Tegucigalpa - Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, the
influential head of the Honduran Roman Catholic Church, on Saturday
asked ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya to remain abroad and
avoid a 'blood bath.'
'Not one single Honduran has died until today, please reconsider
because then it would be too late,' Rodriguez Maradiaga said in a
statement addressed to the ousted president.
Zelaya had planned to return to Honduras Saturday in the company
of several other Latin American heads of state. However, given his
attendance at a meeting of the Organization of American States
(OAS) Saturday in Washington that could see Honduras ousted from the
regional group, it was likely that the return would be delayed until
Sunday.
The Honduran Church - which had been critical of the conservative-
turned-left-winger Zelaya long before Sunday's coup that ousted him -
also asked the OAS to 'pay attention to everything illegal that has
been happening in Honduras, and not just from June 28.'
'We are telling the international community of the right we have
to define our own destiny without unilateral pressures of any kind,
seeking solutions that promote the good of all. We reject threats of
the use of force or blockades of any kind that only make the poorest
suffer,' the Honduran Bishops' Conference statement said.
The document noted that when Zelaya was arrested by the military
'he was no longer acting as president,' since he had violated the
country's constitution.
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