COHEP). 
 
Security:  Oscar Arturo Alvarez Guerro 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  Alvarez ran for a congressional seat in the 
Department of Francisco Morazan and received the most votes 
of any congressional candidate in the November 2009 general 
election.  A skilled politician and charismatic individual, 
Alvarez may be a formidable contender should he run to be the 
National Party's presidential candidate in 2014. 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  Alvarez was appointed by former President Ricardo 
Maduro to serve as Minister of Security on August 3, 2002, 
after previously serving as the Vice Minister in the same 
ministry.  As Minister of Public Security, Alvarez played a 
key role in the implementation of the U.S. Homeland 
Security,s Container Security Initiative (CSI).  Alvarez 
resigned from his position on November 14, 2005 in order to 
help with the campaign of National Party presidential hopeful 
Porfirio "Pepe" Lobo.  Following Lobo,s defeat in 2005, 
Alvarez accepted a position at the Honduran Consulate in 
Houston, Texas on January 1, 2006, in order to find a 
sanctuary from the multiple death threats he received because 
of his hard-hitting policies on crime as Minister of 
Security.  Alvarez's wife, Elena continues to live in 
Houston, Texas with her four children. 
 
¶11.  (U)  From 1999 to 2001, Alvarez was a law enforcement 
consultant for DynCorp, during which time he worked closely 
with the Embassy,s police assistance initiative as a 
contractor for the International Criminal Investigation 
Training Assistance Program (ICITAP).  He served as advisor 
to former President Rafael Callejas (1990-1994) on security 
and policymatters from 1990 to 1993 and served as Assistant 
Defense Attach at the Honduran Embassy in Washington, D.C. 
from 1986 to 1990. 
 
¶12.  (C)  Alvarez is characterized as a smooth politician and 
lobbyist who, following his years of work with ICITAP, is 
especially adept at handling American officials.  Alvarez 
also has an obvious thirst for power.  He favors strong 
police and military forces to tackle security problems.  He 
is a close confidant of former Honduran Presidents and 
National Party leaders Rafael Callejas and Ricardo Maduro. 
 
¶13.  (U)  Alvarez earned a Bachelor,s degree in political 
science with a minor in psychology from Texas A&M University. 
 He was the first member of the Honduran military selected as 
a Fulbright Scholar, obtaining a Master,s degree from Johns 
Hopkins University.  Alvarez attended several military 
schools in the US and completed Airborne and Ranger training. 
 
TEGUCIGALP 00000099  003 OF 005 
 
 
 
Culture, Arts, and Sports:  Bernard Martinez 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶14.  (U)  Martinez was the presidential candidate of the 
Social Democratic Innovation and Unity Party (PINU) in the 
2009 general election.  He is a Garifuna leader from the 
northern coast and was one of the first two Afro-Honduran 
presidential candidates in Honduras. 
 
¶15.  (U) From 2006 to 2009, Martinez was the Municipal 
Commissioner for the city of La Ceiba.  Martinez served as 
PINU,s President from 2004 to 2006, and he unsuccessfully 
ran for a congressional seat representing the departments of 
Atlantida and Colon in 2001 and 2005, respectively.  In 2000, 
he was a member of the Peace Commission for Colombia 
sponsored by UN Human Rights Commission.  He joined PINU in 
1996 and was the party's vice presidential candidate in 1997. 
 He was a member and activist of the Ethnic Community 
Development Organization from 1996 to 2005.  He became active 
in the Medical Workers, Union (SITRAMEDHYS) in 1986, and 
served as president of its La Ceiba branch in 1995 and 
president of its Trujillo area branch from 1990 to 1993. 
From 1984 to 1985 Martinez acted as the Coordinator of 
Environmental Health in La Ceiba, Atlantida.  In the early 
1980s, he was a member of the Honduran Patriotic Front, a 
left-wing electoral alliance. 
 
¶16.  (SBU)  In the aftermath of the June, 28, 2009 coup 
d,tat, Martinez criticized President Jose Manuel "Mel" 
Zelaya,s plan to hold a poll on whether the general election 
should include a referendum on a constitutional assembly. 
Not all members of the PINU party fully supported the 
candidacy of Martinez, as some of its members were vehemently 
opposed to holding an election unless President Zelaya was 
reinstated to office. 
 
Labor and Social Security:  Felicito Avila Ordonez 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶17.  (SBU)  Avila was the presidential candidate of the 
Christian Democratic Party in the 2009 general election and 
came in fourth in a field of five candidates.  Avila is 
widely liked and viewed as an honest and hardworking man.  He 
is well-known mainly due to his work in the labor movement. 
Avila has held positions including General Center of Workers 
representative to the Honduran Institute of Social Security, 
delegation member of the Central American Free Trade 
Agreement-Dominican Republic (CAFTA-DR) negotiations, Civil 
Society Representative in the Consultative Group for Central 
America in Washington, D.C. and Stockholm, Sweden, and 
representative for the Latin American Workers Committee 
(CLAT), a group representing more than 20 million organized 
laborers. 
 
Governance and Justice:  Carlos Africo Madrid Hart 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶18.  (U)  Madrid was elected Vice President of the National 
Party at the party's national convention on March 14, 2009. 
He served as the official spokesman of the National Party for 
the political campaign of 2009 and as the executive secretary 
of the party and director of its central committee.  He also 
served as a member of the legislature. As a member of 
congress, Madrid fought against Honduras joining the 
Bolivarian Alternative of the Americas (ALBA). He was a vocal 
supporter of the de facto regime that took power following 
the June 28 coup d'etat. 
 
¶19.  (U)  Madrid served as Assistant Labor Minister under 
President Maduro in 2005.  From February 2002 to May 2004, 
Madrid acted as liaison on behalf of the Supreme Court to the 
Honduran Election Tribunal. 
 
Public Works and Transportation (SOPTRAVI):  Miguel Pastor 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
 
 
TEGUCIGALP 00000099  004 OF 005 
 
 
¶20.  (U)  Pastor was the National Party Mayor of Tegucigalpa 
from 2002 to 2006. Before that, he served as a member of 
Congress for the Department of Francisco Morazan from 1998 
through 2002, where he was a member of the Finance, Media, 
Commerce, and Defense Commissions.  He was an alternate 
congressional representative from 1994 through 1998. 
 
¶21.  (SBU)  During the 2008 primary election, Pastor launched 
an unsuccessful second bid for the National Party 
presidential candidacy.  Pastor is considered a possible 
contender in the 2014 presidential race. 
 
¶22.   (U)  Pastor's mother was the Consul General of the 
Honduran Consulate in New Orleans, and Pastor spent a 
significant period of his youth in the United States.  He 
earned a degree in business administration and finance from 
the University of New Orleans in 1988. 
 
Minister of Education:  Alejandro Ventura 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶23.  (C)  Ventura is a teachers union leader and has been the 
president of the First Teachers Union (Prichma) for twenty 
years.  Very active in the "resistance" in the post-coup 
period, he was responsible for organizing and leading 
teachers' strikes.  Ventura was part of the group of teachers 
that developed the education proposal used in Lobo's campaign. 
 
Industry and Commerce:  Oscar Armando Escalante Ayala 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶24.  (U)  Escalante is a longtime labor leader who was 
elected assistant Secretary General of the General Workers 
Confederation (CGT) in 1980 and later served as the National 
Party's Secretary for Worker and Peasant Issues.  In 1990, he 
took a leave of absence from his leadership position with the 
CGT and was the congressional deputy for Olancho, helping 
formulate the GOH's labor policy.  After vacating his 
congressional seat in 1994, he continued working as an 
official advisor to congress, a four-year position. 
Escalante lost bids for congress in both 2005 and 2008.  For 
the past several years, Escalante has managed capacity 
building programs for the National Party.  Escalante was the 
recipient of a USIS International Visitor grant in 1988. 
 
Health:  Arturo "Tuky" Bendana Pinel 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶25.  (U)  Bendana is a doctor (gynecologist) by trade who 
until recently served as an alderman in San Pedro Sula. 
Bendana ran for mayor of San Pedro Sula on Lobo's National 
Party ticket in 2005 and 2009, losing both races.  He comes 
from a family of doctors that founded Hospital Bendana and 
has also worked as the director of Hospital Mario Catarino 
Rivas (the largest hospital in San Pedro Sula). 
 
Finance:  William Chong Wong 
--------------------------- 
 
¶26.  (U)  Wong served as Deputy Minister of Finance and then 
briefly as Minister of Finance in the administration of 
President Maduro.  Previously, he was director of the 
Honduran tax administration.  Prior to his appointment, Wong 
served as an economic consultant and administrator at Unitec, 
the national technological university.  Wong is a 
longstanding economic advisor to the National Party. 
 
Central Bank:  Maria Elena Mondragon de Villar 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶27.  (U)  Mondragon earned a master's degree in economics 
from Memphis State University and a bachelor's degree in 
economics from the Autonomous National University of 
Honduras.  She served as Central Bank president during the 
administration of President Ricardo Maduro.  Previously, she 
had a long career as a staff member at the Central Bank. 
Mondragon served a term as president of the Central American 
 
TEGUCIGALP 00000099  005 OF 005 
 
 
Monetary Council from 2002 to 2003.  Prior positions include 
director of commercial policy at the Ministry of Industry and 
Commerce and financial manager of the Atlantida Group, a 
financial and banking consortium.  Most recently, Mondragon 
served as director of economics and finance of the Foundation 
for the Promotion of Democracy and Social Well-Being 
(FUNDEMOS). 
 
Revenue Service (DEI):  Jose Oswaldo Guillen 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶28.  (U)  Guillen is a partner in Bufete Guillen, Guillen & 
Associados, a prominent Tegucigalpa law firm.  He previously 
served as Secretary General of the Ministry of Governance and 
Justice.  In addition to his legal practice, he is a law 
professor at the national university.  As a student in 1998, 
he participated in a USAID study tour of the U.S. justice 
system.  He is a member of a prominent National Party family. 
 
Agrarian National Institute:  Cesar Ham 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶29.  (U)  Ham is president of the Democratic Unification 
Party (UD) and has served as congressman for the department 
of Yoro.  A sociologist by training, Ham was the presidential 
candidate of UD in the November 2009 general election. 
 
¶30.  (SBU) In the aftermath of the June 28, 2009 coup 
d,tat, Ham supported President Jose Manuel "Mel" Zelaya. 
He played a key role in the organization of the "fourth urn" 
poll scheduled for June 28, 2009 which would have asked the 
public whether they supported a referendum on the holding of 
a Constituent Assembly being included in the November 2009 
general election.  During the election campaign season, Ham 
threatened to resign his candidacy if President Zelaya was 
not reinstated to office prior to elections, but decided to 
stay in the race on November 21, just eight days before 
Election Day.  This created a schism in the Democratic 
Unification Party because some party members accused Ham of 
contravening the party's decision that its members would 
forego congressional perks. 
 
Tourism:  Nelly Jerez 
--------------------- 
 
¶31.  (U)  Jerez formerly served as a member of Congress for 
the National Party.  She is a close associate of President 
Lobo.  Jerez is a dentist by profession. 
 
Communications:  Miguel Angel Bonilla 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶32.  (U)  Bonilla served as director of communication for 
President Lobo during his presidential campaign.  His father 
was Minister of Agriculture under President Flores (1998 to 
2002).  He has a degree in communications from an American 
university. 
LLORENS